3 November, 2016. Originally written and posted by Adam Farrell, Financial Adviser - Fast Track Wealth Services.
Multiple super funds? Putting it in the too hard basket? Read on…
Super…that thing that sits in the background of our thoughts and probably gets considered once a year when your statement/s turns up. You know - those envelopes that get posted to you yearly and don’t get opened - just tossed in the filing cabinet!? Don’t worry, you’re not alone.
Have you got more than one super fund?
Most Australians have changed jobs at some point in their working life. Quite a few of us don't consider our super when we do so and allow our new employers to set up a new fund for us. The result: multiple super funds. This could cost you when you go to retire. Retirement might be on the distant horizon and you might think you don’t need to worry about it yet.
However, if you have multiple funds, chances are you'll be paying for the privilege of owning these funds through fixed administration fees - across a few different funds, these fixed fees can add up to be a few hundred dollars per annum. For what? The funds certainly aren’t making an effort to provide you with an individualised service. You'll probably also be paying for multiple insurances, some you can only claim on once. Meaning you could be paying for insurances you can’t claim on.
These fees and costs add up to reduce your retirement savings. If you don't monitor them and don't contribute to all of your super funds, then those fees could end up eroding entire super fund balances, costing you in retirement. By the time the next generation of Australians retire, are we really going to be able to rely on a governement pension? Additionally, you may not be invested correctly - you may be invested too aggressively for your life stage which could harm your retirement savings if you're close to retirement. Or, you may be invested too conservatively if you're earlier in your working life – you could be missing out on growth opportunities. Make your money work for you!
Consolidating your super can be a daunting and time consuming task. Let’s face it, some super funds make us jump through endless hoops to leave them. Additionally, there’s much more to consider, mainly – what super fund is best for me? Is the insurance I’m paying for enough for my circumstances (when you close a super fund you lose the insurance inside it)? Suddenly you’re thinking “this sounds too hard, I’ll look at it later.”
If this sounds like you, then wait no longer and contact us today. We’ll look at your individual circumstance so we can determine what's right for you.
How we can help:
- We do all the leg work for you – we just need some info from you to start the process, then we do the rest;
- Determine the right superannuation product for you;
- Determine the right investments for you, including what type of assets suits your risk appetite;
- A life and risk (income protection, Total & Permanent Disability – TPD and Trauma insurance) analysis to ensure the amount of cover you have is suitable for your circumstances;
- Consolidate your multiple super funds to reduce ongoing costs and for ease of management; and
- Keep your goals in check through reviews so we can determine what is right for you at every lifestage.
There’s no reason for burying your head in the sand any longer when it comes to your super. We can manage the superannuation consolidation process for you to make sure the super and insurance inside super you have is best for your goals.
What are you waiting for? Contact us today.