Trusts are a popular structure used by many investors and small businesses. A self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF) is actually a type of trust, as are testamentary trusts that are established as part of a person’s will. But what exactly is a trust? How do various types of trusts operate, and what role does a trust deed play?
Read MoreOne of the nice things about modern life is we all get to share our opinions. As much as being opinionated is now something of an economy, the validity of rampant opinion making has always had a question mark hanging over it.
Back in 167 AD Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius said “It is in our power to have no opinion about a thing, and not to be disturbed in our soul; for things themselves have no natural power to form our judgements.” If we’re allowed to interpret Aurelius’ words, he’s suggesting opinions are a choice and no harm comes from not having one.
As one of Hollywood’s most successful screenwriters, William Goldman won two Academy Awards & had over 20 of his screenplays made into movies. But arguably his most famous line isn’t from one of his movies. It was from a book he wrote on the movie business called Adventures in the Screen Trade, & it’s an assessment of the business itself: “Nobody knows anything.” Goldman suggested that despite all the money spent on big name actors, screenwriters, & skilled directors, no one, including the studios doing the financing, had any idea which movies would be a hit or a miss.
Read MoreInflation and interest rates again remained the major points of interest across Q2, but with well over a year of interest rate rises behind us, many economies have proven more resilient than expected. The US economy, in particular, has proven robust despite a total of 5% in rate hikes since March 2022, however it’s suggested the effect of rate hikes has still not been fully felt. Equity markets were positive over Q2.
Read MoreSince the beginning of 2023 equity & bond markets seem to be on two different paths. Equity markets have been rising despite the continuing increase in interest rates by central banks. Bond markets have been pointing to a dramatic slowdown in the economy. How should investors interpret these mixed messages & what can they do about them?
Read MoreThe time is nearly here once again for the lodgment of our Individual and Business Income Tax Returns. Each financial year brings with it changes, updates and new target areas for the ATO. Here, we outline some key pieces of tax time information for 2023 to help you with your taxation planning and lodgement.
Image courtesy of www.superguide.com.au
Read MoreThe 23/24 Federal Budget has been released and thanks to strong commodity prices it looks better than would have been expected a year ago. Some of the key areas addressed in the budget were cost-of-living, social security payments, investment in Government services and attempting to alleviate inflationary pressures, though time will judge its impact on inflation.
Read MoreInflation and interest rates remained points of interest across Q1, but towards the end of the quarter attention turned to the consequences of higher interest rates and what they might potentially break. Global growth appeared to be heading in the right direction, as rebounds in various purchasing managers’ indices and business surveys indicated positive sentiment.
Read MoreBank runs aren’t new, or even rare in the US. There have been over 450 bank failures since 2008, with 2018, 2021 and 2022 the only years in recent memory not to see a bank failure in the US. If one of the big banks in Australia went down, it would require a cataclysmic event. Something that would almost guarantee life as we knew it was over. Society wouldn’t be functioning and there would be much bigger problems than money.
Read MoreIt’s likely the case that most of our clients don’t love tax law as much as we do, which is fair enough. For those who are in a small business, you're probably busy hunting for opportunities to grow & do things you’re passionate about. So don’t worry, we’ll keep you across the changes in Australian tax laws that have significant impacts on SMEs.
Read MoreFor anyone with a passing interest in superannuation, the announcements made by the Federal Government over the last few days would have been interesting. Despite weeks of the Government stating they wanted to legislate the purpose of superannuation before considering any changes to tax concessions, last week they announced changes to superannuation designed to generate $2b in extra tax revenue every year.
Read MoreInterest rates and inflation were again major themes in Q4, as the US Federal Reserve delivered a hawkish message to round out the year following its December meeting. This capped off a year dominated by inflation. Inflation figures in many developed economies hit the highest levels since the early 80s. The high figures saw some very aggressive monetary policy in response, but there were signs that hawkish messages and aggressive rate moves may have started to have their intended effect.
Read MoreNow that 2023 is underway, it’s time to take stock of your budget, debt, and investments—and check them against your financial goals. These four steps can get you started.
Read MoreAnother week and it seems almost guaranteed that another fraud, failure, or disaster will emerge in the cryptocurrency world. The latest is the bankruptcy of FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange and trading business founded by Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF for short) and said to be the second or third largest in the space, depending on who you listen to. At last count, the $32 billion FTX was valued at,based on the last time it raised capital from investors (it was privately held) has gone up in smoke.
Read MoreVeteran Wall Street floor trader Art Cashin was 18 at the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Cashin’s father died in his last year of high school, so Cashin bypassed college and made the leap to Wall Street to help support his family. The education he received there was more about street smarts than book smarts.
Read MoreThere are few things that give us more professional satisfaction than being able to work with families and businesses over a long period of time, to help them growth their wealth. Many factors come into play for this: tax minimisation, correct structures, clients running successful businesses, then helping with investments for surplus cashflow. It’s an ongoing journey and one we’re privileged to be a part of.
Read MoreThe major theme from Q3 was the Central Bank resolve to dampen inflation. Unfortunately, the only tool in Central Bank arsenals are interest rate increases, something that continues to offend financial markets. There were large rate increases by the US Federal Reserve and Australia’s Reserve Bank in Q3, with the European Central Bank also joining the party with two large increases. Energy remained an issue, with the prospect of the war in Ukraine now becoming a longer-term battle, as Ukraine’s resistance and Russia’s inability to hold territory was in contrast to early expectations.
Read MoreEstate planning is often one of those topics that gets pushed onto the “I’ll get to it” list. And it’s no wonder this often happens – estate planning can be hard and knowing where to start is usually the most difficult step. To assist with this, we’ve come up with a broad list of questions that may prompt some thinking and family conversation.
Read MoreDespite the ongoing noise from the news and financial markets, the fundamentals of investing will always remain the same. Here’s a short video by Dominique Schuh to remind you of some of the investment basics.
Read MoreAfter enjoying unprecedented interest rate reductions for over 11 years in Australia, the music stopped around 4 months ago, just before PM Albanese’s win. A 25 point (0.25%) official cash rate rise from the Reserve Bank was followed by a further 50 points in June, and yet another 0.5% rise in July and August. At the time of writing, the cash rate now sits at 1.85%. Rate rises not only affect borrowers, but all consumers of products and services from businesses with debt on their balance sheets or with directors who have rising personal home loan commitments.
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