Today
- Opinion
- Opinion
How to claim your spouse’s super after they die
There’s a way to move their retirement savings to your super – this is how to get things going.
- Meg Heffron
This Month
My brother won’t help Mum. Should she change her will?
My elderly mother needs help with her bills but my brother won’t contribute. What can we do?
- Debra Cleveland
- Opinion
- Penny Wise
Are we spoiling the kids by paying off their HELP debt?
Even in very wealthy households, value-setting can produce grateful and hard-working children.
- Updated
- Debra Cleveland
November
- Opinion
- Opinion
Why courts are being asked to find elderly grooms unfit to marry
Relatives successfully claimed $2.5 million in superannuation should be paid to a deceased man’s estate, not his widow because he was suffering dementia when they married.
- Peter Townsend
The three biggest inheritance hiccups - and how to avoid them
With huge intergenerational wealth transfers coming up, good estate planning will keep the family together and maximise what is passed on.
- Michael Hutton
Our son is demanding an early inheritance. Should we give it to him?
It’s not always a good idea, but there are ways that make it watertight and fair to everyone.
- Debra Cleveland
The five property fights ripping families apart
Verbal agreements around the kitchen table – such as those cited in the case of pop star Vanessa Amorosi – are just some of the triggers. This is how to avoid them.
- Duncan Hughes
October
Ex-girlfriend may get super despite ‘drifting off’ when dad got ill
The trustee of a leading public offer fund is refusing to pay the children of a man who thought he’d got his affairs in order before he died.
- Peter Townsend
Sporting icon’s family in 71-year inheritance spat
Walter Lindrum is considered one of the nation’s all-time great sporting heroes. His legacy has lessons on avoiding being snookered in family disputes.
- Duncan Hughes
- Opinion
- Opinion
Baby Boomers and their families ‘ill prepared’ for big wealth transfer
That women are likely to be the biggest inheritance recipients is good for financial gender equality outcomes, but there is work to be done.
- Bianca Hartge-Hazelman
- Opinion
- Opinion
The procrastination that sliced $75,000 off an inheritance
A delay in passing on a reversionary pension to a woman after the death of her husband had big tax implications for her two adult children when she died.
- Peter Townsend
September
How to avoid a crisis in family wealth transfers
Calling time on the financial capacity of a loved one could be one of life’s toughest conversations. These strategies can aid a successful outcome.
- Duncan Hughes
- Exclusive
- Income tax
‘Political dynamite’: New PC boss says tax inheritances, retiree super
Danielle Wood has proposed an ambitious reform agenda that would push more of the tax burden on to older Australians.
- Updated
- Michael Read
One family trust and three kids – what can go wrong?
What happens when one son doesn’t need the capital, another wants to develop a property with a huge loan and the daughter needs money ASAP for a new home.
- Peter Townsend
August
- Opinion
- Aged care
How impatient kids rip off their parents
Getting an early inheritance and taking over the family home are two dangers when children have an enduring power of attorney for an ageing mum or dad.
- Louise Biti
- Opinion
- Opinion
Is a super withdrawal just before death tax-free? This is the ATO view
A recent ruling may have implications for SMSFs for an inheritance strategy recommended by many advisers.
- Peter Townsend
July
- Opinion
- Superannuation
How to stop your new partner pinching your kids’ inheritance
This is also helpful if your children’s parent is the remaining spouse because it quarantines the estate from potential new relationships.
- Peter Townsend
How an ink splodge cost a couple their $4.5m inheritance
What can happen if a “lost” will is found highlights the need to make sure final wishes are clear, up to date and easily accessible.
- Duncan Hughes
When it’s time to let the kids get involved in your finances
This is how to plan for a little help as you get older without causing a family feud.
- Michael Hutton
June
- Opinion
- Smart Investor
When families don’t like the will, there’s a way to change it
If dad cuts mum out of the family home (to protect her from the ageing Lothario down the street), she and the kids can get together to rearrange things.
- Peter Townsend
