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Receiving an inheritance can create valuable opportunities and difficult financial decisions. Get clear advice before you repay debt, invest, sell assets or change your long-term plans.
There is no obligation, just an initial conversation to kick start your financial freedom.
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Receiving an inheritance can create new financial options, but it can also raise difficult questions. You may need to decide whether to repay debt, invest, keep an inherited property, contribute to super or support family members.
The right choice depends on the assets you receive, your current financial position and what you want to achieve. Financial advice can help you compare your options before you make a large or difficult-to-reverse decision.
An inheritance often arrives during a period of grief and change. You may feel pressure to act quickly, especially if the inheritance includes property, shares or assets shared with other beneficiaries.
You do not need to decide everything at once.
Your first step should be to understand what you have received and how it affects your existing finances. This may include reviewing:
A large decision can affect several parts of your financial position. Paying off your mortgage may reduce interest costs, but it may also leave less money available for investing or future expenses. Keeping an inherited property may provide rental income, but it can also create maintenance costs, tax questions and investment risk.
Taking time to assess each option can help you avoid making a decision based only on emotion, pressure or short-term benefits.
Read our guide on what to do with inheritance money in Australia for more general information about your options.
An inheritance financial advisor can review the assets you receive and assess how they fit with your wider financial plan.
The advice process may include:
A financial advisor does not simply tell you where to invest an inheritance. Personal advice should consider your goals, time frame, access to cash, risk tolerance and existing financial commitments.
This process can help you understand what each option may mean before you commit your money.
The right decision depends on more than the inheritance itself. Book a free Clarity Call for inheritance financial advice.
Using an inheritance to reduce your mortgage may lower your interest costs and monthly repayments. It may also provide a stronger sense of financial security.
Investing may provide greater long-term growth, but it involves risk and may not suit money you need soon.
The decision should consider:
Some people may benefit from using part of the inheritance for debt and retaining the rest for other goals.
An inherited property can hold financial and emotional value. Keeping it may provide rental income or a future home, while selling it may release money for debt repayment, investing or retirement.
Before deciding, assess:
You may also need legal, tax and property advice before you transfer, retain or sell inherited real estate.
The shares selected by the previous owner may not suit your goals, risk tolerance or need for income.
You may choose to keep the shares, sell them or gradually move the money into a more diversified investment portfolio. Your decision should consider investment risk, expected income, access to funds and possible capital gains tax.
A financial advisor can review the inherited shares alongside your existing investments rather than assessing them as a separate portfolio.
Contributing part of an inheritance to super may support your retirement and provide tax benefits in some circumstances. Contribution rules, eligibility requirements and caps apply.
Money placed into super may also remain unavailable until you meet a condition of release. You should consider whether you may need the funds for your home, family, health, travel or other goals before contributing them.
A strategy may divide the inheritance between super, investments outside super and accessible savings.
An inheritance may allow you to reduce your working hours, retire earlier or improve your expected retirement income.
Before changing your employment plans, you need to assess:
Financial modelling can show whether the inheritance provides enough support for your preferred retirement date.
You may want to help children or other relatives with a home deposit, education costs, debt or general financial support.
Before giving away part of an inheritance, confirm that you can still meet your own current and future needs. Large gifts may also affect Centrelink payments and can create family or legal issues if the arrangement is unclear.
Consider whether the money will be a gift, loan or shared investment. Legal advice may help you record the arrangement and protect each person involved.
Our inheritance advice process gives you a clear path from your first conversation through to implementation and ongoing review.
360 Financial Strategists brings financial advice, wealth planning and mortgage broking together within one team.
This connected approach allows us to assess how an inheritance affects several parts of your finances rather than focusing on one product or decision.
There is no single best way to use an inheritance.
The right strategy should reflect the assets you receive, your current commitments and the life you want to build. Taking advice before you sell, invest, contribute, gift or repay a large amount can help you understand the effects of each choice.
A free Financial Advice Clarity Call gives you an opportunity to discuss your inheritance and decide whether personal advice could help.
Speak with a 360 financial advisor about your inheritance, current financial position and the decisions you need to make.
You may benefit from financial advice if the inheritance affects your mortgage, investments, super, retirement, property or family plans.
An advisor can review your complete financial position, compare the effect of different choices and recommend a strategy based on your goals. Advice can be useful for both large and smaller inheritances when the decision has a meaningful effect on your finances.
Seek advice before you make a major or difficult-to-reverse financial decision.
This may include:
You can also seek advice before the estate distributes the assets. Early planning gives you time to compare your options without feeling pressured to act as soon as you receive the inheritance.
Australia does not impose a direct inheritance tax. Tax may still apply to income earned from inherited assets, capital gains when certain assets are sold, and some superannuation death benefits.
The tax outcome depends on the asset, the previous owner, the date it was acquired and what you do with it. An accountant or registered tax advisor should confirm your tax obligations.
Paying off your mortgage may reduce interest costs, repayments and financial pressure. Investing may provide stronger long-term growth but involves risk.
The right choice depends on your interest rate, investment time frame, cash needs, retirement plans and comfort with debt. A combined approach may suit some people.
Investing may suit money that you do not need in the short term and can expose to market movements.
Before investing, review your debt, emergency savings, goals, time frame and risk tolerance. The investment strategy should also account for assets you already hold.
You may be able to contribute inherited money to super, but contribution caps, eligibility rules and fund requirements apply.
Money inside super is generally unavailable until you meet a condition of release. Consider your need for accessible money before making a large contribution.
Yes. Inherited cash, property and investments may change the value of your assessable assets or income and affect some Centrelink payments.
The effect depends on the payment you receive and how you hold or use the inheritance. You should update Services Australia when required and seek advice before giving away or restructuring inherited assets.
A financial advisor helps you decide how the inheritance should fit into your financial strategy. This may cover debt, investing, super, retirement and cash flow.
An accountant or registered tax advisor calculates tax obligations and completes tax reporting. Many clients need both forms of advice.
Yes. We can assess the financial and lending aspects of retaining, selling, refinancing or buying out another beneficiary.
We do not provide legal advice, conveyancing, property sales or tax preparation. We can work with your lawyer, conveyancer and accountant as part of the wider process.
This page provides general information only. It does not consider your objectives, financial position or needs. Consider personal financial, tax and legal advice before acting.
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