When to claim the aged pension is a question that arises as you approach retirement.
As you reach that stage in your life, you began to question how much is in your superannuation account and what you have to live on as you enter into your retirement years.
Today, the maximum Aged Pension paid every fortnight is $971.50 for a single person and $1,464.60 for a couple.
For homeowners, a full pension is unavailable once a person has more than $280,000, or $419,000 for a couple, in assets.
And no Aged Pension is paid when the asset for a single person is $622,00 and for a couple $935,000.
Financial analysts suggest the problem patch is where people have assets between $400,000 and $800,000.
However, a person with $800,000 in a super fund would get $40,000 per year from an average performance fund at the lower end and $64,000 annually at the upper end. This is a lot better than $26,000 on a single person’s annual maximum age pension.
The self-funded person who has saved and finds themselves excluded from a full pension, even those sitting just outside the cut off, is always much better off.
Self-funded retirees usually own their home, with the capital city median house price $704,723 in April, according to CoreLogic.
In addition, the Home Equity Access Scheme allows a self-funded couple to draw down $60,000 a year paid fortnightly at 3.95% without using their super or savings.
If a self-funded retires kept $100,000 at call in a high interest savings account and $300,000 in ANZ Bank shares and $300,000 in BHP they would earn $60,830 a year.
In addition, they get the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card and the state seniors’ card.
If they received the full pension, they would get $40,237 plus a pensioner concession card and the state seniors’ card.
The self-funded person also has no contact with Centrelink and can work as much as they like.