Some superannuation funds have recently reported their largest-ever drop in returns.
The Australian Government is publically encouraging workers to remain in the workforce after age 65. They have relaxed the superannuation and taxation rules to make it more attractive to older workers to keep working. Initially this was just to reduce the bill for the old-age pension which threatens to blow-out to enormous levels as the Baby-Boomer generation all retire together.
Then average life expectancies kept getting longer, so that people aged between 100 & 110 years old are the fastest growing category in Australian demographics. This means that it is possible for some people to be on the aged-pension for longer than they were in the workforce!
At the same time, declining birth-rates over the last 20 years has led to a severe skills-shortage in the workforce, and the government wants to minimise the effect upon business (and therefore on the economy) by encouraging older workers to stick around in their jobs awhile longer.
Now, with the American recession biting into world-asset values, many boomers may no longer have the luxury of choosing to retire at 65 – they won’t be able to afford not to keep working.
Baby boomers often hear conflicting advice on how much money they will need in retirement. However, fortune favours the prepared, and those people who have bothered to prepare and implement an integrated estate plan will be well-ahead of the pack when it comes to financial security, comfort and peace-of-mind.
Be pro-active. Take the first step. Organise yourself & your documents. Calculate your future needs. Consult a lawyer who specialises in estate planning in Adelaide. Protect your assets. Review your insurances. Make a prudent investment plan.
Those who procrastinate, and never get around to doing these things, will simply be carried along on the tide, as events that affect them unfold to determine the course of their life. Trusting to luck is not a good strategy, and ignoring looming issues of health, savings, retirement & economic security, is a recipe for disaster.
Death & taxes, illness & share-market corrections may be unavoidable … but they don’t have to ruin your family or your business. Make the effort to protect the people you really care about. Call Genders & Partners to create an integrated estate plan. And do it NOW … before it is too late.
Rod Genders is a senior Australian lawyer specialising in accident compensation and estate planning in Adelaide. His boutique specialist law firm is one of the oldest and most respected in Australia – visit it at www.genders.com.au . Rod is also a prolific author and speaker. Some of his articles and books on Wills, Probate, Trusts, Estate Planning, Asset Protection and Retirement Planning may be found at www.genders.com.au/adelaide-lawyer-blog.
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