This primarily refers to the structure you’re willing to steer to. Now, as you might know, there are two options as structures to be able to form this superannuation, either based on individual trustees, or make use of the corporate trustee SMSF structure, the one based on having a “Special Purpose” company as the trustee.

If you do a bit of search, you’d come across a great deal of results showing you most of the SMSFs, and most people, are in favour of individual trustees as the amount has increased up to 80% of individual trustee based SMSFs in our country.

And yet, this article is going to show you why you should opt for the corporate trustee Smsf structure. Although people are first drawn to the individual trustee structure because of the lesser fees, as of late, there’s been a decrease in the fees of establishing corporate trustees to half of its initial amount.

Even though the ASIC (Australian Securities and Investments Commission) annual review fee (maintenance) got to $48 from $45 two years ago, it’s still nothing alarming. You can get the help of registered tax agents who can also take care of your annual return documents.

While with the individual structure it’s not allowed for you to have a sole member but at least two to run the fund, this isn’t the case with the corporate structure since one person can be both the sole director and sole member, so you can have a sole member fund.

This in turn also makes it easier in terms of lifespan; a company is indefinite, whereas individual trustees pose a great deal of more fees and documentation upon death. Even at the cessation of a membership, and you stop being the sole director, the assets stay in the name of the Company, which isn’t the case with individual trustees where each trustee gets the assets of the person that’s no longer a trustee.

Then again, you also have greater freedom with property investing, and planning, considering the trustee (the Company) remains unchanged upon the death of a member. Bear in mind, though, the corporate trustee of an SMSF can’t be a corporate trustee of a bare trust.

In case of a contravention, a penalty is imposed once for every contravention, different from the penalty regime for individual trustees where each trustee gets fined for each contravention, which means there’s immediate increase (double, or tripple depending on the number of individual trustees) in penalty.

Great news is, even if you’ve opted for the individual structure, you can still change to corporate trusteeship by signing a new Trustee Declaration, completing a Trustee Consent, and Minutes Change of Trustee.

However, just as much as it’s advisable to join the club of SMSF owners, it’s advisable to consider getting the proper insurance. Though it’s not something that’s mandatory, the new requirement by the ATO (Australian Taxation Office) is for trustees (members of the superannuation) to consider getting SMSF life insurance or TPD (total and permanent disability) and prove this consideration. The reasons to convince you to get insurance are the chance to customise the insurance to a trustee’s specific needs and pay insurance premiums through the fund contributions which means you get the help with cash flow other than that of the fund.

Getting the assistance from professionals, such as insurance brokers and banks, in taking out insurance policy for the SMSF is no trouble, it just takes finding the reliable professionals and knowing whether you’re up for SMSF life insurance or the remaining two, TPD and income protection insurance. It takes learning a bit about them to know which one is most suitable for you and your SMSF.

Life insurance provides a sum when death occurs and can cover up the loss of earnings and financial obligations. TPD can help with medical care and financial obligations in case of total and permanent disability (hence the name of the policy), whereas the income protection provides benefits during inability to work due to an injury or illness. What’s important to remember is that both life insurance premiums and TPD are deductible as tax expense through the fund, while income protection premiums are tax deductible to the fund and individuals alike. This applies to self-employed individuals also and those who earn less than 10% of the income as an employee.

So, in case of death of a member, temporary incapacity or terminal medical condition, you can be able to claim insurance. What everyone needs is the sense of security in the future days of retirement age, and starting up the SMSF accompanied by getting the adequate insurance are the solutions to give you the peace of mind you’re in need of.

One of the reasons growing number of Australians are considering setting up own SMSF is the benefit of buying property through their fund. Self managed super funds property investment has many tax advantages such as the fact that before you retire the net income is taxed at 15%, and after retirement, you don’t pay taxes on capital gains and on the income from the property. If you are considering investing in self managed super funds property, here are few reasons why it is a good investment strategy.

Easy to set

Unlike other funds, SMSF is very easy to set. It is best to seek professional help to ensure the fund is in compliance with all ATO rules. However you decide, you must decide on the structure of the fund, make sure members can be trustees, meet the residency rule, prepare trust deed, open a bank account for your fund and register the fund with the Australian Taxation Office.

Great tax efficiency

If the tax efficiency is what you care about, then you surely want a SMSF. With SMSF you pay a maximum of 10% tax on capital gains before retirement and no tax on capital grains once retired. Also, there is the ability to plan an estate strategy including the payment of pensions upon death to beneficiaries including children.

Control of your SMSF property investment

You manage your SMSF property investment in accordance with the law and for the best interests of fund members. Although the SMSF investors can do a good job managing the fund, you can control your own investments as well. Be careful not to merge accidentally your personal fund with the fund of the fund members.

Your whole family can be involved

SMSF and property can involve the whole family as members of the same fund. This usually isn’t allowed with other types of funds, but with SMSF you have such flexibility to include your family as well.

When it comes retirement most people start planning in advance, however, many are not sure of available options nor which plan to choose. Australians have several alternatives to choose from. The most common type of retirement is the one where your pension income is based on the general tax you have paid over the years. The second option available is carefully designed retirement plan that requires mandatory contributions in order to reach the desired pension level. And the third one, opposite from the second one, is based on voluntary contributions giving you the freedom to contribute certain amount each year. An example of a retirement plan with voluntary contributions is the self managed superannuation or self managed super fund.

If you decide to go with the self managed superannuation after you retire, you might wanna know what this type of fund it is. In a quick glance, the self managed super fund allows you to be your own trustees. In other therms, this means that you, as the members of the fund, are the one who manages the fund and periodic contributions. You are the one responsible for running it in accordance with the law and must file periodic reports on all operations. This retirement plan allows you to determine the level of the self managed superannuation and gives you full control over it. So, why choose this kind of fund as your retirement plan.

Why Self Managed Superannuation in Australia?

First of all, it gives you the flexibility and the freedom to manage and decide where, when and how payments will be invested and which amount will be contributed to the fund. This is great for people who have both skills and experience and have had proper training to conduct their own self managed super fund. Another thing that makes this fund attractive are the low fees it offers. Government reports have shown that members of the self managed super fund pay lower fees compared to members of other pension plans, which improves performance and effectiveness of the fund in general. Furthermore, this type of fund draws more attention as it provides asset protection in case of bankruptcy. As common as bankruptcy has become nowadays, this benefit of the self managed super fund offers security in the eyes of its member making it more reliable and dependable which is what people seek.

These are just few of the most important benefits that you, as a member of self managed super funds will acquire, but not the only ones. You must, however, do a thorough research on this type of pension plan before deciding to go with it. To truly understand the heart of this fund’s process; how to successfully run one; to invest and profit from it and to become a member click on the following link for more information – http://www.superannuationwarehouse.com.au/.