The Catholic Leader Flipbook - Issue 5594 - March 22

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The Catholic Leader, March 22, 2020
IN today’s turbulent and complex
investment environment, getting the
right financial planning advice is
vital to achieve your goals.
Retirewell Financial Planning, a boutique
financial planning practice in Brisbane CBD,
is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.
One of the principals of the firm, Alan
Baker, who started his career as a financial
journalist, has been a financial planner now
for 35 years.
He is the author of the book Investing Your
Super: Tops, Traps and Tax Advantages, and
is listed as one of the top 10 financial planners
in Brisbane at www.top10financialpanner.
and one of top five financial planners
in Brisbane by Growth Financial.
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Getting the right advice
is the key to your success
“Whether you are looking to provide finan-
cial security for your family, or to ensure you
have the retirement you have dreamed of and
worked for, quality financial planning that is
tailored specifically to your individual needs
will help you achieve
your goals in a way
that is aligned to your
values,” Mr Baker
said.
Regarding the cur-
rent volatility in share
prices, he said this was
like a boy walking up
a hill playing with a
yo-yo, with the yo-yo
representing short-
term movements in the
stock market, which
is what the media fo-
cuses on, ignoring the
fact that the boy is actu-
ally making upward progress, that represents
positive returns over the long term.
Mr Baker believes in the saying “a picture
tells a thousand words”, so he uses draw-
ings by a friend of his, Carl Richards, The
Sketch Guy, who writes a financial column in
The New York Times, to illustrate important
points to his clients, such as the ones below.
Mr Baker said comprehensive financial
planning, which may include cash flow
management, debt reduction strategies, educa-
tion funding, tax minimisation, asset alloca-
tion, retirement planning, Centrelink benefit
maximisation, superannuation, investment
and insurance advice, and estate planning, de-
pending on individual needs, was a long-term
process designed
to help clients to
manage their as-
sets, protect their
wealth and build a
legacy, all in line
with their values.
“Ideally, people
should obtain the
right financial
advice as early as
possible, because
of the significant
advantage of com-
pounding returns
over the long term,
but pre-retirees and retirees also can greatly
benefit from a review of their financial situ-
ation and portfolio to ensure they are on the
right track,” he said.
Mr Baker said the first appointment at Re-
tirewell was obligation and cost free, so that
new clients could make an informed decision
on whether to engage the firm’s services.
In his spare time, Mr Baker teaches mar-
riage and parenting courses with his wife for
their church.
He has served as a leader in the pro-life
movement for most of the last 40 years, as a
committee member and then vice-president of
Cherish Life Queensland (previously known
as Right to Life Queensland).
He also has served as a member of the state
committee of the Australian Family Associa-
tion for more than 25 years.
Experience: Alan Baker.