Posted by G. Dean McKinnon
on 1 March 2022
With the housing market going berserk over the last year so, it is quite difficult to decide whether or not you should buy a house or a unit.
A recent article by CoreLogic highlighted the disparity between growth rate in housing and unit properties over the last 12 months (to January, 2022). The statistics indicate clearly that property growth has outperformed unit growth during that period of time by more than 10%.
Of course, another big factor is affordability. The housing mar...
Posted by G. Dean McKinnon
on 28 February 2022
It is increasingly difficult to save enough money for your first home purchase but there are some ways the government can help, such as First Home Super Saver ('FHSS') scheme.
The FHSS scheme allows you to save for your deposit within your superannuation investment account. There are several key benefits to using your super as the saving structure but the ability to withdraw personal Concessional Contributions may provide a significant tax planning advantage.
Personal Concessi...
Posted by G. Dean McKinnon
on 25 February 2022
ASIC recently published a warning about including crytocurrency ('crypto') investments in Self-Managed Super Funds (SMSF).
Unlike traditional investments crypto investments are difficult to research and rate unlike commonly traded investments such as cash, property, shares. As a result, the investor is placing their investments at high risk of the return and capital invested. Further, crypto investments are generally not traded on traditional market platforms such as stoc...
Posted by G. Dean McKinnon
on 24 February 2022
The ATO recently issued a Taxpayer Alert regarding parents that benefit from a trust entitlement of their children over 18 years of age.
It has been common practice for families to distribute trust income to various family members that have different Marginal Tax Rate brackets. The income may be declared distributed in the trust account and individual tax returns of the parents and children but the "economic benefit" may only reside the parents (i.e. the income is declar...
Posted by G. Dean McKinnon
on 23 February 2022
The Australian Consumer Law ('ACL') has a specific requirements for collecting monies owed and protect the consumer from unfair treatment during the process.
Sometimes debt collectors can be quite aggressive and if this is the case, it is worthwhile contacting the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission ('ACCC') to know your rights and report any unfair treatment.
The ACCC recently updated their guide for debt collection (both collectors and creditors) which provides ...