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Category: Articles

Fleeing DIY super – Why Eureka Report readers are turning away from SMSFs

PORTFOLIO POINT: Contributions to SMSFs are down dramatically and your verdict is in – Labor’s attack on “wealthy” trustees is responsible. And you’re very angry. Here’s what you said in response to my request for information. When the federal Labor government delivered its second budget, on May 12, 2009, it contained a set of changes […]

“Which is the best generation when it comes to managing their money, and which is the worst?”

How to defend the indefensible! Giving Gen Y some credit for future financial potential? Retirees are great with money. No question there. And I’ll ignore Gen Y. Like my 3yo boy, Ned, they’ve still got training wheels on. Any mistakes are relatively minor stuff. They’ll recover. Simply, Gen Xers are the best, Boomers the worst. […]

SMSF mystery

PORTFOLIO POINT: Why did SMSF super contributions plummet in FY2010? Plus Labor exercises good sense in ignoring Cooper’s arts ban recommendation. Okay, hands up if you increased contributions to your super fund in FY2010, compared to FY2009. Not too many. According to the results of a new survey, super contributions slumped by 22% in the […]

“What is the most important insurance for your generation to have and why?”

Simple answer. But the problem is that insurance is the “great grudge purchase”. So, let’s set the scene. Gen Xers are at an exciting, if exhausting, life stage. Marriage, mortgage and midgets (the triple Ms) have either happened, or are on the radar. Those who have so far dodged those bullets (Are you The Matrix?) […]

Death and taxes

PORTFOLIO POINT: If you don’t know what day you’re going to die, a little forward planning for your super assets is an imperative. When the Howard Government made super tax free for the over 60s, it might have appeared like all you had to do was reach that age and everything from that point was […]

“Nobody likes to lose money. What are the biggest financial rip-offs we should watch out for?”

You only want to hear “Come in spinner!” when you’re having a once-a-year flirt with an ANZAC Day two-up school. But every day, people are stalking you, trying to catch you napping financially, or preying on the vulnerable. It’s nothing personal. They’re not after you, just your coin. Are we talking about the ways people […]

How does your SMSF measure up?

PORTFOLIO POINT: The stats to June 30 are finally in. Today, rate your own performance as an SMSF investment manager for FY2010. For the first year in three, most super fund members and trustees won’t have to close one of their eyes when they see the performance of their super fund. Unless you took a […]

“When a family member suffers financial problems, what do you do? Compassion or tough love?”

How wealthy am I pretending to be? JR Ewing loaded? Mother Theresa poor? Or a mixture of Dan Akroyd and Eddie Murphy in Trading Places? The point being, if you’re dirt poor, then it won’t matter how much you love ’em, financial “compassion” might not be an option. But handing out money to solve problems […]

PORTFOLIO POINT: An election looks imminent. Labor’s “super plan” is taking shape. Here’s what you need to know. The dust is slowly settling on Labor’s blueprint for superannuation. None of it has been legislated and if Gillard doesn’t retain government at the next election, it will probably largely amount to naught. So, it’s seeming like […]

“What is the most memorable piece of share market advice you’ve heard and why?”

There’s always an “it” toy at Christmas – the toy that trendoids simply have to get their children. It was Tickle Me Elmo one year. Inevitably, stores run out. Disappointed and desperate parents, who left it to the last minute but simply “have to buy it” for their kid, will pay anything to get one. […]