Boring, but essential: Get these things sorted before you turn 60

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There are many things in the personal finance realm that fall into the “boring, but essential” bucket. For example, every time I prattle on about superannuation, or sitting down to do your tax return – hint, hint. They’re all things we have to do, but not things we want to do (though joke’s on you, I love prattling about superannuation).

A prime example of this is estate planning, which has the double whammy of requiring you to both a) think about your impending death, and b) do a lot of dull paperwork.

Many of us leave it until later in life to think about important tasks such as drawing up a will.Credit: Michael Howard

But it’s absolutely essential to get your will sorted out, so much so that many experts recommend you write one as soon as you turn 18. Obviously, the vast majority of us don’t actually do that because we’re too busy partying and being cool, and indeed, if I unexpectedly passed away right now there’d be no documentation on how to distribute my collection of rare Yu-Gi-Oh cards, so that’s a pity.

What’s the problem?

Realistically, a lot of us leave it until later in life to think about drawing up a will, usually when we have significant enough assets and dependants to pass those assets on to. This means you might be in your 50s or 60s by the time you actually get around to it; 93 per cent of people in their 70s have a will.

We also leave it that late to do myriad other important things that can make a huge difference to our (and our loved ones’) quality of life. And I get it, things can get away from you, and, again, no one likes sitting down and doing boring stuff. But once retirement starts to peer around the corner, there are some things you really should get onto.

What you can do about it

So if you’re in your 60s or approaching them, here are some things to check off:

• Make, or update, your will: First things first: if you don’t have a will by age 60, you need to make one quick smart. Yes, you might have been putting it off, but book in some time with a financial advisor or estate planner and get the ball rolling. For those of you who already have a will, it could be a good time to update it, advises Prue Cheeseman-Goodes, wealth management director at HLB Mann Judd Sydney. “By the time you’re turning 60, if you have children they might be married, so you may have to add more structure to your will to protect them in the case of a relationship breakdown,” she says. “Possibly, some of your (executor) substitutes may not have been your children because they were too young when you first made your will, but now they can be your substitutes instead of your brother or sister or whoever.” Cheeseman-Goodes recommends those without wills to seek advice when getting one drawn up, noting that while a simple will can suffice, it may not take everything necessary into account and could cause complications down the line. It’s also important to consider things such as power of attorney and enduring guardianship.

• Get across your super: By now, you should have a good idea of how much money you have in super and how its invested (if you don’t, get onto it). Sixty marks the age where you can start to access your super if you’re retired, which can open up a whole new world in terms of wealth planning. Wilsons Advisory financial adviser and tax specialist Paul Aliprandi says many of his clients find 60 a good time to start planning how they might use their super in later years, noting that you can only contribute to your super until age 75 − something many people overlook until it’s too late. “I find people can benefit from a contribution strategy road map if they want to put additional money into super because you can’t do it all on day one, there are prescribed caps and limits you have to adhere to,” he says. Aliprandi says another key thing to knock off your checklist is to contact your super fund and make a death benefit nomination for your superannuation, which determines who will get your super once you die.

• Get a credit card: Money guru Noel Whittaker has long been an advocate of making sure you sign up for a credit card well before your retirement years, as the chances of being approved for one drops significantly as you get older. “Bank sources tell me confidentially that the banks don’t want the business because they know most retirees will pay well before the due date and the banks would not get any interest,” Whittaker wrote in 2022. “It’s a shameful state of affairs.” His advice is to get onto it early so you’re not left in the lurch if you find yourself wanting/needing one later on. However, it should be said that credit cards are becoming less popular and less essential for things such as overseas travel, so you might find you don’t actually need one after all.
• Make a list of important info: Finally, Aliprandi says one thing that can get missed when it comes to planning for your later years is maintaining an easy to find record of pieces of information such as bank logins and account passwords for things such as social media. “When a family member passes, it’s already quite a stressful time, so you can make things as easy as possible for them by having this list written up somewhere,” he says.

Advice given in this article is general in nature and is not intended to influence readers’ decisions about investing or financial products. They should always seek their own professional advice that takes into account their own personal circumstances before making any financial decisions.