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Wednesday, 27 October 2021
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Life expectancy numbers are often interpreted as the likely maximum age of a person but that is incorrect. Here are three reasons why the odds are in favor of people outliving life expectancy estimates.
Focussing on companies that will benefit from slow moving, long duration and highly predictable demographic trends can help investors predict future opportunities. Three main themes stand out.
Retirees want better returns but they have limited appetite to dial up their risk exposure in order to achieve it. Financial advice and protection strategies in portfolios can enhance investment outcomes.
The first of five articles on modern retirement income products that aim for an increasing pension that lasts for life and on average should not decline in real terms. They are not silver bullets but worth a look.
The super industry wants larger contributions to super, but the funds haven’t earned the right to more money. The industry has had decades to solve the longevity problem but it has produced nothing of note.
There are many items in the 'too hard basket' for super. Remember the proposed Retirement Income Covenant? It required trustees to develop an appropriate strategy for members, and it's time to progress with it.
Average life expectancies are a weak predictor of individual outcomes, and it's better to consider a range of probable lifespans. A plan that lasts to the average will disappoint every second retiree.
Over 50s make up 27% of Australia’s population and hold 50% of private wealth. Yet only 2% of marketing briefs focus on targeting this audience, which is active, ambitious, purposeful and diverse.
With more people living longer, retirement expectations are being reshaped and redefined. Now is the time to consider the financial and cultural solutions for making the most out of the gift of a longer life.
While financial solutions to longevity are worth pursuing, it is more important to educate people on what the late-stages of life are likely to deliver, and the time to prepare is now.
The financial concerns of those in or close to retirement are focussed on health and housing. Lower interest rates, rising healthcare costs and lifespan uncertainty legitimately compound those concerns.
Low interest rates have created problems for retirees, leading to the threat of a reduced lifestyle quality, running out of cash or accepting the age pension. Taking high risks at this point may make things worse.
We tend to forget that house prices often fall. Direct lending controls are more effective than rate rises because macroprudential limits affect the volume of money for housing leaving business rates untouched.
The survey drew a fantastic 2,000 responses with over 1,000 comments and polar opposite views on what is good policy. Do most people believe the home should be in the age pension asset test, and what do they say?
Any policy decision needs to recognise who is affected by a change. It pays to check the data on who pays taxes, who owns assets and who earns the income to ensure an equitable and efficient outcome.
With articles on the pensions assets test read about 40,000 times, 3,500 survey responses and thousands of comments, there was a lot of great reader participation. A few comments added extra insights.
It is hard to think of any area of widespread public concern where the same policies have been pursued for so long, in the face of such incontrovertible evidence that they have failed to achieve their objectives.
There are reasons to believe inflation will stay under control, and although we may see a slowing in the global economy, two companies should benefit from the themes of 'Stable Compounders' and 'Structural Winners'.