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.
What are Pension funds? How do they work?

What are Pension funds? How do they work?

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Recent research from financial services provider, AMP, reports that 70% of Australians do not know what an Account-Based Pension is. We doubt this is the case with Retirement Essentials members, but it was a handy reminder that the complexity of many aspects of retirement income is daunting for most.

So today we are sharing a very basic ‘Explainer’ of the who, what, why, when and how of Pension Funds. We are also sharing the latest comparison of performance between retirement and accumulation accounts, across different settings, to provide a useful benchmark for your own returns. We are indebted to Joshua Lowen at SuperRatings for his insights and assistance with this information.

Singles v. couples: Are you on the right pension?

Singles v. couples: Are you on the right pension?

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Last month Steven (who’s head of our Customer Services Team) answered a series of questions about whether our members should be receiving a single or couples Age Pension. These questions coincided with new Age Pension increases, with many people questioning whether they were receiving the right amounts. 

This reminded us that the Centrelink definition of singles and couples is less than clear. Here are some of the questions that sparked this discussion, Steven’s answer, as well as a quick summary of the basic things you need to know regarding your relationship status.