Belly “Don't be a rabbit Col”

Not sure what you are suggesting Belly, is it the size of my ears, perhaps my capacity for procreation. Can’t the my cute little fluffy tail, mate.

Billie “Keeping salary levels secret allows employers to pay different salaries to people doing the same job and they do.”

Maybe some do the job better than others and are worth the differential.

“Keeping financial advice secret makes its harder to shop around for worthwhile advise as financial planners charge $800+ per piece of advice.”

My partner has just a comprehensive check of her superannuation status, it is provided free by her superannuation company.

I believe there is a minimum period of genuine retirement that needs to be established prior to any super fund paying preserved entitlements. In any event proper advise would be the order of the day.Having said this lets not forget why productivity superannuation came about, to provide australians with retirement income.

If the thread continues we will see a lot of wrong and bad information, we already have.
I took early retirement from an air wasting NSW government department, and got my super in full post 55 years of age.
I found myself unable to sit around doing nothing[ properly the reason I no longer fitted in that job].
Started the job I was made for , no tax penalty's on my super, but an amount, small post 1983 was held.
Now I never stood on a street corner and asked strangers for advice so maybe Col you are right super funds are best to advise you but some are shonks.
Are we all aware some charge near every thing if you leave early in exit fees?
Some exit fees are theft , it is more than unwise to have more than one fund but some have an active fund for every Job they ever had.
I have seen 14 funds all each bringing fees from one construction worker.
As a post script some who use the high income in NSW government service to run a private cash cow are in the best superannuation fund I ever saw still.

Many people get their advise from either friends and or relatives and that is where they go wrong. It's a bit like golf, most golfers correct an error with another error however if you get a lesson from a pro and stick to the instruction, often results will follow.

In answer to your question, there are several legal sites where you can gain info either free or near to.

After all, would you go to a florist to get your hair cut?

Get profesional advise is my advise!

Ahh, Col Rouge your belief in the self correcting nature of the market is touching but deluded. As someone who quadrupled their pay in 12 months in the same profession, my experience is those people who have a keen appreciation of the market price of their skills get higher pay than those who let their attention drop. My sister also believes in the sanctity of the secret paypacket - I am never sure whether it's out of embarassment at how much she earns or shame at the low pay.

Your faith in the financial advisors provided by superannuation funds also makes me shudder, aren't they all rebadged life insurance salesmen?

Like Belly, I am also aware of people having 10 or more different superannuation funds which all take out life insurance policies for their contributors and refuse/fail to update contributors addresses. The reality is that you either use the employers super fund or you don't get included in the roster.

It is reasonable for a person on a low or moderate income to ask questions about investment on OLO. Why not? After all, there is some public scrutiny of advice given and where fee for service independent advice is concerned, it takes big money to interest the partners and senior advisers and it is their expertise that the business is based on, not that of the recruits from last year's graduate intake.

A case in point is that of an uncle who is ex-Australian Public Service and is aged 61. This fellow got a redundancy at around age 58, gets a CSS (?) pension from his public service fund and has a small sum of pre- and post- 1983 (a significant date?) contributions rolled over into a private fund.

Recently after paying for the usual glossy binder of generic financial advice (eg get life insurance) he was unable to find out what the tax consequence, if any, is if he withdraws a little under $10000 from the rolled over funds to replace his car. His questions seem simple enough:

- must ATO be advised in his current tax return; and
- what tax if any is payable?

ATO and the fund say they cannot give 'advice', but to report it in his return anyhow.

What comments?