Millennium3 Corporate Profile by team scope

With all the constant changes to Australia’s financial landscape, it can be difficult to make the right financial choices, without professional advice. Millennium3 Financial Services Pty Ltd (Millennium3) provides an umbrella of services to assist and protect you. With over 500 authorised representatives, Millennium3 is at the forefront of the financial services industry, making a significant difference to your financial future by helping you to: • save money; • protect against risk; • manage debts; • grow assets; • reduce tax liabilities; • plan for retirement; • identify entitlements for government benefits; and • plan what inheritance is to be left to the next generation. Receiving good advice from a qualified Millennium3 adviser will put you in control and enable you to achieve your lifestyle goals.

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Millennium3 Financial Services Pty Ltd is an Australian Financial Services Licensee holding Licence Number 244252. The principal office is situated at 7/50 Borthwick Avenue, Murarrie QLD 4172.

This profile is intended to provide general information only and has been prepared by Millennium3 Financial Services Pty Ltd, ABN 61 094 529 987 (AFSL number 244252) without taking into account any particular person’s objectives, financial situation or needs. Investors should, before acting on this information, consider the appropriateness of this information having regard to their personal objectives, financial situation or needs. We recommend investors obtain financial advice specific to their situation before making any financial investment or insurance decision. Millennium3 Financial Services Head Office: PO Box 377, Cannon Hill, Murarrie QLD 4172.

financial peace of mind

designed and produced by www.scopedesign.com.au

Millennium3 Financial Services Pty Ltd is an Australian Financial Services Licensee holding Licence Number 244252. The principal office is situated at 7/50 Borthwick Avenue, Murarrie QLD 4172.

peace of mind in 3 easy steps 1

what makes us unique Our Dedication to Service and Quality Our team at Millennium3 Financial Services Pty Ltd provides an extremely reliable service that achieves lasting results. We understand you have individual requirements and we pride ourselves on finding the most tax effective financial solutions to suit your needs. By determining and meeting our clients needs, we enhance your satisfaction with our service and the products we offer.

Experience, Qualifications and Relationships With over 18 years experience in the financial services industry, we have developed and maintained strong relationships with suppliers of quality financial products. Our experience, qualifications and relationships ensure you have an appropriate investment/insurance/superannuation portfolio that is structured in a tax effective way to suit your circumstances.

We Provide High Quality Financial Services Across the Financial Spectrum Our team works with you to find the optimal financial solution. This may include personal and business risk insurance, estate planning, investments, superannuation and retirement planning. We pride ourselves on delivering solutions that meet your individual requirements and regularly seek to review your financial needs.

A Commitment to Technology Resources By utilising the latest technology to transact and communicate with you we ensure efficiency and smooth management of your portfolio â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a must in todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s busy and technologically focused society.

2.How much does peace of mind cost? 4

Tailored Financial Solutions We provide a wide range of premier, tailored financial services across the entire financial spectrum. This ensures we deliver the optimal solution for your financial requirements. Take a moment to consider the following: • How would you cope financially if you suffered a serious injury and/or illness and couldn’t work? • Could monthly mortgage or debt repayments be met if you were to be disabled, critically ill or die prematurely? • How would your loved ones cope in the event of your death or disablement? • How much does this peace of mind cost? We can help you protect what you have worked hard to achieve. By working closely with you, we will develop a range of insurance strategies to: 1 Protect you and your family or business against a range of uncertainties, which ensures your assets accumulated to-date do not have to be sold or repossessed. 2 Support you and your loved ones in the event of disability, illness or premature death, so that: • Your mortgage or debts can be paid out; • Your income is replaced; • Capital is available to continue funding your investments; and • An income stream is provided so that your lifestyle, and your family’s wellbeing, can be maintained.

You cannot protect yourself or your business against every hazard in life, but you can take sensible measures to minimise the impact of unexpected, unpredictable, unwanted developments that put your financial future at risk.

our financial services Our quality, financial services include:

Personal Risk Insurances Life insurance Receive a lump sum if you die or become terminally ill.

TPD cover Receive a lump sum to you should you become disabled, sick or injured and be permanently unable to work as a result.

Trauma insurance Receive a lump sum if you suffer one of a list of specific medically diagnosed conditions.

Income protection Ensures you can still receive a regular income should you ever be unable to work because of injury and/or illness.

Business Risk Insurances Key person insurance Businesses with more than one owner should consider the use of insurance proceeds to fund the business for the replacement of a key person lost to critical illness, total and permanent disablement (TPD) or death.

Guarantor protection insurance Ensures that on the death, TPD or critical illness of a guarantor, the business debt guaranteed by that person is fully repaid to the lender.

Buy/sell agreement Business owners enter into a written agreement to plan what they will do with their respective interests in the business should any one of them die, become disabled, suffer a traumatic illness etc.

Business expenses insurance Allows a business owner to insure the business fixed monthly expenses against injury and/or illness to key income earners, for a maximum of 12 months.

Estate Planning We aim to ensure that upon your death: • there are sufficient assets available to meet your wishes; • that transfer of ownership or control of those assets passes to the appropriate person or entity; and • that ownership or control passes to the beneficiary at the right time. We are happy to work in consultation with your solicitor or, if you don’t have a solicitor, we can recommend one to you.

our financial services continued Investment Planning All investment considerations are devoted to finding investments that offer the most appropriate combination of probable benefits and probable risks for you. In narrowing this down, we consider your income requirements, time horizon and your previous experiences with various types of investments.

Superannuation Superannuation is divided into three separate categories: See page 19

• Compulsory Employer Superannuation Guarantee Contributions (SGC) • Self Managed Superannuation Funds or Do It Yourself Funds (SMSF or DIY) SMSF’s are useful for clients wanting to purchase property, deal in direct shares, or just take control of the performance of their investments. In our opinion and based on experience, the minimum account balance for a SMSF should be in excess of $250,000.

• Individual superannuation accounts

Our goal for you is to provide the most suitable product for your individual needs that will remain in your name until you choose to retire.

Retirement Planning We endeavour to be proactive and show you how a little planning at the start can be the difference between a happy and prolonged retirement, or being forced back to work to fund the lifestyle you desire. Transition to Retirement (TTR) brought in by the previous Federal Government has opened up a series of opportunities for people aged over 55 and still in the workforce. Contact us to find out how this helps you!

Personal Risk Insurance Life Insurance Pays a lump sum to your estate if you die or become terminally ill. It is a cost effective way of protecting your family’s current and future lifestyle and the assets you have worked hard to accumulate. It should be taken out by anyone who has ongoing financial commitments e.g. to cover the outstanding debt on a mortgage, adequately look after financial dependants and provide an income stream to maintain your family’s immediate and future lifestyle should the insured prematurely die. Cover for a non-income earning spouse is equally as important. If you are a homemaker, how will your partner be able to look after the children, run the household and hold down a full time job if you were to die? The use of a superannuation structure can be advantageous from a taxation point of view for this type of cover.

TPD Cover Pays a lump sum to you should you become disabled, sick or injured and be permanently unable to work as a result. Generally, TPD means that because of sickness or injury, you are unable to work in your own or any occupation for which you are suited by training, education or experience. Like life cover, TPD pays you a lump sum benefit, however you must be unable to perform your regular occupational duties for at least 6 consecutive months. In the event of a TPD claim, the TPD Cover payment can be used to eliminate debt, pay ongoing medical expenses, make necessary home modifications, or to hire home care services such as nursing, cleaning and cooking. TPD Cover can also be structured through your superannuation fund, therefore freeing up your cash flow for other things in life.

Trauma Insurance Pays a lump sum if you suffer one of a list of specific medically diagnosed conditions including heart attack, cancer or stroke, to name a few. Again, it can be taken out to cover both an income earner and a non-incomeearning spouse. This insurance is designed to help you meet the major costs that follow survival from a major accident resulting in a loss of limbs, paraplegia etc., or severe, possibly long term illness, through providing the insured with a tax free lump sum payment. These costs can include medical fees, meeting current debts and financial commitments as well as taking care of living expenses.

Income Protection Should you ever be unable to work because of injury and/or illness, this insurance ensures that you can still receive a regular income until you recover and return to work. Without it, you are putting your financial security at risk. No one would dream of not insuring their home, yet it is surprising the number of people who don’t insure their most valuable asset – their ability to generate an income! This should be taken out by anyone earning an income so that your regular monthly expenditure e.g. living expenses, mortgage payments and other financial commitments, can be met while you concentrate on recovery. The premiums paid for Income Protection are generally tax deductible at your marginal rate of tax however benefits received during claim payment are also taxed.

Personal Risk Insurance continued Child Cover Child cover is essentially Death and Trauma cover, but for your children. Should your child suffer a traumatic event such as Blindness, Deafness, Loss of Limbs, Major Head Trauma to name a few, or even die, a benefit would be payable. Having a child cover policy in place can assist a family cope financially should their child suffer a traumatic event, and will also assist in rehabilitation costs, medical expenses and modifications to the family home. Although Child Cover is a relatively new style of policy, more and more parents are taking out Child Cover for the added piece of mind that they will be financially sound should anything unfortunate happen to their child.

Living Expenses Cover Living Expenses cover is similar to Income Protection cover, however it is designed specifically for casual employees, home makers, retirees and those not eligible to apply for income protection cover. Should you be unable to generate a casual income, or need extra support due to injury or illness, living expenses cover will ensure that day to day expenses are met, along with any in house care or long day care you may require. Whilst care has been exercised, the taxation information contained in this brochure is provided as a guide only and may not be relied upon. If in doubt, you should seek independent tax advice from a qualified tax adviser. Any salesman can sell you the above risk insurance products. Where we add value to the process, is we provide appropriate advice at the time of purchase and ensure you have the most appropriate policy structure for your needs. Being Financial advisers, we make sure policies are appropriately structured and owned with respect to tax deductibility of premiums and accessibility of benefits. We also make sure the insurances compliment your estate planning needs. The individual circumstances of the person to be insured are always taken into account. When we first meet with you, we perform a comprehensive fact finding process. This allows us to ascertain the most appropriate combination of insurance cover and level of sums insured for you. At time of claim we act as a point of contact between you and the Life Insurance Company, to ensure legitimate claims are paid in a timely manner. Yearly reviews are performed to ensure the insurance is still appropriate to your needs.

Business Risk Insurance If a business owner dies, suffers a traumatic illness or becomes totally and permanently disabled, the effects on the financial stability and viability of a business can be disastrous – unless a documented succession plan is in place. If business owners do not have a viable strategy, there may be significant financial hardship for the surviving family members, directors, shareholders and staff. This is true for those businesses that depend on a select few people to produce the profits, provide the capital, or manage the business. We believe that every business with two or more owners should consider what happens if one of the owners suffers one of these health issues. The following questions tend to raise important considerations: • Will continuing business owners enjoy being forced to work with family members (usually the spouse) of a deceased owner? • Can the deceased owner’s family members contribute skillfully to the management of the business and ‘pull their weight,’ or will they be more of a hindrance, and yet still draw their full share of profits? • How and how much will the business pay the deceased owner’s estate for his or her business interest, over what period of time, and where does the money come from? • Will the bank call in guaranteed loans because of concerns about the capacity of the business to stay viable? • How will the business repay its loans, now that one of the owners has died? • If the business cannot repay the loan, will the bank call for immediate repayment and renegotiation of all the personal guarantees given by the remaining working owners? There are three core business insurance concepts that can help answer the questions described above:

Key Person Insurance Businesses with more than one owner should consider the use of insurance proceeds to fund the business cash flow during the search for the replacement of a key person lost to a critical illness, total and permanent disablement (TPD) or death. A common example of a ‘key person’ is an employee who is directly responsible for bringing in sales or who holds the key technical expertise on which a business relies e.g. a managing director, a specialist engineer or a sales manager with key contacts. The funding provided by a life insurance policy on a key employee or business partner can help ensure that a business can survive a crisis like the ones described above. The funds can be used to stabilise the business until a suitable replacement person is employed, or capable of being ‘trained up’ to have, the same key skills. Used in this way, key person insurance proceeds can bridge the gap and enable the business to operate efficiently through, and after, the ordeal.

Business Risk Insurance continued Guarantor Protection This is a specific form of business insurance that ensures that on the death, TPD or critical illness of a director/guarantor, the business debt guaranteed by that person is fully repaid to the lender. The proceeds can be used to protect the business owners and guarantors from the ramifications of giving a guarantee for a business loan. When a director signs a guarantee it generally means the director has secured a loan for the business using his or her personal assets. The guarantee is usually extinguished only when the loan is repaid in full. This means that the lender could call on the estate of a deceased director or the business to repay the debt of the dead, disabled or critically ill guarantor. A simple life/trauma/TPD policy can be used to extinguish outstanding business debts and provide directors/guarantors with the appropriate peace of mind. This type of agreement involves the business owners entering into a written agreement to plan what they will do with their respective interests in the business should anyone of them die, become disabled, suffer a traumatic illness etc. Essentially, the agreement should provide for the terminating business owner (or his/her estate) to sell his or her interest in the business to the continuing owners, and for the continuing owners to purchase the terminating ownerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s interest in the business. The agreement must also recognise the means of funding the buy/sell obligations (usually done through Life Insurance) of the respective owners. Business insurance proceeds provide the cash necessary to allow the business owners to satisfy their obligations under the buy/sell agreement should the trigger event occur. This should prevent the continuing business owners from having to borrow additional funds, liquidate assets or deplete business or even personal reserves. These are agreements written up by legal professionals, with the funding for the agreements arranged through the appropriate life insurance policies.

Business Expenses Insurance Business Expense Cover can help a business continue operating in the event that the life insured is totally or partially disabled and unable to work. The monthly benefit paid can assist with the day-to-day running expenses of the life insuredâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s business for example salaries, rent or lease payments. Any business with fixed overhead costs should consider this type of insurance in their overall business plan, to ensure out of pocket expenses are covered should the life insured, or business owner, be unable to work. Claims are payable for a maximum of 12 months, and like income protection insurance, has a waiting period that can be tailored to best suit your businesses needs. As business risk insurance specialists, we work directly with businesses and other professionals like solicitors and accountants to ensure the above concepts are structured in the most appropriate manner in terms of tax and business planning issues. We also review the policies every year to ensure they are appropriate to relevant business needs.

ESTATE PLANNING Are you certain that your intentions will be followed, or better still, are able to be followed in the event of your premature demise? Are you aware of what assets form part of your estate, and what assets are excluded? Do you know how the following assets will be treated on your death? • Family home; • Life insurance proceeds; • Investments such as shares and managed funds; • Superannuation benefits; and • Company/trust owned assets. We aim to ensure that upon your death: • There are sufficient assets available to meet your wishes; • That transfer of ownership or control of those assets pass to the appropriate person or entity; and • That ownership or control passes to the beneficiary at the right time. In addressing these issues we put into place measures to ensure that any shortfall in funding is covered, in the most cost and tax efficient method. Then we examine whether there is a current, valid Will and who the intended beneficiaries are. Within this, we also examine the tax effectiveness of the Will and various options available to you, to ensure beneficiaries are not left with an unnecessary capital gains tax bill, or assets they are not well enough equipped to manage themselves for their future benefit.

Power of Attorney Another important aspect of estate planning you may wish to consider is the appointment of an attorney. A power of attorney is a document whereby a person appoints another to perform certain tasks on their behalf. There are two basic types of powers of attorney: • General power of attorney; and • Enduring power of attorney.

General power of attorney A general power of attorney is usually set up so that the attorney can act on behalf of you, the Donor, after a specific event for a fixed period of time (restricted). For instance, it can be granted for the duration of your absence (for example, if you are going overseas). However, the power can be unrestricted whereby the attorney has the capacity to make any decisions on behalf of the Donor with respect to that person’s property, whilst the power of attorney remains in force. General Powers of Attorney become invalid if the person who granted the Donor becomes mentally or physically incapacitated, dies or becomes bankrupt.

Estate Planning continued Enduring power of attorney The enduring power of attorney is suited to looking after the affairs of a person when they are not in a position to look after their affairs themselves. Unlike a general power of attorney, an enduring power of attorney continues to be operative when a person becomes mentally or physically incapacitated. In light of this, consideration should be given to you granting an enduring power of attorney. This will ensure that your affairs can be handled on your behalf should you become mentally incapable and lose the capacity to make decisions. Because of its legal effect, an enduring power of attorney can only be signed after obtaining the advice of a solicitor. The use of any power of attorney but particularly an enduring power of attorney should be carefully weighed before implementing such a strategy. Whilst care has been exercised, the legal information contained in this brochure is provided as a guide only and may not be relied upon. If in doubt, you should seek independent legal advice from a qualified legal adviser and should you not have one, one can be recommended to you.

Testamentary Trusts Testamentary trusts are used strategically as a useful vehicle in estate and tax planning. For instance, where a beneficiary is young, the inheritance may be held in a Fixed Trust. ie. the trust property belongs beneficially to the beneficiary but is held by the trustee until the beneficiary comes of age. In situations where the beneficiary is old enough, the beneficiary can be given the option of taking part or all of their inheritance in the trust. They can decide what to do at the time depending on their circumstances. A trust is a legal arrangement where either an individual or company (the trustee), is legally bound to hold and deal with property for the benefit of other people (the beneficiaries). The trust can either be Fixed as referred to above or Discretionary, where the Trustee has discretion as to which of the named beneficiaries are to share in the capital and/or income of the trust fund. A testamentary trust is a trust established in a Will and is activated as a result of death. The Will details the framework for the operation of the trust and records the terms and conditions of the trust. The terms of the trust can be drafted to suit your needs.

Some advantages of testamentary trusts Testamentary trusts have a number of advantages and some of these are mentioned below: • They can allow income and capital to be divided between beneficiaries, at the time and in amounts as determined by the trustee. This makes it possible to reduce tax, as distributions to beneficiaries under the age of 18 years are taxed at adult rates rather than at the usual children’s penalty tax rate, provided that the income satisfies certain provisions of the Income Tax Act. • The trustee can also take into account the other income of beneficiaries prior to distribution to minimise the amount distributed to beneficiaries. • A trustee can direct distributions away from particular beneficiaries.

How are trusts taxed? It is the duty of the trustee to lodge a tax return for the trust. If the trust makes a profit, either the trustee or the beneficiary who receives the distribution will pay tax. If the trust fails to distribute its income, the trustee is liable for payment of the tax liability of the trust. If the trust distributes its income, the beneficiaries must include that income in their own personal tax return. The distribution will be taxed at the beneficiary’s marginal tax rate. Whilst care has been exercised, the taxation information contained in this brochure is provided as a guide only and may not be relied upon. If in doubt, you should seek independent tax advice from a qualified tax adviser.

Issues when establishing a trust The preparation of Wills that include provision for testamentary trusts calls for the exercise of the skills of a specialist lawyer. Rules relating to testamentary trusts are complex and you will need expert help when dealing with these types of ownership structures. Before such an option is considered, the legal and accounting costs and complexity of establishing a trust arrangement need to be justified. Although our education and training allow us to assist you in this area, we are unable to establish the trust for you. We can however, refer you onto a fully trained legal professional and work with them in providing a complete solution.

Investment Planning All investment considerations are devoted to finding investments that offer the most appropriate combination of probable benefits and likely risks for you. In narrowing this down, we consider your income requirements, time horizon and previous experiences with various types of investments. The most important point we stress is – “There is never any guarantee that a particular investment will perform to expectation or even the industry average”. What many clients fail to understand is that within every single investment available to them (across all sectors), not a single one is “risk free” as there is an inherent risk in each one. Our job as financial advisers is to identify each risk to you, so during turbulent periods you fully appreciate what course of action is most appropriate for your needs. Below is an outline of the various types of risk you should consider when investing capital in any vehicle:

Will You Outlive Your Capital? There is a “risk” of living too long. In other words, if you are using the capital of your investments to live on, you could outlive the value of your capital. It is a fact that people are living longer due to improved medical techniques. For this reason it is important that you have investments such as shares or properties that give you capital growth and therefore a greater potential for continued income.

Inflation Risk Inflation refers to increases in the price we pay for goods and services. Because of inflation, $1.00 today will not be able to buy as much in the future. Even if the rate of inflation remained at a relatively low 3% for the next 15 years, a $1,000 purchase made today will cost $1557 in 15 year’s time. Inflation is an important consideration for all investors. If the after-tax return on your investments is less than the rate of inflation, then the real value of your money will decline. To protect your investment from the impact of inflation you need to achieve at least some capital growth. While fixed term deposits and savings account type investments can give you a regular income, your capital value remains the same. Many people fall into the trap of choosing these investments because they seem to be safe. However, there is the risk that they will not keep pace with inflation and their real value will be eroded. You should look at the real rate of return you are making on your investment, which is the return after inflation. The important point is not to rely solely on fixed interest investments – balance them out with ‘growth’ investments like shares and property.

Market Risk Market risk refers to volatility, or the extent to which the market value of your investment will fluctuate, moving down as well as up. Different types of investments experience different levels of volatility. Investments that are expected to produce higher long-term returns generally experience greater volatility in the short term. While shares have generally outperformed other investments over a five-to-ten year period, they have been known to drop 10 or 20 percent virtually overnight. So if you are going to need your money within 6-12 months, then a share market investment may not be for you. A short-term investment, perhaps a sixmonth term deposit â&#x20AC;&#x201C; could be more appropriate. Volatility becomes a problem if you do not have the timeframe to ride out the rough patches. It is important to remember that markets go through regular ups and downs. While it is tempting to sell out of an investment after its value has fallen, historically investors who stick with their strategy generally go on to recover and prosper. Although the market may bounce up and down along the way, its overall longer-term trend historically has always been up.

Company Risk When you invest in the share market you are taking on some company risk. This is also referred to as non-market risk, as it relates directly to whether the company performs well or poorly. If you invest in a broad range of companies and have an adequately diversified portfolio, then you have less exposure to risk, as poor performance from one of your companies will generally have a minimal effect on your overall portfolio value.

Currency Exchange Risk Investing offshore exposes an investor to two risks: the performance risk of the asset itself and the movements in the value of the currency in which the asset is bought. A well-diversified portfolio can spread the exposure from having just one foreign currency to a number of currencies, which reduces risk, as downward movements in one currency tend to cancel out rises in others. By investing in managed funds, you can also select a manager who has the ability to employ currency management (hedging) to help protect your overseas investment from potential currency losses. Even taking these precautions, you should be aware of the possible effects of unpredictable currency fluctuations if a large part of your portfolio is invested overseas.

Investment Planning CONTINUED Legislative Risk When you map out a particular investment strategy you do so assuming that the current laws and regulations will not change. But what if they do? Most people invest their money to take advantage of current tax laws and rulings at the time, but there is always risk that these rules could change. This is especially important in superannuation and Social Security where the government has made many major changes over the years. The best way you can handle this is to simply understand that changes are possible, regularly consult your financial adviser and make sure that you will not be locked into an unsatisfactory strategy should the tax laws change. Once your risk ‘tolerance’ is evaluated a typical investment plan prepared by your financial adviser may consist of: • Wealth accumulation; • Agribusiness / managed investment schemes; • Negative gearing; • Taxation minimisation strategies. These are then developed, implemented, managed and monitored for you at the frequency that most appropriately serves you. These plans may include managed funds, direct shares, property, agribusiness, managed investment schemes, fixed interest securities and direct banking products combined with the most appropriate vehicles to manage them. Again, although our education and training allow us to assist you in this area, legal training precludes us from actually giving direct share advice and placement work for you. We can however, refer you onto fully trained professionals and work with them in providing a complete solution. You are then able to select what level of immediate/ongoing service you require from your financial adviser, which will then be equated to a suitable and agreed upon fee structure. All fees/commissions are disclosed upfront to you.

SUPERANNUATION Superannuation is now able to be divided into three separate categories that we are authorised to assist you with:

Compulsory Employer Superannuation Guarantee Contributions (SGC) Whether it be reviewing your current employer provided/recommended superannuation fund, or assessment of the current investment and insurance selections, our service aims to simplify the process of administration and management of your superannuation plan. Through utilisation of the internet, you may be able to manage your superannuation commitments with no paperwork if you so desire. That’s right, no new member forms, no cheques, no reconciliations – it’s all available to you via the web. This is our area of expertise, so why not let us help your employees make the right decisions for their future?

Self Managed Superannuation Funds or Do It Yourself Funds (SMSF or DIY) This option for you to manage your own superannuation affairs has lost some of its attractiveness with the expanding list of compliance requirements for the Government and Australian Taxation Office (ATO) now bordering on onerous. To ensure you can meet not only the establishment cost, but the ongoing costs as well, the minimum account balance we recommend (based on experience) you should have vested in your own name before considering this option is $250,000+. Establishment costs range from $500 to $2,000 depending on your requirements, with ongoing audit and lodgement fees in the same vicinity. This shouldn’t put you off however, merely make you aware of the likely minimum expenses you will incur. SMSF’s are useful for clients wanting to purchase property, deal in direct shares, or just take control of the performance of their investments. This cannot be done in an adhoc manner, as the ATO requires a written investment strategy to be implemented, ensuring that each investment satisfies the “sole purpose” test. That is, have the clients purchased each investment for the “sole purpose” of providing for the end retirement benefit of each member? Failure to satisfy this test may result in the SMSF losing its “complying” status and see it taxed at 46.5%, or worse, face closure and legal action brought on by the regulator against the trustees.

SUPERANNUATION Individual Superannuation Accounts An increasing trend in the Australian workforce is for employees/individuals to change employers every couple of years. Gone are the days of jobs for life, which has created (with the advent of compulsory superannuation) a situation where clients potentially have multiple superannuation accounts. Worse still, they don’t know where these accounts are, or what they are able to do with them. Choice of Superannuation Fund has gone some way to rectifying this situation for employees, however our goal for each client is to provide the most suitable product for their individual needs that will remain in their name until they choose to retire. Some clients want to be heavily involved in the investment management of their superannuation (excluding SMSF) and others want an account with no investment choice and reduced adviser and/or fund manager fees. Whatever they desire, their needs can be met with us. Each product will come with an in-built fee/commission structure, which covers our costs in combining all of a client’s various accounts. As mentioned before, these charges are negotiable at the plan design stage.

RETIREMENT PLANNING How Much is Enough to Live on When I Retire? One of the most asked question today, particularly when returns on most growth orientated investments including residential property have been spectacularly positive for the last couple of years. This doesn’t last and it’s our job to see that gains made are protected, particularly in the 5 years prior to retirement. Consider this issue combined with the problem of declining Government pension rates, and most people aged 55 and over are no longer able to plan for their retirement without the help of a trained professional. We first get you to outline a budget, based on your current expenditure and income. After some simple calculations we can provide a snapshot for you on how long your lump sum and/or pension will last based on the figures in their budget. Strategies are then put into place to maximise any potential Centrelink payments from the Government, and prolong the life of their existing asset base with suitable inflation protection. Most clients leave this sort of planning until it’s too late, when the damage has already been done. We endeavour to be proactive and show you how a little planning at the start, can be the difference between a happy and prolonged retirement or being forced back to work to fund the lifestyle you so desire.

designed and produced by www.scopedesign.com.au

Millennium3 Financial Services Pty Ltd is an Australian Financial Services Licensee holding Licence Number 244252. The principal office is situated at 7/50 Borthwick Avenue, Murarrie QLD 4172.

financial peace of mind

designed and produced by www.scopedesign.com.au

Millennium3 Financial Services Pty Ltd is an Australian Financial Services Licensee holding Licence Number 244252. The principal office is situated at 7/50 Borthwick Avenue, Murarrie QLD 4172.