by Jeremy Duffield | Aug 9, 2021 | Centrelink Age Pension
Thanks for your interest in Retirement Essentials. It’s been a challenging year, hasn’t it? With Covid 19 lingering and varying and forcing us into short or prolonged lockdowns. I’m sure it’s brought its difficulties for you, just as it has for me here in...
by James Coyle | Jul 23, 2021 | Retirement Spending
The Morrison Government has recently urged retirees to spend more of their retirement savings, particularly any super they might have. Why do they want retirees to spend their super? The Government’s recent Retirement Income Review highlighted that many retirees...
by James Coyle | Jul 16, 2021 | Planning for Retirement
By Dr Deborah Ralston* The 2020 Retirement Income Review examined the three pillars of the Australian retirement system – the age pension, compulsory superannuation and voluntary savings – and concluded that: The home is the most important component of voluntary...
by James Coyle | Jul 12, 2021 | Planning for Retirement
The recent Retirement Income Review* examined all aspects of Australia’s retirement system and concluded that it provides well for the needs of the vast majority older Australians, but it is complex and not well understood. In particular, there is a real lack of...
by James Coyle | Jul 5, 2021 | Centrelink Age Pension
When it comes to applying for the Age Pension many of our members have asked us questions like: “Do I apply as a single or as a couple?”, “What if my partner is younger than me, do I have to wait?”, “Why does Centrelink ask such personal questions about my...
by James Coyle | Jul 2, 2021 | Centrelink Age Pension
What are deeming rates? The way they work is that Centrelink determines that your financial assets are deemed to earn a certain rate of return, regardless of what they actually earn. This return is used to assess your eligibility for entitlements such as the Age...
by James Coyle | Jun 29, 2021 | Centrelink Age Pension
Centrelink have announced changes to Age Pension income and asset thresholds. This could mean more Australians will now qualify for at least a part pension and those already on a part pension could receive more. A couple of weeks ago we wrote about what a difference...
by James Coyle | Jun 4, 2021 | Centrelink Age Pension
We hear of many people that don’t apply for the age pension because they don’t think it is worth it. “I’ll probably only get a few dollars so it’s not worth the effort” is a common refrain. What many people don’t consider are all the fantastic benefits you receive...
by James Coyle | May 26, 2021 | Retirement Advice
We sometimes get asked by our readers whether there is anything they can do before the end of the financial year to improve their income in retirement. Here are a couple that relate to superannuation. Adding money to super Some people might be in a position to add...
by James Coyle | May 14, 2021 | Centrelink Age Pension
The Pension Loan Scheme (PLS) was enhanced in the budget last week. Many of our readers have asked that we tell them a bit more about how this works. So what is it? The Pension Loan Scheme allows people to top up to an amount of up to 150 per cent – or 1.5...
