Name: Manny Pohl
Age: 60
Other members of the SMSF: My gorgeous wife Gail
How long have you had your SMSF?
It was established on 11 March 1996.
Why did you start it up?
I wanted to have control over the investment of my life savings.
How big is it?
I would estimate that we are approximately 75% of where I believe we need to be.
Is it more or less difficult to manage than you thought it would be?
I never thought it would be difficult and this has proven to be the case. It is made easy with access to the right systems and good information.
Do you enjoy managing it?
Absolutely – it’s my life passion.
Are you pleased with its performance?
It has been exceptional with a since inception performance of 13.6%.
Can you give us some numbers around performance over the last 1, 3 and 5 years?
The 1-year number is 19.4% and the three-year number is 11.0%.
What is your asset allocation i.e. what percentage is in domestic equities, international equities, fixed income, cash and other?
I have no exposure to overseas investments because I wanted to align the currency of the fund assets with the currency of the liabilities and remove any unnecessary risk to the return expected from the assets. Furthermore, Australian investments have historically performed very well over the long term. The major asset allocation is to equities due to the fact that one shares in the economic value that businesses create over time. Direct property is approximately 20% of the fund and there is no exposure to bonds.
What are your favourite investments/stocks and why?
I am a big fan of LICs because they are very efficient and transparent and don’t need a lot of attention. More importantly, they have been solid performers.
What investments do you have outside of superannuation?
I have a major stake in three LIC’s and a few private equity investments as well.
Do you use an advisor or any kind of service provider?
None, other than the accountancy firm that prepares the annual financial statements.
Is there anything else you would like to tell us about your SMSF?
SMSF legislation is one of the better ideas to have come out of Canberra but the concern is that they forget the intention, which is to alleviate the burden on the state to provide old age pensions and meddle with what is a great structure.
Important: This content has been prepared without taking account of the objectives, financial situation or needs of any particular individual. It does not constitute formal advice. Consider the appropriateness of the information in regards to your circumstances.
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