Noel Whittaker's Blog
By Noel Whittaker
Recently, during a talkback radio program, a listener aged 50 who owns a negatively geared investment property, asked me if they should sign a PAYG variation form to enable the tax savings that would be generated by the investment losses to reduce the tax on their fortnightly salary. The tax savings, in this case, amounted …
For years I have urging borrowers to get ahead in their loan repayments, not only to provide a safety buffer if interest rates rise or they suffer financial stress, but also to save a fortune in interest. I was horrified when a Commonwealth Bank client sent me an email they had received which read: “We’re …
I wrote recently about withdrawing money from your superannuation under the emergency regulations, and pointed out that it should only be done as a last resort. This was because of the compounding effect on a sum like $20,000 over 30 years. But this week a reader questioned the logic. He said “if the choice is …
Retirees suffered another blow last week with strong hints in the media that the big four banks may suspend all dividend payments for the next six months. As a result I have received a flood of emails asking if that’s a real possibility. It started when three of our major banks agreed to a request …
Today I will talk about to issues which are of major importance to retirees. The first concerns the minimum pension payments which must be made each year from the superannuation account in pension mode. The two relevant factors are the balance at June 30 last, and the age of the member. For example, a person …