Articles

Realise Your Dream

The Realise Your Dream blogs are written by Peter Kelly and Mark Teale.

Peter provides technical advice to financial advisers and accountants on superannuation, retirement planning and estate planning. He also has extensive knowledge in all aspects of self-managed superannuation funds and is a regular presenter at conferences, seminars and workshops. He is Manager; Technical Advice with Centrepoint Alliance Limited.

Mark has a great deal of experience, having worked for the Department of Social Security and Centrelink as a Financial Information Service Officer and Regional Manager for close to 25 years and for the last 15 years, he has worked for Centrepoint Alliance as Research, Paraplanning and Product Manager. He now works alongside PK as a Manager; Technical Advice part of the Centrepoint Technical team.

Naturally, his specialties lay in the areas of Aged Care, Centrelink and Veteran's Affairs and pushing people to realise that you are never too old to set yourself a challenge yourself.

23 September, 2020

COVID Crunch time

Back in March 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic first came to Australian shores and the country went into lockdown, the Federal Government introduced a generous economic stimulus package that was designed to help business and individuals alike to weather the downturn. Terms like JobKeeper, JobSeeker and Coronavirus supplement became part...

09 September, 2020

Maximising non-concessional super contributions

One question that comes across my desk on an almost daily basis is “how much can my client contribute to super?” Of course, the answer to this question is not that simple as there are many moving parts that need to be considered. Things like: What type of contribution is...

02 September, 2020

Getting things in order - part 2

Recently I wrote an article about how superannuation benefits are handled when a member of a superannuation fund dies. I undertook to write a follow up article that considers the taxation implications of superannuation death benefits. As many readers will be aware, superannuation is a tax advantaged structure for accumulating retirement savings...

27 August, 2020

Aged Care - a subject we avoid...

My mum has been a resident of an aged care home for two years. I have watched the nightly reports of the deaths in aged care with a great deal of concern and fear. I know my mum is safe, and the staff in the home where she resides are...

21 August, 2020

Aged Care - what a difference $5,000 can make

A person’s aged care costs are generally based on their income and their assets. The basic premise is that if you have the appropriate level of assets and income, you will be required to pay the Refundable Accommodation Deposit RAD) to enter a residential care facility and an ongoing Means...

19 August, 2020

Getting things in order

I spend my days working closely with financial advisers as they help their clients get their affairs into some sort of order. While the financial adviser’s role generally involves advice focussed on the accumulation and investment of a person’s wealth, an important part of their role addresses the timely distribution...