I’m going to stick my neck out just a bit and say that: “Retirees have got a raw deal over the last couple of decades”.

Nothing new there you might say. But, what I am referring to is the advice that has been available to retirees when it comes to investing their superannuation to produce an income stream.

And, no, this is not another diatribe against financial advisers, as the problem lies much deeper.

The problem lies with the research and theory that advisers (and I am one) have, has been developed with accumulators in mind. The research has been conducted deep within the worlds of universities and academia, over several decades, and is heavily slanted towards accumulators. The problem is, that when you retire and start drawing on your money, the dynamics and timeline change totally.

New Approach

I believe it is time for a new approach to planning retirement income, which is based on four principals:

  1. It must be based on evidence. This may sound self-evident, but many of the models currently used in planning are far more influenced by complex theory, than hard evidence.
  2. Common sense. Once again, current models often fail this simple test, and are far more the products of complexity and theory.
  3. It should be as simple as possible, but not too simple.
  4. It should provide a basis for strategic planning. In other words, a foundation for long term planning that can withstand the day to day chatter of the market. Such chatter often is full of opinions rather than facts, and contains little new information.

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John Cameron is one of the best qualified, most experienced, respected financial planners in Australia - Call now, for a no-cost consult. (08) 9322 7818