With a New Year now upon us, we have the opportunity for a fresh start.  For many of us there’s no better place to start than a re-think of the household finances.  In light of this, our financial planners in Sydney have put together their top list for getting your finances on track in 2012. [...]

If you’ve owned your own home for several years, the chances are that your property has increased in value at the same time that your mortgage has reduced.  This equity in your home can be a potential gold mine because you can borrow against it to invest, allowing you to harness your home’s financial potential.  [...]

As financial planners we are often asked about the top investment mistakes that people make before seeking professional financial advice.  Here are the top 5 investment mistakes we see novice investors make and how to avoid them:   1.  Lack of preparation As with any important decision, you need to make sure that you do [...]

Every parent knows that the cost of child care can be extremely expensive.  But, are you missing out on up to $7500 in childcare assistance?  Thousands of eligible Australian families are not claiming financial assistance to help them fund the high costs of child care.  This could make a big financial difference to your family [...]

If you have a Self Managed Super Fund (SMSF), it is very important that you understand your obligations to ensure that you keep on the right side of the ATO and avoid hefty fines. Here are some of the most important facts you should know about running a SMSF: 1. Understand SMSF withdrawal rules Just [...]

According to the Global Wealth Report 2011 by Credit Suisse, Australians are the wealthiest people in the world, with second place going to Switzerland.  The report compared the median (the mid-point between the wealthiest and poorest in a nation) wealth of adults worldwide and found that Australia’s median wealth is around $215,000 AUD  (about $220,000 [...]

Many Australians are seeking independent financial planning advice – that is, advice from a financial adviser that is not conflicted by factors such as ownership links or commissions.  The truth is that in Australia, independent financial planners are getting harder and harder to find.  This article aims to give you some tips about what to [...]

New Draft Ruling for SMSF Held Assets -When is a Repair not a Repair? There has always been a lot of debate about whether superannuation funds could make ‘repairs’ or ‘improvements’ to a property acquired under a borrowing arrangement.  Thankfully, the ATO recently released the Draft Self Managed Superannuation Funds Ruling (SMSFR 2011/D1) which seeks [...]

As financial advisors, many people ask as how much money they will need in retirement.  The answer really depends on a number of factors: – what sort of lifestyle do you want in retirement – how many years you expect your retirement funds to last (i.e. how many years after you stop working do you [...]

Over the past couple of months we in Australia have experienced some share market volatility in response to the widening debt issues in Europe and the US.  The announcement of Standard & Poor’s decision to reduce the US’s credit rating from AAA to AA+ in early August instigated several days of significant share market jitters [...]