The No-Regrets Guide to Retirement Newsletter
The economic storm clouds are darkening. The war in Europe is getting worse rather than better, the economy in the United Kingdom is suddenly at crisis and higher inflation is still pushing interest rates up around the world.
However, with export earnings at record levels and domestic employment demand high, the local economy appears in good shape to weather whatever international storm clouds might be brewing.
As you will read in this month’s issue of The No-Regrets Guide to Retirement Newsletter, this is a time to batten down the hatches and ride out whatever economic squalls might be heading our way.
This is highlighted in the article, Where to for Wesfarmers? Once one of the top performers of the Australian share market, Wesfarmers has been hit by a wave of selling that is difficult to explain for a company paying a fully franked dividend of about 4.5 per cent.
While it is easy to be swept up by negative market sentiment, Wesfarmers has one of the best management teams in the country and substantial growth plans, which I believe makes it a very interesting investment at these prices.
At the other end of the spectrum is Optus. Its difficult to know which was more poorly managed. The decisions that lead to the personal details of 9 million customers being hacked or the poor management since then in the public handling of this matter.
In The Great Optus Hack, I outline five key steps you should take to protect yourself and your identity from being illegally accessed in this way.
Anyone who owns Telstra shares will be aware there is something big going on there given all the paperwork that has been sent out in recent weeks, although exactly what is going on is less clear.
So What is Happening at Telstra? is my attempt to simplify what is a very complex restructuring, which should position the company for growth and enable the share market to more fully value its operations.
If I haven't succeeded, please don't hesitate in emailing me with any questions you might have.
Self-managed superannuation funds are one of my pet hates. While they once were a good idea and can still be a good idea in rare specific circumstances, for most people, they are now a bad idea.
Time consumption and costs are the biggest problems associated with self-managed super funds, particularly when compared to some of the better options in the market place these days.
In SMSF's: The Biggest Pitfalls, I outline three more problems which should make anyone who still owns a self managed super fund think again. If you only have a self managed super fund so you can own direct shares, there are much better options.
It still amazes me so many people don't fully understand their financial position, particularly if they find themselves in a relationship with a partner who seems to control everything.
Surprisingly, four out of ten Australians are unaware of their partner's wealth, according to the finance comparison site, Finder. That is a terrible statistic even for those who think they are otherwise happy in their relationship.
If this is you, you must read Red Flags in Your Relationship. If you don't know, you should know, and if you don't feel comfortable asking, then you do have a problem and the sooner you resolve it, the better.
Finally, the rules surrounding superannuation just seem to get more and more complex. Just how much can I put into super? is a simple guide to help you better understand super in the hope of encouraging you to do just that, put more money into super.
Remember any funds you do have in super that are then used to support an account-based pension, or your own private pension, will become tax free, both in terms of any earnings or capital gains. Its just too good to ignore.
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