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For many of us, retirement means dream holidays, reading books and spending time with grandchildren. However for some Australians, the notion of enjoying their golden years after a lifetime of hard work hit a roadblock last year when COVID-19 struck, and hit economies and markets hard. Against this background, it is important to remember that retirees still need to take measured risk in order to meet their goals but they may need to plan differently than they would have in the past.

For many, the word ‘retirement’ is associated with the idea of extended holidays to far-flung locations or spending quality time with grandchildren. And while the new-found status of “retiree” sits well with some, for others it’s a different story. It all depends on how smoothly the transition into retirement progresses. There are, in fact, a range of financial, emotional and psychological fears that are often linked to retirement – for good reason.

Australia has reached a critical juncture where the bulk of superannuation assets sits in the hands of people aged over 50, and traditional portfolio construction approaches need to evolve to meet their financial needs. To help financial advisers develop investment approaches that meet the specific needs of their retiree clients, we've developed a research paper “Building Better Retirement Futures”, in conjunction with the FPA and CoreData. The paper outlines some of the key financial issues and considerations specific to retirees and helps advisers design the best strategies for post-retirement decumulation.