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31 December 2025
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Racehorse investing and breeding, recession patterns, updating your investment philosophy, effects of pension reforms and the benefits of low turnover funds.
According to the ATO, SMSFs only hold 0.5% of their portfolios in global shares, despite the institutional average being over 20%. A closer look at the ATO data sources reveals that this statistic is most unreliable.
Less than half of today's workforce has experienced a proper recession, but in the absence of serious reform and vision, Australia may break its 25 years of economic growth.
Ben Graham’s brilliant investment insights have served investors well since the 1940s, including Buffett. But many companies are different today and it makes sense to update and move on.
Under the current pension reforms, changes to the asset test taper, which are designed to reduce the entitlement of part-pensioners, will also hit ‘downsizers’ and people moving into aged care hard.
In Australia, fund manager performance is most often assessed on pre-tax returns. But a low portfolio turnover can potentially provide better after-tax returns relative to a high turnover actively managed fund.
Before you jump in and invest in that racehorse with its potential Group 1 winnings and breeding credentials, here is a reality check on your dreams of fame and fortune from someone in the know.
Joe Hockey made strong statements on super reform this week: "Superannuation policy is incredibly complex ... So adding to the complexity by laying on new additional changes is daft."
Retirement isn’t a clean financial arc. Income shocks, health costs and family pressures hit at random, exposing the limits of age-based planning and the myth of a predictable “retirement journey".
The superannuation system has succeeded brilliantly at what it was designed to do: accumulate wealth during working lives. The next challenge is meeting members’ diverse needs in retirement.
Two years ago, I wrote an article suggesting that the odds favoured ASX shares easily outperforming residential property over the next decade. Here’s an update on where things stand today.
I am a professional real estate investor who hears a lot of opinions rather than facts from so-called experts on the topic of property. Here are the largest myths when it comes to Australia’s biggest asset class.
In an interview with Firstlinks, CEO Mark Freeman discusses how speculative ASX stocks have crushed blue chips this year, companies he likes now, and why he’s confident AFIC’s NTA discount will close.
It might not be quite an ‘everything bubble’ but there’s froth in many assets, not just US stocks, right now. It might be time to stress test your portfolio and consider assets that could offer you shelter if trouble is coming.