Category: Wealth Intelligence

Codicil or new will? How to update a will in Victoria

A codicil is essential tool in ongoing management of an estate plan. But it often little understood. What Is a Codicil? A codicil is a formal legal document that amends, rather than replaces, an existing will. Think of it as a supplementary instruction attached to your original will. It doesn’t start from scratch, but adds, […]

Federal Budget: “Too soon to tell”* – What should investors do?

Foreword I’ve let the dust settle a little on the 2026 federal budget, in the hope that pragmatism would prevail. It hasn’t, to date. So, please treat this note as an interim observation. The Key Investment Updates Essentially, as far as investors are concerned, it was all about tax: the taxation of Capital Gains, and […]

Wealth Management doesn’t stop when you stop working

Why you still need a wealth manager in retirement Not all things get simpler in retirement There’s a persistent idea that retirement is the point where life finally gets simpler. You stop working and everything; the obligations, the decisions, the complexity, quietly winds down. The reality is that while employment stops, retirement planning sets in […]

Superannuation tax changes now law

Following more plot twists than a M. Night Shyamalan film, the much-discussed superannuation taxation changes are now law. They will come into effect on 1 July 2026. The new tax was colloquially called ‘the superannuation $3m tax’, as it related to additional taxation of superannuation balances in excess of $3m. However, the industry calls it […]

How to Protect Gifts to Your Children & Grandchildren from Predators

Background Parents who have accumulated reasonable wealth during their lifetime often intend to gift a sum to their children (for convenience ‘children’ also encompasses ‘grandchildren’). However, good intentions often risk turning to dust because of predators. [The term predators include any party who may wish to lay claim to all or some of the capital.] […]

Will ‘wealth management’ provide a better outcome than ‘financial planning’?

Engaging a trusted adviser, such as a financial planner, to guide your fiscal decisions is an excellent first step toward managing your financial future. However, complexity increases as you accumulate wealth and a family. Financial planning alone is often no longer optimal for your financial needs. There is a significant difference between traditional financial planning and […]

“Downsizer” Superannuation Contributions – broader application than you think

An eligible person selling a home can make a tax-free contribution to a superannuation fund of up to $300,000, or $600,000 per couple This contribution is not subject to the typical caps and restrictions that usually apply to other types of superannuation contributions. Downsizer Contribution Eligibility Given the title of the measure, ‘Downsizer Contribution’, you […]

Navigating Parents or Partners into Aged Care With Confidence

An elderly man in a wheelchair being pushed by a young aged care worker.

Finding your way through Australia’s aged-care system with expert advice. We are finding more clients are needing support and advice with the transition for parents or a partner into aged care.  The aged care transition can be difficult to navigate with aged care fees, the Aged Care Assessment Team (ACAT) process, funding options and residential care contracts plus the additional stress […]

Future of Australian taxation

Economic Round Table Debrief © 2025 First Samuel Limited Division 296 For the last two and a half years, a focus of the financial advice industry, and of many of our clients, has been the threatened imposition of the ‘better targeted superannuation concessions’ policy. This bureaucratic-speak became known as the proposed ‘excess superannuation member balance […]

Death Benefits and Despair

© 2025 First Samuel Limited The Short Story Some obvious statements: Certainty Timeliness The critical importance of choosing a superannuation fund should be based not only on investment returns. Consider how the fund works when things don’t work. Case #1 – certainty Last week our attention was drawn to adult siblings whose mother had died. […]

New Tax on Superannuation: A Pre-Election Reminder

The Federal Government’s proposed increase in tax to 30% on some superannuation income and assets (of March 2023) lapsed because of Senate opposition. With the election on Saturday, it is timely to remind you of the proposed changes. The changes, if implemented, will reduce the tax effectiveness of superannuation as an investment vehicle for members […]

Why Intergenerational Wealth Management is more than a will and a superannuation form

Massive wealth transition underway We now sit at the beginning of the largest-ever transition of wealth in Australia’s history. That transition is not from taxpayers to the government. But, instead, from the baby-boomer generation (born 1946 to 1964) to their children and/or grandchildren. Who is prepared for the great transition of wealth? My experience is […]

The end of globalisation? How your investments will be managed

The term ‘global supply chains’ first came to the attention of the world during the Covid-19 crisis. The media started reporting that disruptions to global supply chains were causing economic problems. What this means is that so much of what people buy or enjoy is at the end of a chain of supply. Or, more […]

Insurance via Superannuation – at what cost?

Firstly, insurance policies offered via superannuation may not always be suitable for every person, particularly those who have specific insurance needs. Examples include those requiring the added protection of an ‘own-occupation’ policy definition – such as surgeons. Such policy definitions were rendered incompatible with superannuation.

Medical rooms ownership: Opportunities and pitfalls

Female doctor seeing a patient in her medical room

When the share-market does not see value or investment merit in a particular stock the stock’s share price will recede. This could be because the company’s earnings (i.e. profit) outlook is poor (e.g. Bega Cheese Ltd) or perhaps the industry in the which the company operates is struggling (e.g. ARN Media Limited).
But often someone or a company will see value where the share-market does not. The logical outcome of this is one of the more interesting aspects of investment: the merger or the acquisition. Or, in jargon: M&A.

Understanding the rise in mergers and acquisitions

Two people shaking hands with a light blue background

When the share-market does not see value or investment merit in a particular stock the stock’s share price will recede. This could be because the company’s earnings (i.e. profit) outlook is poor (e.g. Bega Cheese Ltd) or perhaps the industry in the which the company operates is struggling (e.g. ARN Media Limited).
But often someone or a company will see value where the share-market does not. The logical outcome of this is one of the more interesting aspects of investment: the merger or the acquisition. Or, in jargon: M&A.

Is superannuation still your most efficient wealth creator? 

3 rows of coins that grow in height.

The proposed new superannuation legislation that places an additional tax on superannuation earnings on balances above $3m creates an environment in which investments are unequally treated. 

Investors who do not understand the nuances may end up paying more tax than they would otherwise pay.

Trusts: Understanding Appointors and Successor Appointors

Image features hands of two people signing a trust document

Many trusts, including many SMSFs, do not have an Appointor or a Successor Appointor. In times of disagreement between beneficiaries and the trustee this might be a costly omission, particularly if the matter requires litigation to resolve it.

New Tax on Superannuation: Update on Proposed Changes

In Act 3 of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the protagonist is in a state of both grief and shock having discovered that his father has been murdered by his uncle. Lucky for Hamlet that he didn’t have the intricacies of superannuation and death benefits to contend with.

Death Benefit Nominations – Estate planning

In Act 3 of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the protagonist is in a state of both grief and shock having discovered that his father has been murdered by his uncle. Lucky for Hamlet that he didn’t have the intricacies of superannuation and death benefits to contend with.

Are there sovereign risks to wealth for Victorians?

The irony is that Victoria needs to invest even more to provide amenity to the expected increased population growth.

Should Victoria fail to invest, higher public transport and health care costs will be the most significant risks to the cost and quality of living of families and individuals in the middle of the income wealth scale.

Small business owners: a successful wealth management case study

A small business owner and his or her partner face a unique financial challenge: their personal wealth management issues are woven into their business. Having served such clients for more than 22 years, we know that this integration presents both challenges and opportunities.

The perils of index investing

The Index Portfolio is a simple beast, with only one strict mandate: track the market. Investors often forget that this ‘single minded’ focus may lead to perverse outcomes.