Rebalancing is the act of buying and selling investments to bring your portfolio back into line with a target allocation. This needs to be done as, over time, some investments will grow faster than others which can mean your portfolio becomes riskier than you originally intended. We rebalance your investments every year to keep your risk profile in check and make sure you are not taking on more risk than you intended.

When the investment markets are choppy and you see your balance drop significantly, it's natural to want to reduce your risk profile. This often leads to worse long-term investment returns, even if it does feel a little more comfortable in the short-term, because you ‘sell low’ and end up ‘buying high' when the eventual market recovery occurs. Your Lifestages advisers are always on hand to talk through your options and make sure we find the best option for your overall needs.

Getting personalised advice (advice that takes your specific situation into account) is very difficult without speaking one-on-one with an adviser. A Lifestages adviser takes information that can’t be neatly fitted into a calculator or equation and interpret it so it can be a part of your financial plan. Having a fuller picture of your personal situation helps to ensure your investments are appropriate and maximises your chance of achieving your goals.

Real returns are your investment returns minus inflation. This is obviously very topical now with inflation running historically high and, in some cases, eroding real investment returns – particularly for Term Deposits. Advisers can help ensure your investments are making positive real returns (i.e. stop your savings from devaluing) by recommending investment options that are keeping pace with inflation.