A Will is an important legal document that states how you want your property and assets to be distributed when you die, to whom (your beneficiaries) and who should manage the process (your Will’s executor). If someone dies without a valid Will, they’re said to have died “intestate”. In such cases, intestacy laws apply, and […]
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Australians see benefits from solar
If the 2025 election results are anything to go by, Australians may have rejected nuclear power but are clearly growing in their support for renewable energy alternatives. Rooftop solar, for example, continues to increase in popularity in regional and metro areas across the country. According to data from the Clean Energy Council, the total number […]
Age pension increases from 20 March 2025
If you receive the Age Pension, or certain other government payments, you may notice some extra money in your pocket thanks to the government’s decision to pass on indexation to ease cost-of-living pressures. For singles on the Age Pension, Disability Support Pension and Carer payment, fortnightly payments have increased $4.60 to $1149 ($29,874 per year). […]
Not rich enough to buy cheap
It’s tempting to buy cheap when trying to reduce the costs of living – but are cheaper consumer goods a solution to save you money, or part of the problem? The consequences of our increasingly ‘throw away’ culture have already had a dire impact on the planet. We just need to look at the unprecedented […]
The butterfly effect
You may have heard of a concept in chaos theory called ‘the butterfly effect’. The mathematician and meteorologist Lorenz famously described how a butterfly flapping its wings in Brazil could set off a tornado in Texas. It might also describe how a politician moving his lips in the US (talking about tariffs, say, or job […]
What happens if the specific gift in my Will is gone before I die?
A specific gift is a tangible item – such as a property you own or a particular sum of money – that you choose to give to a particular individual in your Will. It might be that you state in your Will that you want to leave a specific property to your child, for example. […]
Time is money … or is it?
We’ve all heard the expression ‘Time is money.’ It’s meant to warn about the monetary costs of being idle. That is, the opportunity costs of not making money while we’re ‘young and able’, and the risks of spending the money we earn when we’re not ‘hard at work’. Sadly, the ‘time is money’ mantra has […]
Thinking about financial advice?
Thinking about getting financial advice but haven’t taken the first step? If so, you’re not alone. According to an Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) report[i] on Australian attitudes to financial advice, 41 per cent of survey participants who’d intended to seek advice, still hadn’t gone ahead. If that sounds like you, there’s probably a […]
Navigating retirement – FAQs about super
As you approach retirement, it’s important to understand how to access your superannuation. If you’re looking to retire this year – or are in the planning stages – here’s a list of frequently asked questions. When can I access my superannuation? Australian legislation sets out specific conditions – known as conditions of release – that […]
HIN and SRN – What’s the difference? (and why it helps to know if you sell shares)
First, let me preface this by saying that including ‘HIN’ and ‘SRN’ in your blog post does not make for a catchy title, but you’d be surprised how many people ask me about these. So if you don’t know what they are, or how they’re different, then read on. Purchasing shares through an online broker […]