The recent changes to Regulation 28 rules around retirement funds has caused a bit of “excitement” in the asset management industry and I have seen at least 2 articles making a case that the stricter enforcement of the Reg 28 rules make Retirement Annuities  unattractive investments, especially for younger investors (see the article by Jan Mouton of PSG Asset Management –...

I have come across a few situations recently where we have had to help people who are in major life transitions – retrenchment and retirement – and it amazes me that most of the people we have been asked to help have no idea of their income needs (budget). I was also chatting with a group of business people recently who have all been running businesses for over 15 years and yet a common theme seemed to be that they...

Not for the first time, I received an email from a client whose domestic worker is close to retirement and who is concerned about having “too much money” and that this will impact on her ability to qualify for an old age pension. She has been told (via the grapevine) that when she applies for a pension the government will investigate her personal circumstances and if she is “rich” she will not qualify for a pension. There are...

Was chatting with a friend who used to run quite a successful events company…I say used to because he has been directly impacted by the “conflicts of interest” legislation in the financial services industry. As a result of the legislation, companies can no longer “wine and dine” their clients (that is the financial advisors and brokers who represent them). I understand that the intention behind the legislation is to attempt to...

Heard from a client this morning who was involved in a car accident…he’s fine but the car’s not – R50000 damage. He was on to the insurers right away who sent an assessor who has rejected the claim. Reason? The tyres are smooth and therefore the car is not technically roadworthy! We dont do short term insurance and I dont know if this is the end of it (I would take it further) but I do know that when you enter into...

It’s a good job I don’t earn a living from writing…it would have been a very bad month and a number of people have reminded me that I have not updated the blog for a while. I guess it is nice to be “missed” but as I have explained to many of them, I usually write when I feel passionately about something… So does that mean that I’m not passionate at the moment? Not at all, on the contrary…I just don’t know that the things...

10. Get a second opinion (but be prepared to pay for it – just like you would if you visited more than 1 doctor). If the planning recommendations are good they should stand up to scrutiny so there is no reason that you should not discuss a planning recommendation with someone else – but be prepared to pay if you are going to do this. Consider it in the same manner as you would if you were getting a second...