Refinancing traps to avoid

Interest rate announcement - July 2018 Today the Reserve Bank of Australia met to review the official cash rate. After last cutting rates in August 2016, the RBA have again decided to keep the cash rate on hold at 1.50% this month. Inflation remains low at 1.9% pa. Whether you’re after lower repayments

US interest rates and Australian Markets

Recent events overseas have certainly proven that the world’s markets are truly global and inter-connected. We have been shown that we are all in a global economy where we are affected by what is happening in other key countries and regions. Over the last two months, we have published updates to help you understand

Build a deposit for your property purchase

Effective planning is key to getting the best results from your property purchase. The first step, when planning for purchasing your first home or investment property, is to build your deposit. You will need to show that you have at least 5% of the purchase price in genuine savings. There really is no quick

Investment Market Update – 26 August 2015

Market corrections - a necessary pain Share markets around the world have fallen sharply over the last week. A number of events including a revaluation of the Chinese currency, weak Chinese manufacturing results and the expectation that the US will raise interest rates sooner rather than later, have combined to produce one of the

Global markets and your investments

There has been a lot going on in global markets over recent months. It would be wise, and prudent, to keep on top of these global risk factors and their impact on your investments. It can be quite difficult to keep up with what is happening and understand what this means for your investments. Initially

Understanding concessional contributions caps

A concessional contributions cap is the amount you can pay (tax effectively) into your super in any given year. About concessional contributions caps Concessional contributions include the compulsory 9.5% super payments made by your employer, any additional super payments made by your employer (above 9.5%) and any additional payments you salary sacrifice from your salary.

SMSFs and buying property

We will often get enquiries from people asking if it would be a good idea to use their superannuation to invest in property. There certainly is a growing trend for people to set up SMSFs for the purpose of buying a property. If you are considering doing this, we would recommend that you equip

Thinking about a Self Managed Super Fund?

A Self Managed Super Fund (SMSF) is a way of saving for your retirement. They work in a similar way to all other superannuation funds, abiding by the same superannuation and income tax laws. The big difference with a SMSF is that as a member of the fund you are also a Trustee, which means