A retirement plan that seems to be working is the one people least want to look at. I hear it often: “We don’t want to rock the boat.” I comprehend that. When the rent arrives and the bills are paid, a review feels like looking for trouble. But a second look does not rock the boat. It shows whether the boat is going where you think it is.
What a second look finds
- Income lower than it could be. A property that grew well but now pays a low yield on what it is worth.
- Tax that could be lower. Ownership that suited the working years and no longer does.
- A sale coming, unplanned. A cash shortfall five or eight years out that nobody has modelled.
- Rules that moved. Capital gains, negative gearing, super and SMSF borrowing all changed in 2026.
The goalposts keep moving
The goalposts have moved for 30 years, and 2026 moved several at once. A plan set in 2019 was built for rules that no longer apply. That does not make it wrong. It means it was never checked against the rules it now lives under.
Graham and Lyn, both 70, hold two investment properties, one bought in 1998 and one in 2012. They are debt free, the rent covers their life, and they see no reason to change anything.
Modelled side by side, one property pays them 2.4 per cent on what it is now worth. Selling it, paying the tax and holding the proceeds differently could lift their income by about a third. Holding is still a fine choice. Now it is a choice they made with the numbers in front of them.
When to look
When nothing is wrong. A review in a calm year has time and choices. A review after a vacancy, a health scare or a rule change has fewer of both.
Who this does not suit
Someone whose whole retirement is the Age Pension and a home has fewer moving parts to review. For anyone holding investment property or a self-managed fund, a second look every few years is ordinary care.
Nicholas Lockhart
General information only. No advice is given.