Australia’s Age Pension, with pensioner discounts, is intended to finance a basic standard of living for people who have retired because of disability or old age. The objective of the system is to provide a basic standard of living. It isn’t intended as a means of accruing wealth.
Having recently travelled overseas, I couldn’t fail to appreciate how small and largely insignificant Australia is in the investment world. But the key drivers of future investment returns for Australian investors are collectively classified as global themes.
‘No debt should last longer than the person who created it.’ That comment from Jim Prigg—CEO of Knowledgemaster Pty Ltd—made me think about the importance of planning for the unexpected.
With the Age Pension, payment rates and means testing arrangements are different for ‘members of a couple’ and ‘single’ people. ‘Homeowners’ and ‘non-homeowners’ also have different means-tested allowances.
How soon should you start saving for retirement? Answer: The earlier the better. And there are figures that confirm that. There is a well-recognised process leading up to retirement. What follows is an adaptation of a number of countdown steps for finances that I used in my book ‘Retirement Ready?’.
The cost of housing gets a special mention in the latest YourLifeChoices Retirement Affordability Index. Produced by YourLifeChoices and The Australia Institute, the index aims to help you understand how much money you currently need to live at various levels and lifestyles in retirement.
The Australian Social Security system ensures that citizens have the financial resources for at least a frugal, minimal standard of living when they’re unable to earn an income from work. In this, the second, and final, post about the Australian Age Pension and residency, the focus is on checks that applicants are really part of the Australian community.
The Australian Social Security system ensures that citizens have the financial resources for at least a frugal, minimal standard of living when they can’t earn an income from work. However, the Australian taxpayer is wary of paying Age Pensions to people who haven’t really been part of the Australian community.
The way we think about money largely determines how successful we become at managing cash flows and accumulating wealth. Some people find the subject of money of little interest. On the other hand, some can be so obsessed with money and may be so driven that they become greedy—out of control even.
The Age Pension is a means-tested income support benefit for Australians old enough to be eligible for it. Originally, the Age Pension age was the age when individuals were thought to be ‘too old to work for a living’. For 2018, the Age Pension age is 65 years and 6 months. But it has increased over recent decades and will continue to increase.