Retirement Financial Advisor Cairns

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Thinking about Retirement Planning?

Here we look at how you can maximise your income in retirement, whether you’re:

  • A long way off retirement
  • Close to retirement; or
  • Already retired.

Retirement still more than 10 years away?

Retirement can seem irrelevant when you’re in your 30s or 40s.

There are so many other things to do with your money – going overseas, getting a house, raising a family, or just having fun.

However, according to research by the Investment and Financial Services Association (IFSA)1, the Age Pension won’t be nearly enough to fund the lifestyle we’d like when we’re no longer working.

So the best thing to do is to start saving now.

A young woman planning her retirement on a laptop in a cafe

Common questions to consider

Some questions you may wish to consider include:

  • How much do I need to retire on?

  • What is the best way of funding my retirement?

  • Is retirement too far off to start worrying now?

  • What should my employer be contributing towards my superannuation?

  • Is the Super Guarantee contribution enough to fund my retirement?

  • What is salary sacrifice?

  • Why are women recommended to make higher extra super contributions than men?

  • How do I know which fund to put my superannuation in?

  • My super is sitting in a few different funds. Is it worth moving it?

How we can help

We Can:

  • Review your financial situation.

  • Help set short and long term financial goals.

  • Look at how much money you will need in retirement based on the lifestyle you outline.

  • Identify your income and commitments.

  • Work with you to develop a new budget and investment plan to achieve your short-term goals and recommend strategies to accumulate the amount you need to meet your retirement plans.

  • Review and recommend appropriate insurance.

  • Recommend if you need to create or update a will.

Retiring within the next 5 – 10 years?

The combined effect of earlier retirement and living longer means that many Australians will spend more than a quarter of their life in retirement.

While this sounds like good news, it does emphasise the importance of planning carefully – and well in advance – for your retirement.

A couple sitting in camping chairs enjoying a sunset

Common questions to consider

Some questions you may wish to consider include:

  • How much do I need to retire on?
  • When can I access my super?
  • What are my options when I retire?
  • Will I pay tax on my super if I take a lump sum?
  • Is there any benefit in taking my superannuation as an income stream?
  • Am I eligible for the Age Pension?
  • How does the Income Test affect eligibility for the Age Pension?
  • How does the Assets Test affect eligibility for the Age Pension?
  • What is deeming?
  • Why are income streams treated differently?
  • What are the different types of income streams?

How we can help

We Can:

  • Establish when you want to retire and look at how much you need, or work out when you can retire based on your plans.

  • Establish a plan to accumulate enough retirement savings within your time-frame.

  • Review and recommend retirement income products so you can manage your money in retirement and make sure you can maximise any entitlements to social security benefits.

  • Review and update your insurance arrangements to make sure you aren’t under insured.

  • Advise whether you need to talk to a solicitor to create a comprehensive will or update your current will.

  • Review your financial situation and for best Retirement Planning packages suiting your situation through our assistance.

  • Help set short and long term financial goals.

  • Look at how much money you will need in retirement based on the lifestyle you outline.

  • Identify your income and commitments.

  • Work with you to develop a new budget and investment plan to achieve your short-term goals and recommend strategies to accumulate the amount you need to meet your retirement plans.

  • Review and recommend appropriate insurance.

  • Recommend if you need to create or update a will.

Already retired?

If you’ve already reached retirement age, you may feel you’re not yet ready to give up work altogether. If you’re eligible for the Age Pension, the government offers incentives for working people to defer claiming it.

On the other hand, if you’ve independently funded your retirement, you may benefit from keeping track of, or restructuring, your finances so you maximise any government entitlement.

An older retired couple enjoying a day at the beach

Common questions to consider

Some questions you may wish to consider include:

  • I’ve already retired. Isn’t it just about living off what I’ve managed to save now?

  • I have been retired for two years. Isn’t it too late to change my financial arrangements?

  • What is the Pension Bonus Scheme?

  • What are the eligibility requirements for the Pension Bonus Scheme?

  • How much is the Pension Bonus Scheme and when is it paid?

  • Apart from social security benefits, are we eligible for anything else now we’ve retired?

  • Now we’ve retired should we move house?

How we can help

We Can:

  • Monitor your investments and retirement income.
  • Provide regular updates about social security changes that might affect you.
  • Help you to navigate changes to the rules that may affect you.
  • Optimise your social security benefits.
  • Being considerate of your goals and objectives to arrange your investments and retirement income in an appropriate manner.
  • Plan, project and track your retirement to ensure your assets will meet your lifestyle needs.
  • Be that friendly face that assists with all your assets in one place.
  • Maximising your inheritance left to your loved ones in a tax effective way.