At 69, Bill was working part time, earning around $46,000, while managing two debts: a $30,000 loan due in five years, and an $80,000 loan over 12 years. What Bill didn’t realise is that he was eligible for $14,000 per year in Age Pension support...
Retirement Income Articles
Retirement income changes: What needs to happen
Recent findings about the Australian retirement income system show it has taken a small hit in world rankings. A small hit is not a catastrophe, but it does offer a cautionary warning that there may be better ways of helping retirees to help themselves. What...
Pros and cons of income streams
Noel to the rescue Few people understand retirement income as well as Noel Whitaker. Today we are examining the pros and cons of Lifetime Income Streams (LIS) and Noel has helped us out with some Q&A on these relatively new products. But first, some...
Keeping Retirement Simple -Working in Retirement
Many people want to supplement their income with a bit of paid work after retiring from full time work. So, we can think about working – after full time work– as the (optional) fifth pillar of retirement. For our clients over 65, we find that a...
A user’s guide to the Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS)
Is this the income top up you need? Using home equity as a retirement income seems to be the last well kept secret. But that, too, is changing as more industry commentators scrutinise the home wealth access products on the market and conclude that they do...
The Age Pension is the Foundation of Retirement Income
Keeping Retirement Simple – Part 5 Even if you don’t get it yet, the Age Pension is key to retirement planning for most people in Australia. Over half of older Australians get more than half their retirement income from the Age Pension. And...
Earning your way with super and your savings
Keeping Retirement Simple – Part 3 In the last Keeping Retirement Simple article, we discussed how your retirement horizon impacted the amount you can afford to spend. The longer you need to plan for, the less you can afford to spend each...
Retirement income certainty: Is this achievable?
And should you be ‘pushed’ into a retirement income product. Would that be in your best interests? At the heart of most retirement wants lies the desire to have a strong degree of control, in the form of a secure, dependable retirement income. No surprises...
Lifetime income streams: Do they guarantee money for life?
If you’re a 65-year old male reading this article you stand a good chance of living until at least 85.3 years. If you’re a female of the same age, you’re likely to get more than 20 years, with life expectancy of 88 (Australian Institute of Health and...