(03) 9020 2905

Welcome to Bruce Brammall Financial

Tag: pensions

Powering up the pension

PORTFOLIO POINT: Many pensioners are facing massive increases in the minimum super pensions they draw this year. Here’s how you can deal with it. Hands up if you want more income? It sounds like a rhetorical question, with the logical answer being everyone. Not so. Many readers will be forced to take dramatic rises in […]

A super change to avoid death and taxes

PORTFOLIO POINT: A death-tax removed! A major tax win for super pensions was a pleasant surprise in the recent mini-budget. How often would a government tell the Tax Office to back off on legitimate revenue raising? In terms of animal species, it would certainly be classed as “rare”. It would probably be considered “endangered” if […]

Raising the preservation bar

PORTFOLIO POINT: The pressure is on to lift superannuation’s “preservation age” closer to age pension eligibility. We know superannuation is about investing for the long term. There’s an accumulation phase of up to 45 years. That’s about getting enough money into it and then managing it as well as possible so that it’s enough to […]

Picking a pension winner

PORTFOLIO POINT: Maximising income streams in retirement can involve financial magic, particularly where Centrelink is concerned Super pension income is tax-effective income. We all know that. It’s just a case of whether it’s tax-free, or tax-advantaged. If you’re over age 60, the income comes to you tax-free. If you’re under age 60, then a super […]

Adviser report scary

PORTFOLIO POINT: Want financial advice on retirement, pensions or Centrelink entitlements? Read this before you make your first phone call. You wouldn’t have believed some of the squealing that followed the release of the latest adviser shadow shopping report. Responses from advisers included gems such as “staggered with the arrogance of ASIC” and “why not […]

DIY countdown to June 30

PORTFOLIO POINT: The countdown to 30 June has started. Here’s your SMSF preparation checklist to make the most of this year. While superannuation isn’t a race, there are aspects of it that take on great urgency at times. And, for those who run their own SMSF, that’s especially true. Leaving everything to the last minute […]

Financial Advisers don’t make the grade

PORTFOLIO POINT: Want financial advice on retirement, pensions or Centrelink entitlements? Read this before you make your first phone call. You wouldn’t have believed some of the squealing that followed the release of the latest adviser shadow shopping report. Responses from advisers included gems such as “staggered with the arrogance of ASIC” and “why not […]

A good DIY deed

PORTFOLIO POINT: Four things you need to check to make sure more of your super keeps on breathing after you stop. The prime driver for people getting into self-managed super funds is control. In rough order, of the types of control that SMSF trustees want to exert, it’s usually control over investments, control over tax […]

Super? Make that ‘safety net’

PORTFOLIO POINT: The short-term future for superannuation for even average income earners is looking increasingly grim. Lower your expectations for super to being nothing more than a safety net. Here’s what’s changed It might be stating the bleeding obvious, but sometimes you need to take a step back to view the bigger picture. And what’s […]

Check your “retirement readiness”

PORTFOLIO POINT: With Labor confirmed in government, here’s an interesting piece of research about the potential impact their retirement and super policies. Sometimes, a survey that has little to do with you, or your situation, is worth reading. Just because it gives you a “big picture” insight into what’s going on outside our own little […]