The number of individuals under the age of 45 establishing self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs) shows no signs of abating, the latest SMSF statistical data issued by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) indicates.
The figures for the 2011 December quarter showed 35.1 per cent of SMSFs set up during the period involved trustees in the aforementioned demographic.
This level of startups from this group was consistent with the March, June, and September quarters of last year that saw the under 45 age bracket contributing to 39.1 per cent, 34.1 per cent, and 37.6 per cent respective to the total SMSF establishment numbers.
Furthermore, the statistics show the appeal of setting up an SMSF is greater among women than men in this age category.
The ATO numbers revealed 24.3 per cent of the total SMSFs established by women came from individuals aged between 35 and 44. Men in the same age band accounted for 22.9 per cent of total SMSF establishments.
The trend was the same for women between 25 and 34 that accounted for 10.5 per cent of establishments compared to 9.1 per cent for their male counterparts.
The statistics lend support to the conclusion drawn from the research commissioned by the Self-Manged Super Funds Professionals' Association of Australia (SPAA) and Russell Investments and conducted by Core Data that women will represent a large growth opportunity for SMSF advice in the coming years.
"Women are an inevitable growth segment for the SMSF sector in future," SPAA chief executive Andrea Slattery said when presenting the results from the report, Intimate with Self-Managed Superannuation.
Outside of establishment rates, it was noted women are in general having more influence in the financial decision making of SMSFs.
