Along with a 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.
Why Property Spruikers love Aussie Investors?
A recent report by Westpac, revealed some worrying statistics.
It also indicated many Aussie investors may end up investing in direct property, without really understanding why they are making the investment they are making.
On top of this, the majority of those surveyed made their property investments at high gearing levels.
Even with the report indicating big gaps in financial literacy, 43% of respondents considered themselves financially astute. However:
- approx. half of the respondents did not understand what the meaning of equity was.
- 48% did not know what an offset account was.
- 41% did not know what refinancing was.
“It is supposed to be hard. If it was easy everybody would be doing it” – Tom Hanks – A League of Their Own.
