The first month of the new financial year has just finished. The new contribution caps have kicked in, the last of the EOFY statements have landed, and life has probably gone back to normal. If retirement is anywhere on your horizon, this is still the moment to stop and ask: have you thought about the plan ahead?
The years before you retire matter more than most people realise. Get them right,and the move out of full-time work feels calm and considered. Leave it to the last minute, and it can feel like a cliff edge. After years of retirement income planning with Sydney families, I've found that a simple, ordered checklist does more than any amount of worrying. Here's what to work through.
The first item on the checklist is your current spending.
Most people are surprised by what they find. Pull together a year of bank and card statements and group the spending into the essentials and the extras. That figure is the foundation for everything that follows, because retirement planning is really about replacing an income you already live on.
If you do one thing this financial year, make it this. The free budget planner on the Government's MoneySmart website is a good placeto start.
Once you know what you spend, you can work out the income your retirement needs to produce. This is where a vague worry turns into a target you can plan towards.
As a reference point, the ASFA Retirement Standard estimates a couple aged around 65 needs about $78,566 a year for a “comfortable” retirement, and a single person about $55,923 a year (March quarter 2026 figures, assuming you own your home outright). ASFA suggests a couple would need roughly $730,000 in super to support that, and a single person about $630,000.
Those are benchmarks, not your number. Many of the households we work with want to spend more than the “comfortable” standard, particularly in the first active years of retirement.
It's worth being clear on what that illustration is and isn't. Investment returns are never guaranteed, markets rise and fall, inflation erodes spending power, and people live longer or shorter than average. The point of the exercise is to see whether your plan is roughly on track, and what to adjust if it isn't, while you still have years to act.
A retirement plan needs a shock absorber, and the next item on the checklist is a cash buffer.
The risk in retirement isn't only running out of money over thirty years. It's being forced to sell investments after they've fallen to cover everyday spending. A common approach is to hold one to two years of expenses in cash or lower-risk assets, so a market downturn doesn't dictate your decisions.
This isn't a separate pot bolted on the side. It's usually part of the overall portfolio, with a slice held in more liquid, defensive assets. The trade-off is real: cash and defensive assets typically earn less over the long run than growth assets, so the buffer is about flexibility, not return. How much is right depends on your circumstances.
Money in the bank is only part of being ready. The next group of items is the structural side.
Debt comes first. The conventional aim is to enter retirement with the mortgage and other debts cleared, so your income stretches further. If that's not realistic, a plan for the remaining debt matters more.
Insurance is next. The cover you needed at 40, when you had a mortgage and dependent kids, is often not the cover you need at 60. It's worth reviewing what you still need and what you may be paying for without reason.
Then there's estate planning: an up-to-date will, your powers of attorney, and the beneficiary nominations on your super, which don't automatically follow your will. Because wealth, tax and lending sit under one roof here, these pieces stay connected because gaps between them are where things tend to go wrong.
A retirement planning checklist isn't complete without the rules that govern timing. Three ages matter most.
You can generally access your super from age 60 if you've retired, and from 65 regardless of whether you're still working. The age pension age is 67. These ages, and the income and assets tests behind the age pension, shape when and how you draw your money. For couples with an age gap, the timing can make a real difference. You can check the current thresholds on the Services Australia website.
Even if you don't expect a full pension, the associated concession card can be valuable, so it's worth understanding where you sit rather than assuming you miss out.
The last item on the checklist is one the numbers alone can't answer: what is the money for?
The people who settle into retirement most smoothly tend to have thought about more than their balance. They know what a good week looks like, who they'll spend time with, and what gives their days shape once work is gone. The ones who struggle are often financially ready but hadn't pictured the rest of it.
If you and your partner might retire at different times, talk about that early. So is the conversation with adult children about time, care and expectations. It's what decides whether the financial plan delivers the life you wanted.
You don't have to work through all of this at once. Over the next financial year start with:
1. Pin down what you spend
2. Work out the income you'll need
3. Build a one-to-two-year cash buffer
4. Clear or plan for debt
5. Review your insurance
6. Update your will and super beneficiaries
7. Understand your super and age pension ages
8. Picture the life you're retiring to.
The new financial year is a good time to take the first step. Talk to our team about retirement income planning in Sydney.