Description
Retirement isn’t a finish line. It’s the start of the most complicated financial decade of your life.
By the time most Australians reach retirement, they’re facing questions nobody prepared them for. What should you invest in now that you’re drawing down, not building up? Will your money actually last as long as you do? Are you eligible for any age pension, and how do the assets and income tests really work? Is downsizing worth the cost and disruption, or better left alone? On top of all that sit ongoing questions about aged care, estate planning, evolving retirement products and a tax and superannuation system that never stops changing.
It’s a lot to navigate alone, and getting it wrong isn’t a small mistake. A poor decision made at 65 can affect the next 25 years.
Retirement Made Simple is Noel Whittaker’s guide through exactly this. It takes every major decision you’ll face in retirement, from superannuation and pensions through to downsizing, aged care and estate planning, and explains it in the same plain, practical style that has made his other books bestsellers for decades. No jargon, no fear mongering, just clear guidance on what to do and when to do it.
Inside, you’ll find clear answers on:
- How to structure your superannuation and pensions for the retirement you actually want
- Age pension eligibility, and how the assets and income tests work in practice
- Whether downsizing makes financial sense for your situation
- Aged care costs and how deeming and means testing affect what you’ll pay
- Estate planning and death benefits, so your family isn’t left guessing
- How to keep investing sensibly through volatile markets, without panicking at every downturn
Retirement planning isn’t only about money, either. This book also covers something most finance books skip entirely: how to protect and nurture your greatest assets in retirement, your health and your relationships.
“I’ve just finished reading Retirement Made Simple and felt compelled to write to you. I’m 57 and planning to retire this year. In my 20s, I purchased your earlier book and audio tapes, and they had a profound effect on me. They lit a fire to learn, to act and to take responsibility for my financial future. One lesson that stayed with me was compound interest, and it’s compound interest that has taken me from having nothing to being a man of means, and allowed me to retire years earlier than I otherwise might have. I believe I’ve gained as much from Retirement Made Simple as I did from your earlier work, which is a remarkable thing to say decades later.”
— Noel News reader
Trusted voices agree. Dr Josh Funder of Household Capital calls it a book that “helps Australians have confidence in their own retirement funding, housing and lifestyles.” The Sydney Morning Herald‘s Stephen Miles calls it “an excellent no nonsense guide to taking control of your financial future.” National Seniors Australia‘s Ian Henschke says it “fills a big gap. Seniors need all the financial literacy they can get, and now more than ever.”
Whether retirement is five years away or five years behind you, this book will show you exactly where you stand, and exactly what to do next.
