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NEWS - SUPERANNUATION
Baby boomers in for superannuation shock
Research confirms that baby boomers are in for a massive retirement shock due to a huge gap between their expectations for retirement and the financial reality of what they are able to afford.
Rethink your retirement strategy
There are two messages in the superannuation reforms: start saving for retirement at a young age and be prepared to work as long as possible.
When property can be hard to digest
The Australian Taxation Office says that about 5 per cent of the $165billion in self-managed super funds is in real estate - that's just over $8 billion worth of property, with a lot being properties from which a small business is being run.
Calculating your pension
If you take your super savings as a tax-effective retirement income stream paid from a self-managed fund, the amount of income you will receive each year will depend on several factors.
Tax savings for older workers
The introduction of pre-retirement pensions from July 1 has put the spotlight on strategies that can boost superannuation savings for older workers who are still in the workforce.
The pitfalls in unusual investments
A Federal Court decision recently has highlighted the diverse risks that members of DIY superannuation funds face when they try to take advantage of the investment flexibility that such savings vehicles can offer.
A short guide to controlling your future
Savers considering a DIY superannuation fund should ask themselves four key questions before they enter the brave new world, two government regulators advise.
All you ever wanted to know ...
There is an abundance of information available to the estimated 4.8 million people who will be free to choose a superannuation fund from July 1, from simple explanations to detailed analysis of individual super funds.
The ABC of Super choice
Most people spend more time choosing a new car or a washing machine than shopping around for their superannuation. But as of July 1 - when 5.7million employees will get to choose their own fund - Australians are going to have to devote a whole lot more time to their super statements than a cursory glance once a year.
Should you switch into an industry fund?
'Cheap superannuation fund with excellent returns available to disenchanted investors." This catchcry has sparked spirited debate as financial institutions fight for a competitive advantage ahead of new laws which will let more than 4 million Australians switch super funds in July.
Important life choices
Believe it or not, some of the best life insurance deals are available through superannuation funds. If you want total and permanent disability insurance or income protection it may be cheaper to buy it through your super fund.
The Do-It-Yourself Guide to Super
There was a time, not so long ago, when only people with small family businesses set up what are today described as self-managed or do-it-yourself superannuation funds.
Getting more life out of your pension
This week, market-linked pensions are officially allowed to be established within a self-managed super fund.
ATO about-turn on fund fees
In a surprise decision, the Tax Office has conceded that a family business or employer making superannuation contributions to a do-it-yourself super fund can pay the fund's administration expenses as long as the payment is properly recorded and treated as a taxable contribution.
New DIY super regime under attack
Influential sections of the superannuation industry have slammed the recent proposed regulations for do-it-yourself superannuation funds and, by the end of a recent hearing by the Senate economics legislation committee, the committee itself was a little testy with the bureaucrats running the process.
ATO loses split-super test case
Advocates of income splitting have received a boost after a court ruled that superannuation contributions made by a private company for its owners were not a tax avoidance strategy.
Outsource your DIY Super admin
Anyone interested in a DIY super fund will usually ask about the costs that are likely to be involved. When giving an answer, this should be qualified with a question: how much do you actually want to do yourself?
Super explained simply
You could be forgiven for feeling more than a little confused about superannuation at the moment. In just two weeks, millions of people have been given a choice of super fund where previously they had access to only one, details of a whole new type of pension have been released and the ban on do-it-yourself super funds paying life pensions has been temporarily lifted.
Fee changes pave way for super choice
Employees may be able to choose their own superannuation fund after the federal government yesterday won political backing for a new regime that will require greater disclosure of fees charged by financial institutions and advisers.
Fees to become slightly more transparent
Superannuation investors are unlikely to get a simple measure of the cost of their retirement fund under new rules to be introduced by July 1, despite continued calls for the industry to provide dollar estimates of its lucrative fees.
Tax Office issues DIY super warning
Australian Taxation Office commissioner Michael Carmody has warned he has significant concerns about the management of do-it-yourself superannuation.
DIY Super can be rewarding
In previous years, do-it-yourself superannuation funds or self-managed funds have been seen as an investment vehicle, and perhaps a form of tax avoidance, for the seriously rich.
DIY Super - the legal obstacle course
With its ever changing and progressively more complicated rules and regulations, superannuation has long ceased to be an easy-to-understand investment vehicle.
ATO alert for non-complying DIY super funds
The Australian Taxation Office has signalled that it will be clamping down on individuals who use their personal superannuation funds to buy holiday houses or run their business.
A tax-free gift for your children?
A particular attraction of self-managed superannuation is the control you have over it, including the treatment of any super that remains in the fund on the death of a member.
Quarterly super guarantee now an obligation
Employers who contribute superannuation on behalf of employees are being reminded that a quarterly super guarantee payment is now an obligation, even though they still have a month to deposit the money into the fund bank account. That includes family businesses where the employer and employee is the same person and there is a DIY fund in place.
Deal on tax break for super
Taxpayers will get a long-awaited tax break on superannuation after the federal government reached a compromise with the Australian Democrats yesterday.
DIY funds under scrutiny
Trustees of DIY super funds beware - the Australian Taxation Office is getting serious when it comes to supervising and regulating self-managed superannuation funds. With an estimated 2500 new funds every month joining the more than 260,000 already established - an annual growth rate of nearly 10 per cent - the more than $103 billion self-managed funds sector is on a roll.
Salary-sacrifice strategy has its traps
For anyone who can afford it, sacrificing salary into super can be a very effective retirement savings strategy. It's widely suggested for those who are close to retirement and want to give their super a late jolt.
For maximum income why not DIY?
DIY super funds can take advantage of the complex rules of superannuation and retirement products perhaps more than other products, giving investors extra avenues to maximise income once they quit work.
Growing pressure on advisers to measure up
Financial planners, accountants and trustees in the self-managed super fund sector are being sent very clear messages from the government and regulators: shape up or else.
Taxman cracks down on super
The Australian Taxation Office is planning a wave of legal action against employers and self-managed superannuation funds after audits revealed significant non-compliance.
Super: new breach reporting
A government proposal infers that the present system of auditing superannuation funds by the private sector is not working.
Court blow to superannuation tax
State judges yesterday won an exemption from paying the superannuation surcharge in a landmark High Court ruling that has fuelled criticism of the controversial tax on high-income earners.
Funds no longer have a licence to confuse
There is a yawning gap between what consumers understand about superannuation and what the facts are.
When a superannuation fund describes a product in its prospectus, most consumers do not understand what they are saying.
Super breaks
Taking time out of the workforce to study, have children or care for elderly parents can make a huge difference to how much superannuation you end up with.
Early notice on pension rollback rule
Assistant Treasurer Helen Coonan's office has advised that the Government hopes to put to Parliament before the end of this year legislation allowing pension rollbacks within the same super fund. Coonan announced the measure on July 1, well ahead of the legislation.
Don't rush to take that super in a lump sum
If you want to ensure that your superannuation savings produce enough income for a comfortable retirement, don't be in a rush to decide what to do with them.
Super funds fail to meet risk standards
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority has warned that 5 per cent of superannuation funds are high risk because of bad investment procedures and possible misuse of funds, and that up to 10 per cent could fail to meet standards it is considering implementing.
Self-managed funds come with many strings attached
There is a number of specific obligations involved in setting up a self-managed super fund, two of which have been added recently and are probably not well known. Both of these obligations are topical in the light of the fact that DIY funds are reportedly being established at a rate of more than 2,000 a month, with some advisers saying they have never been so busy.
Poor returns drive super investors to alternatives
Poor market returns are leading superannuation investors to consider alternatives to traditional assets such as exchange traded funds, according to State Street Global Advisors.
The most important investment you make
Up to one quarter of Australians are about to make the biggest investment decision of their lives. It will determine how they will survive during their last 20 to 30 years and whether they will need government support in old age.
Super funds head into the red
Australians face the serious prospect of being hit by a reduction in their overall superannuation investments in the year to June 30 unless there is a sharp rally in world stockmarkets in the next seven weeks.
Tougher rules to control trustees
A high-level report to the Federal Government has recommended sweeping reforms to superannuation, including tougher prudential requirements for trustees in the $100 billion employer-based funds sector.
Super review plan dropped
The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia has abandoned plans for a full review of super because of the delay that could cause in implementing reform.
Super news about splitting savings
New laws will let divorcing couples split superannuation savings from later this year and create new tactics for negotiating property settlements after a marriage breakdown.
Super security faces scrutiny
The next phase in the debate about safety in superannuation will begin when the Federal Government holds round table meetings in Sydney today and in Melbourne on Thursday.
Small business investment in super 'poor'
Small business is not investing nearly as much as it should be in superannuation, thanks to deterrents such as the administrative chaos created by the Federal Government's 15 per cent superannuation surcharge, according to Sydney financial planner Mr Michael Hutton.
Super fund returns worst year
Australian fund managers have notched up their worst calendar-year performance for superannuation investors since 1994, hit by volatile global financial markets and the world economic slowdown. Fund managers achieved only a median return of 3.8 per cent for the 2001 calendar year and minus 0.2 per cent for the first six months of this financial year.
Super funds count cost
The Australian superannuation system has suffered its worst quarterly performance in seven years and its worst September quarter for 20 years. The pooled growth funds sector shows a $4 billion hit from the September 11 terrorism fallout.
New rules for superannuation funds
Superannuation funds face tough rules setting minimum levels of capital and rigorous licensing to weed out so-called amateur trustees under reforms aimed at providing greater protection to the $300 billion industry.
Taxes blamed for low voluntary super numbers
A report released this week by the Australian Bureau of Statistics has again highlighted the politically sensitive issue of taxes on superannuation contributions and their effect on the adequacy of retirement savings.
Freewheeling benefits of DIY funds
Most Australians belong to a superannuation fund selected by their employers, but the appeal of controlling their own financial destinies has seen do-it-yourself funds grow at a cracking pace.
New super regulations
The two major Federal Government organisations which effectively regulate the superannuation business have, belatedly, moved to ensure employers pay over employees' voluntary contributions to their superannuation funds.
Do-it-yourself Super
There are some people who like to be personally active in their financial arrangements, and small super funds offer a host of opportunities to exercise greater control over investments and pursue a range of tax and cash-flow management strategies, many of which are at the cutting edge.
Superannuation returns dive
Australia's superannuation funds have had their worst financial year in a decade, with their exposures to global equity markets slashing their performance figures.
Super funds bogged down
Superannuation fund members will be lucky to receive more than 6 per cent this financial year if the performance revealed in this week's InTech balanced fund survey holds out.
Super contributions mooted tax changes
One of the superannuation industry's more serious nightmares is the policy idea of changing the tax rate on contributions to reflect the marginal tax rate of individual members of funds.
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