ask paul

Dear Paul, I am a self-funded retiree and 61. I have a mortgage on one of my properties ($380,000) and about $60,000 in a super fund (been contributing $5000 a year for the last seven years). Should I withdraw all funds in super and put it in the mortgage? ... More

Dear Paul, I'm confused or just nervous. I'm a 43-year-old bloke with a wife and two older teenage handbrakes. A large percentage of my male family members die at retirement age around 65, so I have come to the conclusion there is a possibility ... More

Dear Paul, My son and his girlfriend lost $34,000 as a result of the STA Travel collapse, with no hope of getting any of it back. I would really like to dip into my super for $10,000 (I am 52 and fortunately have still kept my job through COVID-19) ... More

Hi Paul, I have just done a review of our super and changed providers. But I am wondering how to evaluate what insurance amounts (TPD, income protection, death cover) we need. Do you have any guidelines to work from? - Mark Yep, let's run an unbiased ... More

Dear Paul, We wish to purchase the Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF (ASX: VAS). What would be the advantages and disadvantages of purchasing either through CommSec or directly with Vanguard's own trading platform? - Heather Not a lot, Heather. ... More

Dear Paul, I have much respect for your articles in Money and have just read your response to the couple who are concerned about managing their SMSF as they age. Although it doesn't apply to me, it's an interesting read. On finishing the article ... More

Dear Paul, I was recently made redundant and because of this my super was moved from a defined benefit to a temporary accumulation cash account for 90 days. I'm 54 and have $547,000 in super. I have to decide soon if I will leave it in cash, or ... More

Dear Paul. I'm 41, my wife is 40, and we have a one-year-old son. We put away $1000 for our son when he was born to help him out as a young adult, but we have been unable to decide the best way to invest this for him. Given our age, we thought it may ... More

Dear Paul, I'm a 40-year-old single mum to three school-aged kids, and I'm renting and currently unemployed. I have $300,000 to make something of. I want to put about $150,000 towards a property we can call home and really want to invest $100,000 or ... More

Hi Paul, We have recently purchased a vacant block of land and are going to build a new home to live in. The total value of the land and house is about $900,000 and it should be completed in June 2021. We paid off our current townhouse, valued at $630,000 ... More