1. Eastwoods named the Licensee Select SA Practice of the Year!

    Congratulations to the Eastwoods Group a subsidiary of Community CPS Australia Ltd who recently won the Licensee Select SA Practice of the Year 2012.

    Licensee Select is a division of Westpac and provides various financial planning support services to independent financial planning firms across Australia.

    Eastwoods Wealth Management has previously won five SA/NT state based awards and has won the “Licensee Select National Practice of the Year” award 2012.

    By winning the State award Eastwoods is now eligible for the national title which is announced in April.

    The award represents an outstanding team effort dedicated to the provision of quality financial planning advice across Australia. I’m very proud of my team and the service we provide our clients.

    John – General Manager Professional Services

    Posted on March 21, 2012 Financial News & Updates Investing Money Expert Saving Tax Advice Leave a Comment

  2. How to spread your wealth effectively

    Strength in diversity: How to spread your wealth effectively

    Diversifying your investments is an important aspect of growing your wealth over time and minimising the risk of volatile markets without forgoing returns. Basically, it means not putting all your eggs in one basket, but spreading your investments across a diverse range of assets, such as property, cash, shares and fixed interest. Read more…

    Posted on March 9, 2012 Financial News & Updates Investing Money Expert Leave a Comment

  3. New Year’s investment resolutions

    Over the holiday season many of our members will be thinking about their finances and making New Year’s resolutions to improve them.

    We have highlighted the top 10 investment tips to help meet your longer term goals. Read more…

    Posted on January 6, 2012 Financial News & Updates Investing Money Expert Saving Leave a Comment

  4. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket

    Understanding investment risk is vital for the development of a successful investment plan. While every investment has potential risks, they can be managed and minimised.

    One way of minimising risk is to diversify your investments. Put simply, to diversify means not putting all your eggs in one basket! By spreading your investments across a diverse range of assets, your overall risk may be less compared to investing in a single and possibly volatile investment. Diversified investments can help you to manage risk without forgoing returns.

    There are various ways in which this can be achieved.

    One way of diversifying could be to spread your investments amongst various asset classes such as shares, property, fixed interest and cash. The low correlation to each other – meaning the performance of one class is not affected by the performance of the other – helps reduce volatility in your portfolio because these different assets respond to different market trends at different rates. Therefore, having a portfolio diversified among different assets creates more consistency and can improve overall portfolio performance.

    Another way to diversify is within the asset class, for example, if you are looking to buy some shares you could consider buying them in different companies. To eliminate even more risk, it is also important to consider the industries these companies operate in to determine if they are too closely correlated with each other. In other words if you buy shares in three different oil companies, the risk is almost the same as investing in just one of those companies, as the industry factors that affect one oil company are most likely to equally impact all companies within the oil industry. For example, if the price of oil drops, it is probable this will have a negative impact for most oil companies.

    It is not advisable to put all your eggs in one basket when it comes to your investments and the financial markets. Diversifying your investments helps you spread your risk, so that a loss on one investment may be balanced out by a gain in another.

    Understanding your tolerance to investment risk is a good first step in taking action to diversify your investments. It is recommended before making any investment decisions that you speak with a financial planner who can help determine your risk profile and see what’s right for you.

    Posted on July 23, 2011 Financial News & Updates Investing Money Expert Saving Leave a Comment

  5. Are your retirement plans safe?

    If you are approaching retirement you should consider protecting your retirement plans and finances by ensuring your children have sufficient cover for their own families.

    In the event something was to happen to your son or daughter which left their family without any means of support, it would most likely be you who the family turns to for support.

    Circumstances such as this could place serious financial pressure on your retirement funds and in turn your overall retirement plans, as it did for David and Susan.

    David was 15 when he started an apprenticeship at his local steel works. Forty years later, he was still working at the same factory.

    His wife Susan had kept the family ticking along, having raised four children to become independent adults with their own families.

    After a company restructure was announced, David took the opportunity to ask for a redundancy and succeeded in getting a healthy redundancy package. This, together with his superannuation and accumulated benefits, meant David and Susan were sitting pretty for an early retirement.

    Both David and Susan viewed this as a great opportunity to enjoy time with their grandchildren and to travel around Australia.

    On Boxing Day of that year, David’s eldest son Rodney had a massive brain haemorrhage and passed away.

    And because he was young and didn’t see the need for any life insurance, Rodney left his wife Erin and their three children without any means of support.

    As any parent or grandparent would, David and Susan took in Erin and the kids into the family home.

    The unplanned financial impact on David, Susan and their retirement plans was devastating and they were unable to do most of the things that they had hoped 40 years of work would allow them to do.

    Whether you are already retired or about to retire, talk to your son or daughter about their financial obligations, and make sure they have a plan in place to protect their family’s financial future.

    Posted on April 14, 2011 Financial News & Updates Investing Money Expert Saving Tax Advice Leave a Comment

  • Have you got the Life Insurance that's right for you? Read our post to find out the pros and cons http://t.co/JFw7nLDP ^AS ReTweet Reply Favorite