Genders and Partners

Wills and Estate Planning Adelaide: Risk & Retirement Estate Planning in Uncertain Times

Estate Planning, Pensions and Retirement Planning, Planning for Disability and Incapacity, Wills
Risk & Retirement Estate Planning in Uncertain Times

There is growing concern over health-care costs and world-wide economic issues at the moment, and retirees’ confidence in being able to afford a comfortable and financially secure retirement has declined to a very low level.

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.

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How to Live Well in Retirement

Estate Planning, Pensions and Retirement Planning, Wills, Wills and Estate Planning
How to Live Well in Retirement

Are you nervous about the recent volatility in the markets, as you approach retirement age?

Everyone hopes for a comfortable retirement, but how many really plan for a long and fulfilling retirement? You know you should put money away for your retirement, but as that day approaches (particularly with world share markets and superannuation funds in crisis), which financial and investment strategies should you follow to help yourself enjoy the lifestyle you’ve envisioned?

You could literally spend decades in retirement. With advances in medicine and healthcare, it is actually becoming increasingly likely that Australians will live longer in retirement than they were in the workforce. Keep this type of longevity in mind when you create investment strategies for your retirement.

Genders and Partners

Wills and Estate Planning Adelaide: How Much to Live? Planning to Retire

Estate Planning, Pensions and Retirement Planning, Planning for Disability and Incapacity, Wills
How Much to Live? Planning to Retire

I had a dream the other night – it was the scene from Life of Brian where the convicts are lined up before an officious jailer, who is ticking-off their fate on a clipboard: “Crucifixion? Line on the left – one cross each!”

But in my dream-version, I was confronted with a bean-counting accountant in front of a supermarket check-out till, behind which the line branched away into two corridors marked “Live” or “Die”.

I saw myself reaching for my wallet, asking “How much to live?”

In a weird kind of way, this is a very relevant, and thoroughly modern, estate planning question.

Back in the day, men retired at age 65 and women retired at 60.  They received the old-age pension, and generally died in their 70’s.

Now, nobody can afford to retire at any age, because the pension barely covers the cost of the petrol needed to drive to the Department to collect the cheque in the first place, and yet we’re all living to 100! The Queen must be going broke with all the telegrams she has to send nowadays to people reaching their hundredth birthday.

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Wills and Estate Planning Adelaide: Elder Care & Retirement Planning

Estate Planning, Pensions and Retirement Planning, Planning for Disability and Incapacity, Wills
Elder Care & Retirement Planning

Australians are living longer than ever before. About 5000 people are turning 65 every day, yet health care & retirement planning are things many people neglect. As a result many people find themselves struggling just to get-by in their golden years.

A proper financial plan, as part of an integrated estate plan, will consider the Medicare & Centrelink entitlements of each individual within the context of their family and personal situation.  The plan will include long-term care & medical treatment, accommodation & various insurances.

As we accumulate wealth we hope that one day, we can pass it on to our children and loved ones. But without proper estate planning, a protracted illness or accident can rapidly use-up that wealth leaving us with little or nothing to pass-on. Loved ones may inherit far less than they or you expected.  Without adequate asset protection mechanisms and insurances, existence can be much colder & meaner than it needs to be.

Learning how to use estate planning is an essential life-skill for retirees.  It helps to insure that the wealth you worked so hard to build goes where you want it to. You can protect your children’s inheritance, your hard-earned retirement benefits and assets, and much more.

Estate planning can help you with your golden years. Through it you can start learning the ins and outs of elder care, long term insurance, Medicare and more today. Don’t let your lack of planning be your downfall.