We are all living longer and retirement can last for 25 years and more. Your needs, desires and income requirements will vary throughout those years. Transition The move from working to being retired does not need to happen overnight. Demand for skilled workers and the acceptance of more flexible working arrangements means a pre-retirement period […]

Private health insurance – it can be a minefield to navigate and a big decision for many people. Hospital, extras or both? Which fund? What do all the rebates, thresholds and surcharges mean? Here we look at what the future holds for the industry, recent legislative changes, and how you can make the most out […]

Government bonds When sources of income (most commonly tax receipts) are not sufficient to cover spending programs governments will issue bonds to raise the necessary funds.  From time to time asset sales may also be used as a one-off solution to provide an injection of funds.  In Australia the ten year government bond is the […]

Sometimes change is gradual and we have time to adapt. At other times the change is dramatic – consider the economic upheavals in 1940-50s after the war. In a few years economies were destroyed and rebuilt, once leading economies lost their lustre and new leaders arose. The developed economies of the USA and much of […]

Economic outlook We take a look at major developed economies and their economic growth to consider for your investment strategy. US Key considerations for fixed income investing The Federal Reserve has continued to partially remove stimulus via further reductions in quantitative easing (QE) this year. Despite this reduction, US 10 year treasury yields have fallen […]

What are the risks? For most people, the major risk is loss of income – either permanently or in the short term. Without an income you will find it difficult to meet your living expenses, repay debt or create wealth. What would happen if you could not earn an income for six months or a […]