Posts by The Muirfield Team
Attitudes to Superannuation and the Value of Financial Advice
Some interesting statistics were released from ASFA’s annual research into community attitudes to superannuation.
Over two thirds of Australians believe that the 9% Superannuation Guarantee (SG) is not enough to fund an adequate retirement.
Read MoreThe Year Now Gone, And The Year To Come
From a business perspective, Australia was a great place to be during 2010. Thanks in part to continued growth in China, our economy stayed strong.
Because of this, unemployment hovered near record lows. And although thanks to the cautiousness of the Reserve Bank, interest rates rose, they’re not yet at the level likely to cause large scale mortgage stress for households.
Read MoreWhy Would You Use A Mortgage Broker?
Why would I use a Mortgage Broker?
Because they can save you time and money.
As the Home Loan market becomes increasingly complex, more people are turning to Mortgage Brokers. Here are some of the reasons.
Read MoreConcession Cards – Are you eligible?
There are many types of concession cards that can benefit you to help reduce daily ongoing costs.
The Commonwealth Seniors Health Card is available for you if you have reached Age Pension age but do not qualify for a Centrelink or DVA pension. Provided that your taxable income is below $50,000 pa for a single or $80,000 pa combined for a couple, you may be eligible. No asset test applies.
Read MoreManaging Your Property
It takes time, effort and money to look after a property.
Its possible to manage a rental property yourself, and in so doing save a management fee thats usually around 5 per cent of the rent. But it can be time-consuming and it’s hard to remain emotionally detached when you have tenants ringing up complaining about every little thing, or you personally have to deal with damage to your property.
Read MoreShould We Diversify Our Investment?
Investing and investment strategies have been the most talked about topics for the past years. However, one particular approach should rank on the top of everyone’s investment planning is DIVERSIFICATION. The benefits of diversification Spread the risk. Diversifying investments across all asset classes, allows you to benefit from each years best performing asset class. The…
Read MoreShould You Pre-pay Your Funeral?
Preparations for funeral expenses are not something everybody wishes to consider. However there may be benefits in planning and paying for some aspects of your funeral.
Pre planning can eliminate the worry of paying for a funeral in future. For many people this is not a concern. However should you wish to explore pre planning the following should be considered.
Read MoreAnti-Detriment Payments – Are You Entitled?
WHEN it comes to the extra product offerings available through superannuation, few are aware of increased super lump-sum death benefits.
They are otherwise known as anti-detriment payments. As such, they do not realise that in the unfortunate case of death, it provides a great opportunity to boost the benefit that will be paid to your dependants.
So what exactly is this form of payment and how can you ensure eligibility?
Read MoreSuper Top Three Questions
Readers’ emails are a good indication of what worries people most. The dominant theme for 2010 is impending change. In nine months we have seen the release of the Ripoll report into financial planning, the Henry tax review and the Cooper review into superannuation.
Add to this a sharemarket that started with a bang but soon lost impetus, tighter lending to some businesses and a housing market that is one of the most expensive in the world. Charles Darwin came up with the answer years ago: ”It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives – it is the one that is the most adaptable to change.”
Read MoreHow much does Aged Care cost?
While the Australian Government provides funding to residential aged care homes to help with the cost of care, most residents will also have to pay certain fees and charges.
There are two main types of costs associated with residential aged care:
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