These articles and newsletters may give you a better perspective on your situation – they may also generate some thoughts and questions about what you may need to put in place today, in order to guarantee tomorrow.
With huge thanks to the fabulous Lifespan adviser community and team, we’re honoured to announce Lifespan Financial Planning as winners of the 2021 Core Data Licensee of the Year Award, in addition to the Large-Tier Licensee of the Year and Eugene Ardino, as winner of the Licensee Leadership Award.
After a year of challenge, advisers might be hesitant to acknowledge that 2021 might prove to be more of a mirage rather than the promised land of calm that many had hoped for.
Despite all of 2020’s trials and tribulations, the financial planning community triumphed.
2021 looms as a time in which advisers will again find themselves challenged by circumstances beyond their control, but not their capabilities. As ever, with great challenges come great opportunities.
For more than 25 years Lifespan Financial Planning has helped advisers and their clients build a better future for themselves. This is the story of Lifespan’s first quarter of a century, and its plan to grow into the future.
When John Ardino started Lifespan Financial Planning in 1994, he wanted to be independent of the big institutions which dominated the wealth management industry.
“The catalyst was the desire to have my own advice firm and to service advisers and accountants who wanted to enter the field. I wanted to control my own destiny,” he says.
There is no doubt that 2020 has been challenging, however at Lifespan we have continued to grow and support quality advice businesses, and this was recognised last Thursday night, with Eugene Ardino, Lifespan Financial Planning Chief Executive winning the Dealer Group Executive of the Year at the IFA Excellence Awards 2020.
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority’s recent statistics on SMSF funds showed there were 595,840 SMSFs operating in Australia, holding $712 billion in assets. The recent revelations from the banking royal commission around the lack of transparency of retail funds’ investments and their tendency to focus on profit rather than the interests of members is likely to only drive more people to set up their own funds.
As individuals get closer to retirement, many are seeking further advice to help them better understand the circumstances required to allow them to access their superannuation savings, often with the desire to access their super at an earlier age.
Many consumers often don’t understand the rules and conditions necessary to allow for the release of their super savings.
The release of ASIC’s Report 627 Financial advice: What consumers really think, highlighted that among Australians who have received professional financial advice, 89% intend to get advice again in the future.
The report also revealed that almost four times as many Australians who received advice in the past 12 months had a ‘great deal of trust’ in their advisers compared to those people who had not received advice recently.
Australians who have racked up sizeable study debts should not rush to pay them back and instead should divert their money elsewhere, experts say.
The Higher Education Loan Program (HELP) debts are one of the cheapest forms of debts people can have because they do not attract interest charges.
Sudden Financial market movements can be unnerving for even the most hardened investor, and it’s difficult not to panic when trends in the market take a downturn. Unfortunately, it’s not unusual to see investors over react in volatile markets, unnecessarily selling various quality assets only to realise capital gains or even taking the extreme step to sell out of the market entirely.
Eugene Ardino, CEO of one of Australia’s largest privately owned financial advice licensees, Lifespan Financial Planning, shares the story of why he became a financial planner, what he loves about his career and his views on the findings of the Royal Commission.
With the Royal Commission into Banking and Financial Services taking (only) a negative view on some of the primary providers of advice, there have been several recent attempts to garner the opinions of the average Australian consumer in order to help bring a client-centric focus back to these examinations.
Lifespan Financial Planning scored three gongs at the 2019 IFA Excellence Awards in Sydney last Friday, the 6th of September.
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What a difference three months can make, with much of the Australian east coast recently experiencing lockdown and vaccination rates on the rise. Meanwhile the Australian stock exchange has seen recent record highs.
With the recent Super guarantee increase to 10%, it may be an opportune time to look at strategies that suit your stage of life.
As we head into winter, it seems that it will take more than a change of season to cool down market sentiment. In Australia business and consumer confidence are at all-time highs, alongside other key economic indicators.
We talked previously about equity markets rallying in anticipation of the vaccine rollout and the positive impact of the gradual reopening of economies. The global vaccine rollout is now well underway.
As we reach the close of 2020, it’s important to reflect and appreciate the resilience and strength demonstrated this year, and look forward to the
opportunity that 2021 offers all of us.
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