Do your own research and approach emigration and externalisation of assets with exceptional levels of critical thinking, not based on emotions. South Africans are currently facing the difficulty of making financial decisions in light of worrying new headlines. Many investors are grappling with planning ahead and making thorough capital allocation decisions despite high levels of […]
When I mention the names Floyd Mayweather and Connor McGregor, four words come to mind: Top Arrogant World Champions. Both of them are regarded as some of the best in contact sport. Both of them put on a pair of gloves and get into a ring. Both of them want to see their opponents hit […]
South Africans will need to increase their focus on tax-efficient investment. South Africans received the budget speech gracefully on February 20 2019. Everyone who listened to the speech will, for a very long time, recall our new minister of finance moving with flair, courage and humour. One could hear a pin drop in Parliament and […]
I recently co-consulted a client with another adviser with the aim of addressing the client’s retirement needs. The adviser recommended that the client invests in a retirement annuity (RA). Without a moment’s hesitation, the client said, “I’m not interested. I invested in a retirement annuity 30 years ago and it hasn’t grown in value since. […]
In recent weeks, we have busted a myth or two regarding retirement annuities (RAs), and proved the product’s undeniable benefits to investors. This week, I would like to focus more on the structure of an RA, and specifically on direct shares in an RA for those who feel that an RA does not necessarily meet […]
I’m sure many of you have noticed how we associate nearly every month of the year with something. September is the month of spring, while December brings about the smell of the sea and suntan lotion, accompanied by Boney M in almost every single mall you visit. February brings about tax season, or to some, […]
Considerations when appointing guardians for your minor child. By Richus Nel South Africa certainly is an exciting country to live in, but this excitement comes at a high price in terms of the unpredictability of events, outcomes and developments. The uncertainty this generates in our lives means that we need to consider the position of […]
Biking to retirement: Start with small achievable targets and learn to ride the ‘investment bike’ over many years, long before retirement. As a recreational cyclist, I regard cycling as one of the most enjoyable and effective ways to get around. But while some cycling is for recreation, other times it can be about incremental goal […]
I have made several references to the Matryoshka, or Russian Nesting Doll in the past, because I find it to be such a fitting analogy to describe investment products and the costs attached to them. As its name suggests, it’s a set of hollow wooden dolls arranged from small to large, with each larger doll […]
South Africans like to consider their homes as investments. As with all investments, it is worth revisiting your assumptions from time to time. Currently, there’s a lot of debate surrounding the prices of especially residential properties. The FNB South African House Price Index shows us that house prices have declined by 21% in real terms […]
There is an old saying that goes, ‘nothing ventured, nothing gained’. Of course, the opposite is also true, because you cannot lose anything if nothing is ventured either. As an example, let’s use someone with an extreme fear of the ocean. This person feels that people risk too much by playing in the waves, as […]
As it is still July, we still find ourselves in National Savings Month. In my previous two columns, I discussed the importance of saving, as well as important things to consider before you start to save, respectively. This week, I would like to take the term saving one step further by comparing savings in local […]
We’re halfway through the month of July, as well as SASI’s (South African Savings Institute) National Savings Month campaign and I’m sure that by now most readers are well aware of any shortcomings in terms of their personal savings. Let’s hope they decided to address these shortcomings by compiling a proper budget, decided to make […]
A man named Gordon B. Hinkley wrote, “You cannot plough a field by turning it over in your mind”. Although the context in which he meant it may differ greatly from this week’s theme, I found it to be a phrase that can be applied to so many things in the investment world. When I […]
As toddlers, my two daughters used to love our regular visits to the playpark and I vividly recall them rushing to get to the seesaw first. Frequently, however, my eldest daughter thought it extremely funny to jump off while her little sister was still in the air, and of course that caused my youngest to […]
I am confronted with the question on whether rebalancing a portfolio is really necessary quite often by my clients. I normally use the theory of displacement (the simple version) to explain to them why it is done. By placing an object into a container filled with water, the water level will rise, because the object […]
In Greek mythology, we are told about the infamous siren. The siren is a creature with the head of a woman and the body of a bird. According to mythology, they lived on an island where they lured passing sailors towards them with their enchanting and irresistible singing voices, causing ships to wreck on the […]
We have all had our moments where we were convinced that our opinion on a particular subject was absolute, and no one or nothing could convince us of anything else… until we were proven wrong. For years as a young boy, I believed that the title of ABBA’s hit song, “Take a chance”, actually read […]
This week, I would like to start with a simple experiment. Take one toothpick from a pack of toothpicks and break it. Then take the rest of the toothpicks and try to break them all at once. Not so easy, is it? What this teaches us, is the power of diversification. In the investment world, […]
I often wish that the world of shares could be as flat as the Karoo, so that we could look into the future – not just a day or two ahead, but years into the future, to see the levels at which shares would be trading at by then. Wouldn’t that make investment management so […]
