Great advice for more Australians
Brad Fox says the AFA has a very clear mandate going into 2014: to help the advice community to deliver great advice to more Australians. From our conversations within the advice community, 2013 was a frustrating year for all – advisers, licensees and product and service providers. Now that we have a new government and
December 17, 2013
Centric Wealth MDA lifts efficiency gains
Centric Wealth, the financial planning firm backed by CHAMP Private Equity, will move almost its entire $4 billion in funds under advice into a managed discretionary account structure over the next couple of years, with $2.8 billion already transitioned. Since 2011, when Centric Wealth appointed specialist MDA provider, Philo Capital Advisers, to re-engineer its investment
December 13, 2013
Australians bank on $500,000 payday
Australians expect to receive a large inheritance from their ageing parents, which has dangerously left them exposed to a potential retirement savings shortfall, according to the latest HSBC Future of Retirement Report. The report, titled ‘Life after Work’, found Australian retirees want to pass on an average inheritance of $US501,919 to their heirs, which is
December 13, 2013
Christmas giving without end
At Christmas time the thoughts of many turn to giving. We give presents to our family and friends and many of us give donations to charities in response to end-of-year appeals. It’s easy to respond to appeal letters that find their way into mailboxes but this may not be the best way for clients to
December 13, 2013
A super review – looking back and ahead
Superannuation rules are constantly changing and 2013 was no different. Crissy Demanuele reviews the year that was for superannuation and how the changes will impact on advice strategies in the year ahead. The amount invested in superannuation in Australia grew by approximately 15.5 per cent over the past year to an estimated total of $1.62
December 13, 2013
New adviser group gains momentum
Self-licensed, Sydney-based financial planning firms WLM Financial Services, Northstar Financial Advisers and More4Life Financial Services will help spearhead the creation of a national association to promote the benefits of alternative investments and target return strategies. The formation of the Real Return User Group was confirmed at a meeting early this month which was attended by
December 12, 2013
The average practice, far from average
Almost 40 per cent of financial planning and accounting firms believe they will boost profitability by at least 20 per cent in 2014, while cutting back the number of clients they service. Preliminary results from the Macquarie Practice Consulting 2013 Financial Planning Best Practice Benchmarking Survey reveal that 83 per cent of advisers expect to
December 12, 2013
Advisers report a surge in confidence
Financial planners are the most optimistic and energetic they’ve been in years, with 94.5 per cent of advisers positively upbeat about the long term viability of their businesses, according to a new report. The latest Zurich Risk Adviser Sentiment Index, which was conducted by Beaton Research and Consulting, found risk advisers are currently the most
December 12, 2013
The Great Rotation
A year ago there was much talk of a Great Rotation out of bonds and into equities. As ever when a widely-held view is neatly captured by a snappy moniker, things didn’t pan out quite as expected. While bonds have not had the greatest of years, and equities have, it is less obvious that the
December 12, 2013
Is real estate in your super fund even worth it?
A lot of the debate about property in self-managed super funds has missed a bigger issue: is there a reasonable investment case for it being there in the first place? Dug Higgins explains. As we look back on 2013, if one thing will stick in my memory it’s the seemingly endless debate around geared property
December 12, 2013
Media blamed for alarmist SMSF reporting
Sensational media reports that claim a large and rapidly growing number of self-managed superannuation funds are gearing up to invest in property are unsupported by data, according to the latest SMSF data. The Heffron SMSF Borrowing Data Report showed only 12 per cent, or 208, of the 1,700 SMSFs administered by Heffron had a Limited
December 10, 2013
Investor/funds manager mismatch
Investors have no plans to increase their exposure to hedge funds and aren’t interested in buying multiple products from one funds manager, according to Ernst & Young’s seventh annual survey of the global hedge fund market. A new report by EY titled: Exploring pathways to growth, found a major discrepancy between the expectations of investors
December 10, 2013
