The idea that young Australians should be able to dip into their super to help buy their first home keeps going round and round. The most recent iteration put forward by the Coalition’s Tim Wilson and a clutch of other backbenchers has the catchy slogan Home First, Super Second.
Yes, women retire with less than men, but boosting compulsory super won’t help
All sorts of claims are being made following the release of the Retirement Income Review, including that it paid insufficient attention to issues of gender.
5 tips to figure out if a tech company on the stock market is an ethical investment
These days people trading on the stock market want more than just a strong financial return. They’re increasingly opting for investments that will also have a positive societal impact.
Home ownership and super are far more entwined than you might think
When the government’s Retirement Income Review examined superannuation, the Age Pension and voluntary savings, home ownership had a surprisingly important role.
What matters is the home: Review finds most retirees well off, some very badly off
Most retired Australians are at least as well off in retirement as they were while working, but not all. The huge exception is retirees who do not own their own homes.
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Workers bear 71% to 100% of the cost of increases in compulsory super
The government’s much-anticipated Retirement Income Review has found that increases in employer’s compulsory superannuation contributions are financed by reductions in workers’ wage growth.
Saving for retirement gives you power, and ethical responsibilities
More than 10 million Australians have a superannuation account. Which means, effectively, more than 10 million of us are mini-shareholders with the capacity to influence future business decisions.
The budget assumes a COVID-19 vaccine becomes available next year. Is this feasible?
The Australian federal budget, unveiled on Tuesday, bases several assumptions on Australians having access to a COVID-19 vaccine in 2021.
The budget’s tax cuts have their critics, but this year they make fiscal sense
This year’s budget is something of a play in two acts. Act one involves large economic stimulus to help plug the hole in output generated by the coronavirus pandemic. Act two tries to set Australia up for a bounce back in economic growth and employment that involves more than just waiting for the pandemic to end.
Don’t worry about the debt: We need more stimulus to avoid a prolonged recession
After two decades equating budget surpluses with good economic management, it might seem convenient that the federal government has changed its fiscal strategy just before the budget to focus on jobs over keeping the deficit in check.
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Big budget spending isn’t new: It’s a return to what worked before
It’s easy to get the impression the massive government spending and deficits and debt required by the pandemic are new. Yet for almost all of the years since Federation the Commonwealth budget has been in deficit.
Super funds are feeling the financial heat from climate change
New research indicates a fresh determination among Australia’s largest super funds to act on climate change risks.
Timing the share market is hard – just ask your super fund
The past financial year has been one of the most volatile on record for stock markets, yet almost every Australian super fund has delivered similar returns. This not only demonstrates that super funds very rarely make large calls about when to buy and sell, it also gives an insight into what we should do when making our own investment decisions.
Is your super money safe? Here’s how you can dodge cyber fraud
Alongside growing concerns over a possible resurgence of the coronavirus during winter, the pandemic is now creating even more victims as cybercriminals aim to capitalise on the economic upheaval.
Bank dividends are bare. Here’s why some shareholders hate it more than they should
In bad news for retirees and others who depend on dividend cheques (and dividend imputation rebate cheques from the Tax Office) bank dividends have largely evaporated. But it’s not as bad as many commentators suggest, and actually good for some investors.