Are you approaching retirement?

Then chances are the funding of your lifestyle in retirement may be on your mind.

Take steps now to avoid getting caught short on retirement income and live the retirement lifestyle you want.

The qualifying age is increasing by six months every two years until it reaches 67 in July 2023. The Age Pension age increased to 66 and a half on 1 July 2021.

If for example, you are planning to retire at 60 you will need to wait until you’re 67 before you can apply for the Age Pension. You’ll have to rely on your own savings and super in the interim, making it crucial to ensure you have enough money put away for later years. But the good news is that there’s still time to grow your retirement savings.

Boost your super

Contributing more to your super can be a reliable route to bolstering your retirement fund. By making extra contributions through salary sacrifice, you can grow your super and at the same time reduce the amount of income tax you pay. The government will tax your salary sacrificed contributions, within the allowable concessional contribution cap, at 15 per cent, which may be much lower than your marginal tax rate.

Making non-concessional or after-tax super contributions is another option. Generally, you can contribute up to $110,000 each financial year if your total super balance is less than $1.7 million at 30 June of the last financial year. To understand how these contributions work, it’s wise to get professional advice.

Beef up your savings

Your personal savings outside of super can supplement your super payments in retirement. But are they growing enough now to provide you with some level of income when you retire?

To build up your savings, you may have to invest part of it and make sure it’s growing faster than the rate of inflation over the long term. You should seek professional advice to see what investments are appropriate for you.

Know your entitlements

Besides the Age Pension, you may be eligible for other government benefits and concessions. For example, you may be eligible for a concession card such as the Pensioner Concession Card (if you are receiving the Age Pension), Commonwealth Seniors Health Card or the state-based Seniors Card. Concession cards like these may entitle you to discounts on some commercial and public services. Concessions that allow you to buy prescription medicine at a discount may also be available.

But keep in mind that these benefits have strict eligibility rules. There’s also no guarantee that these entitlements will still be available by the time you retire. So, take charge of your retirement.

Working with your financial adviser, you can develop a strategy that helps ensure you’ll be well provided for regardless of changes to pension policies.

General Advice Warning

The information contained on this website is general in nature and does not take into account your personal situation. You should consider whether the information is appropriate to your needs, and where appropriate, seek professional advice from a financial adviser.

Mark O’Connell, Robin Bell and Allan Hall Financial Planning Pty Ltd are Authorised Representatives of Consultum Financial Advisers Pty Ltd ABN 65 006 373 995 AFSL 230323.

The unexpected events of the past few years, have made financial protection a front of mind matter for most Australians.

Now more than ever we appreciate that life does not always go the way we plan. Having a plan in place if things do take an unexpected turn can mean that our health, lifestyle and family are better protected.

If you don’t have any type of personal insurance cover, or you have not reviewed it with your Financial Adviser for a while, now is a good time to do so.

Types of insurance

There are a few different types of insurance that you should consider, based on what matters to you and what you would most like protected if you were to suffer an illness, injury, disablement or premature death. It’s best to discuss insurance options with your Financial Adviser as they can tell you what different types of insurance policies are available, what they cover, and how to structure them in your overall financial plan, based on your individual situation and goals.

The types of insurance policies you may discuss are:

Life insurance
Total and Permanent Disablement insurance
Critical illness insurance also called Trauma cover
Income Protection insurance.

The benefits of an insurance policy

FAMILY FIRST

You and your loved ones count on your income to enjoy a certain standard of living, which is why insurance is particularly important if you have dependents. It means the people who matter most in your life are protected from financial hardship if your income stopped.

LESS STRESS

Profound unforeseen illness, injury, permanent disability, and death –are not nice to think about but these events happen. If it happened to your family it would probably be an extremely challenging time, wrought with emotional stress, and even grief. With personal insurance in place, the financial stress can be reduced, allowing you to focus on getting well, and rebuilding your life.

FINANCIAL SECURITY

Illness, injury and disablement do not come cheap. If you needed funds to recover from illness or injury would you have enough disposable income to cover medical bills whilst still paying your household expenses? Could you modify the home if need be? Would you want access to the best medical cover, treatments and rehabilitation options?

Insurance provides financial security so your life can continue with as much normalcy as possible, whilst you seek the best care available.

At a time when everything else seems out of control, it is good to know your financial security isn’t!

The difference a Financial Adviser can make

Data collected by APRA found that in the case of Total & Permanent Disability cover, the “claim declined” rate was around double for claimants who arranged their cover direct with the insurer than for claimants who went through an adviser. In other words, you have a much greater chance of success with an adviser.[1]

A Financial Adviser looks at your specific circumstances, your lifestyle, goals and appetite to risk. Together you can discuss personal insurance policies, tapping into their expert knowledge and understanding of the requirements of insurance providers. You can also discuss options for holding insurance inside and outside of superannuation and, should you need to make a claim on a policy, your Financial Adviser can liaise with insurance companies and superannuation entities on your behalf as your advocate.

If it’s time to consider personal insurance cover, or you want to review your existing policy, a Financial Adviser is willing and able to assist you.