Majenda Online – Australian Tax and Investment advisors providing services to expatriates and intending migrants who are based in the Middle East and Asia

Majenda Online

Details:

Majenda – Australian Tax and Investment advisors providing the following services to expatriates and intended migrants who are based in the Middle East and Asia:

. Preparation of Australian Income Tax Returns . Tax and residency advice . Tax effective investment advice . Superannuation advice . Self Managed Superannuation Funds – set up and ongoing management

Advertiser since:

3rd November 2008

Organisation Name:

Majenda Online Pty Ltd

Online at:

http://www.majenda.com
geoff@majenda.com

Contact:

Geoff Taylor
Partner
Majenda Online
Suite 2, 6 McIntosh Street,
Chatswood New South Wales 2067
Australia

Offices (by appointment):

Geoff Taylor meets clients at serviced offices in all Australian capital cities as well as Singapore, Hong Kong and Dubai.

Office hours:

09:00 to 18:00 Eastern Australian Time

Meet with us:

Geoff Taylor visits Dubai in May and November each year and visits Singapore and Hong Kong on a quarterly basis.

Geoff is based in Sydney and travels to Brisbane weekly, Melbourne monthly and Perth / Adelaide quarterly.

Telephone:

In Australia: 02 9904 6933
From overseas: +61 2 9904 6933

Mobile/Cell:

In Australia: 0418 607 768
From overseas: +61 418 607 768

Facsimile:

In Australia: 02 8572 6031 or 02 9904 6433
From overseas: +61 2 8572 6031 or +61 2 9904 6433

Short description:

Majenda Online are tax investment specialists who provide services to Australian expatriates and intended migrants to Australia.

This information has been provided by Majenda Online on 20 October 2008.

Our Services

Australian Tax Returns

Majenda prepares Australian income tax returns for individuals, companies, trusts, partnerships and Self Managed Superannuation Funds. Majenda deals with all issues associated with taxpayers meeting their Australian tax obligations.

Tax and Residence Advice

Majenda provides advice on whether an individual is a resident of Australia for tax purposes and the tax implications of a person changing their residency status – e.g. by moving to Australia.

If a client is moving to Australia from a country where tax rates are low, it may be beneficial to liquidate assets or change the ownership of assets prior to moving to Australia. Majenda provides tax advice on the impact of a wide range of investment decisions.

Investment Advice

Majenda provides financial planning advice for people who want to plan their financial future. The advice is delivered via a Statement of Advice (SOA), as required under Australian law. The SOA is tailored to meet the specific needs of clients and can cover the following topics:

. Budgeting . Investment planning . Superannuation . Insurance . Estate planning

Superannuation

Majenda manages Australian superannuation investments for clients while they are overseas and can assist newcomers to Australia with choosing an appropriate superannuation fund to invest their Government mandated contributions.

Self Managed Superannuation Funds

A 'Self Managed Superannuation Fund' (SMSF) is a personal retirement fund that is managed by individuals and families to meet their retirement income needs. There are over 320,000 SMSFs in Australia. They are popular because they offer a flexible vehicle for people to accumulate funds for retirement and to manage their funds during retirement.

Majenda can assist with setting up an SMSF for someone moving to Australia and can take care of the ongoing investment management, accounting and compliance aspects of the fund.

Making the most of Today

Would you rather be: A: Young and poor, B: Old and rich? C: Neither A or B?

A person who is young and poor has an abundance of life and no money. A person who is old and rich has an abundance of money and not much life left. Would you rather be battling student or Warren Buffet?

In reality most of us are neither A nor B. Most of us have been through the poor student phase of our lives and have accumulated some level of wealth.

In my view it would be better to be A because you have plenty of time ahead of you to accumulate wealth. You can always make more money but you can’t make more time.

Being old and rich is attractive if you want to give your wealth to others. Warren Buffet is a good example in that he recently gave away $40 billion to charity. A noble gesture indeed. Rupert Murdoch is unlikely to give most of his fortune to charity but he has certainly set up his children well with future inheritance of roughly US 1 billion each. Leaving a legacy is a noble goal but for most of us we need to look after our own personal needs first.

So how do you make the trade off between spending now and spending later? Are you saving enough to fund your future? Is there a tried and tested methodology that we can all follow?

In my view, today is worth more than tomorrow. If you woke up this morning then there is a very high chance that you will survive today. Make the most of it! However, tomorrow is less certain.

Tomorrow is less certain because there are all sorts of variables we can’t control. Those who have driven in Dubai traffic would know that even if you are the best driver in the world, you can’t be guaranteed of not being involved in an accident. Stuff happens…

Having been a financial planner for a number of years, I have concluded that my job is to help people to plan their future such that they can make the most of today.

There is nothing worse than being worried about money. Whether you are worried about making ends meet from one day to the next or whether you are worried about not having enough money in retirement. Worry is something that we can all do without.

Preparing a financial plan is aimed squarely at addressing our uncertain future.

That is not to say that a financial plan guarantees our financial future. In order to be successful, a financial plan has to be carefully implemented with patience and diligence. But as a “road map for your financial future”, a financial plan is a great start.

If you plan well for tomorrow then you should not have to worry today.

A financial plan is a relatively simple but potentially powerful document. A plan addresses the following: 1. How much money do I need today?
2. If I don’t have enough money today, what can I do about it?
3. How much money will I need in the future?
4. How do I invest my savings to have sufficient money in the future?
5. What sort of investments are right for me?
6. How do I maximise my returns whilst minimising risk?
7. What personal risks do I face and how should I protect myself against them?

That’s it. The core of a full financial plan is usually only 15 pages long. But it contains the key elements of achieving peace of mind.

I was talking to a friend the other day who has two sons aged 20 and 25 years old. He visited Sydney recently and mentioned that he had been out to dinner with his 20 year old. I suddenly realised that scenario could be me in 10 years time. I have three boys aged 10, 8 and 7 and in a decade my eldest son could easily be studying in another city. It made me realise that I need to make the most of life now - while my children are still young. That’s not to say that life will be diminished in any way when my eldest son is 20; but I do have a lot of living to do before then.

I think there is a place for planning for retirement and making sure you have sufficient resources for when you are not able to work any more. But once you have a plan in place that is sufficient to provide for retirement, then you need get focussed on enjoying today.

Most financial planners focus on maximising how much a client allocates to their investment portfolio. But to me an investment portfolio is simply a means to an end. The ends are twofold: 1. funding your future and 2. being able to identify how much you can afford to spend today.

I once read a comment by successful recruitment entrepreneur, Andrew Banks, who said “I don’t need more money to enjoy my life”. He and Geoff Morgan founded a recruitment company in the mid 1980s and after selling the business to a large American company in the 1990s he is now worth $60 million. Andrew has achieved “financial freedom”.

What do you think Andrew is doing now? No, he is not part of the idle rich set. He and Geoff Morgan have set up a new recruitment agency called Talent2. He is clearly not running the new business to make money – he already has enough. He set up the business because that is what he enjoys doing most.

The objective of developing a financial plan is so that you can do what you most enjoy today rather than deferring enjoyment to some far off day in the future.

Time out to pursue your dreams

Every month or so an article on Work / Life balance appears in the Sydney Morning Herald. The latest article, published 30 April mentioned the example of James Castrission who was one of the kayakers who paddled his kayak 3,318 kilometres from Forster, New South Wales to New Zealand.

The trip involved 62 days at sea, facing monster waves and near starvation towards the end of the journey.

James was lucky enough to be employed as a management consultant by a progressive employer, Deloitte. Not only did Deloitte allow James to take a year off to pursue his dream, they assisted in allowing him to work flexible hours whilst he was preparing for the trip. As an example, he “island hopped” from the Victorian coast to Tasmania as a test trip prior to the epic trans continental paddle.

James is actually a good example of someone who is young and poor (see A above). Some may say young, poor and stupid. Perhaps that is a bit harsh – the fact that he and his partner made it to NZ and set a new record is testament to their planning, courage and ability.

When James arrived in NZ he indicated to news crews that he wasn’t sure how he was going to get back to Australia because his credit cards were maxed out and he didn’t have the cash to afford an air ticket. He’s poor but is he having fun? You bet! James isn’t worried about his future because he knows he is educated, motivated and effectively has the world at his feet. He can afford to pursue his dreams. Indeed pursing his dreams is likely to lead to financial success.

There’s a saying that there are three types of people in the world:
1. People who make things happen
2. People who watch things happen
3. People who don’t know what happened.

James is an example of someone who has made things happen. He is example of someone who has been able achieve that elusive balance between building a career and pursing his dreams.

It pays to start investing young

A friend of mine who is a hedge fund manager recently decided to kick off a formal investment program for his sons who are aged between 6 and 9. He figured that if they are old enough to read and write they should be able to understand the basics of investment. From time to time they have shown interest in what their Dad does and have wondered how investments actually work. As he gradually provided them with more information he decided that they knew enough to actually participate in the investment program he was about to start.

He already had a Family Trust in place, which is perfect for holding investments for the benefit of children. He and his wife would manage the investments on behalf of the kids – as trustees of the trust.

With the investment vehicle taken care of, he decided to set some basic rules to govern the way the investment would operate. Firstly, he defined the end point – July 2022. That is when his youngest son turns 21. By then he figured that his sons would be old enough to take care of their investments themselves. The date was also driven by his desire to allow sufficient time for the investments to build up – 14 years should be sufficient time to see significant growth.

The next component of the rules related to what the boys could do with the money in 2022. He and his wife decided that the boys could each choose whether they wanted to take their share of the money out of the trust or simply allow the investments to continue to grow. If they decided to take the money out they could only do so if they agreed to buy another income producing asset of purchase a home (unit, house etc) to live in themselves.

My friend doesn't want his kids to splurge the money on a car, boat, overseas trips, partying etc.

In terms of choosing the investments, he chose a selection of investment grade companies that he felt would have reasonable prospects for the future. He made sure that he didn't baffle the kids with complex terminology. Instead he explained what the companies do, gave them an overview of the potential for growth and then let them choose a stock that they liked.

Each boy chose one stock to start off with and he and his wife will chose one each as well. Over time he intends to expand the portfolio until they have at least 10-12 stocks. In expanding the portfolio he will teach his children the benefits of diversification.

He may choose to invest additional funds over the next 5-10 years and the boys might decide to invest some of their pocket money or personal earnings when they are old enough to work part time. He will then explain the benefits of establishing a regular savings plan and why dollar cost averaging is important.

The boys will share in the gains and losses of the trust equally, so there is no personal penalty for them choosing a dud stock. The investment is effectively a pooled investment and they exert their authority by being part of the investment committee.

In terms of the actual stock selections, he has decided that he will adopt the Warren Buffett approach of “only investing in businesses I understand”. The boys need to see tangible products and services that the companies they are investing in make and deliver. He will be looking at companies that have brands the boys can recognise. He is intending to choose companies that produce products and services that the family use on a regular basis.

The family will monitor the portfolio on a monthly basis. He wants the boys to experience the ups and downs of the market. Over the next 14 years it is likely they will see at least one significant bear market and hopefully a bull market or two as well. He wants them to understand that in order to gain the benefits of increasing share prices over the long term, you have to accept significant ups and downs along the way.

The overall objective of the portfolio will be to generate growth. The boys don’t need income at the moment and could only earn $416 each before they would have to pay Australian tax. In the initial stages he isn't going to use gearing as that introduces more complexity and risk.

He said to me that he could have undertaken this exercise on a purely hypothetical basis - like a school project. That would have delivered an educational benefit. However, he wants them to have something at stake. If they choose the right stocks they will derive the financial benefit – not him. He is the coach and he is happy to provide input. But at the end of the day it will be their choices.

It is interesting to note that the above principles can be applied to anyone who has children. They can also apply to those that are saving to meet a special need or saving towards their retirement. With the right coach and the right tools and techniques, investing successfully is something that we all can master.

More information:

Is available on the Majenda Online website

http://www.majenda.com

See our link on the following pages:

Australian Expatriates (Logo Link)
Australia - Banking (Logo Link)
Migrating to Australia (Text Link)
Moving to Sydney (Text Link)

Links on this Majenda Online Profile page

Majenda Online
http://www.majendaonline.com

Last update: 3rd November 2008