You’ve done the hard work. You’ve sat down with a financial adviser, mapped out your goals and put a financial plan together. So now you can just set and forget, right?
Not quite. A strong financial plan isn’t a document you file away and revisit a decade later. Life changes. Markets move. Tax rules evolve. Your goals shift.
If you want to secure your financial future, regular reviews are essential.
Why regular reviews matter
Life rarely goes exactly as expected. You might get a promotion, sell a business, welcome a new child into the family or navigate a separation. Each of these moments changes your financial picture.
There are also external factors to consider. Markets shift, tax laws are updated and superannuation rules change. What made sense two years ago may no longer be the right approach today.
That’s why working with a financial planner like RFS Advice makes such a difference. A good adviser will help you keep it on track.
The annual check-up
For most people, a review once a year is the minimum. This gives you and your adviser a chance to look at what’s changed in your life, assess how your investments are performing, check whether you’re on track to meet your goals and make any adjustments needed.
During an annual session with a certified financial adviser, you should focus on the big picture. Look at your investment portfolio management, check your budgeting and cash flow advice and ensure you are still on track for your specific milestones.
This is also a good time to refine any tax minimisation strategies in Australia to ensure you aren’t paying more than your fair share as the end of the financial year approaches.
When you should review more frequently
Certain life stages and circumstances call for more regular check-ins. Here’s when you should be speaking with your adviser sooner rather than later.
You’re in your wealth creation years
If you’re an over-40 professional or business owner with excess cashflow, the decisions you make now have a long compounding runway ahead of them. Wealth management at this stage is about more than just investing. You should be looking at structuring your finances so your money works harder across every area of your life. A review every six months can help you stay agile and make the most of opportunities as they arise.
You’re approaching retirement
If you’re within seven years of retirement, the stakes are higher. This is the period where smart superannuation strategies and careful retirement planning can make a real difference to how comfortably you live in the years ahead. Changes to contribution caps, tax offsets and superannuation happen regularly, so staying close to your adviser during this window is essential.
You’re going through a major life change
Divorce, inheritance, the death of a spouse, buying or selling property, starting or selling a business – these are all moments that warrant an immediate review.
For women going through separation in particular, getting specialist financial advice for women divorcing can be the difference between a secure future and a stressful one.
The same applies to anyone transitioning into aged care: aged care financial advice involves many different rules around assessments, pension entitlements and asset structures that require expert guidance.
You’re starting or growing your family
For parents, family financial planning should become a priority. You may need to look at saving for children’s education or child investment planning to make sure their future is secure.
This is also an important time to review your wealth protection strategies, such as life and income protection insurance, to ensure your family is looked after if something unexpected happens.
Your investment portfolio has grown significantly
If your wealth has grown to a point where investment portfolio management is becoming more complex, more frequent reviews help ensure your asset allocation still matches your risk profile and long-term goals.
Dealing with market volatility and legislative changes
Even if your personal circumstances haven’t changed at all, the world around you has a habit of doing so. Share markets fluctuate, interest rates move and geopolitical events can ripple through your investment portfolio in ways that are difficult to predict.
Moreover, in Australia, the rules governing superannuation, taxation and aged care are updated frequently.
The good news is that you don’t need to review all of this yourself. That’s exactly what your adviser is there for. Regular reviews during volatile periods allow your financial advisers to:
⦁ Reassess asset allocation
⦁ Review diversification
⦁ Adjust risk exposure
⦁ Protect income streams
Rather than reacting emotionally, regular structured reviews help keep your portfolio aligned with your long-term investment planning strategies, despite external changes.
The cost of doing nothing
For many people, the real risk isn’t making a bad financial decision – it’s making no decision at all. Inaction results in superannuation sitting in an investment option that no longer suits your age or risk profile. Or an insurance policy taken out years ago that leaves you underinsured or paying for cover you no longer need.
A wealth creation strategy built around your circumstances at 42 may be completely misaligned with your situation at 50. And if you’re approaching retirement, every year without a proper review is a year where you may be missing legal tax minimisation strategies or contribution opportunities that can’t be recovered later.
There’s also the emotional cost to consider. People who don’t engage regularly with their finances can feel less confident and more anxious about money, even if their underlying position is relatively healthy.
Regular reviews with a trusted financial planner don’t just keep your plan on track. They give you clarity and peace of mind that’s hard to put a dollar value on.
The bottom line is that while there isn’t a universal answer to how often you should review your financial plan, once a year should be your starting point, and more frequently if your life is changing. The cost of not reviewing can be far greater than the time it takes to do it well.
If you are ready to review your financial position and make informed decisions about what comes next, speak with the team at RFS Advice. A structured conversation can help you assess where you stand today and identify practical steps that align with your goals, your family circumstances and your stage of life.
Frequently asked questions
At least once a year. Even if your circumstances feel stable, markets, tax laws and superannuation rules change. An annual review ensures your strategy remains aligned with your goals.
You can certainly check in on your budget and savings progress on your own. But a professional review with a financial adviser covers things like tax implications, superannuation structuring and investment strategy that are difficult to assess without expertise and up-to-date knowledge of the rules.
Not necessarily. Often, a review simply confirms that your current investment planning strategies are working. It is about validation and minor adjustments rather than a total overhaul.
General advice warning:
The information in this blog is of a general advice nature only and has been prepared without taking into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs. Because of that, you should, before acting on the advice, consider the appropriateness of the advice, having regard to those things.
