Planning in the PM’s neighbourhood

For financial planning business owner David Carney, Prime Minister John Howard’s electorate of Bennelong was the perfect place to reap the “low hanging fruit”.

But that does not mean he has it all made, with competition from unlicensed investment advisers making his complex job all the more difficult.

“There are too many out there walking a thin line in regards to advice — they are basically unregulated, unlicensed financial advisers,” he says.

“I remember one client had been signed up to a scheme where the promoters were standing to make about $28,000 in fees, but without having to really disclose a cent of that,” Carney says.

“They need to tidy up the renegade operators,” he says, appealing to political leaders to take up the challenge to close gaps that still exist post-Financial Services Reform (FSR).

Despite this, Carney is continually surprised at the level of financial literacy in his neighbourhood.

“Our clients come in and talk about products and things that 10 years ago you wouldn’t imagine,” he says.

He puts it down to an increase in consumer awareness, but says initiatives like the Financial Literacy Taskforce — set up by the Government this year — are needed to ensure good habits are taught earlier in life.

Carney’s office has five staff in quiet, established premises off the main street in the Sydney suburb of Gladesville. He and business partner Sam Hallinan, an ex-MLC business development manager, have grown the business into a client base of 130, with funds under advice of around $70 million in just three years.

Carney got a taste of life as a Gladesville planner working at both Westpac and the NRMA.

He says the clientele in the PM’s electorate requires much more than basic financial advice and just because his clients are able to make money, doesn’t mean they know how to keep it.

This has led Carney to expand his practice to include business consulting, and it’s the small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) plentiful in the area he has his eyes set firmly on.

“SME clients are either going or growing,” he says.

Superannuation is another key issue for Carney. In the face of an ageing population, he thinks changes to the superannuation system need to be more heavy handed — or there needs to be no change at all. It’s just too confusing for his clients to keep on top of.

“Of course, changes need to be made, but the continuing changes make it hard for clients, leaving them feeling disillusioned,” he says.

This week his business will re-brand from Carney Wealth Planning and Management to Aspect Partners, but the sentiment of his business remains the same — no matter where you live, everybody needs good advice.