Thread: Superannuation question for my Dad

G'day Sandyian

When your parents/father retires, the first thing to do is to get themselves onto the aged pension,then contact the various utilities and change their statis from worker to pensioner,phone,elect,water,and rego (if they have their own car) that will give them some benefits,then if they do not have their own vehicle and are thinking of getting a ute/wagon to do a little touring, I would suggest they look at a vehicle from the era that your father used to fix/repair, and one on gas, with no computers, then when it needs servicing or repair he can do it himself,we have an 85 Range Rover on gas,but unless he wishes go have a 4 wheel drive I would suggest a Falcon on gas,then an older good condition caravan of a well known brand 14-16ft, that would give them independance as well as the confidence to repair/maintain the vehicle when on the pension,I have been a pensioner since 1982 (disability,now aged) and have been able to have a fairly good quality of life,(but we don't drink much and don't gamble) gave up smoking after my first heart attack 2000,which I followed up with quad bi-pass in 2001, it can be a major cultural change to go from working to pension, but the most important thing is to keep physical and mentally active,a little part time work,or volunteering will keep both of them busy, as the sudden change from work to idleness is a killer,I did school bus driving (semi-rural)for 15 years, both as an income source and as a way of keeping mentally active (some people would say "nuts" )

I see that they live in Qld near Toowoomba, so there should be a few advantages already of semi rural life


cheers

I didn't read all the responses but there is an option that would save them from getting fees on their super. If they're looking at doing a 100% withdrawal they could put the remaining 50k into a term deposit with monthly interest payments and help supplement their day to day living. I don't know what the rules are with centrelink and how much interest they're allowed to receive before it would hit their pension but 50k in a term deposit at 6% (which you may have to shop around for, I've not been at the bank for over a month so have no clue where rates are sitting for investment) would give them an extra $250 a month to live on... Or if they don't need to live off it they can just have it rolling over at maturity and compound the interest. But It might be worth comparing the fees involved in keeping it invested and those of self management, even if you and your brother do the self management