New Financial Year, New You?

The End of Financial Year has come and gone. And while you may still be in the process of completing your tax return (or procrastinating about it), now is a good time to get yourself ready for this financial year.

Check out our list below to help you prepare.

10 WAYS TO SET YOURSELF UP FOR SUCCESS THIS FINANCIAL YEAR

Identify your short, medium and long term goals

Not every item on our list will be relevant to you, you may be managing your money well and feel secure in your retirement planning with us, but maybe you’re thinking about an investment plan.

Consider what it is you really want to achieve and why. If you’re considering an investment property, why? Is it because the neighbours have one? Because you believe property is king? Or do you feel comfortable with a physical investment versus the stock market? There are no wrong answers but taking to an adviser can help you clarify what may be right for you. There may be tax implications or costs you weren’t aware of.

Once you’re comfortable with that, think about the when. If we think about an investment property again, will you really be able to gather the deposit and all the costs that go with purchasing a property in your time frame?

We have a blog on setting your financial goals here, this may help you in clarifying your how, when and why.

Develop strategies to help you achieve your financial goals

Now you know what you want, how are you going to get there? We’re always here to help so don’t hesitate to contact your financial adviser with these questions. We’ll consider all factors of your finances and what can be achieved. We also consider and talk through any effects this may have on your current plan, tax implications and share our expertise and knowledge.

When thinking about achieving your goals, try to be as specific as possible. Do your research and add everything that needs to be done to your to do list. This means there’s no surprises along the way which could halt your progress or cost you more than you’re prepared to pay.

Find ways to better manage your money

Our MyFramework app has a great function for tracking your spending. This can really help you understand where you’re spending your money and think about areas for change. Ask your adviser about accessing this tool, which has no cost to you.

Whatever you decide, make sure it’s a realistic plan. While you may be happy to make sacrifices for that holiday or home deposit, eating beans on toast for three weeks every month is not how you should get there.

Develop an investment plan

Another big one, with quite a few considerations. Firstly, ask yourself do you have enough money to invest? You don’t need a lot of money to start, and you can keep adding money once you’ve started investing too.

Other questions to consider: are you looking to invest for the long or short term? Are you a risk taker or will you need to take a conservative approach? What is your ultimate goal?

When you have decided on the above, you’ll need to think about your strategy. You may have ambitious goals that will need a bit or risk, or maybe you’re happy with a slow and steady approach. Your adviser can help you make these decisions and provide guidance on what would be the most appropriate investment to help you meet your needs and build the right portfolio.

Look at some tax effective investments

There are some tax effective ways to invest your money, we suggest getting advice before you invest. You could consider investing into your super, investment bonds or investing in companies that offer Franked Dividends. Listed and unlisted property funds will sometimes have ‘tax deferred’ component which, depending on your income, could offer a tax effective solution.

Make the most of your superannuation

We’ve said it before, but most people forget, your super is your money. We think everyone should be actively involved with their super, knowing your fees, making sure you’ve consolidated if appropriate and adding to you super if you can afford to.

Super is it is a tax effective way to save for your retirement. Options such as salary sacrifice and other types of concessional contributions can help lower the tax you pay. Why not take advantage of these options AND grow your retirement fund?

Find out if you’re eligible for government assistance

We all pay our taxes to ensure there is money there for us when we need it. The recent JobSeeker and JobKeeper payments are a great example of this.

Whether you’re raising a family or looking to retire there could be some government assistance for you. It could be the Family Tax Benefit, Aged Pension or eligibility for the Health Care card which can lower the cost of prescriptions and medications.

Look at your insurance needs to protect your loved ones

There are four types of personal insurance, they are Life (sometimes known as Death), Total & Permanent Disability, Trauma and Income Protection (also known as Temporary Salary Continuance). All are designed to help you and your family in case of illness, injury or death. We can help you calculate how much insurance you require to make sure your family doesn’t have to worry about money should the worst happen.

It’s important to do this on a regular basis, you may have insurance in place now but if your circumstances have changed then your insurance may not be right for you. You may be paying too much, you may have insurance you no longer require, or you may not have enough to cover your needs.

Plan for your retirement

It’s never too early to start planning or saving for your retirement. We always hear that you need $1 million to retire on but that number doesn’t suit everyone. What is it you want from your retirement? Will you be a grey nomad, childminder for your grand kids or keep working for as long as they’ll have you? Maybe a mixture of things.

Even if you don’t yet know how you want to spend your retirement, it’s still important to start putting money away. Almost 60% of Australians will run out of money before they pass away. Women over the age of 55 are the fastest growing group of homeless in Australia so planning ahead is essential. Your employer should be contributing at least 9.5% of your salary, but there are a variety of ways you can top this up over the years to ensure your balance keeps growing. Don’t forget that compound interest will help your savings grow too.

Consider your estate planning needs

Most of us don’t like to consider what happens if we’re severely ill, or approaching death. But death is one of life’s certainties and being prepared can help your family through a terrible time.

Making your Will doesn’t have to be expensive or time consuming, it can be a simple as stating you want all of your assets to go to your partner or your children, or both. Some may be more complex with divorces and remarriages, you may have a dependent child who will need more than others. By having a Will with clear directives you ensure that not only are your wishes met, but can also avoid any legal challenges if someone feels they have been treated unfairly.

Powers of Attorney and Guardianship should also be considered along with medical directives. This means the right person is making decisions about your health and finances if you’re no longer able to, and that you have already stated your wishes.

CONCLUSION

How did you go with the checklist? Are you satisfied you’re working on each item that’s relevant to you? If not, please give us a call. Call us even if you just want to check in and see if you’re on the right track.

It is very important that you understand that whether the above information is appropriate or not will depend on what your personal circumstances are. Please consider getting professional advice to ensure that any action you take will meet with your objectives, goals, and financial situation.

Disclaimer: Due to the ever-changing landscape of the Australian financial and taxation system, please seek out advice from a professional before taking this advice into consideration. The above information is general in nature and should not be considered as advice.