Financial Advisor Colac

A local financial adviser in Colac understands life in the Colac Otway Shire, from seasonal farm income to family businesses built over generations. Vista Financial has an office on Hesse Street, so you can sit down with us face to face instead of driving to the city. We operate as Authorised Representatives of Count Financial Limited (AFSL 227232).

Our Colac clients value advice that is practical and personal. See what our clients are saying about Vista on Google. We work with integrity so every client feels confident and well prepared for retirement.

Farm succession planning works best when it starts well before you step back, ideally 10 to 15 years ahead. It means deciding who will take over the farm, how to treat children who aren't farming fairly, and how you'll fund your own retirement once the business is handed on.

Our advisers work alongside your accountant and solicitor to structure the transfer, plan for tax and super, and make sure your retirement income doesn't depend on the farm's next good season.

Vista Financial Group provides financial advice in Colac from our office at Shop 9/58 Hesse Street, and has supported clients across Victoria for over 20 years. We work with pre-retirees, retirees, farmers, business owners and families across the Colac Otway region on retirement planning, super, investments and estate planning.

Every plan starts with a conversation about the life you want after work. From there, we build a strategy to grow your super, reduce tax and create a reliable income, and we review it with you as your circumstances change.

Many Colac residents have built most of their wealth in farmland, a family business or property rather than in super. These assets can fund a comfortable retirement, but they don't produce a steady income on their own, and selling them takes time and planning.

Our wealth management team in Colac can model your options, such as selling in stages, leasing land or moving proceeds into super, and show you projections so you know where you stand and what to do next.

The downsizer contribution lets you put proceeds from selling your home into super, and it can apply to a home on rural land. If your home is part of a working farm, the rules on which proceeds qualify can be complex, so it's worth getting advice before you sell.

To be eligible, you generally need to meet these conditions:

1. You're 55 or older when you make the contribution
2. You or your spouse owned the home for at least 10 years before the sale
3. The sale qualifies for at least a partial main residence exemption from CGT
4. You contribute within 90 days of settlement, and you can only use the downsizer once

Using the downsizer, you can contribute up to $300,000 per person, or up to $600,000 per couple, from the sale of your home. It sits outside the usual contribution caps, so it can be a useful way for Colac homeowners to move equity into a tax-effective income stream.

If you're also selling farmland or a business, other strategies such as the small business CGT concessions may let you add more to super. Vista Financial in Colac can map out the options and timing so each sale works together.

There is no formal death tax in Australia, but some assets can still carry a tax cost when they pass to the next generation. Super paid to non-dependents, such as adult children, can be taxed at up to 17%, and capital gains tax may apply when inherited land or shares are later sold.

For Colac families with farmland, a business and super to pass on, a financial planner can help structure your estate, wills and super nominations so your wealth is shared the way you intend with as little tax as possible.

Selling a business is often the biggest financial decision a Colac business owner will make, and the timing and structure of the sale can make a big difference to what you keep. Small business CGT concessions, contributing proceeds to super and planning when you stop drawing a wage all affect your retirement income.

If you're thinking about selling in the next few years, speak with a Vista retirement planner in Colac early so your business, super and personal plans line up.