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Tag: ATO

Lifting the lid on property in super

      SUMMARY: SMSFs awoke to geared property earlier and in bigger numbers than previously realised. The hunger for geared property inside self-managed super funds is far bigger than previously understood. The Tax Office on Monday made a second consecutive massive annual upward revision of official figures regarding how widespread property gearing in super […]

Avoid a super contributions trap

SUMMARY: Getting around the traps to super contributions pre- and post-65. Getting money into super can be confusing, particularly for those at, or getting toward, the end of your working life. Turning 65 is when getting access to your super is easy. But putting money into super becomes more difficult. But not impossible, under the […]

A superannuation slap?

SUMMARY: A superannuation slap? Stand by for broken promises on super, probably in property. Given a choice between being slapped in the face and not being slapped in the face, I’ll take the latter. As I’m sure you would. Particularly if you weren’t aware that a slap was on the menu. (Seems to have been […]

Beware the beaut deal

I’VE always thought that I was pretty smart when it came to buying cars. But maybe I’m just a cheapskate. In more than 25 years of driving, I’ve bought just five sets of wheels. In order, a 1980 Holden Gemini, a 1984 Ford Laser, a 1991 Ford Laser, a 2001 Holden Commodore and a 2009 […]

Lending to your SMSF? Look out

SUMMARY: SMSFs who were pushing the boundaries on 0% related-party loans face big tax penalties from the ATO. When the Tax Office wants to close a door, they’ve been known to slam it with a noise that can be heard for miles. This sometimes happens even where they themselves opened the door and then left […]

Saying goodbye to work … slowly

SUMMARY: Retiring too early? Don’t, there are plenty of reasons to stay working until you’re really ready to ride off into the sunset. The idea of turning in your badge, at the end of a long career, is becoming increasingly unpopular. For some, it’s actually dreaded. More and more, Australians want to continue working beyond […]

The franking credit fallacy

SUMMARY: SMSFs like franked dividends. And as a result, they pay more tax, not less, than regular super funds. The DIY super army is under fire again. Now the claim is that they don’t pay tax, or “evade” paying tax. It’s a flimsy argument, based on the premise that self-managed super funds invest in companies […]

Taking stock of in-specie transfers

SUMMARY: Time to start considering some tax planning after another good run for shares. So let’s revisit in-specie transfers to your SMSF. There was a time, fairly recently, when SMSFs trustees were considered liars and frauds in the eyes of the government (and the Treasury). At least in regards to the in-specie transfer of assets […]

SMSFs become a distorting force

SUMMARY: The power wielded by Australia’s SMSF sector is growing. Will we use that power wisely, or just in individual self-interest? When it comes to throwing its weight around, there is one super fund that can put quakes and quivers into the spines of board directors globally. CalPERS, the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, can […]

Getting your SMSF 2014 ready

SUMMARY: Here are nine steps to get your SMSF ready for whatever’s ahead in 2014. In life, you can look forward or you can look back. But it usually pays to do a bit of both. While the final results aren’t in yet for calendar 2013, it was a fine year for investors and self-managed […]