What are female clients asking advisers?

BT has shared the top queries advisers receive from their female clients over the past 12 months, including indexation, total super balance and increases to childcare subsidies.

With International Women’s Day taking place on 8 March, BT said women were becoming engaged with their finances. The gender gap had also narrowed to a record low and the number of female self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF) members outnumbered men.

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Sarah Conte, senior manager, technical and regulatory at BT, said: “Increasingly more women are becoming engaged in their finances, and empowering themselves so they can plan to be financially independent and secure. And while women are typically less confident in making investment decisions, many are seeking to engage the services of a financial adviser.

“We expect more women to take greater control of their finances in the future. However, overall, women typically have lower superannuation balances compared to men. Yet women are living longer – so making the most of advice opportunities is even more important.”

The top five queries were: 

• Double indexation of the transfer balance cap and total super balance threshold;
• Wealth transfer between couples;
• Age Pension increases;
• Increases to childcare subsidy to assist working mums; and
• Relationship breakdowns and SMSFs.

A lot of information related to superannuation where the total super balance threshold would increase to $1.9 million from 1 July, 2023. This was used to determine the level of non-concessional contributions that could be made by a member into super. 

Another super query related to super death benefits, the taxation consequences of the super cap and questions regarding the Age Pension. The next round of indexation for the Age Pension was due in mid-March which could see some receive higher payments or others receive a payment for the first time. 

Others queried what would happen to their SMSF if their relationship broke down, which BT described as a “minefield” for advisers to navigate. 

“Winding up an SMSF can be a minefield, and it’s no surprise that financial advisers are asking questions about the technical ins and outs,” said Conte. “There are some nuances within the rules when dealing with relationship breakdowns and splitting super, and it’s a good idea to seek guidance from an expert.

“Unfortunately, the financial impact of divorce and relationship breakdowns can be very significant for women. And while it’s encouraging to see so many women wanting to take control of their finances and establish SMSFs, these considerations should be made earlier rather than later, especially if the SMSF members are couples.”

Finally, women queried the upcoming increases to the Child Care Subsidy rates which would increase from 85% to 90% for families with a combined annual income of less than $80k from 1 July, 2023. This particularly affected those women who only held part-time or casual employment while they raised families.