Financial advisers help Australians with a wide range of financial issues during their lifetime, from budgeting to estate planning and everything in between. They also help Australians to have a more positive outlook, to feel more prepared and secure and to consider reaching out to other wealth professionals if they have a need.
In today’s fast-paced world, time is our most precious asset. Yet, managing finances consumes more of it than we’d like, pulling focus away from the things that really matter.
At Sherlock Wealth, we don’t just help you grow your wealth; we give you back your time, so you can live life fully.
Focus on What You Love, Not What You Don’t Know
When it comes to managing finances, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the complexity. But you don’t need to be a financial expert—that’s where we come in. An adviser will help you take care of everything, from investments to retirement planning, so you can focus on what you do best.
Less Stress, More Peace of Mind
Time isn’t just about quantity; it’s about quality. With Sherlock Wealth on your side, gain peace of mind knowing your financial future is in expert hands. Our bespoke financial plans and tailored client service makes your path to success clear, reducing stress and uncertainty. Spend less time worrying about the details and more time living in the moment.
Build Better Relationships and Create Lasting Memories
Financial advice is not just about helping you grow your wealth; it’s about giving you the freedom to build a life rich in connection. The less time you spend managing your finances, the more time you can spend creating lasting memories with those who matter most, freeing you from the burden of financial management so you can live more fully.
The Luxury of Time Well-Spent
In a world where time is often in short supply, partnering with a financial adviser means you can focus on living the life you want—without the distraction of managing the details.
Let a professional handle the complexities, so you can enjoy the simplicity of time well spent.
Contact us today and discover how we can help you live a life rich in time and fulfilment.
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In today’s society, the notion of wealth extends beyond financial resources. As individuals seek a more balanced and fulfilling life, the concept of wealth has evolved to encompass various factors such as education, healthcare, job satisfaction, and social connections. This article explores the changing perception of wealth in contemporary Australia and highlights the importance of holistic well-being in defining prosperity.
Ensuring you’ve structured your finances tax-effectively is always a concern, but with new tax rules for super on the horizon, many people with large balances are considering alternative vehicles to save for retirement.
Unsurprisingly, this has sparked a renewed interest in an old favourite – trusts.
Trusts have always been popular in Australia, with the government’s Tax Avoidance Taskforce (Trusts) estimating more than one million were in place in 2022.
The popularity of trusts for business, investment and estate planning purposes is due to both their flexibility and inherent benefits, particularly when it comes to managing your tax affairs.
At their heart, trusts are simply a formal relationship where a legal entity holds property or assets on behalf of another legal entity.
This separation means the trustee legally owns the assets, but the beneficiaries of the trust (such as family members) receive the income flowing from the assets.
A common example of a trust structure is a self managed super fund (SMSF), where the fund trustee is the legal owner of the fund’s assets, and the members receive investment returns earned on assets held within the SMSF trust.
There are many different types of trusts, with the appropriate structure depending on the financial goals you’re trying to achieve.
For small businesses and families, the most common trust is a discretionary (or family) trust. These vehicles are very flexible and can be used with immediate and extended family members, family companies or even charities.
In a discretionary trust, the trustee has absolute discretion on how both the income and capital of the trust are distributed to various beneficiaries.
This gives the trustee a great deal of flexibility when it comes time to allocate income to family members paying different marginal tax rates.
Discretionary trusts offer tax, asset protection, estate planning and property holding benefits.
They can also assist with the accumulation of assets for younger generations within your family and provide opportunities for the discounting of capital gains.
For small businesses and farming operations, a discretionary trust can be used to provide valuable asset protection. If your business goes bankrupt or a beneficiary is divorced, creditors will be unable to access assets or property held within the trust as it is the legal owner of the assets.
With new tax rules for super fund balances over $3 million being introduced, trusts also provide a useful tool to consider for continued wealth accumulation.
Unlike super funds, trusts don’t have annual contribution limits, restrictions on where you can invest or borrowing limits. Money can be added and removed from the trust as necessary, providing significant financial flexibility.
Discretionary trusts can also be used with vulnerable beneficiaries who may make unwise spending decisions. The trustee can decide to provide a spendthrift child or a family member with a gambling addiction regular income, but not large capital sums.
Holding ownership of assets within a trust is useful for estate management, as the assets will not be part of a deceased estate, avoiding the possibility of a Will being challenged.
Although trust structures provide many benefits, there are also tax issues that need to be considered. For example, any trust income not distributed to beneficiaries is taxed at the top marginal rate.
Distributions to minor children are taxed at higher rates and a trust is unable to allocate tax losses to beneficiaries, so they must remain within the trust and be carried forward.
Trusts can be expensive to set up, administer and dissolve when they are no longer needed and the trustee’s actions are restricted by the terms of the trust deed.
If a family dispute arises, running a trust can become difficult and making changes once it is established isn’t easy.
If you would like to find out more about trusts and whether one is appropriate for your business or family, reach out to our experienced advice team here.
Andrew Sherlock is the Owner & Head of Advice at Sherlock Wealth.
A Sydney-based financial planning firm, Sherlock Wealth has been helping successful families, business owners and individuals with their wealth creation and wealth protection needs for more than two generations.
A Chartered Accountant with a background in funds management, Andrew’s career spans more than 30 years. Andrew was one of the first people in Australia to obtain the Self-Managed Superannuation Specialist accreditation and is one of only a few advisers in Australia to be a Certified Investment Management Analyst. He is a lifetime member of the international MDRT Top of the Table and holds a BA Economics degree from Macquarie University with majors in accounting and finance.
Helping clients achieve their lifestyle goals through smart investing and asset management, wealth structures, and strategic planning are the cornerstones of what Andrew and the team at Sherlock Wealth provide.
Andrew can also be contacted at ask@sherlockwealth.com.
By Andrew Sherlock, Head of Advice, Sherlock Wealth
If you are wanting to maximise your superannuation contributions, it is important to get this done before the end of the financial year.
Non-concessional super contributions are payments to your super from your savings or from income you have already paid tax on. These are not taxed when they are received by your super fund. Although you cannot claim a tax deduction for non-concessional contributions, they can be a great way to get money into the lower taxed super system.
Making extra contributions before the end of the financial year can give your retirement savings a healthy boost, but it also has potential to reduce your tax bill.
It’s important to check where you stand with your annual contribution caps. These are the limits on how much you can add to your super account each year. If you exceed them, you will pay extra tax.
As always, we’re here to help. If you have any questions or would like to discuss EOFY super strategies or your eligibility to make contributions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us here.
Andrew Sherlock is the Owner & Head of Advice at Sherlock Wealth.
A Sydney-based financial planning firm, Sherlock Wealth has been helping successful families, business owners and individuals with their wealth creation and wealth protection needs for more than two generations.
A Chartered Accountant with a background in funds management, Andrew’s career spans more than 30 years. Andrew was one of the first people in Australia to obtain the Self-Managed Superannuation Specialist accreditation and is one of only a few advisers in Australia to be a Certified Investment Management Analyst. He is a lifetime member of the international MDRT Top of the Table and holds a BA Economics degree from Macquarie University with majors in accounting and finance.
Helping clients achieve their lifestyle goals through smart investing and asset management, wealth structures, and strategic planning are the cornerstones of what Andrew and the team at Sherlock Wealth provide.
Andrew can also be contacted at ask@sherlockwealth.com.
Given the inherent volatility of security prices in capital markets, it is useful to remind ourselves of strategies that investors can utilise to meet their investment goals.
Australia is on the brink of the nation’s biggest ever intergenerational wealth transfer. Yet estate or inheritance planning is rarely discussed by families. With baby boomers shifting into retirement, it’s important to start the conversation now about your legacy and the people it may impact.
Heightened global market volatility – as we’re experiencing right now – can easily trigger kneejerk reactions by panicked investors.
Talking to your employer about setting up an arrangement to “sacrifice” some of your pre-tax salary could potentially lower your tax bill – and boost your retirement nest egg.
A balancing act Billed as a Budget for families with a focus on relieving short-term cost of living pressures, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg’s fourth Budget also has one eye firmly on the federal election in May.
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