5 questions to ask yourself about investing

How much risk are you willing to take to achieve your objectives? In general, the higher the risk, the higher the expected return. But there are other important considerations:

• What are your goals?
• How close are you to retirement?
• What’s your reaction to market volatility?

To keep it simple, how much risk are you willing to take with your finances and still sleep soundly at night?

Not sure of your appetite? If you’ve signed up for MemberOnline, you can take our risk attitude quiz^*. Or, speak to one of our Advice team members who can guide you through a series of questions.

It’s impossible to know how long you’ll live, or how expensive life might become, but it helps to make a best estimate.

As a general rule, the longer your super is going to be invested, the more investment risk you can take. So, a self-assessment of your current age and health is important when considering your investment strategy.

The old saying goes never put all your eggs in one basket, and the same goes for investment portfolios. A mix of cash, shares, fixed interest, and property can combine to form a balanced portfolio, and then if one investment type performs poorly, the other types may offset the loss.

CareSuper offers a range of investment options for you to choose from with a mix of defensive and growth assets

Do you have multiple sources of income? For example, if you receive income from a Pension, family trust, investment property or share portfolio you may not rely as heavily on your super, and this may affect how you choose to invest it.

What are your goals and how much risk are you willing to take to achieve them?

Some want to travel the world and live the high life when they finish work. Others may want to garden and take care of grandkids. You’ll need to think about how much your ideal retirement could cost and if you need to reassess your risk appetite to get there.