Growth Assets

Property
The largest investment and asset that most people make is usually their own home. However, investing in property is not confined to owning your home or even a rental property. It can also include:

• industrial
• commercial
• residential
• retail
• rural
• tourism
  

You can either purchase property directly, or you can invest in a property trust. Investing in a property trust generally gives you access to a range of property classes (as listed above) ranging from large shopping centres to residential flats.

Property is generally viewed as a secure long-term investment, often providing better long-term returns than cash and fixed interest. Foreign investors who wish to purchase a property in Australia must first seek prior approval from the Government through the Foreign Investment Review Board, unless specifically exempted by the Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Regulations. We strongly recommend that you visit the FIRB website on http://www.firb.gov.au or speak to Intellichoice for details on (07) 3624 1900.

Shares
Purchasing shares gives you part ownership in a company and the right to receive a portion of the profits, commonly referred to as dividends.

Changes in share prices reflect the market value of the company. Fluctuations in the market value of shares will be reflected in the underlying value of your original investment. Income is paid to you in the form of dividends, representing your share of the company’s profits.

An added bonus is that dividends can provide you with substantial tax benefits, because they are usually franked - either fully or partially. This means the company has already paid tax on this money - usually to the corporate tax rate of 36 per cent. In some cases, it may be even higher.

Compounding
Compounding is when you reinvest the interest you earn on an investment. Over time, this can be an effective means of accelerating the growth of your money.

If you continue to reinvest your interest over a few years, you will be earning interest on your interest on your interest.

Managed Investments
Managed investments is an investment that pools the funds of individual investors into a single fund and investment decisions are then made by an experienced fund manager on behalf of the individual investors.

The benefits of investing in a managed fund include:

• diversification - the opportunity to gain access to a wide range of assets with a relatively small amount of money
• greater buying power - access to assets which would normally be beyond your reach, such as an overseas company or a large shopping centre
• increased liquidity - the flexibility to sell your investment units at any time
• professional management - having full time financial experts looking after your investments. This has the advantage of potentially less risk and greater returns
  

As management fees vary from fund to fund, you should compare fund managers’ fee structures before deciding where to invest.

Please contact one of our experienced financial planners on 07 3624 1900 now for more details on the various products available and how we can assist you in growing your investment portfolio. Your first 30 minute review will be free.