Superannuation: The Power of Early Planning and Informed Decisions

There’s no denying that superannuation is seen by many people as a mysterious and complicated subject. As a result, many of us prefer to ignore it, especially in the early years of our careers.

After all, why worry about super when we can’t get hold of it for decades?

That’s a pity because superannuation is likely to be the largest amount of money most of us will ever have, other than the family home which is increasingly beyond the reach of many younger Australians. Therefore, wouldn’t it be sensible to spend some time while you’re still in the workforce to understand and fine-tune your superannuation arrangements?

We’ve learned from many ADF members who have done so that they have discovered and implemented some simple strategies to considerably improve their retirement nest egg. Rest assured that if you spend the time, you will be happy that you did.

So, it’s over to you…. here are some useful and trusted educational resources to get you started: 

• ADF Financial Services Consumer Centre website page on superannuation, especially our FAQs.
• Australian Taxation Office Superannuation Comparison Tool which allows you to compare the performance of most major publicly available superannuation funds. This should be especially useful for members of so-called “accumulation” funds such as ADF Super.
• Australian Securities and Investments Commission website page on choosing a superannuation fund. 

The Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation whose role is to act as trustee and administrator of all the military superannuation funds (DFRDB, MSBS, ADF Super) has an excellent website and a variety of services which you can freely access. These services include:

• Individual member consultations. These are free of charge, but are in extremely high demand, so be prepared to wait until a spot is available (think months not weeks).
• Learning Centre to help your understanding of superannuation.
• Webinars for members from starters to retirees.
• Tools and calculators to help you estimate your superannuation entitlements at any point in time during your career and in retirement.

It’s important to note that you may not need an individual member consultation, if you spend the time now exploring the multitude of  resources on the CSC website, including those outlined above.

Another option is to seek personalised professional advice. If you’d like to explore this possibility, our Centre’s website contains comprehensive information and guidance on seeking advice and choosing an adviser.

The Centre also hosts the ADF Financial Advice Referral Program. We do not provide personal financial advice, but through the Program we refer our members to licensed financial advisers who declare to us that they operate on a “fee for service” basis only (no remuneration-based conflicts of interest, including commissions and percentage-based asset fees). 

Remember that financial advice can be expensive, so before you appoint an adviser, we recommend that you understand the scope of the advice and its cost (and make sure you get that information in writing).

If you do your homework properly, take an ongoing active interest in your superannuation and choose your provider/s wisely (perhaps with some professional guidance), the chances are that your retirement will be a much more financially comfortable experience. It’s never too late to start, but given the “magic” of compound interest on your superannuation savings, the earlier you start the better.