Working out how much you need to save for retirement is a question that keeps many pre-retirees awake at night. Recent market volatility and fluctuating superannuation balances have only added to the uncertainty.

Teaching good financial habits, such as saving and budgeting, is one of the best ways to prepare children to have a secure financial future. Helping kids establish sound money management skills and strong financial acumen is important, regardless of wealth level.

A capital gain or loss is the difference between what you paid for an asset and what you sold it for. This takes into account any incidental costs on the purchase and sale. So, if you sell an asset for more than you paid for it, that’s a capital gain. And if you sell it for less, that is considered a capital loss.

Interest rates are an important financial lever for world economies. They affect the cost of borrowing and the return on savings, and it makes them an integral part of the return on many investments. It can also affect the value of the currency, which has a further trickle-down effect on other investments.

Welcome to our April update and, as the days are getting shorter, there’s definitely a bit of a nip in the air.

Share markets in Australia and overseas have rallied to end the month in a better position as the global banking system steadies itself and there are expectations of a tempering in rate rises.

With the discomfort experienced last year, questions around a recession—are we already in one or will we enter one—seem to be the most pressing this year.

Professional economists forecast the possibility of a recession at a higher rate than anytime over the past decade and Google searches of the word “recession” hit an all-time high last year.

Getting more money into superannuation is a proven way of building wealth to spend in retirement.

But how much extra money can you put in each year, and what’s the best way of doing it?

The concept of retirement is changing, with fewer people working towards a final retirement date and then clocking off for good.

Instead, those who have the flexibility to choose are often transitioning out of the workforce over several years, or even returning after a break.

Whether you simply want to wind back your working hours to explore other interests, or don’t want to cut your ties with work completely, to make it work you need to plan.

With Autumn underway, the changing season is a reminder to take stock and prepare for what’s ahead as the financial year heads towards its final quarter and the May Federal Budget.

Holding the appropriate level of life insurance, whether inside or outside super, and reviewing it regularly as your circumstances change has never been more important. After all, how would your family cope if the unexpected happened? How would the mortgage be paid? What about the school fees?

While life insurance should be considered a non-negotiable part of your financial plan, there is flexibility and potential cost savings in the way you pay for it.

Volatility is part and parcel of investing so it's important to put it into perspective and look at the full picture when thinking about your wealth, rather than focus on day-to-day market swings.

If there was to be a single investing lesson that emerged from the events of the last two years, it is that we should learn to expect the unexpected.

Thanks to more than 30 years of compulsory superannuation, we are retiring with more savings than previous generations but that also brings its challenges.

According to the government’s Retirement Income Review, the average age of retirement in Australia is around the ages of 62 to 65.i On average men and women can expect to live to 85 and 88 respectively.

To make the most of your retirement your savings need to last. The best way to achieve that is to have a plan that will help you avoid some common and preventable retirement mistakes.

February marks the end of summer holidays for many of us and getting down to business for 2023. It can be a good time to reflect on plans and goals for the months ahead.

With interest rates on the rise and investment returns increasingly volatile, Australians with cash to spare may be wondering how to make the most of it. If you have a mortgage, should you make extra repayments or would you be better off in the long run boosting your super?

Financial Adviser, Simone Richardson asks Mortgage Broker, Edwena Dixon from Pinpoint Finance your lending questions.

Do rising interest rates mean you can't borrow as much? Is fixing your loan the way to go? How do you tackle a simultaneous settlement?

Sustainable investing isn’t new and is becoming more mainstream. From climate change to gender diversity, more people are aligning their money with their values. In 2021, Australia’s sustainable investment market increased 20 per cent to a record $1.5 trillion.

The year began on an optimistic note, as we finally began to emerge from Covid restrictions. Then Russia threw a curve ball that reverberated around the world and suddenly people who had never given a thought to the Reserve Bank were waiting with bated breath for its monthly interest rate announcements.

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has slowed the pace of interest rate increases as it seeks to tame inflation while avoiding recession.

High inflation and a shortfall in households’ purchasing power will likely prevent the U.S. economy from growing above trend over coming quarters.

Economic momentum continued to deteriorate in the euro area as nations adapted to the cut-off in natural gas supplies from Russia.

Citadel’s Jack Mascitelli catches up with Betashares Chief Economist David Bassanese to unpack current market conditions, the impact of rising cash rates, the noise around a looming recession and what it means in the near future.

The growth outlook in Australia in 2022 has been downgraded by researchers to a range of 3% to 3.5% as higher interest rates and inflation continue to weigh on spending. Although the risk of recession is rising, it’s not yet part of the base case scenario.