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7 October 2026
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Financial advice can lead to improved financial literacy, a healthier super balance and a higher standard of living in retirement. Is now the time to give yourself the gift of financial advice?
Good advisers lead to more diversification, lower turnover and less home bias. However, studies show the average adviser may not be adding much value to clients.
The NSW government is cutting the use of consultants. Universities have also been criticized for relying on consultants as cover for restructuring plans. But are consultants really the problem they're made out to be?
Most people entering retirement do not see a financial adviser, mainly due to cost. It's a major problem because there are small mistakes a retiree can make which are expensive and avoidable if a few tips were known.
Financial advice has moved well beyond simply recommending investments, with five major components to quality advice. Helping clients avoid potentially disastrous mistakes is often underestimated.
When someone moves into residential aged care, they are assessed based on their assets and income. An important change is coming on 1 July 2020 that clients and their advisers should understand.
Aged care should not be narrowly defined, as opportunities include home care, granny flats, retirement villages, land lease communities and residential aged care. Take advice and don't rush it.
In a time where advisers are under pressure to demonstrate their value, the latest Russell Investments ‘Value of an Adviser’ report reveals investors gain around 4.4% per year through a quality advice partnership.
Two court cases have laid the blame for poor SMSF documentation and investments at the feet of auditors. It's not a 'tick and flick' exercise and there are lessons for SMSF trustees and professionals.
The characteristic tone of the Royal Commission was set on the first day focus on financial advice, and no witness has been able to defend commissions to advisers and the vertical integration model.
The Royal Commission is asking whether percentage-based fees offer the wrong incentives and why administration is not a flat fee business. Where might this go in wealth management?
As pensioners and advisers adapt to the asset test changes, they should not place a different value on a dollar of income and a dollar of accumulated capital to support a retiree's lifestyle.
Conventional wisdom encourages retirees to preserve superannuation. But if those likely to qualify for the Age Pension later in life spend a little more today, it may deliver higher lifetime income and a more stable retirement.
A high-profile dividend cut and a prominent fund manager’s apology have reignited a long-running debate. If investors can access similar exposures more cheaply and efficiently elsewhere, what exactly is keeping LICs alive?
For generations, Australian investors have backed banks, miners and dividends. But has that loyalty come at a cost? A look at the numbers raises an uncomfortable question about where future returns will come from.
The fight over testamentary trusts looked settled. Then the draft legislation arrived. Hidden in a technical detail is a question that could force many families to rethink wills they thought were already future-proof.
Reversionary pensions have long been a staple of SMSF estate planning, but are they still the best option? Meg Heffron revisits a once-clear favourite and asks whether changing super rules have shifted the balance.
Investors have long accepted one portfolio rule without much question. A major tax shift could change that calculation entirely, forcing difficult trade-offs between risk, discipline and an overlooked cost lurking beneath.