Our Services

We are qualified in many areas of advice and are committed to tailoring a plan to your specific needs.

 

Asset Enrichment Services is authorised to provide you with advice on:

 

 

Financial Planning

• Superannuation
• Investments
• Risk Management
 

• Will my current superannuation be enough for retirement?
• Is it invested in the best way to maximise potential returns?
• Is my current savings strategy appropriate for short, medium and long term goals?
• Should I consider gearing?
• Do I need to protect my family or income in the event of a major illness or accident?
• Am I eligible for any deductions?

The common belief that 'it won't happen to me' often results in many people having a sound plan for wealth creation but not an adequate plan to protect the very thing that generates the wealth - themselves!

It is worth remembering that no matter how much expert advice you receive or how astute your financial management, there is always a risk that you could potentially suffer an early death or extended time off work through serious illness or injury.  Where that leaves you and your loved ones in the future can depend on the wealth protection strategy you have in place.  The four most common types of personal insurances are below.

1.    Term Life Insurance

The most common type of cover is term life which provides a lump sum benefit to the policy owner on death of the life insured. This cover financially protects families and/or businesses from the financial challenges arising from death.
This lump sum can help with areas such as repayment of debts, covering future needs such as the cost of children's education or long-term care, providing funds for investment to generate an income stream or to keep a business afloat.

2.    Total and Permanent Disability Insurance

Total and permanent disability (TPD) insurance will provide a lump sum payment should the person insured suffer an illness or injury which causes permanent disability (as defined in the policy). Generally a permanent disability means that you are unable to work in your current occupation, a job that you've worked in, or a job that you could do as a result of previous training or study. There are many specialised definitions of TPD and your financial adviser can recommend the one most suitable for you.

3.    Trauma Insurance

Trauma insurance (or critical illness) cover provides a lump sum benefit on diagnosis of a defined specified event. Trauma insurance is designed to help people financially following a trauma or crisis, such as a heart attack, stroke, cancer or other life threatening condition.

4.    Income Protection Insurance

Income protection (or salary continuance) insurance is designed to provide a regular income in the event that you are unable to work due to sickness or injury. Generally, income protection insurance provides a regular income during a period of disablement up to a pre-determined and agreed benefit period. The benefit amount payable is up to 75% of your income (net of business expenses but before tax).

 

If you would like to find out more about Personal Insurances, please contact us.

 

Key Person Insurance will protect your business from the loss of individuals whose capital, knowledge, client base or experience are vital to the company's success.  This can include a director or specialised employee.

 

How does key person insurance protection work?

In simple terms, the business takes out an insurance policy (e.g. death, total and permanent disablement and trauma cover) on the key person.  If a claim is made, the business receives funds to cover the expenses of replacing the key employee (e.g. recruitment and training).

 

Key person protection may be for:

• a revenue purpose - to protect a business against lost revenue and increased business costs in the event of the loss of a person who makes a significant contribution towards the profitability of the business, and
• a capital purpose - to protect a business through the provision of capital in the event of the loss of a person who makes a significant contribution towards the value of that business.

 

If you would like to find out more on Key Person Insurance, please contact us.

 

When an owner of a business dies, becomes disabled, or chooses to leave the business, the surviving business partner/s will often desire ownership and control of the business, and the Estate will want funds to maintain their lifestyle.  Buy/Sell Insurance arrangements can provide the money to fund these needs.

 

Most business owners don't leave their tangible assets (buildings, plant, equipment and stock) uninsured for a single day.  Yet it is not their tangible assets, but themselves, their business partners and their key people, who make the business successful.

 

Buy/Sell Insurance allows the surviving business partner/s of a business to buy out the deceased or disabled owner's interest in the business.

 

To find out more about Buy / Sell Insurance, please contact us.

 

Managed funds are collective investments, whereby a professional fund manager invests money on behalf of a number of private investors, trustees or corporations.  Funds are invested in a wide range of investments and may focus solely on one asset class, or a mix of different asset classes.

 

For a fee you can gain the services of a professional fund manager and invest with thousands of other investors.  Through this pooling of money managed products give you an opportunity to gain entry to financial markets that may not otherwise be accessible to the smaller individual.  By purchasing units in a managed fund investment you can harness the buying power of pooled funds and take advantage of professional investment expertise.

 

The minimum investment amount is generally $1,000.

 

Managed funds offer a cost-effective alternative to direct investments and can provide many benefits including:

 

·         Diversification

·         Cost efficiency

·         Professional management and expertise

·         Select your investment style

·         Regular savings plans

·         Distribution reinvestment

 

If you would like to find out more about Managed Investments, or Investments in general, please contact us.
 

Superannuation is an investment structure that enjoys special taxation treatment to encourage people to provide for their retirement. Most investments held by an individual, whether they are Cash, Fixed Interest, Property, or Shares, can also be held through the superannuation structure.

 

The advantage of Superannuation is that investment earnings are taxed at a maximum of 15%, compared to investments held in your personal name which can be taxed at up to 46.5% (including Medicare levy). In addition, if you convert your superannuation into a retirement income stream this tax reduces to 0%.

 

Increasing life expectancy means the superannuation of many people will have to last for a retirement of 20 to 30 years.  The amount you have in superannuation and/or other retirement income will directly impact on the standard of living.

 

With the many choices now available for corporate super and individual members, the employer needs to ensure their employees are up to date with their options.  This can be challenging for staff who don't have specialist knowledge.

 

Asset Enrichment Services provides onsite consultations for both employers and employees.  We ensure that the corporate fund requirements are fulfilled without compromising on the staff's individual needs.  Furthermore, the employees can receive advice for their individual policy needs from a specialist source.

 

If you would like to find out more about Individual or Corporate Superannuation, please contact us.

 

A transition to retirement pension is a non-commutable income stream you can commence while still working if you are over your preservation age (currently age 55). Non-commutable simply means that you are not able to make a lump sum withdrawal from your investment.  When you reach age 65 or stop working, the non-commutable income stream automatically converts to an account based pension and you are then able to make lump sum withdrawals.

Transition to retirement pensions can benefit people who want to reduce their working hours as it enables their reduced income to be supplemented by an income stream drawn from superannuation benefits.  In addition, it can be combined with a salary sacrifice strategy to build your retirement savings in a tax-effective manner.

 

How is the pension income taxed?

Income paid from a transition to retirement pension will be tax-free and not assessable from age 60. This means it will not need to be included in your income tax return, and will not impact the tax payable on any other income.

If you are aged under 60, the income will be taxable, however part of the pension may be tax-free depending upon the amount of your non-concessional contributions.  The taxable portion of your pension will be entitled to a 15% tax rebate.

 

If you would to find out more about Transition to Retirement, please contact us.

  

Margin Lending is where you borrow money against your existing cash, shares or managed funds to invest into shares or managed funds.  Margin lending is usually used by those investors who do not have equity in an existing property.  The interest rate on a margin loan is generally higher than a home mortgage. Margin lending is considered to be riskier than home equity gearing because of the possibility of margin calls.

 

The amount that you can borrow will depend upon the assets that you use as security and the margin lending provider. Not all shares and managed funds are alike.  All sectors and industries (such as industrial, media, property, resources and mining) have different risk profiles.  Because of this, margin loan providers specify a lending ratio for each investment that they are prepared to lend against.  This may vary from 30% to 75%.  However, lending ratios can change at any time without notice and can be reduced to 0%.

 

Your lending ratio changes according to fluctuations in the market.  The lending ratios apply to the value of your investment.  As that value goes up or down, your loan limit rises and falls as the lending ratio is applied to the new portfolio value.  For example, if your investment increases in value, this lifts your loan limit and makes additional funds available to use.  If your investment decreases in value, your loan limit will decrease and may result in a margin call.

 

A margin call occurs when your loan to value ratio (LVR) goes above your buffer.  To get out of the margin call you need to get your LVR back into the acceptable level.  To do this you will need to repay part of the loan, sell some of your security (in this case the managed funds), or lodge additional security say cash or managed funds.  If you are unable to do so, the margin lender may start to sell down your investments until your LVR falls back within the required range.

 

One reason investors get into trouble with margin calls is that if the market falls and they enter a margin call, the market may continue to fall.  This means that the investor needs to put more security into the loan or pay down more of the loan. In some cases investors have had to sell their entire portfolio to repay the outstanding loan.  This means that they will also lose their initial investment.

 

If you would to find out more about Margin Lending, please contact us.

 

Estate Planning