JAM Financial in Wollongong, New South Wales | Insurance broker

JAM Financial

Locality: Wollongong, New South Wales

Phone: +61 2 4244 0624

Address: Lvl 1, 17 Flinders Street 2500 Wollongong, NSW, Australia

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24.01.2022 The Federal budget was delivered last night with significant tax cuts and large infrastructure spending announced over the next four years. However with the election expected to be called in the next few days the Government is not even going to introduce legislation for most of the measures they have announced. This year it will be equally as important to look at the Opposition's budget reply announcements because it will be the winner of the election that will actually be a...ble to implement their proposals. We will email further details of the budget to clients later today and also provide an update on Friday after the budget reply speech. If you are not a client and would like copies of the briefings message the page and we will send them to you.

21.01.2022 Lest we forget.

20.01.2022 Please speak to us before taking any action to access your super. The long term consequences could be extreme.

20.01.2022 Both Mark and Jess used their lunch break on Wednesday to help top up the Blood Banks reserves for Easter though we hope no one needs to use it. We will be closed Good Friday until Easter Monday and closed again on ANZAC day but will be available Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday of next week. JAM would like to wish everyone a Happy Easter and hope you all have a lovely and safe long weekend.

19.01.2022 Jess was made an Official Good Egg as she gave her 10th blood donation. I think she deserves employee of the month for the 30 lives she has saved. We are proud that Jess is part of the JAM family!

18.01.2022 Phone Issues. We have had a number of clients (particularly those using Optus) tell us that they have been having problems getting through to us on the office number. We apologise for this and appreciate the concern it may raise in uncertain times. Our phone provider is investigating the cause of the problem. If you are having problems contacting us on the office number please email us or you can use Mark's mobile 0402 808 823

18.01.2022 ** WIN THE GIFT OF A LIFETIME! ** Like our page and tell us in 50 words or less: Why you or someone you love would value the gift of $2,400 toward seeing a fin...ancial planner and making a plan together for a brighter financial future." Terms & Conditions apply >> https://fpa.com.au/about/terms-and-conditions See more

16.01.2022 I had the pleasure of representing FPA - Financial Planning Association of Australia at the UOW: University of Wollongong, Australia Faculty of Business students awards night on Thursday to present the FPA Prize for Advanced Financial Planning to Courtney Russell. Congratulations Courtney and also to the other award winners studying financial planning subjects. Madison Robaard - Taxation for Financial Planners... Ngo Hung Ha - Risk and Insurance Supawadee Marwuis - Retirment and Estate Planning Anthea Faferko - Investment Analysis Sally Hughes - Portfolio Analysis. See more

15.01.2022 Doing our small part for the environment as well as saving money.

15.01.2022 The spread of the Coronavirus beyond China’s borders has led to sharp falls in share markets in Australia and overseas. Should a pandemic eventuate, this could leave shares vulnerable to more near term falls. While share market volatility is unsettling, the key for most investors though is to recognise that periodic share market falls are inevitable and hard to time and so it’s best to take a long-term approach to investing. If you would like more details message the page a...nd we will send you our analysis. #Ausbiz #ASX #CoronaVirus

15.01.2022 Some practical matters relating to the COVID-19 outbreak, our services and an offer we hope will help all clients. Based on Health Department advice and guidance about social distancing and limiting unnecessary personal contact we have decided to implement a number of measures relating to client contact and staff working arrangements. Our primary goal in formulating these responses has been the health and safety of our clients and staff but having said that we have worked ve...ry hard to make sure that we will remain available to our clients and there will be no impact on ongoing advice and service standards. We understand that these are uncertain times and uncertainty creates unease and stress so please know that we are actively monitoring both the public health and consequent investment situation on an ongoing basis. We have decided to limit travel and face to face meetings as much as possible so will be conducting all meetings via phone and web conference for the foreseeable future. Our video conferencing system (Zoom) allows us to establish a meeting with you on any Computer, tablet or mobile device and share files or pictures without you needing to download any software. The system has the highest levels of online encryption and privacy. There will be periods when the office is unattended as staff work from home unless there are specific reasons to be in the office environment. All of our client management systems and access to all of your account details and notes and so on are web based so there will be no impact on our ability to advise or service you. We have taken stringent measures to ensure that access to information is secure from remote locations. All staff have full access to their email and phone systems so you should not notice any impact. We do ask though that you do not drop into the office as it is possible there will be no one there to look after you. Given the amount of volatility and the uncertainty this crisis is generating we have decided that it is appropriate to offer reviews to all clients who desire them. This offer extends to those who would normally not be entitled to a review and additional reviews for clients who are on ongoing service packages. We will waive any usual charges for these review meetings and will be systematically contacting all clients over the next few weeks and months to organise reviews as necessary. There may be charges involved for implementing any additional work identified as a result of the review. We are here to help you so please do not hesitate to contact us if you have questions, concerns or if we can be of any further assistance to you or your family.

13.01.2022 If you are unsure about stimulus packages or worried about how COVID-19 is affecting your investments, please call us on 02 42440624 or message the JAM Financial page. There is always someone here to answer your questions.

13.01.2022 From time to time due to my involvement with the Financial Planning Association I attend lectures at the University of Wollongong and speak to students. Recent changes to education standards for financial planners make this really important to our profession as a whole and I also find it quite personally rewarding. Last week a young man asked me a question about how we can recover for our clients the amount of fees that we charge. His question was really quite insightful an...Continue reading

12.01.2022 WARNING Is the government about to cancel your life insurance? From 1 July 2019 amendments to superannuation laws will force all super funds to cancel any life insurance for members who have not made contributions into their account for 16 months. If you do not want your insurance cancelled, you need to either make a contribution or make a specific declaration to the fund to continue your insurance. Please contact us urgently if you need to keep your insurance cover.... The intent of the legislation is to protect peoples’ superannuation balances from forgotten insurance premiums eating away retirement savings but we are aware that many clients hold their insurance cover in superannuation because they cannot afford to pay for it from their own cashflow or because they are unable to obtain cover elsewhere because of pre existing medical conditions. The legislation makes no allowances for this and cover will be cancelled regardless. If your insurance cover is cancelled, you and family will not be protected if anything happens to you. It may be difficult or impossible to obtain cover again because of pre existing medical conditions or changes in your health or employment. If you are able to obtain replacement cover at a later date there may be exclusions or premium loadings applied. In some cases there could even be significant early withdrawal fees. The legislation makes no provision to protect you from any of these unforeseen consequences so it is vital that you talk to your financial planner or your superannuation fund well before the end of June.

12.01.2022 Do you know an inspiring not-for-profit organisation running programs for disadvantaged young Australians (12-25 yo) facing social, financial or physical hardsh...ip? Nominate them for a Future2 Grant before entries close Friday, 26 July. The Future2 Foundation has committed $1 million in grants to grassroots programs since 2007. #bethechange #future2 #nominate https://fpa.com.au/fpa-community/future2-foundation/

11.01.2022 New research from Industry Super Network using tax office data estimates up to 3 million people (mostly under 35) are being underpaid on their super by their employer. The average underpayment is $2,000 per person. Contact JAM Financial and for $385 we can review your payslips and super fund to look for any discrepancies. https://therub.com.au//close-to-three-million-missing-sup/

11.01.2022 Remote working arrangements are fully implemented so it's business as usual. Apart from conducting all appointments by phone or web conference and using digital authorities and signatures wherever possible we are fully able to provide all normal ongoing service and advice.

11.01.2022 The widespread coverage of wide-ranging opinions of COVID-19 and its impacts on the economy can be confusing. Some reports are hopeful of antiviral drugs, while others say a vaccine is at least a year away. There is talk of curve flattening but still rising cases and deaths. There is news of an easing in restrictions but also concerns about potential second waves. For a summary of where we are currently at message the page and we will send you a copy of our current assessment of the outlook. #Ausbiz #COVID2019AU #Covid_19australia

10.01.2022 3 and a half years ago, Jess gave Mark a Keep Cup for Christmas so he would stop using takeaway coffee cups that only get used once. In those 3 and I half years, JAM has saved 910 cups from going to landfill and Mark has saved $455 in 50c discounts from coffee shops. Jess also has a Keep Cup for her occasional hot chocolate and we don’t use single use straws. At JAM we believe in doing our part for the environment.

09.01.2022 Some estimates indicate that as many as 30% of people do not open or read correspondence from their superannuation funds. Given that for most of us our superannuation is our biggest or second biggest asset we find this disturbing. One of the roles that good financial advisors fulfill is making sure you are always in the loop and don't miss important information.

09.01.2022 ASIC's newly revised guidance (RG 97) on making it easier for investors to understand their ongoing fees is 107 pages long!! 107 pages of simplifying, more clear and easier to understand regulation.

09.01.2022 And our Jess is at it again! Number 9 done and dusted. In two weeks she will be doing her 10th donation. Well done Jess.

09.01.2022 Very happy to support the local community with $100 worth of Coles/MYER gift vouchers for Oak Flats Cricket Club Trivia Fundraising night.

08.01.2022 The Future2 Foundation has just announced $191,066 of grants to 20 not-for -profit organisations. Particularly happy that one of these Grants to has gone to a local charity - The Top Blokes Foundation. Future2 is the charitable foundation of the Financial Planning Association and Mark is proud to be a Future2 Ambassador. Since it was founded in 2007, Future2 has now made $1,195,066 of grants to support young Australians in need. Details of all this year's grant recipients c...an be found by following the link. https://future2foundation.org.au/g/past-grants/2019-grants/

08.01.2022 End of Year Superannuation Contributions. With 30 June falling on a Sunday this year there are some extra timing issues people wanting to make end of year superannuation contributions will need to consider. Under superannuation law contributions are not considered to have occurred until the date that the money is deposited, cleared in the fund’s bank account. So at the very latest any contributions will have to be made by Friday 28 June to be counted in this tax year. Don’t... forget the funds need to be cleared so you may have to allow up to three extra days for EFT or BPay payments to be processed by your bank on top of that. To be safe, we recommend any contributions are made before 5pm on Tuesday 25 June. Concessional (tax deductible) contributions. Any Australian Taxpayer can claim a tax deduction for up to $25,000 of superannuation contributions for the 2018/2019 tax year. Remember that the limit includes all concessional contributions made by you or on your behalf into all funds so check on any employer contributions already made or planned before making a top up contribution for yourself. Also consider that concessional contributions are taxed at 15% when they go into the fund so if you are on a lower income then you may get a better outcome from non-concessional contributions. The Government Co-Contribution. If your taxable income plus any employer reportable superannuation contributions is less than $52,697 and at least 10% of your income comes from employment or business then the Government will match a non concessional superannuation contribution with a co-contribution. The maximum co-contribution of $500 is available for those with total income less than $37,697 who make a non concessional contribution of $1,000 and progressively reduces until income is $52,697. Spouse Contributions. A tax offset of 18% on up to $3,000 of contributions made into a lower income spouse’s account is available if your spouse has taxable income of less than $37,000. There are various other limitations and qualifying conditions for all of these concessions so it is important to check with your accountant or financial planner before making contributions. Given the deadlines explained above we suggest contacting us straight away on 02-4244 0624 if you want to make contributions for this tax year.

06.01.2022 Zurich to match bushfire relief donations. We don't want to be in the business of telling clients were to donate but we have just been told about this so if you were considering a donation to the red cross Zurich - one of the major life insurers we deal with has announced that they will match donations to the Red Cross. The Z Zurich Foundation has donated $100,000 to the bushfire crisis and will continue to help by supplementing your donations to the Australian Red Cross (to $400,000). Please use this link to donate www.redcross.org.au/zurich and Z Zurich Foundation will help your dollar go even further to help devastated communities.

06.01.2022 Bushfire information financial hardship. Like so many others we have spent the Christmas and New Year break watching the unfolding fire disaster throughout so much of Australia. The ferocity of the fires, the scale of the losses of life, property and livelihood are heartbreaking and wholly awe inspiring. We have been contacted by a number of the insurance companies and other financial institutions that we deal with about arrangements for clients who are experiencing financ...ial difficulty as a result of the fires. Most of the life insurance companies will waive or defer premiums for several months and all the banks will have hardship provisions in place for mortgages and other loan repayments. If you are affected, please let us know and we will make sure the appropriate arrangements are available to you. A number of payments are available from the Australian Government which are managed through the Department of Human Services. More details are available here: https://www.humanservices.gov.au/i/help-emergency/bushfires Other immediate help would usually be co-ordinated through local councils and community centres. If you have lost documents we may be able to help with copies of anything that we have collected or stored in our files over time. It is sad but unfortunately we need to warn people who are making donations to be wary about scams. Make donations directly to organisations that you trust and be particularly careful about any unsolicited phone calls or email / social media requests for donations. We want to add our thanks to all of the emergency responders, volunteers and everyone else supporting them.

05.01.2022 Financial advice to help Australians impacted by the recent bushfire disasters rebuild financially. Call 1800 560 685 or find out more below. The Financial Planning Bushfire Pro Bono Program is a joint initiative of the Financial Planning Association of Australia (FPA) and the Association of Financial Advisers (AFA) to offer support and financial advice to bushfire affected Australians. Through the program, you have the opportunity to be put in contact with financial planners... and advisers willing to provide their financial advice services for free. It’s about offering guidance to help you consider your options, reassess your financial position as needed and think through your financial goals to help you make the best decisions given the circumstances you may now find yourself in. https://fpa.com.au/financial-planning-bushfire-pro-bono-pr/

05.01.2022 A great example of the value that advice. http://ow.ly/I8LF50yUOBb

04.01.2022 WARNING Is the government about to cancel your life insurance on Monday? From 1 July 2019 amendments to superannuation laws will force all super funds to cancel any life insurance for members who have not made contributions into their account for 16 months. If you do not want your insurance cancelled, you need to either make a contribution or make a specific declaration to the fund to continue your insurance. Saturday 29th is the last day we can save your Super insurance. ...Please contact us right now if you need to keep your insurance cover. Mark - 0402808823

04.01.2022 Thinking about accessing some of your super early? Talk to us first. Take $20,000 out of super and kiss $640,000 good-bye! https://switzer.com.au//take-20000-out-of-super-and-kiss/

03.01.2022 Stopped at my favourite coffee shop on the way to the office this morning. The commute can be terrible at this time of day.

02.01.2022 If you, or someone you know has been caught up in the robo-debt fiasco here is some useful advice from Legal Aid in Victoria. Following the recent court decisions the Government has been forced to back down so it should be possible to get most debts reviewed.