I first wrote about the unfairness of Australia’s super system for most women in the Melbourne Age in July 2007. Incredibly, nothing much has changed in the past decade or so, and the recent draft report on super by the Productivity Commission largely ignores the issue of so many women facing retirement with very ... Read more
Age Pension calculator: How much could you be eligible for?
Welcome to the SuperGuide Age Pension calculator. Using the calculator is easy. Enter your details in the calculator below (in the yellow blocks) and you will see an estimate of amount of Age Pension you may be eligible for. Note: The Age Pension rates used in the calculator are those that apply from 20 March 2018 ... Read more
Super contributions: Turning 65 part-way through the year
Q: I turn 65 in March 2019, which means I will be 64 years of age for a large part of the 2018/2019 financial year, but of course I turn 65 during the 2018/2019 financial year. My understanding is that because I will be under 65 for part of the 2018/2019 financial year then I can exercise the bring-forward provisions ... Read more
Pension Loans Scheme: 10 facts you need to know
Retirees are always looking for new ways to boost their retirement income or to pay for expenses, like home care. Although downsizing to a small home can be one option, the Pension Loans Scheme (PLS) offered by the federal government is a rarely considered alternative. Although the PLS has been around for about 30 ... Read more
Reverse mortgages: retirement income solution or snare?
With the cost of residential property at all-time highs, it can be tempting for asset-rich and cash-poor retirees to look at ways of unlocking some of the money they have tied up in their home to help pay for their retirement expenses, particularly if their super account is small. One solution to this dilemma can be ... Read more
SMSFs: Transfer Balance Account Report requirements
Guest contributor: Meg Heffron, the author of this article, is co-founder and a Director of Heffron SMSF Solutions – a firm that specialises in SMSFs. She is a qualified actuary with more than 25 years of superannuation experience. We are thrilled to have Meg contributing to SuperGuide, and sharing her knowledge and ... Read more
Age Pension income test: Deeming rates and deeming thresholds
Note: This article explains the latest deeming rates and the deeming thresholds for financial investments under the Age Pension income test. The deeming thresholds increase from 1 July 2018, and will change again from 1 July 2019. If you are seeking information about the latest increases in the thresholds for the Age ... Read more
Age Pension: Assets test thresholds applicable from July 2018
Note: This article explains the latest Age Pension assets thresholds, applicable from 1 July 2018 until 30 June 2019, and also earlier thresholds (including from 20 March 2018 until 30 June 2018, and from 19 September 2017 until 19 March 2018, and from 1 July 2017 until 19 September 2017). If you are seeking ... Read more
Age Pension changes: More Australians entitled to payments from July 2018
In March, July and September of each year, the federal government changes the rules for claiming the Age Pension… usually for the better! Currently, the Age Pension income test thresholds and the Age Pension assets test thresholds are adjusted three times a year in line with increases in the Consumer Price ... Read more
Age Pension: Income test thresholds applicable from July 2018
Note: This article explains the latest Age Pension income test thresholds, applicable from 1 July 2018 until 30 June 2019. (This article also explains the thresholds applicable from 20 March 2018 until 30 June 2018, and from 19 September 2017 until 19 March 2018, and from 1 July 2017 until 19 September 2017). If you ... Read more
Financial advice: Only 101 independent financial advisers in Australia
Note: This article is updated regularly when new financial advisers join the independence club (latest update June 2018). A financial adviser does not have to be a member of the IFAAA to join the SuperGuide list, provided they can declare that they satisfy the requirements of being an independent adviser (we now have 3 ... Read more
Retirement Income Reckoner
The SuperGuide Retirement Income Reckoner allows you to discover what type of annual income (indexed for inflation), you can expect in retirement (including PART Age Pension) for a range of superannuation balances. You can find out what type of income your retirement savings will deliver based on 8 different ... Read more
