23 September 2008 | The recent suspension of redemptions and proposed restructurings of some unlisted property funds will bring more pain to investors and advisers, but it should not be a surprise to an industry that has been here before, writes DOMINIC McCORMICK.
23 September 2008 | MARTIN CONLON explains why he is sceptical of the current commodities boom.
23 September 2008 | COL FULLAGAR talks advisers through risk insurance claims management.
15 August 2008 | Sean Howard looks at some of the common pitfalls that arise when holding insurance through an SMSF.
5 June 2008 | The Government’s regulatory review of research houses should question whether the ‘pay for rating’ model is inhibiting good investment advice, argues DOMINIC McCORMICK
2 June 2008 | Brett Yardley discusses how technological evolutions within insurance can destroy value if operated inefficiently.
2 June 2008 | Martin Hession explains how unlisted property trusts aren’t affected by market volatility and can therefore provide the same pure property exposure as direct property.
2 June 2008 | No doubt many of us have read in disbelief details of the annual Darwin Awards; stories of people who have, through amazing stupidity, contributed to their own demise.
2 June 2008 | Many investors are re-examining their asset allocations and revisiting traditional fixed interest investments, writes Roger McIntosh. Here he explains why.
2 June 2008 | Warren O’Rourke provides an up-to-date snapshot of the lending and housing market in light of the recent interest rate rises and volatility within investment markets.
2 June 2008 | David Fox explains how to design a custom-made advice proposition that your target market will find hard to refuse.
19 May 2008 | The last half-decade has seen the use and complexity of financially engineered products reach unprecedented levels. Robert Keavney argues that such products ought to be recommended by planners only if they understand their underlying constituent. In some cases, this could result in lower popularity.
19 May 2008 | Insurance bonds have been enjoying a huge resurgence in the past couple of years. The tax benefits for high income earners and for non-dependent beneficiaries, coupled with the Centrelink benefits, have brought them back in favour with many advisers and clients, writes JEFFREY SCOTT.
19 May 2008 | Paul Resnik believes the world of financial planning has changed forever. In his words, the tide of optimism that covered investment mistakes and flawed client value propositions with the rising value of investments has turned.
30 April 2008 | PAUL DERHAM advises licensees on how to properly understand, identify and manage breaches of financial services laws.
17 April 2008 | URS ALDER puts an absolute return strategy into perspective.
17 April 2008 | Many clients’ portfolios have been heavily hit by recent market declines. Robert Keavney considers what lessons planners can learn for future cycles.
7 February 2008 | If a client plans to leave their superannuation to a non-dependent (such as an adult child), a part of the death benefit could be eaten up by tax. This is because, unlike dependent beneficiaries (such as a spouse or young child), non-dependents have to pay tax of 16.5 per cent (includes a Medicare levy of 1.5 per cent) on the taxed element of the taxable component.
7 February 2008 | Jon Remmington lists five smart business decisions every financial planning practice owner should make during 2008.
6 February 2008 | Ian McDermott outlines key due diligence practises he believes are vital when it comes to marketing your financial planning business.
6 February 2008 | After a tumultuous start, Dominic McCormick previews the remainder of a year which is likely to be one of the most challenging for the local investment and financial services industries in decades.
14 December 2007 | The provision of sound advice has always been based more on ‘how’ rather than ‘how much’; in other words, how did the adviser arrive at a benefit amount recommendation? While the ‘how’ for risk products such as term insurance is reasonably advanced, quantifying the trauma insurance recommendation has always been a challenge. Col Fullagar reports.
14 December 2007 | It’s been over 18 months since I last wrote about gold. (“Gold – Volatile times ahead” Money Management March 8 2006). In it I suggested that gold was still reasonably early in a bull market but that it would clearly not be a one-way street. Since then gold has indeed been highly volatile with the price spiking from below $US585 to $US750 two months later in May 2006, then falling to as low as $US550 in June 2006 before rising steadily to recent highs just under $US850 and coming off recently to below $800.
14 December 2007 | Amanda Rethus and Edwina Best discuss whether the age-old way of doing things is necessarily the best approach to use when it comes to investments.
14 December 2007 | Grant Holley provides planners with practical guidance to assist them in meeting their anti-money laundering regulation obligations.