by the Retirement Essentials Team | Nov 18, 2024 | Retirement Advice
The right advice at the right time can be invaluable. Sometimes it is just a little help to solve a nagging problem. Other times, it’s just to confirm your decisions. Or it might be to unlock and explain the myriad of rules that apply, and the...
by Ryley Brito | Nov 15, 2024 | Centrelink Age Pension
The income test forms a major part of your likelihood of receiving an Age Pension. That’s well-known and the thresholds are quite clear. Which income is included and which is excluded can be more complex, which is why we covered this topic in some detail in recent...
by James Coyle | Nov 14, 2024 | Centrelink Age Pension, Customer Stories
There is a very common mistake that adviser, Sharon Sheehan, has noticed. So many members are confused by the term ‘superannuation account’. Recent research from AMP confirms that 70 % of older Australians don’t know what an Account-Based Pension is. Given that this...
by Amanda Hardy Lai | Nov 8, 2024 | Customer Stories, Retirement Income
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 whilst...
by Kaye Fallick | Nov 8, 2024 | Planning for Retirement
It’s generally agreed that retirement is not a ‘set and forget’ proposition. On the one hand this can sound as though we need to continually monitor our situation. But the flipside of this is that it is literally never too late to change our settings and improve our...
by James Coyle | Nov 8, 2024 | Centrelink Age Pension
In mid-October we reported on the second part of the Means Test – how Centrelink assesses income. In this update we explained how the income test works, what is ‘earned’ income and what is deemed. We then asked you to share any aspects of the income test that might...
by Kaye Fallick | Oct 31, 2024 | Retirement Income
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 are these...
by James Coyle | Oct 31, 2024 | Centrelink Age Pension
Is this assessable? Two weeks ago we explained how the assets test works and how different assets can be treated very differently by Centrelink. At the end of this article, we asked if you find these rules confusing and you certainly answered – in the 70 comments...
by James Coyle | Oct 31, 2024 | Planning for Retirement
Picking the perfect retirement age Your retirement age is a very personal thing. Sometimes retirement is thrust upon us. We might lose our job or be forced to leave work due to ill health or caring responsibilities. Most people, however, are in the...
by Kaye Fallick | Oct 24, 2024 | Planning for Retirement
Don’t make these classic errors A recent article (How fair is the Age Pension) prompted quite a few Retirement Essentials members to share their (not-so-good) experiences of downsizing. Here’s what you told us (edited for reasons of space): Helly says no way!...
