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ISCOVER
Staff Reporter
The self-managed super fund (SMSF) sector has experienced solid growth and performance, according to new statistics.
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The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) Statistical Overview of the SMSF sector for the 12 months to June 2011 shows funds are growing in popularity and experiencing falling costs.
SMSF Professionals’ Association of Australia (SPAA) education and professional standards director Graeme Colley said the ATO Overview was a positive endorsement for SMSFs at a time when regulators and government have expressed concerns about the sector.
“The most recent figures for 2011/2012 show that the number of net new funds established were 35,276 compared with 28,031 for the previous year to 30 June 2011. Although the 2011/2012 figure is the highest recorded number since these reports began in 2008, the more important factor is that the percentage increase in the number of net establishments compared with previous years appears to be slowing (26 per cent increase for 2012 compared to a 84 per cent increase in 2011).
“At the same time, in 2012 there was a sharp decline in the number of fund wind-ups, with only 994 wind-ups compared with 5,108 in 2011 and 14,699 in 2010.
“These factors, together with increases in average SMSF balances, suggest reports that SMSFs are being oversold to unsuitable clients are being overstated.”
The report shows the number of younger individuals setting up SMSFs continues to grow with a significant increase in the number of members aged between 25 and 54.
“The ATO numbers show that the sector continues to perform and grow strongly in line with market expectations. While SMSFs are not suitable for everyone, there is growing evidence that suggests there is increased understanding of how they are to be used correctly,” said Mr Colley.
“All the evidence suggests the right people are setting up SMSFs and, with the assistance of the appropriate professional specialists, are prudently managing their fund in a responsible way.”
