Super on your terms.
For many Australians, the prospect of running their own Self Managed Superannuation Fund (SMSF) represents greater freedom, flexibility and far greater control - the opportunity to carve out their own path. For others, SMSFs can seem complex and onerous. The answer for many is probably somewhere in the middle.
Consider the following...
The Pros...
You can invest in more areas beyond what a retail fund will offer, such as real property, collectibles or physical gold.
You have greater control over the timing of the purchase or sale of assets.
Can be less expensive than retail/public offer schemes.
The ability to reduce capital gains tax if assets are sold in the income/pension phase.
The Cons...
An SMSF requires active supervision.
There are complex rules and regulations you need to follow.
May end up more expensive than a retail/public offer fund.
Your investment returns could be lower due to inexperience.
If you have at least $300,000 of accumulated super, you're good with 'paperwork' and you don't mind spending at least a few days per month managing your fund and finances (both now and as you age), an SMSF may be right for you. But if you're thinking about going down the SMSF path, you should seek advice from a Financial Planner first.
A collaborative approach.
For a smoother, stress-free experience, continuity is essential.
We encourage an open dialogue between all of your trusted advisers (i.e. Accountant, Lawyer, Broker etc) - it's the best way we know to ensure that your SMSF is set-up correctly, and managed properly on an ongoing basis.
In short, we'll help you pull all of the SMSF pieces together and lighten your load, so that you can focus on those issues that are most important to you.
Yes, the responsibilities of running your own fund do need to be taken seriously, but with the right people by your side, the experience can be a rewarding one.
Setting-up or Winding-up?
Perhaps you’re considering establishing your own self managed super fund (SMSF), or perhaps you already have. There are numerous considerations associated with establishing, running and winding up an SMSF.
This is the fifth in the Your super series of booklets that Macquarie has developed to help you understand how superannuation works and to give you some tips on how you can get the most out of your super.
Read 'Self-managed super funds: from set-up to wind-up' from Macquarie.
A guide to super borrowing.
The term ‘super borrowing’ is used to describe when a superannuation fund borrows money to purchase an investment asset.
Borrowing to invest is not a new concept - many investors borrow money in their personal name or via a company or trust structure to purchase sharemarket stocks, managed funds, real property and other investment assets. Borrowing to invest is often referred to as gearing, gearing up, negative gearing, leveraging and a range of other terms. In the superannuation context, a borrowing arrangement is often referred to as a limited recourse borrowing arrangement (LRBA).
Borrowing to invest in super was introduced in 2007. Until then this strategy was generally not available to super funds because the superannuation law prohibited borrowing except in limited circumstances. The law was amended in September 2007 to allow super funds to borrow more broadly and subsequent amendments in 2010 have further clari ed the capacity of super funds to borrow to invest. Today super borrowing is a popular strategy used by many self managed superannuation funds (SMSFs).
This booklet aims to help you understand the pros and cons of super borrowing, including:
why you might enter into a super borrowing arrangement
what the risks are
establishing a super borrowing arrangement
maintaining a super borrowing arrangement
ending a super borrowing arrangement
a detailed case study.
It is generally assumed in this booklet that an SMSF is in existence prior to the consideration of a super borrowing arrangement. Where this is not the case, please also refer to Your super booklet 5 – Self managed super funds: from set up to wind up.
Read 'Self managed super funds: a guide to super borrowing' from Macquarie.
