Self Managed Super Fund Advice

Is an SMSF Right For You?

An SMSF offers genuine control and flexibility over how your super is invested. It also comes with real obligations. We'll help you work out whether the benefits are right for your situation.

Control over your super, with the right support behind it.

A Self Managed Super Fund gives you direct control over how your superannuation is invested. Rather than selecting from the investment menu inside an industry or retail fund, you hold assets directly: individual shares, managed funds, exchange-traded funds, commercial property, and other investments not available through mainstream super funds. You set the strategy. You make the decisions.

That control is genuinely valuable for the right person. But it comes with responsibilities that many people underestimate when they first consider an SMSF. As a trustee, you are personally accountable for the fund's compliance with superannuation law, including an annual audit, regular financial statements, an investment strategy document, and lodgement of the fund's annual tax return. The ATO takes these obligations seriously.

Our role as your investment manager is to take the complexity of running an SMSF off your hands. We build and actively manage the fund's investment portfolio, maintain the investment strategy, and coordinate the annual accounting and audit with the fund's administrator. You retain the control that makes an SMSF worthwhile, without the burden of managing it yourself.

How we help with your SMSF

  • SMSF establishment

    We coordinate the setup of a new SMSF, covering the trust deed, the trustee structure (individual trustees or a corporate trustee), ATO registration, and the opening of the fund's bank account. We work with a specialist SMSF administrator to ensure the fund is established correctly from day one.

  • Review of existing SMSFs

    If you already have an SMSF that has been running without active management, perhaps with a set-and-forget investment approach, we can review the fund's investment strategy, fee structure, and compliance position. In some cases, the right recommendation is to wind the fund up and move to a better-suited structure. We will always tell you honestly what we find.

  • Investment Portfolio Management

    This is the core of what we do inside your SMSF. We build and actively manage the fund's investment portfolio, selecting assets, monitoring positions, and adjusting the strategy as market conditions and your circumstances change. We manage the portfolio on an ongoing basis, not as a one-off exercise.

  • Pension phase and retirement income

    When fund members retire, the SMSF can be converted to pension phase. At that point, investment earnings on assets supporting the pension become tax-free. We manage this transition carefully, including the calculation of minimum pension drawdown amounts and the separation of pension and accumulation assets where required.

  • Investment strategy documentation

    Every SMSF trustee is legally required to maintain a written investment strategy that reflects the fund's investment approach and the members' circumstances. We prepare and maintain this document as part of our ongoing service, ensuring it reflects the actual portfolio and is updated whenever the strategy changes.

  • Annual accounting and audit

    Every SMSF must be audited annually by an independent, ASIC-registered SMSF auditor. We coordinate the preparation of the fund's financial statements and tax return, and liaise with the auditor on your behalf. You sign the documents. We handle the process.

  • Property inside an SMSF

    An SMSF can hold direct residential or commercial property, subject to the superannuation rules around related-party transactions and the sole purpose test. Commercial property, including a business owner's own business premises, is one of the most tax-effective uses of an SMSF. We work through the specifics of any property strategy before it is implemented.

  • Limited Recourse Borrowing Arrangements (LBRAs)

    An SMSF can borrow to acquire an asset through an LRBA structure. This allows the fund to purchase an asset, typically property or shares, using borrowed funds, with the lender's recourse limited to that asset. LRBAs are complex and heavily regulated. We assess each case carefully and work with a specialist lending team where an LRBA is appropriate.

What makes an SMSF work, and what doesn't

The financial case for an SMSF typically holds when two conditions are met: the combined super balance across all members is substantial enough to absorb the fixed costs of running the fund, and the investment strategy benefits meaningfully from the flexibility an SMSF provides.

As a general guide, a combined member balance of at least $300,000 to $500,000 is usually needed before the economics make sense. Below that threshold, the fixed costs of accounting, auditing, and administration, regardless of how the investments perform, tend to erode the advantages. We will tell you honestly where the numbers sit for your situation.

The investment case for an SMSF is strongest when you want direct ownership of assets that are not available through retail funds, particularly direct Australian and international shares managed to your specific requirements, or commercial property. For clients who want to hold business real property inside their super, an SMSF is often the only structure that makes this possible.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • An SMSF is a private superannuation fund where you and your fellow members are also the trustees, meaning you're responsible for the fund's investment decisions, administration, and compliance. Unlike an industry or retail super fund, an SMSF gives you direct control over what the fund invests in, including assets not available through mainstream funds. That control comes with genuine obligations, which is why professional support matters.

  • As a general guide, a combined member balance of at least $300,000 to $500,000 is typically needed before the fixed costs of running an SMSF are justified. Below this level, a well-managed retail or industry super fund will usually deliver better net outcomes. We model this clearly for every client who is considering setting up a fund.

  • SMSF trustees must prepare and maintain an investment strategy, keep detailed financial records, lodge an annual tax return, and have the fund audited by an independent SMSF auditor each year. Trustees are personally liable for ensuring the fund complies with superannuation law. We manage the investment strategy and coordinate the accounting and audit as part of our ongoing service.

  • Yes. An SMSF can hold direct residential or commercial property, including a business owner's business premises in some circumstances. Property inside an SMSF benefits from concessional tax treatment. Earnings and capital gains are taxed at a maximum of 15% in accumulation, and can be tax-free in pension phase. The rules around related-party transactions and the fund's sole purpose test need to be carefully observed.

  • Often yes. An SMSF can be an effective vehicle in retirement, particularly for managing assets like direct property that you want to retain, or for clients who prefer the control and transparency of a self-managed structure. The compliance obligations don't disappear in retirement, but the tax advantages, including tax-free investment earnings in pension phase, remain significant.

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