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Many Australians don’t know how their super fund has performed or what it invests in. Are you one of them? Here’s what to check and why it matters.
Do you know how your super fund performed over the last two years?
Many Australians don’t and are working towards their financial future without fully understanding one of their most important assets and without a clear plan for how their super may support them in retirement.
That’s not surprising, as many people view super as something that should run quietly in the background while they’re busy with careers, families and everything else that life throws at them.
But when you’re not sure what’s happening behind your balance, it’s harder to know whether you’re on track, whether your current approach reflects your goals or what opportunities might be available to help you make the most of what you’ve built so far.
Super is invested by a fund on your behalf across a mix of assets, with those investments working to grow your balance over time. Those include:
Shares
Ownership in Australian and international publicly listed companies. Their value can rise and fall, sometimes substantially over short periods but shares can provide capital growth over the long term.
Property and infrastructure
Real assets like office buildings, shopping centres, airports and energy networks. They can produce income and don’t always behave in the same way as share markets, helping diversify investment holdings.
Fixed interest and bonds
Lending to governments and companies in return for interest. They can provide regular income and be steadier than shares, although returns and risk vary depending on the investment.
Cash
Generally, the most stable and lowest risk investment type. It can provide stability and faster access to money but typically offers lower longer term return potential.
The investment option you choose determines the mix of assets held in your super based on your risk appetite.
Most super funds offer options from conservative to high growth. If you’re young, a growth option with a higher exposure to growth assets like shares could offer higher returns over time – but it also comes with higher risk. As retirement nears, you might want to consider a more conservative approach with more defensive assets, like bonds for example to protect your savings.
If you’ve never made a choice, you’re probably in your fund’s default option, which is designed to suit a broad membership.
It’s worth knowing whether the mix you’re in matches your circumstances and goals, including how far you are from retirement.
If you’re thinking about how your super compares, returns are often where people start.
The trouble is that a return figure means nothing without context:
Growth and conservative options invest differently and with different levels of risk. Compare like with like or the comparison may not be genuine.
The comparison period
A single year can be heavily influenced by short term market conditions. Super is measured in decades, so five, seven and ten year returns tell you far more about whether a fund is consistently doing its job, albeit not a predictor of future performance.
Fees and tax
Published returns should reflect investment fees, costs and tax but administration fees may be charged separately from your balance. Two funds quoting the same return can leave you in meaningfully different places once all fees are accounted for.
Then there are the things that returns can’t show you at all. For example, what insurance is attached to your account and what it’s costing you, whether the fund offers guidance, tools and advice or simply sends a statement once a year. Another consideration maybe the level of support available when you need it.
When comparing funds, it’s worth looking at the full picture, including performance, fees, investment options, retirement support and member benefits.
To understand how your super stacks up, start here:
Find your investment option
It’s on your annual statement and in your online account.
Look at what’s in it
Your fund publishes the asset allocation (shares, cash etc.) for each investment option.
Check the long-term return for that option
Focus on five and ten year returns, not just last year and compare them with equivalent options.
Understand the total cost
Add together administration fees, investment fees and insurance premiums as an annual dollar figure.
Comparing super is about working out which option will perform best for you. Before you jump in, it’s worth understanding what’s behind the numbers so you can make decisions based on more than a headline return.
Knowing where you stand is the first step
A super balance tells you where you are today. Understanding how your super is invested, how it compares and whether it’s aligned with your goals helps show whether you’re heading in the right direction.
Source: MLC