How much do you need to retire comfortably in Australia? Knowing how much money you might need, how long it will last can be tricky. Working out how much is enough for retirement depends on many factors, such as your lifestyle, plans for the future, and the number of years you’ll spend retired. Additionally, estimating how much you’ll have when you plan to retire depends on factors such as your current salary, super balance and …
7 tips to reduce your debts before you retire As your working life draws to a close, your social life and recreational activities don’t have to. If you’re a little anxious about money still owing, here are a few pointers. Ahh retirement! You may have been dreaming about it for decades. You visualise yourself putting away your uniform, high-vis or corporate gear, farewelling that lovely boss of yours and spending the rest of your days …
Can you use your pension to retire debt free? Perhaps you’re considering options for how to reduce your debt before retiring. Well, one option may be to use your pension account, but there are some important things you should consider first. It’s no secret that Australia, like many countries, has an ageing population. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 16.3% of us are over the age of 651, but that number is expected to grow …
Is $1m enough to retire? A million dollars is a figure that’s often cited as the amount you need to retire. But while $1 million doesn’t go as far as it used to – it only goes slightly above the median house price in Sydney1 – for many people it still sounds like an impossibly large amount of money to save. In reality, there’s no set figure you need to have accumulated in savings, super, real …
Many Aussies in the dark about retirement Whether retirement is a long way into the distance, or just peeking over the horizon, recent research1 shows half of us aren’t sure we’ll have enough money to retire when we want, or even how much money we’ll actually need. There’s always been a lot of unknowns when it comes to retirement but throw a global pandemic into the mix, and we’re feeling more uncertainty than ever before. Things …
Extreme saving – pros and cons of joining the FIRE movement The FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) approach to saving and investing is catching on. Find out if living frugally now for a future of financial freedom is all it’s cracked up to be. What is FIRE all about? In a country with a tragic history of bushfires, you’d expect a website called Aussie Fire Bug to be banned immediately. But the FIRE this bug is blogging …
How to retire early Whether you choose or need early retirement, having a plan can give your money the best chance of lasting the distance. Whether lifestyle preferences or circumstances beyond your control are behind your decision to retire early, you’ll need to make a plan to help your retirement savings last, while still enjoying a few of your favourite comforts in life. Here are some retirement planning tips to consider when thinking about retiring …
When can I afford to retire? Judging when you’re ready to retire is a tricky proposition, with the need to balance comfort, lifestyle and future income. When can you afford to retire? We sat down with CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER®professional and private client adviser Chris Giaouris of Chronos Private to find out how to tell when you’re retirement-ready. How do you know how much money you’ll need to retire? To be frank, it’s impossible to know for …
Seniors are doing it for themselves Newcastle-based lawyer Lyn Lucas has been practicing family law for 25 years. She is also 76. Lucas studied law as a mature age student, and seven years ago created an online legal practice, Online Divorce Lawyer. This came about as she was looking to lessen the stress of practising law full time. Creating such a unique practice resulted in her being invited to present to the NSW Law Society in …
What it means to retire and live the dream When you’re no longer working and chasing dollars, you may have a different perspective on what you value most about your life. Take a look at how our current generation of retirees measure their success and what “living the dream” means to them. “Living the dream” in retirement? How likely are retirees to be “living the dream” Just 22% of boomers are living the dream compared with 27% of …
