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22 January 2025
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Unlike family trusts, testamentary trusts are activated posthumously, empowering you to exert post-death control over your assets. Learn how testamentary trusts offer unique benefits and protective measures.
There are well over 800,000 family trusts in Australia, controlling more than $3 trillion of assets. Here's a guide on whether a family trust may have a place in your individual investment strategy.
Even though SMSF trust deeds are often generic nowadays and almost always easy to change, they’re still vital. They’re definitely not all the same so it’s important that SMSF trustees know what they’ve got.
Should you bring your children into your SMSF? It's a complex issue that's likely to be different for everyone, though here are some considerations before making a decision - one that hopefully satisfies all parties.
A significant compliance breach can materially affect the tax effectiveness of your SMSF, so check you are complying with these seven steps and stay on top of the administration and obligations.
An SMSF’s governing documents, including the trust deed, should specify trustee structure in the event of the death of a member, to ensure that the deceased’s estate plan is realised.
Only 22% of SMSFs have a corporate trustee, with the rest using individual trustees. The benefits of a corporate trustee are not widely appreciated or adopted, but they will be realised when it's too late.
Transacting with related parties within an SMSF needs careful attention to avoid contravening the law. It can be tricky working out who is a related party, but doing everything at arm's length is a good start.
Your SMSF Trust Deed is an important document, governing what the trustees are allowed to do. As superannuation laws change, so too must the Trust Deed, or you risk having a non-compliant fund on your hands.
A compilation of answers to readers’ questions covering powers of attorney, enduring guardianship, succession planning and limited recourse borrowing arrangements (LRBAs) within an SMSF.
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.
The housing market was subdued in 2024, and pessimism abounds as we start the new year. 2025 is likely to be a tale of two halves, with interest rate cuts fuelling a resurgence in buyer demand in the second half of the year.
The renowned investor has penned his first investor letter for 2025 and it’s a ripper. He runs through what bubbles are, which ones he’s experienced, and whether today’s markets qualify as the third major bubble of this century.
This examines the performance of key asset classes and sub-sectors in 2024 and over longer timeframes, and the lessons that can be drawn for constructing an investment portfolio for the next decade.
Key lessons include expensive stocks can always get more expensive, Bitcoin is our tulip mania, follow the smart money, the young are coming with pitchforks on housing, and the importance of staying invested.
Check out the most-read Firstlinks articles from 2024. From '16 ASX stocks to buy and hold forever', to 'The best strategy to build income for life', and 'Where baby boomer wealth will end up', there's something for all.