2016

The new changes in the foreign investment framework are the most significant changes to the framework in over 40 years, click through to read more about how these may impact your next investment or development. In the 2013-14 financial year, foreign investment approvals were given for $167.4 billion of proposed investment. This represented a 23.4 per cent increase on the $135.7 billion in proposed investment approved the year prior. Given this unprecedented increase in foreign investment, the old framework could not properly hold up. The major considerations in mind when developing the new framework were: National security; Competition; Other Australian […]

History tells us that the executives at Xerox and Kodak blew it. Four decades ago, Xerox researchers invented the graphical user interface that became the cornerstone of the personal computer – but senior managers chose not invest in the technology. Apple and Microsoft are forever indebted to them. Kodak invented digital cameras – but its managers stubbornly refused to abandon its focus on film. Nikon, Canon and all smartphone companies are the beneficiaries.   With Xerox and Kodak, “the ideas were there, but the ability to influence the strategic direction of the organisation to take advantage of those ideas … […]

More super, less tax What is salary sacrifice? Put simply, salary sacrificing is a pre-tax contribution from your income to your super account, so you’ll have more money to enjoy in retirement. These pre-tax contributions reduce your taxable income so you may pay less tax. How does salary sacrificing work? First, you need to look at your income and expenses, and work out how much of your income you can comfortably give up now, and invest for your retirement. Then you need to arrange with your employer to regularly redirect that amount of your wage to your super account instead […]

Like the post Brexit reaction the markets (ex Japan) have been remarkably mature about dealing with what was a massive surprise of the Trump victory.   I discovered the VUCA world analogy during recent readings. The American military coined the term VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex & Ambiguous) world to describe the conditions in Afghanistan and Iraq. Their considered advice was captured beautifully in this quote – “we are moving from a world of problems, which demand speed, analysis and elimination of uncertainty to a world of dilemmas which demand patience, sense making and engagement with uncertainty.”   So engaging with […]

In late 2014 Griffith University on the Gold Coast hosted the World Scientific Conference on Golf (WSCG). Julie Knutsen, a lecturer at the university, seized on the opportunity to tee-off some research to answer a question that she’d been considering for a long time: what can elite golfers teach us about making better financial decisions? At the Personal Finance and Investment Symposium (PFIS) held at Western Sydney University last week, Knutsen presented the preliminary findings of her research into whether decision-making processes that lead to the best results on the golf course can also improve results when it comes to […]

You wouldn’t normally expect us to talk about property, but I got some very strong views,  I want to outline. In the year to May 2016 – we know the total number of apartments sold in Australia amounted to about 96,000 units. That’s new, off-the-plan apartments, as well as existing apartments. But in the year to May 2017, the number of off-the-plan apartments due to settle will be almost 94,000 apartments – almost the same number of apartments sold in Australia in the year before. This simply means there are a lot of apartments about to settle. What we know […]

Like the post Brexit reaction the markets (ex Japan) have been remarkably mature about dealing with what was a massive surprise of the Trump victory.   I discovered the VUCA world analogy during recent readings. The American military coined the term VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex & Ambiguous) world to describe the conditions in Afghanistan and Iraq. Their considered advice was captured beautifully in this quote – “we are moving from a world of problems, which demand speed, analysis and elimination of uncertainty to a world of dilemmas which demand patience, sense making and engagement with uncertainty.” So engaging with uncertainty, […]

It’s the year 2020. After having her morning routine looked after by Google Home – which shows Sue the latest E! Entertainment news feed projected to her shower screen, prepares her Nespresso coffee just to her liking, and reads her Facebook messages to her as she gets dressed – Sue jumps into her driverless UBER taxi and heads off to work. Sue sits back into her heated car seat to read a daily commentary of news items relevant to her retirement and investment portfolio. This includes snippets of news stories from around the web and commentary from analysts and investment […]

Many clients these days want to provide assistance to their children to purchase property. However, there a few issues to consider. ________________________________________ Scenario One… Rob and Kirsty Scenario: Rob and Kirsty have three adult children. The eldest, Nicky, is married and has asked for help with a deposit in order to buy a home. What’s the issue? If Rob and Kirsty help Nicky, what happens if she divorces? Her husband could claim it’s a gift to them both and end up with a portion of it as part of the divorce settlement. Solutions: Rob and Kirsty can provide the money […]

A. Active Growth , Morningstar Rating: 4 stars Average return pa over last 4 years: 11.81% Minimum Initial Investment: $1000 Entry Price 12 Feb 2016: $1.3369 Distributions Frequency: Quarterly Responsible Entity(RE): Netwealth Investment Funds(www.netwealth.com.au) To invest in a mix of assets across various traditional and alternative asset classes with the majority of investments being in International Equity 31.54% and in Cash 26.06% via investment in sector trusts. The top 5 sectors are real Estate 16.52%, Energy 14.99%, Financial Services 11.84%, Utilities 11.57% and Consumer Cyclical 8.73%. Those sectors invest in Australia27.85%, United States 15.35%, Japan 15.08%, United Kingdom8.37% and France […]