What we think of recent Super conversations

Recent news reports (read here, here, here and here) have highlighted a range of changes being floated by the federal government regarding superannuation, including the very definition or purpose of superannuation itself.

Reading through the proposed changes we can’t help but see a pattern of the government looking for more ways to build their own wealth and remove choice and flexibility from the Australian people regarding their own money.

The changes being discussed are centred around changing tax concessions, taxing wealth categories, preventing early withdrawals and capping balances. Possible changes around SMSF have also fired up professional groups representing about 500,000 members slamming the complex SMSF rule changes that would unfairly penalise professionals across accounting, law, real estate and the trades.

We know that all these changes are just discussion points for now and nothing is locked in but it is creating a lot of uncertainty and confusion that the opposition says will impact super investment.

Something we’ve identified in these media reports and government statements that others aren’t discussing is that in the government’s revised description of the purpose or objective of superannuation there are two elements that should be cause for concern for everyone.

The new description reads:

“The objective of super is to preserve savings to deliver income for a dignified retirement, alongside government support, in an equitable and sustainable way”.

What we’re taking issue with is:

1. “Alongside government support” demonstrating they don’t believe super is enough to live on in your retirement. In other words, you need to do more than rely on a government scheme and pension.
2. ‘in an equitable and sustainable way’ – yeah, we’re not confident they are talking about you, and not about government coffers, about protecting them.

If you want a ‘secure’ future, YOU have to do something about it. We can’t rely on, or even trust, the Government will look out for us.

We’ve always believed in property as a strong and stable asset class and most of our clients are creating their own retirement plan with property, not relying on superannuation to finance their retirement years.

If you’d like to understand the opportunities available to you to leverage the current market opportunities then reach out to our team for a free property strategy session.