James Coyle

James has over 35 years experience in financial services with particular expertise in two of the key components of retirement finance - Superannuation and the Age Pension. He is passionate about providing the guidance and support that can help older Australians enjoy their best possible retirement. He lives in regional Victoria surrounded by dogs and chooks.
Smart ways to handle an inheritance without losing benefits

Smart ways to handle an inheritance without losing benefits

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Jenny and Daniel contacted us with a dilemma recently. They had received a windfall gain due to an unexpected inheritance. Often inheriting money also means a time of great sadness, but in this case they did not actually know the great uncle who had remembered Jenny in his will. They were now wondering where and how to use these funds in a way that would not result in a loss of Jenny’s Age Pension entitlements. Here’s how Retirement Essentials adviser Nicole Bell was able to step Jenny and Daniel through their options and the way each one would affect their overall financial situation. 

Federal Budget 2024 – what’s in it for older Australians?

Federal Budget 2024 – what’s in it for older Australians?

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Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers has handed down the May 2024-2025 Federal Budget.  There weren’t a lot of surprises but there are a couple of nice bonuses for older Australians.  Before we start, it’s important to note that these are only proposals.  Most are likely to get through Parliament but aren’t guaranteed until they are legislated.   We aren’t covering everything, just our take on what’s in it for older Australians. 

Can Alice retire while still working?

Can Alice retire while still working?

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There was great feedback on our article about peak retirement a few weeks ago. It seems that many Retirement Essentials members are planning on working longer, but not necessarily harder! As a consequence, our advisers have had many consultations helping both singles and couples to organise their finances to maximise their ongoing retirement income. Today we look at the way the transition to retirement is changing for many Australians and how they can use the rules of both the Age Pension and super to ensure they get their best financial outcome

As mentioned, ‘peak’ retirement age is now just over 66 for men and nearly 65 for women. This is much later than previous decades and there are a few factors involved. Most recently the Covid pandemic forced workers across the globe to stay home. Those that could, continued to work and thus the new trend to Work From Home (WFH) has become a reality for workers of all ages. In a sense this has meant an easing of many aspects of work, including commuting, the need to dress formally, costs associated with attending an office or workplace). For many people working from home is simply easier. For this reason, many older workers are finding it attractive to continue. 

However, believing that choosing a retirement or transition to retirement date is available to all is incorrect. So called ‘knowledge workers’ find it easier than most to work from anywhere – be it home, a holiday house, a caravan park or a friend’s dining room table. Those who do manual work do not have the same luxury – jobs such as cleaners, hairdressers and builders labourers usually have to turn up! And health, of course, remains the wild card, with around 40% of retirees leaving the workplace due to ill health, caring duties or redundancies. Life is not fair, and this is ongoing evidence of that fact.

But if you are one of the fortunate 60% who do get to time their work exit, how do you use the rules in your favour? As a firm believer in the show, don’t tell principle, here’s a very brief overview of the rules of a Transition-to-retirement, and more importantly, how Nicole was able to support Alice to map a way of achieving her main life goals.