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21 December 2025
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A Grattan Institute report suggests lifetime annuities as a solution to people not spending their super balances. The issue is whether underspending is the real problem or a sign of more fundamental failings in our retirement system.
How do you start accessing your super funds when you stop working, or maybe even before you stop working? This covers the basics, including how to switch your super accumulation account to an account-based pension.
Pension payments in super after the age of 60 are tax free and anyone over 65 can switch their super into a pension account even if they do not change their employment. Why do so many continue paying 15% tax?
Tax breaks are one reason to have long term investments in super because it can mean a complete tax exemption on capital gains that have built up over years. But is it essential to start the pension before selling assets?
The new tax on super over $3 million brings alternatives into play for tax efficiency. For investors who can be bothered juggling different types of pools, there are ways to avoid the tax on unrealised gains.
This is a complex but important example of how a couple with large super balances can achieve the best result when one of them dies. Even if you have used your Transfer Balance Cap, there are options available.
The transfer balance cap has required some large SMSFs to transfer pension money back to accumulation, and the two pools must be treated carefully to maintain the full benefits from superannuation.
Life expectancies have increased dramatically since the nineties, but the uncertainty is forcing retirees to live too frugally. The super industry is switching its attention to the drawdown phase to find better solutions.
When changes to regulations are as extensive and complex as the coming 1 July rules, many misconceptions about how they work arise for both advisers and their clients. Here are a few common mistakes.
A unique feature of SMSFs is the concept of 'superannuation interests' which must be monitored to keep track of the taxable components in a super fund. Good records can avoid problems later.
The funds management industry is undergoing consolidation and evolving rapidly, under pressure to provide better service and high returns while cutting costs. Chris Cuffe discusses the present and the future.
I’ve long seen Buffett as a flawed genius: a great investor though a man with shortcomings. With his final letter to Berkshire shareholders, I reflect on how my views of Buffett have changed and the legacy he leaves.
With rates on hold and housing demand strong, lenders are pushing boundaries. As risky products return, borrowers should be cautious and not let clever marketing cloud their judgment.
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.
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.
What should you do if you think this market is grossly overvalued? While it’s impossible to predict the future, it is possible to prepare, and here are three tips on how to best construct your portfolio for what’s ahead.