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2011 checklist: 10 super tips for a financially healthy retirement

Here’s a suggestion: use this list as a kick-start for your super New Year resolutions. You may not keep all of your resolutions, but if you do just a handful of the tasks listed in the checklist below, you can strengthen the chances of a financially secure retirement. Read more

A comfortable retirement: How much super is enough?

So, the big question is: how much money do you really need for your retirement? Lifestyle is a very personal thing — luxury living for one person is a modest existence for someone else. I don’t intend to suggest the exact lifestyle you must choose for your retirement years but I can offer you some guidance on the amount of money you need if you want to cover your basic living costs and support a hobby or active social life. For example, do you expect to take frequent holidays and are you planning to enjoy regular glasses of wine or beer? Read more

Setting a retirement target: Living on more than $50,000 a year

The most popular question about superannuation and retirement planning is, without doubt: How much money is enough? A glib response to this question may be: Enough money for what? From the many times, though, that I’ve been asked this question, I know that when most Australians ask it, they really want to discover the answer to: How much money do I need to maintain (or improve) the lifestyle I currently have until the day I die? For some Australians, the question also includes: ‘And to leave enough money to help my family after I’ve gone’. Read more

Super concessional contributions: 2010/11 survival guide

Superannuation contributions can be divided into two types — concessional (before-tax) and non-concessional (after-tax). Each type of super contribution is subject to a contributions cap (see table below). A contributions cap sets a limit on the amount of contributions you can make in any one year. If you exceed the cap, your excess contributions are likely to be subject to penalty tax. Read more

Your 2010/11 guide to non-concessional (after-tax) contributions

Non-concessional contributions are more popularly known as after-tax contributions. You may even hear them called ‘undeducted’ contributions. Such contributions are subject to a contributions cap, which sets a limit on the amount of after-tax contributions that you can make in one year (1 July through to 30 June). If you exceed the cap, your excess contributions are likely to be subject to penalty tax. Read more

Cashing in on the co-contribution rules (2010/2011)

The Federal Government is giving away money to anyone who makes a non-concessional (after-tax) contribution to their super fund, and who earns less than $62,000 a year. Changes to the co-contribution rules, effective from July 2009, mean that anyone considering taking advantage of the co-contribution scheme for the 2009/2010 year needs to dot their ‘i’s and cross their ‘t’s to ensure their entitlements. Read more

You can also check out Trish Power’s views on the latest events in super in THE SOAPBOX section.