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8 October 2025
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Returning to surplus, squiggly lines and markets, the need for specialist disability advice, keeping your SMSF safe from the taxman while overseas, how debt agreements work, and a Q&A on super caps for 65+.
Australia in 2014 is the lowest taxed nation in the developed world. Facing ten years of budget deficits, is the Abbott Government unwilling to raise tax rates, or will Joe Hockey make us share the pain come budget time?
Obviously it’s best to sell high and buy low, but in the irrational world of stock markets, the past may offer little guide to the future. The most we can realistically expect is to learn how to tilt the odds in our favour.
It's bad enough coping with disability without missing out on the services and support available. When it comes to financial planning, every adviser, carer and person with a disability can benefit from knowing their entitlements.
If your SMSF loses residency status while you are overseas, the tax penalties are significant enough to spoil your retirement. Being aware of the rules and options available allows you to avoid the hurt and enjoy the homecoming.
In certain circumstances, a Debt Agreement may be better than resorting to bankruptcy. It’s a more flexible way to settle unsecured debts and can be a win-win for both the debtors and creditors.
This AI cycle feels less like a revolution and more like a rerun. Just like fibre in 2000, shale in 2014, and cannabis in 2019, the technology or product is real but the capital cycle will be brutal. Investors beware.
An explosion in low-skilled migration to Australia has depressed wages, killed productivity, and cut rental vacancy rates to near decades-lows. It’s time both sides of politics addressed the issue.
LICs are continuing to struggle with large discounts and frustrated investors are wondering whether it’s worth holding onto them. This explains why the next 6-12 months will be make or break for many LICs.
Australian housing’s 50-year boom was driven by falling rates and rising borrowing power — not rent or yield. With those drivers exhausted, future returns must reconcile with economic fundamentals. Are we ready?
Younger Australians think they’ll need $100k a year in retirement - nearly double what current retirees spend. Expectations are rising fast, but are they realistic or just another case of lifestyle inflation?
This week, I got the news that my mother has dementia. It came shortly after my father received the same diagnosis. This is a meditation on getting old and my regrets in not getting my parents’ affairs in order sooner.