Expert Advice

The importance of asset allocation Asset allocation can be one of the most significant performance drivers for your investment portfolio, but it can be difficult to determine the right mix of assets classes to invest in without access to quality research, insights and specialist advice. So, what is asset allocation? Asset allocation is basically the division of your investment portfolio...

Two of the most common questions we get asked as accountants are: 1. What is involved in building a property portfolio? 2. What are some tax advantages of property and how do you maximise them? The media regularly features amazing tales of rags to riches landlords with fat property portfolios, particularly during expansion or boom phases of the property cycle....

This is an important question to ask, because being in a de facto relationship can have significant implications in relation to social security, income tax, wills and estates, and other areas of the law. It also means that if you separate, you or your partner may have a claim for property adjustment, superannuation splitting, and/or partner maintenance under the Family...

The rapid growth in online shopping has exposed gaps between when the buyer makes a purchase and when they receive the goods, posing one of the biggest challenges in eCommerce logistics. If delivery is not swift, the sale may be lost; and should the delivery not meet expectations, repeat loyalty and future sales can be affected. Communication is vital. Rather...

Superannuation investment has come a long way over the years and traditional managed funds are not the only way to gain an exposure to the market. A cost effective alternative is to use Exchange Traded Funds or ETFs. So what is an ETF? Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) are one of the fastest growing investment products in the world, offering investors...

Women are less likely than their male co-workers to believe that pay equality and equal opportunities exist for both genders in the workplace, according to the new Hays global survey on gender diversity. At Hays, we are known for supporting the advancement of women in the workplace. However, our survey found that although progress is being made, gender diversity remains...

After a trade mark application is filed it is examined by a Trade Mark Examiner, all trade mark applicants hope to get a "clear" Examination Report. This enables the application to be advertised as accepted. However, many applicants receive an Examiner's "adverse report", leaving some to think the application is "dead in the water" (not automatically true) and others wondering...

Gone are the days when you could simply rely on advertisement campaigns alone to generate sales. The sales process has become much more complex now and your website plays a critical role in it. In the old times, you would come up with a package deal, run a TV, radio or print ad and generate traffic to the website and...

Having a positive credit rating could be essential to securing finance now, or for borrowing money for big ticket items, such as property or a car, in the future. As more people begin to use credit as a means of finance, it's important to understand what a credit rating is and what a good or bad credit rating could mean1....

One of the best ways of attracting and retaining high-quality staff is to provide them with an ownership share of the business they're helping to develop. It creates an obvious incentive for them to throw their faculties behind a common cause in the hope of sharing its future success and reward. For technology start-ups with limited resources in particular, it...

"What's the address of the Company's registered office?", I asked a company director. His response, perhaps predictably, was to recite the trading address of his company's business. A repeat enquiry yielded no change. I asked if he knew the difference between the two: it was clear he did not. A company's registered office is more than just an anachronism of...

Self Managed Superannuation Fund (SMSF). The title infers work and with leisure time so hard to come by these days it's not uncommon to be wary of anything "self managed". When considering the responsibilities that are required to be an SMSF trustee, many people worry about the reporting obligations,financial statements, tax return and the audit involved. These are important but...

What are the key factors for choosing an auditor for your business? Reliable information is the basic prerequisite for confidence in the value of an organisation; for investors, the public and the organisation itself. A conscientious independent audit of an organisation's financial report provides the basis for this confidence. HOW TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT AUDIT PARTNER Choose the right team...

You might not think finding the right property has much to do with luck, but around the world, there are countless superstitions people believe that could influence their decision to buy a property. From numerology to rainy days, here are a few interesting beliefs regarding property from around the world. * CHINA - The number eight is a sign of...

We all recall and cringe at the famous fast food chain mantra 'do you want fries with that?' The frustration often conjured by the notion of 'up-selling' belies the real problem - one of perception. A feeling that you're being sold something that you don't want or need,or is of little or no intrinsic value, is uncomfortable. This is no...

It is common for businesses to make GST errors in their BAS. The majority of these mistakes are unintentional. The ATO recently reviewed all of the BAS adjustments made as a result of auditing and revealed that over 80% were the result of inadvertent GST mistakes. Examples of common mistakes include: clerical errors such as duplications or accidental omissions, sales...