Did you know that the aged pension is enough to survive on, but that most retirees want and need more?

Westpac and ASFA commissioned research in February 2004 that has led to the development of the Westpac/ASFA Retirement Living Standard. This standard provides details of the cost of maintaining both a modest and comfortable lifestyle in retirement.

A modest lifestyle in retirement is considered better than a lifestyle on just the Age Pension, but it still only allows retirees to afford the bare essentials. The income needed is $16,930 for a single person or $23,550 for a couple per year.

A more comfortable lifestyle allows retirees to afford things like a glass of wine per day, to run household appliances and take the occasional overseas holiday. In order to have a comfortable lifestyle, retirees would need $32,800 for a single person or $43, 350 for a couple per year.

The maximum aged pension is currently only $12,711 for a single person or $21,226 for a couple per year, well below what is needed for even a modest retirement. Superannuation may be one way of supplementing your retirement income.

Did you know that paying commissions to financial planners might significantly reduce your superannuation savings?

Not all financial planners charge commissions, but many do. There are different types of commissions that you should be aware of when choosing a financial planner:

• Up-front commissions may be taken from the new super account straight away and paid to the financial planner;
• Trailing commissions may be taken from the super account each year and paid to the financial planner;
• Volume servicing commissions are commissions that may increase as an agent’s sales volumes for a particular financial institution increase.

Financial planners that solely operate on a fee for service basis do not charge or retain commissions.

For commission-free financial advice, contact Industry Fund Financial Planning.

Did you know that industry super funds are run differently to some other types of super funds?

Industry funds don’t pay dividends to shareholders, instead they are run only to profit members. Unions and employer groups established industry funds jointly and the trustee boards that govern these funds are made up of equal numbers of employee and employer representatives. They don’t pay commissions to financial planners and outsource much of the running of the fund to maintain lower costs. They also have a history of innovative investment. This means investing not just in the stock market, but also in property, infrastructure – roads, wind farms etc, and socially responsible investments.