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Closing the super savings gap
I'm building my wealth | | 2 min read
Equip’s Chief Investment Officer, Anna Shelley, had an early introduction to the stock market. When she was very young, her father gave his daughters a token amount of money to invest. Their confidence was just starting to build when the stock market crash of 1987 hit and the girls lost half their money. But they followed a plan, recovered their losses and made a healthy gain, proving that long-term investing pays off over time.
Those lessons have stayed with her ever since, and today Anna oversees a $27-billion dollar investment portfolio across Equip and Catholic Super. While the markets did well in 2019, and helped fund members grow their savings, the gap between men’s and women’s balances is an ongoing issue in the superannuation sector.
As Anna explains, “On average, Australian women currently retire with just over half of what men have and will live five years longer. International Women’s Day is a good reminder to schedule an annual super health check and try to close that gap.”
“For example, the first step to a stronger financial future could start with a look at the Retirement Calculator on your super fund’s website. These calculators can typically show you what income you might be able to expect in retirement and how you are currently tracking towards your retirement goals. You might find that the income you are likely to receive in your retirement is less than you expected.”
If you’re balance isn’t where you need it to be there are a variety of ways to boost it. Equip offers simple and practical ways to personalise your super and make it work for you. If you’re getting closer to retirement and would like professional advice Equip also offers a dedicated financial planning service (which can be paid for directly from your super). You can learn more here.
As Anna summarises, “The focus is on the long term. Don’t be too concerned by short term market movements. Your super investment options are designed to ride out short term market fluctuations and give you sound returns over long periods of time, for example, over 10 years and longer.”
“It’s a sad but true fact that some 40% of older single retired women live in poverty and experience economic insecurity in retirement. But with some forward thinking, we can work to dramatically improve that statistic.”
Try Equip's Move the Dial tool to see how your super compares. Click here.
Issued by Togethr Trustees Pty Ltd ABN 64 006 964 049, AFSL 246383 ("Togethr"), the Trustee of Equipsuper ABN 33 813 823 017 ("Equip Super"). The information contained is general advice and information only and does not take into account your personal financial situation or needs. You should consider whether this information is appropriate to your personal circumstances before acting on it and, if necessary, you should seek professional financial advice. Where tax information is included, you should consider obtaining taxation advice. Before making a decision to invest in Equip Super, you should read the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and Target Market Determination (TMD) for the product which are available at equipsuper.com.au. Financial advice may be provided to members by Togethr Financial Planning Pty Ltd (ABN 84 124 491 078 AFSL 455010) – a related entity of Togethr. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.
