Trustees categorised as coach seekers and outsourcers wanted help with their SMSFs and were open to an advice relationship, according to the latest report from nabtrade and the SMSF Association.
The fifth “Intimate with Self-Managed Superannuation” report, prepared by CoreData, revealed by behavioural profile, coach seeker and outsourcer trustees were the most likely to turn to advisers for support in managing their SMSF and hence presented the best growth opportunities for advisers.
The report said the sector continued to move away from its do-it-yourself roots, with SMSFs now perceived by many trustees as a “help me do it” super savings vehicle.
Close to half of trustees were classified as coach seekers, up marginally from 43.9 per cent in 2013, while a further 15 per cent were classified as outsourcers, up from 11.9 per cent in 2013.
Coach seekers were now the biggest segment of SMSF trustee type, with controllers making up about 39 per cent of trustees.
The changing trustee behaviour was a boon for advisers, SMSF Association chief executive Andrea Slattery said.
“While controllers remained the biggest driver for SMSF establishment, coach seekers and outsourcer trustees presented the biggest growth opportunity for advisers, given their willingness to get advice and recognition of the viability of the vehicle as an advised proposition,” Slattery said at a media briefing in Sydney today.
“That’s very much in line to what we’ve seen in the past and very consistent with how we’re seeing the future.
“There’s a great opportunity for advisers to provide guidance to clients, seek engagement and start mentoring and providing trustees with education.”
The report also found more than half of trustees who derived their investment and asset allocation strategies with support from an adviser preferred a one-stop-shop proposition that covered all of their needs.
In recognition of that demand, advisers were increasingly offering SMSF services in-house, it said.
In order to thrive in the SMSF industry in the face of increased competition from accountants, financial planners might need to further diversify their service offering and provide a broader range of advisory services in-house, including tax and compliance, it said.
The trustee portion of the report was based on a survey of 1000 Australian consumers, which included 468 SMSF trustees and 532 Australian Prudential Regulation Authority fund members.
It was conducted in November and December 2014.
