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22 December 2024
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The Government's broken promise on tax cuts has prompted speculation about other promises that it may consider breaking. It's widely believed that super is lightly taxed and a prime candidate for special attention.
Money withdrawn from super after age 60 is tax-free but less understood are arrangements that allows a couple over the age of 67 to earn up to $57,948 per year outside super and pay no tax with LITO and SAPTO.
There’s no good news in the draft legislation for 'Division 296 tax', the new name for the tax on super over $3 million. These worked examples show the flaw in taxing unrealised gains. And stop calling it a 30% tax.
Many people spooked by the proposed new tax on super balances over $3 million are contemplating withdrawing large amounts in the next few years before the tax takes effect. This isn't a good idea for most people.
Super reviews aggregate retirees into an impersonal number on a chart, but the 2,700 Australians who retire each week are undergoing a major change in their lives. Why and when do they retire and then what?
Australians don't need dodgy schemes in Caribbean islands to hide their wealth. There are plenty of legal ways to avoid paying tax but they will leave personal income tax carrying a heavy burden for future generations.
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?
Family trusts are used to hold wealth, with benefits like asset protection, tax planning, capital gains tax discount and ability to carry forward losses. But there are disadvantages that must be weighed up.
At some point, politicians will debate how to reduce the national debt and implement measures aimed at simultaneously easing budget pressures while reducing the gap between rich and poor. Investors should be ready.
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.
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.
The ATO distinguishes between LICs, deeming some as investors for tax purposes and some as traders for tax purposes. This distinction has implications for the way dividends are sourced and capital gains are treated.
It’s with heavy hearts that we announce Firstlinks’ co-founder and former Managing Editor, Graham Hand, has died aged 66. Graham was a legendary figure in the finance industry and here are three tributes to him.
Last year, I wrote an article suggesting returns from ASX stocks would trample those from housing over the next decade. One year later, this is an update on how that forecast is going and what's changed since.
Australia is in the early throes of an intergenerational wealth transfer worth an estimated $3.5 trillion. Here's a case study highlighting some of the challenges with transferring wealth between generations.
The Future Fund's original purpose was to meet the unfunded liabilities of Commonwealth defined benefit schemes. These liabilities have ballooned to an estimated $290 billion and taxpayers continue to be treated like fools.
ASFA provides a key guide for how much you will need to live on in retirement. Unfortunately it has many deficiencies, and the averages don't tell the full story of the growing gender superannuation gap.
The Big Four banks have had an extraordinary run and it’s left income investors with a conundrum: to stick with them even though they now offer relatively low dividend yields and limited growth prospects or to look elsewhere.