Save time and effort by learning how to talk to zombies
Financial planners frequently make the mistake of constantly being out there frantically trying to find new clients and build new relationships. We get caught attending copious networking events, handing out business cards, feeling pushy and weird, and disappointed at the lack of results or the one-way nature of referrals. Most financial planners have prospects they’ve
January 24, 2016
Flexible commission structures within the new rules
Advisers are set to gain greater control over their insurance sales with more providers expected to follow Asteron Life’s decision to introduce a range of flexible commission options. Asteron has announced it will give advisers a choice between a new customised commission rate, a new hybrid rate, and, for advisers looking to move to a
January 21, 2016
The opportune time for debating what superannuation is for
The Association of Superannuation funds of Australia (ASFA) has “urged caution” over a proposal to allow former tertiary students access to their superannuation funds to pay off HELP debts. There’s a kind of code embedded in these sorts of statements and press releases. Just as in Yes Minister describing an idea as “courageous” was Sir
January 21, 2016
Defining the boundaries of the licensed advice zone
The boundaries of financial advice will be explored in a session at the SMSF Association National Conference next month in a bid to answer accountants’ questions about whether their current activities are likely to fall under the new limited Australian financial services licensing regime. With the end of the accountants’ exemption on June 30, there
January 21, 2016
The advice conundrum: cheap yet unaffordable
Most Australians think financial advice is too expensive, yet many advice practices aren’t profitable, let alone flourishing. It’s a major conundrum. But it’s one that can be fixed. The primary reason why so many advisers undercharge is because deep down they still believe they get paid for the sale of a product. They don’t place
January 19, 2016
The public perceives that “wheeler” and “dealer” go together
The financial planning industry consistently uses the term “dealer group” to describe a certain type of Australian financial service licensee. The annual “Top 100 Dealer Groups” is an important information resource, both within and outside the industry. Industry awards honour the “Dealer Group of the Year”. However, the financial planning industry may not be well
January 19, 2016
Zen and the art of responding to a sharemarket slump
There is a rich seam of wisdom about how to respond to market slumps. This tells me two things. First, it says that market volatility is not unusual, it is a shared experience and therefore worth commenting on. Second, it suggests that most people do the wrong thing when the market falls – if we
January 19, 2016
Helping clients know when enough is enough for retirement
Six years ago, The Retirement Advice Centre’s David Reed noticed something bizarre happening with his clients: they were too scared to retire. It was in the early years after the global financial crisis, and though they’d weathered the crisis well and had reached their financial goal they weren’t willing to give up work. It was
January 17, 2016
Be cautious about TTR strategy and private binding rulings
A leading superannuation lawyer has warned financial planners to tread warily when it comes to creating strategies for clients that rely on other people’s private binding tax rulings. A director of DBA Lawyers, Bryce Figot, says a strategy currently generating a high level of interest among financial planners involves someone aged under 60 receiving a
January 17, 2016
Cheer up! China is slowing but not grinding to a halt
Just as they did last year, China’s volatile stockmarkets have spooked investors all around the world. It’s been a shocking first full week of 2016 and a worrying portent of returns for the year as a whole if you believe the moderately compelling long-run evidence that January sets the tone for the next 11 months.
January 17, 2016
Can a churn ever be in a client’s best interests?
An independent adviser approached Dover Legal with an interesting question. (This is not unusual, by the way. Many of Dover Legal’s clients are not Dover advisers.) The adviser’s client, a 40-year-old executive on a salary of about $400,000 a year was paying about $12,000 a year for risk insurance premiums. There was nothing wrong with
January 14, 2016
SMSF trustees assume advice is sound but want greater communication
Financial planners with technical competence and sound knowledge can’t always translate that know-how into the best interests of their clients – and sessions at the 2016 Self-Managed Super Fund Association (SMSFA) conference next month aim to address that shortcoming. “It’s a conversation with trustees – so it’s not technical at all, and it’s really about
January 14, 2016
