Along with this raft of legislative change, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has also introduced new licensing requirements for accountants who work with and advise Self Managed Superannuation Fund (SMSF) Trustees. Only approx. 10% of accountants have complied with these changes to date.
As such if you, as many, consider your accountant would be your 1st port of call for Financial Advice, they will likely advise you, they are unable to provide the information you require & should consult a qualified Financial Adviser / Planner.
This is general advice only and you should seek expert financial advice from a qualified financial adviser before acting on any of the information covered in these topics.
Retiree Angst – What are the 5 main options available in the face of the COVID fallout?
- Retirees can accept the fact they may need to work longer. Delaying retirement by 3-5 years can have an enormous positive impact compounding returns has on retirement savings balances. For example, delaying retirement from 65 to 68 or 70 may be an option.
- Retirees do nothing. They may accept that they will draw down on their savings more rapidly and allow the age pension to kick in at certain asset levels to supplement their income.
- Look at returns in different places. The transfer of funds from expensive actively managed funds to lower cost / passive Exchange Traded Funds (ETF) has been massive. Very few active managers beat their relevant index over any time frames, but certainly over 3+ year time frames. What would retires not like about the concept of superior returns at a lower cost?
- Retirees may decide to spend less. For example, many habits will change for ever as this event unfolds. Domestic travel may replace overseas travel which will likely result in cost savings.
- Retirees may decide to take more risk with their investments. This type of decision should not be taken likely & may not be prudent for investors that are already retired. As the GFC and now COVID has shown us ‘Black Swan’ events can result in extreme volatility and time may not be on your side to rebuild capital.
“The definition of Insanity = doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.” – Albert Einstein.
