Don't outlive your money.
Pension setup, drawdown strategy, Centrelink Age Pension eligibility, healthcare costs, downsizer contributions, and a plan that lasts as long as you do. We help Australians starting retirement turn three or four decades of saving into an income stream they can actually rely on.
Independent retirement advice for Australians at or near retirement — built around your real lifestyle, not a generic drawdown calculator.
The first three years of retirement set the next thirty.
Retirement is the one financial decision you mostly only get to make once. The accumulation phase is forgiving — you can earn more, save harder, ride a market dip out. The retirement phase is unforgiving — you can no longer earn it back, and a poor early-years sequence can shape every year that follows.
Most Australians arrive at retirement with super, the family home, possibly an investment property, possibly some savings. What they don't arrive with is a written plan that turns those assets into a sustainable income stream, navigates Centrelink, manages tax, plans healthcare, and tells them on a Tuesday morning whether the holiday this year is realistic.
We sit with you and your partner. We model the next thirty years honestly. We tell you what you can spend, what to watch out for, and how the plan should flex as life — and markets — change.
Six retirement risks that don't show up on a calculator.
These six issues come up in almost every initial conversation. They're rarely visible until someone models them properly.
Sequence-of-returns risk in early years
A market drop in year one of retirement is dramatically worse than the same drop in year fifteen. Most retirees aren't structured to survive a bad sequence at the start.
Underestimating longevity
Australians retiring today are likely to live well into their 80s and beyond. Plans built for 'about twenty years' often run out before the second partner does.
Centrelink Age Pension overlooked
Most retirees qualify for at least a part Age Pension at some point. Asset and income test rules, deeming rates, and the impact of structure all change eligibility.
Tax-free pension phase misused
Once super is in pension phase, earnings are largely tax-free up to the transfer balance cap. The withdrawal order across pension, accumulation, and personal investment matters more than people realise.
Aged care isn't planned for
Aged care entry can cost $500k+ in RAD plus ongoing means-tested fees. The decisions made about the family home, super, and assets ten years out shape what's affordable when it's needed.
Estate plan still reflects working life
Wills, binding nominations, ownership structures, and powers of attorney often haven't been updated since the working years. The retirement-stage estate plan is materially different.
Six steps to a retirement plan you can live from.
Our retirement process is the same one we run for every client at or near retirement. It works for couples, singles, business owners exiting, and Australians retiring with rental properties.
- 01
Define your real retirement number
Lifestyle, holidays, health, family commitments, and the things that aren't on a budget spreadsheet. The right number is honest about what you actually want retirement to look like.
- 02
Map every asset and income source
Super, defined-benefit, investment property, share portfolio, savings, and Age Pension entitlement — built into one picture so the income engine is visible.
- 03
Design the income engine
Account-based pension, transition-to-retirement strategies, downsizer and contribution caps, defensive bucket, and the right withdrawal order across structures.
- 04
Model the next thirty years
Stress-test the plan against a market drop in year one, a partner outliving by ten years, an unexpected aged-care entry, and rising health costs.
- 05
Coordinate Centrelink and tax
Optimise Age Pension eligibility, structure assets to navigate the asset and income tests, and coordinate withdrawals with your accountant so the after-tax outcome is the best available.
- 06
Review every twelve months
Markets, health, family, and rules change. We meet annually to recalibrate without rebuilding the plan from scratch.
Find out what you can actually spend.
A 30-minute call to map your assets, model your real retirement income, and give you a written next-step plan. No commission, no product pitch, no obligation.
- See your real sustainable retirement income
- Check Age Pension eligibility now and over time
- Stress-test against market downturn and longevity
- Confirm the right withdrawal order
- Walk away with a written retirement plan
We respond within three business hours. Both partners welcome on the call.
Five retirement moments to bring in an adviser.
Most clients reach us at one of these five points. Each has different priorities and a different planning horizon.
- 01
You're 5 to 10 years out
What you're facing — You're in your fifties and want to know what you'd need to do now so retirement at 60 or 65 is realistic.
How we help — We model your trajectory, identify the highest-impact pre-retirement levers (super contributions, debt reduction, transition-to-retirement, asset structure) and lock in the runway.
- 02
You're starting retirement now
What you're facing — You're about to retire or have just retired and need to convert your assets into a sustainable income stream.
How we help — We design the income engine, set up account-based pensions, coordinate Age Pension applications, and stress-test the plan against the next thirty years.
- 03
You're already retired
What you're facing — You retired some years ago, the plan was a quick setup, and you'd like to know if you're on track or quietly drifting.
How we help — We re-baseline against your current spending, recalibrate the income strategy, optimise structure for current rules, and refresh the long-term picture.
- 04
You're a business owner exiting
What you're facing — You're selling, transitioning, or winding down a business and need to convert business value into personal retirement income.
How we help — We coordinate small-business CGT concessions with your accountant, plan super contributions, structure the personal investment, and bridge the gap to retirement income.
- 05
You're navigating aged care
What you're facing — You or a parent is approaching aged care entry and the financial decisions — RAD vs DAP, family home, fees — feel overwhelming.
How we help — We work through aged-care fee structures, RAD strategy, family-home decisions, means-test impact, and Centrelink interaction so the choices are made calmly.
Real people. Real plans.
Ben Venter
Partner & Senior AdviserBen has been in financial planning since 2008, with over 15 years guiding families and individuals through real-life decisions. He's passionate about helping clients make informed choices that line up with what actually matters to them. Off the clock, you'll find Ben at the local footy club where his kids play, supporting Kings Christian College fundraisers for overseas missions, or out playing football, cricket, golf, or the odd game of squash.
Featured Expertise- Holistic Financial Planning
- Retirement Planning
- Tax Planning & Structuring
- Investment Strategy
- Superannuation & SMSF
- Wealth Management
- Family & Intergenerational Planning
Frequently asked questions about starting retirement.
Quick answers to the questions we hear most. If yours isn't here, we'll cover it on the call.
It depends on your lifestyle, your home ownership status, your partner's situation, and your appetite for Age Pension supplementation. We don't believe in a single magic number — we model your actual lifestyle against your actual assets and tell you the truth.
The Age Pension is means-tested through both an asset and an income test, with the lower of the two determining your payment. Most Australians qualify for at least a part pension at some point. The right asset structure can make a measurable difference to long-term entitlement.
It can work — particularly for those still working and looking to boost super through salary sacrifice while drawing a small pension. Whether it suits you depends on age, marginal tax rate, super balance, and goals. We model it both ways.
An account-based pension is a tax-effective income stream paid from your super in retirement. Earnings inside the pension are largely tax-free up to the transfer balance cap. Setting it up with the right minimum drawdown, asset allocation, and beneficiary structure is the work.
Often yes, depending on age, contribution caps, and the work test. Catch-up concessional contributions, downsizer contributions, and non-concessional contributions can all be valuable in the years immediately around retirement.
Investment property can support retirement income but is illiquid and lumpy. We model whether the property still fits the plan, and if not, what the keep-vs-sell decision actually costs.
This is sequence-of-returns risk, and it's the single biggest threat to early retirement. We structure your plan with a defensive bucket — cash and conservative assets to draw from during downturns — so growth assets aren't sold at the bottom.
At minimum annually. Some years need more frequent reviews — major market move, significant change in spending, illness, family change, or a rule change. Each review takes about an hour and recalibrates the next twelve months.
Make your savings last a lifetime.
Get a written retirement plan that covers income strategy, Age Pension, tax, longevity, healthcare, and the next thirty years.