Posts by The Muirfield Team
Autumn eNews 2014
During the first quarter of 2014 we have witnessed client investment portfolios retaining the strong gains of 2013.
The sharemarket fell in January, rose in February and marked time in March. Interestingly the $A has shown some recovery from 88c US to now be 92c US. This now makes international travel a bit cheaper than at the end of last year but not as cheap as mid year.
On the Muirfield front we congratulate Joanne Whitworth on her retirement after 16 years of helping you achieve your financial goals. Joanne has had a strong influence on both the direction and tone of Muirfield, its staff and in turn her clients.
We thank Joanne for her positive involvement in our business and from the many cards, flowers, gifts and thankyou emails and notes we can see she has played a very important part in the lives of the many clients with whom she has worked.
Joanne’s retirement has been made easier knowing that the future needs of her clients will be capably met by Tamara Carman and Ngan Bui. Both ladies have been with Muirfield for many years, are highly qualified and in most cases have been working with Joanne’s clients for some time. This makes the transition much easier for all involved.
Thankyou Joanne and enjoy all that retirement has on offer.
In other news we discuss the importance of estate planning, give you an update on the footy tipping competition, present some new videos we have recently developed, outline some of the changes to superannuation which may affect you and Kate Officer is our staff in spotlight.
Click here to read the full 2014 Autumn Newsletter
Centrelink Update
During the month of March, Centrelink have released their bi-annual benefit review. Fortunately, many of the changes have been advantageous for entitlement recipients, most notably an increase in the Age Pension rate.
What does this mean. Quite simply it will mean that you may be entitled to a little more income from Centrelink, and in a few remote cases, applicants who were once denied access to financial assistance may now be eligible to claim a Centrelink Benefit. However, please do not go spending all of your pennies at once, as the increases merely represent an in the cost of living and are therefore slender. As many of you are currently in receipt of a Centrelink benefit, we thought it would be appropriate to share some of the important changes.
From 20 March 2014, the following changes will be in action;
The full Age Pension entitlement will increase by $15.70 per fortnight for singles and $23.8 per fortnight for couples
Single homeowners are now able to have $758,750 in assessable assets before they are no longer eligible for the Age Pension, while couple homeowners are now permitted $1,253,000.
The income free area will increase from $62 per fortnight to $100 per fortnight for those in receipt of Newstart Allowance, Widow Allowance, Partner Allowance or Sickness Allowance.
Remember, you do not need to do anything to claim these increases, it will automatically be added to your benefit.
March 2014 Economic Update
In the latest update, Ben McCaw from MLC Investment Management reviews events in markets during February.
The topics he discusses include:
• how global markets did well despite weaknesses in the markets
• why key developed economies are muddling through
• implications of China’s re-balancing from a focus on investments to consumption
• what the outlook is and the economic scenarios MLC is considering.
Click on the above video to see.
Read MoreLogging off for the last time
Quite often we will send an email to the personal email account of our clients only to receive a bounce-back saying that the email is no longer available or in some cases, no response at all. Nowadays most entities you deal with will have an online presence. As a result we as consumers are frequently prompted to create an online account or register our email with these online organisations.
For many of these accounts, we forget they even exist and they fall into the abyss with nothing more to be heard of them. However it is becoming increasingly more important to take note of these online accounts due to the confidential and important information held in these accounts. This sensitive information needs to be dealt with appropriately should we no longer require them.
More importantly, have you ever considered who’s going to close your personal online accounts after you leave this world? Do you want your Facebook profile to continue or be closed? Are there accounts online that only you know about?
The personal information you have disclosed and stored online to the myriad organisations can vary from your name and email right down to your bank details, home address and personal details. It can even include direct debit subscriptions you may have with a magazine or charity.
As a result the security and eventually the termination of online accounts is becoming a crucial issue we need to address when planning our estate. Although protection is important and we are told not to write down or share our passwords, by securely storing the credentials of all of your online accounts and subscriptions and informing your estate planner, you enable your estate to be finalised more efficiently and easily.
In addition it is always prudent to include provisions in your Will for the treatment of your personal digital files including photos, documents – or maybe your future ‘best seller’ which is in draft mode.
If this has made you realise that you need to update your Will, make an appointment with your estate planner soon. If you don’t have one, ask us for a referral.
Happy browsing fellow surfers!
Read MoreFebruary 2014 Economic Update
In the latest Economic Update Brian Parker from MLC Investment Management reviews how markets faired in January 2014.
The topics he discusses include:
• why share markets across the world fell sharply over the month
• what impact the US Federal Reserve’s “tapering” of quantitative easing has had on emerging markets
• why the Reserve Bank of Australia is likely to keep interest rates on hold, and
• what strategies MLC has included in its diversified portfolios to help manage risk.
Click above to view his video.
Read MoreSummer eNews 2014
It seems we’ve come out of the investment darkness of the Global Financial Crisis of 2008-9. We’ve seen our clients enjoy investment returns of around 15% on Balanced funds for 2013 following a positive result in 2012 as well.
Our research and observations are that 2014 will continue this trend, albeit at slightly lower levels. In the latest Oliver’s Insights, Shane Oliver, Head of Investment Strategy and Chief Economist at AMP in a succinct dot point analysis outlines the key points for the year ahead:
- Thanks to improving growth and very easy monetary conditions, 2014 is likely to be another year of good returns for investors, albeit a bit slower than in 2013.
- Watch global business conditions indicators, wages growth in the US, European bond yields, Chinese lending growth and Australian consumer related indicators.
- Australian growth is likely to pick up a bit thanks to stronger housing investment and consumer spending.
- Right now the investment cycle is still moving away from cash and bonds in favour of equities and growth assets.
One of our New Year’s resolutions at Muirfield Financial Services is to explore new ways to deliver information and news to you in this era of technological advancement.
Our first foray is the video put together by Tamara to outline her fantastic work with our clients. Please take the time to view the video and we encourage you to provide feedback on this new format.
Hello 2014 – behave yourself!
Click here to read the 2014 Summer Newsletter
Read MoreTaking stock of super, including SMSFs – Paul Clitheroe
January is a time for goal setting and I’ve read that around half of all Australians will make a New Year’s resolution. Among those inclined to make a personal pledge, about one in five will aim to improve their financial position this year. If that sounds like you, I reckon it’s worth putting your super under the spotlight in 2014.
Australia currently has around $1.6 trillion dollars in super – a vast pool of wealth that will grow considerably over time. The tendency of successive governments to keep changing the rules of super can be frustrating, and it would be naïve to think that future governments won’t further tweak the system. But any changes to super will be pitched at making the system fairer to our community even if they don’t suit us personally.
While we have a tendency to focus on government-led changes to super, one of the biggest trends to have impacted the nation’s retirement savings in recent years has been the rapid growth of self-managed super funds (SMSFs), also known as do-it-yourself or DIY super.
Tax Office figures show that at the end of June 2013, there were an estimated 509,000 SMSFs – an increase of about 40,000 funds in one year alone. Chances are we’ll see similar growth in 2014.
There are compelling reasons to start your own super fund. Having direct control of your nest egg and being able to invest in the way you choose are all common reasons for considering an SMSF. I have one myself.
Be aware though, SMSFs comes with big responsibilities. Not only is the quality of your retirement at stake, there are significant legal issues to address, and good tax planning and estate planning are essential.
Sure, your accountant or financial planner can help with these matters, however, when you’re a member of an SMSF, you’re also a trustee of the fund and that means the buck stops with you when it comes to complying with superannuation regulations – and also earning a decent return.
That’s why the decision to start up an SMSF needs proper consideration. Before committing to anything, take a moment to think about you and your plans. How much money will you need in your senior years, and what is the best way for your super to help you get there? Is the best solution for you to have your super money in an industry fund, a retail fund or should you set up your own self-managed fund?
If you can sort out where you are now and what you want to achieve in the future, your decision about whether it’s best for you to establish an SMSF becomes easier. That said, make sure you also know what’s involved in managing your own super fund – from choosing the right investments to knowing about super regulations and responsibilities and keeping on the right side of them.
This article was part of Paul Clitheroe’s ipac blog published on 6 January 2014. For more information on managing your superannuation, be it a SMSF, industry fund or employer fund, please do not hesitate to contact our office.
Read MoreTamara Carman recovers $150,000 of over-paid taxes for our clients!
Want to learn if you might be eligible for a refund of over paid taxes?
This video is for you!
Our very own Certified Financial Planner®, Tamara Carman, talks about uncovering over $150,000 for our clients over the past 2 years and how many didn’t even know they were entitled to a refund.
These returns are so easy to claim… but they are also so easy to miss!
If you have direct shares or other investments outside superannuation then you may be able to claim back the franking credits relating to these investments.
So who exactly is Frank?
Franking credits represent the underlying tax paid by a company on pre-tax profits from which any dividends were paid.
They may reduce the amount of tax you pay on dividend income or in the case of retirees where there is little or no other taxable income, claim them back as a refund.
The franking concept was introduced to prevent double taxation, however, once retired we are finding that people stop doing a tax return all together and therefore fail to recover excess tax paid.
If you want to find out more, or to see if you are eligible for a refund, we encourage you to contact our office.
Australian Government Policy Update
The Coalition Government has confirmed its position on a range of previously announced super and tax issues, as part of its mid-year economic and fiscal outlook.
To help you understand how this may affect you, we’ve summed up the key highlights below.
Read More2014 Aged Care Changes
The world of Aged Care is changing. As you may be aware, the Government’s proposed ‘Living Longer, Living Better – aged care reform package’ will turn our existing aged care system on its head. The changes are to be introduced from July 2014.
Whilst a lot of information has already been released, we are still waiting on the final legislation; due in April 2014.
To assist you in understanding some of the major changes to occur in Residential Aged Care, we have provided a summary below. Many of our clients are now facing the challenges of placing parents in Aged Care and we specialise in providing advice in this complex area.
If you would like any further information on the topics discussed, please do not hesitate to contact our office and talk to Aged Care specialist Melinda Planken.
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