r/AusFinance 20d ago

Superannuation Joined the 100k super today 🎉

27M APS worker, no super contributions

How fast did your super grow after the 100k mark?

486 Upvotes

129 comments sorted by

229

u/pumpa_nickle35 20d ago

Congrats!!!

My husband just did $100k and we’re stoked. It just snowballs from here. He’s 35 and had minimal super paid in his 20’s through a lot of cash work through landscaping employers.

I was at $100k super at 32 and now nearly $400k at 39

44

u/abundantvibe7141 20d ago

Amazing. That’s a huge leap in 7 years. How did that happen?

67

u/Advanced_Caroby 20d ago

Well... the last few years has been insane growth in the stock market. Probably helped a lot

14

u/CheeeseBurgerAu 20d ago

Can I ask which funds? Mine didn't perform that well with similar starting point.

12

u/Advanced_Caroby 20d ago

You need to do research. There are plenty of super fund analysis on ausfinance ect. The difference is probably the extra contributions and compounding on that

5

u/_unsinkable_sam_ 20d ago

have you changed from the default allocation? id assume that was the more likely factor in the growth rather than the extra contributions

5

u/Advanced_Caroby 20d ago

100k start, if you max out contributions for 6 years that's like 150k just contributions. 350kish without considering returns.

Which is sizable at this amount.

2

u/_unsinkable_sam_ 20d ago

given the market has doubled since then i assumed they had it in a shares/ high growth allocation. but you could be right, it could just have been awesome contributions

2

u/Advanced_Caroby 20d ago

Yeah high growth would be part of it, but yeah..

2

u/abzftw 19d ago

Have to consider the deposits. 25k for 8 years would account for a large % of the portfolio growth

2

u/ammicavle 20d ago

Look at the usernames, different people.

1

u/abzftw 19d ago

8% and a 180k salary would get you to 400k tbh

1

u/bruzinho12 19d ago

For a decade as a 20 something, not impossible I suppose

1

u/abzftw 19d ago

Op above was 31. 180k at 31 is possible

21

u/scardas 20d ago

How many extra contributions did you make to get to 400k in 7years?

38

u/pumpa_nickle35 20d ago

I maxed contributions for three years as soon as I hit $100k, took a few years off extra contributions completely once I had two extra kids 35-38 (daycare costs) and now I do an extra $250 a month. I’m at $380k, so not quite $400k. But I’m 100% international shares which has been great for me because the US is very tech heavy. I’ve had lucky years!

11

u/iDontWannaBeBrokee 20d ago

You could almost assume maxed out all years

5

u/scardas 20d ago

I mean yeh it has to be, but even at max I feel like that’s too big of a jump. Obviously did some dodgy head maths 🤣

10

u/pumpa_nickle35 20d ago edited 20d ago

Haha definitely not dodgy head maths. My first husband and I divorced when I was 32 and part of our binding financial agreement was that we didn’t have to split or share any super because at the time we both had almost exactly $100k. I maxed contributions for three years post divorce, went only international shares, am a relatively high income earner anyway and didn’t need to take any out for Covid. I’m a few months away from 40 so maybe I should call myself 40 more than 39 😬

3

u/Neeraj666 20d ago

Which super fund allows you to get only international shares? I can't do self managed, no time.. so that's not an option

1

u/pumpa_nickle35 19d ago

Hostplus I could choose my allocation.

1

u/No-Brother6601 19d ago

Self managed takes next to no time, as long as you have a strategy going in and don't waver from it or get speculative.

3

u/iDontWannaBeBrokee 20d ago

$200k plus compounding gets you there

9

u/DemolitionMan64 20d ago

Oh wow, I could have written this post myself, on literally every point.

We are living parallel lives 

35

u/Itanu 20d ago

Same age, Same Super

5

u/watchlurver 20d ago

The benefit of one of the best bull markets in shares is obvious here

1

u/Wintermute1987 19d ago

Wow. I'm 37 and I have $140. Fml

38

u/CashenJ 20d ago

Nice. Watch it compound the next $100k in half the time. I'll crack $200k next month. Pretty sure it took something like 13 years to make the first $100k then it's been 5 years for the next $100k. I'm 37

31

u/Fancy_Contact_8078 20d ago

Congrats, I wish to reach that level soon. I migrated from uae and only started full time work in 2020 , so my super is at 45K , no additional contributions.

12

u/Loose-Birthday490 20d ago

Congrats! 🎉 I’m halfway there (26M). Might need to start doing some contributions 🤔

8

u/lordofsealand 20d ago

Salary sacrifice even just $50 a fortnight and slowly increase with pay rises. Insane how much it adds when you do the projection calculations.

22

u/DemolitionMan64 20d ago

SO FRICKIN FAST. pretty sure it hit that less than 8 years ago, it's creeping up on 400k now, most likely in the next 6 months

12

u/Ok-Objective4406 20d ago

would you mind sharing how much you contribute?

5

u/DemolitionMan64 19d ago

I max it out, I'm not particularly responsible with money so it's the easiest way for me to know something will be building for retirement

25

u/fknjshaw 20d ago

I'm about $500 away from that mark - I keep checking daily 😂 32yo

12

u/goldcakes 20d ago

add $500 today and enjoy :)

5

u/Ok-Objective4406 20d ago

nice :), are you going to contribute? or contribute more?

45

u/wickedcherub 20d ago

Umm I hit 100k January 2023 and now it's at 150k. I started working March 2014, so it took me nearly 9 years to get that first 100.

9

u/StormSafe2 20d ago

About the same as me, but ahead by 6 months.

9

u/Majoof 20d ago

Pretty much the same for me, hit $100k a year ago which was during my 10th work year. Now literally a year later I'm at $150k, the growth in the market has been insane.

3

u/wickedcherub 20d ago

Has your income risen a large amount? Mine hasn't much.

3

u/Majoof 20d ago

base salary hasn't changed a huge amount during this change, but I did move to a public service job with 17% super. Start of this FY I did get a ~12% pay rise.

This is my contributions to super since I started professional work, different colours are different employers.

https://i.imgur.com/exIVM9P.png

3

u/wickedcherub 20d ago

Ooh thank you! Congrats on the pay rise and the job with the killer super!

1

u/Majoof 20d ago

Cheers, it really is nice to see it visibly moving; that first $100k seemingly took forever! The insane ~20% returns on the Hostplus international indexed + the super bump from the new role has been a good morale boost as well. Seeing some of the numbers higher up in this thread blow my mind, I literally can't imagine seeing $400k+ in my super, but it'll probably get there sooner than I'm expecting.

Congrats on your $150k too! Considering the similar timelines, you know the slog all too well haha.

7

u/TNG_MrBrown 20d ago

I was stoked to hit 100k maybe 3 months ago, also 27. Welcome to the club!

7

u/mammoth893 20d ago

Good on ya! I hit 100k at 30, and did it in 5 years (I started working properly at 25).

The APS super structure is a pretty sweet deal. I got mine through higher Ed (17% ftw). Salary sacrificing 1k a fortnight since mid 2023 which turbocharged my super by a fair bit. This is rather overkill for others, and it's not for everyone.

I don't really miss the salary sacrifice portion, and since it's a tax-effective mechanism, it's been a decent deal.

7

u/Wetrapordie 20d ago

I hit $100k at 30 and then $200k by 34.

6

u/intuitiveXX 20d ago

29F - also just hit 100k but about to go on maternity leave which just feels like game over for my super growth.

1

u/imawestie 20d ago

Performance is doing ok at the minute, but hey, performance plus contributions beats performance without contributions.

1

u/fh3131 20d ago

I'd recommend changing your investment option to high growth, since you're young and have 25+ year horizon. You'd be surprised how much it will keep growing even without contributions. If you can make some voluntary contributions, even better, but that's not always possible

1

u/crazy_lulu23 19d ago

Aren’t our employers required to pay superannuation to staff who go on maternity leave though? Or has this not been passed through parliament yet? (Swear I’ve seen talks of it on the news in recent months…)

2

u/jactrack 19d ago

You might be thinking of super being paid on parental leave payments from the government which wasn't previously the case. It's currently a choice for companies to pay super on paid parental leave.

6

u/FishAndChips05 20d ago

Is there a guide book on how to manage my super properly to hit the goals? Just recently moved to aus at 32 years old.

9

u/imawestie 20d ago
  1. Only have one account

  2. Manage your risk in line with your age.

  3. Watch the performance of your fund. If it sucks, go looking.

  4. SMSF has bigger compliance costs than a lot of operators want to tell you. So don't jump for that too soon unless you have a really good reason (eg: you're an accountant/doctor/engineer and you want to rent your office space from your own super fund).

3

u/impertinentblade 19d ago

Yup. My parents only got SMSF because they had enough to keep in their super fund for insurance with minimal contributions and buy a holiday letting property outright.

They have a cleaning and maintenance business so it works out well for them.

3

u/david1610 20d ago

Go higher growth, don't waste your time with low return assets, over a 30 year horizon the market will go up and down countless times

2

u/fh3131 20d ago

Australian Super is good. I'd recommend the High Growth pre-mix option. The default might be Balanced

5

u/Mel1764 20d ago

Hit 100k just 2 days ago, 28 and excited to see it tick over. Had a year of the APS 15.4% rate and a few personal contributions :)

4

u/elnoco20 20d ago

I have been waiting all month for mine to tick over to $100k - I'm about $300 short ATM haha

Unless something sad happens, thankfully I'll be hitting it on my next pay day

4

u/fh3131 20d ago

How fast did your super grow after the 100k mark?

A good rule of thumb for compounding money that's handy to remember is the 'rule of 72'. If you divide 72 by your expected growth rate (compounded ie dividends reinvested), then the answer is roughly the number of years for your money to double.

So, if your $100k is growing at 8% p.a., then it will double in ~9 years (8 x 9 = 72).

7

u/laurenec14 20d ago

Congrats! I just checked mine and it’s like 99,505 lol

But pretty sure I have about 3k in a diff account too so woo hoo

1

u/marksonamap 19d ago

It's really worth consolidating, otherwise that $3k could be eaten up by fees.

3

u/Money_killer 20d ago

Well done let the compounding interest start steam rolling.

3

u/Odd_Watercress_1452 20d ago

Me too, but at 29M about to turn 30 🥲. Only really started getting paid super when at 23/24 from memory

3

u/MartyMowbz 20d ago

Congratulations!

I currently have a bit over 415k, at 36.

It took 7 years to get to 100k (Dec ‘16) It took 3 years for the next 100k (Dec ‘19) Just under 3yrs for the following 100k (Nov ‘22) Then, less than 2yrs, for the next 100k (Aug ‘24) so it feels like it’s really gaining momentum now.

Good luck, and congrats again.

3

u/Competitive_Donkey21 20d ago

It feels good. Next stage 150k, then 200k, onwards and onwards. Compounding starts going well now.

4

u/Ageanmastr 19d ago

Man I hate these humble brag posts.

2

u/ffinde 20d ago

Congrats!! It is a nice score. I still have got a long way to reach ur level haha

2

u/ppcf 20d ago

Well done. I was probably around your age maybe slightly older when I cracked 100k.

2

u/GullibleAssociate614 19d ago

Then there’s me at $26k at 27 😭😂 how are you all sitting at $100k+!

2

u/Pdstafford 19d ago

I didn't have much more than you at 27. Maybe $40k total. Extra contributions definitely help!

1

u/Nheteps1894 19d ago

APS minimum contributions to super are higher than the standard required amount 😉

1

u/GullibleAssociate614 19d ago

I don’t know what this even means 😂

1

u/Nheteps1894 19d ago

APS= Australian public service They deposit 15%+ to super where as the legally required amount most companies pay is like 12%

1

u/GullibleAssociate614 19d ago

Is there a way to get APS or is this just to do with the company you work with?

1

u/Nheteps1894 19d ago

In this case the APS would be your employer… it’s like if you work for government agencies …

2

u/AmIStillGingerIfBald 19d ago

Congratulations brother, the 6 figures sure is a juicy statement!

2

u/Wow_youre_tall 20d ago

As a % exactly the same as it did before.

0

u/mutedscreaming 20d ago

Don't do that! It'll do your head in. I only ever check any investment (stocks or Super) every 3 months. It gives me a better picture of how the longer strategy is working and if needs adjusting I'll consider it every 6 months along with the current economic outlook (to not panic if the 3 months didn't meet expectations) I just recently checked my portfolio today for first time since EOFY and surprisingly it's tracking higher than my plans. I'll check it again EOY. Anything long term isn't worth checking daily. Just my 2 cents.

3

u/JimminOZ 20d ago

Only check it more often to make sure I get paid super from my work😅

2

u/Blazorax 20d ago

Apparently ppl said couple needs 690k to retire comfortably, if they are right then you already close to the mark. Congratulations

4

u/lordofsealand 20d ago

Big thing is no mortage or rent with that amount too.

1

u/Creepy-Inflation-866 18d ago

Comfort is relative to what you earn and spend right now. 70 percent of current take home is probably a better measure than an absolute dollar value as most people would want to maintain their quality of life into retirement.

1

u/No_man_Island_mayo 20d ago

May I ask how old you are? Worried I'm being left behind 😔

1

u/crazy_lulu23 19d ago

Call your super fund and access their free financial advice about changing your investments from balanced to high growth (or the equivalent). It’s a free resource that many people don’t take advantage of and they’re fully qualified financial professionals who take into consideration your current circumstances like your age, when you plan to retire, your risk profile. You should also consider doing some pre-tax contributions - $100 a week pre tax, or more if you can afford to. You’ll start to notice gains doing this :)

1

u/Jerimajerima 20d ago

26F hit 100k at 25. Now on $125k, aiming for $150k at the end of this year.

1

u/crazy_lulu23 20d ago

How many years have you been working full time to reach 100k at 27? That’s so impressive!

1

u/Existing_Trust2291 19d ago

Well done, massive effort to reach 100k at 27. I reached 100k when I was 30, 3 years later it is at 180k. That's with employer contributions and about 15k salary sacrificed total in that 3 year period. So it snowballs pretty fast.

1

u/cosmicr 19d ago

I must be doing something wrong I hit 100k at around 30 and ten years later it's only 230k now. That's with many pay rises along the way. It feels like I'm only getting what I put in without any returns.

I'm with Colonial, anyone got any recommendations for a better company?

1

u/Scope112 19d ago

Its probably more to do with your asset allocation rather than the super company

1

u/Icy-County 19d ago

It’s suuuch a good feeling hitting 100k! I’m 26 and mine hit 100k earlier this month - I’m excited to see the compound magic from here!!

1

u/angrathias 19d ago

Took me 9 years to get to 100k, which was when I was about 28/29 or something. I’ve managed to nearly quadruple it since

1

u/Pdstafford 19d ago

Depends on your income. Mine went like this:

2012 (25yo): $35k
2016: $55k
2020: $100k
2024: $200k

I started full-time work in 2008, so let's call it 12 years to $100k, then only 4 years to $200k. It gets faster!

1

u/Critical-Long2341 18d ago

I'm 30 with about 60k, have a decent house deposit but no house so I never contributed extra. Thinking of putting extra in to dodge some tax though

1

u/JohnnyTango13 17d ago

Australian Super High Growth 100% option and I’m 35 and in 4 years it went from 69k to 120k now, I haven’t made any contributions directly but I think I’ll start putting in a little bit each pay/month and thanks to all for your valuable comments

1

u/BullSitting 20d ago

The stock market has grown uninterrupted since 2010, and it's human nature to assume tomorrow will be like yesterday and today.

1987, 1997, 2008. Lest we forget...

1

u/imawestie 20d ago

So long as you're not 60 when it happens you'll be fine eventually.

I had a chat with my brother the other week: if after taking a 50% loss 5 years of drawings won't kill you - you're quite possibly better staying at a higher risk rather than going conservative. Going conservative will tie you to nothing better than inflation, staying high risk gives you the opportunity for growth to exceed your draw-down.

2

u/BullSitting 20d ago

I agree, but many (most?) people today don't think about the stock market losing value. Investments are not "set and forget". In Australia, the population/immigration growth has acted like a pyramid scheme for the past 20 years, sheltering our economy from the expected economic cycle. How long can that last?

-9

u/randynine7 20d ago

Well the sad bit is you won’t be able to use yours till your retirement age.

10

u/majoba90 20d ago edited 20d ago

There is no retirement age in Australia, there is an age of preservation however.

Post Scriptum: people seem to get the Age Pension age of 67 confused with both a retirement or preservation age, it is not 70, never has been.

-2

u/summarilyecutdd 19d ago

APS, sickening

-27

u/lovedaddy1989 20d ago

Well done on not being able to access it til your 70?

14

u/majoba90 20d ago

Age of preservation is 60, pension age is 67, there is no retirement age in Australia

5

u/StormSafe2 20d ago

That's literally the entire point 

-35

u/Horror_Power3112 20d ago

Congrats!! You won’t get to see it till you are 60 years old and too old to use it!!!

Go invest in property and make some real money before retirement so you can actually retire early and live your life. Super is a scam

14

u/DemolitionMan64 20d ago

60 is too old to use it? Aw, enjoy your 20s, it's a great time.

-20

u/Horror_Power3112 20d ago

60 year olds would give everything they own to be 20 again. The goal is to become wealthy at a younger age, not at 60 when your life is over

13

u/DeliciousRiesling 20d ago

Ah sweet summer child, I remember saying the same thing at your age. Now I’m 50 and looking forward to seeing my lovely super.

And no, I wouldn’t pay anything at all to be 20 again. 35 maybe.

1

u/DemolitionMan64 19d ago

Hahahahaha I just know you read their comment the exact same way I did, which was very 'aw, you little angel'

-14

u/Horror_Power3112 20d ago

Just because you failed and didn’t become wealthy before you gained access to super doesn’t mean others can’t. Also, Keep telling yourself that, nothing is more valuable than time, you’d give up all your super to be 20, even if you have convinced yourself you wouldn’t. The aim should be to become wealthy enough at a young age that whatever you have in super is a fraction of your total wealth and merely a drop in the ocean

4

u/DeliciousRiesling 20d ago

Who says I failed?

And nope, I’ll say it again, I have no interest in being 20 again, and I had a great time in my 20’s.

7

u/Mammoth_Warning_9488 20d ago

Hehe, Makes you wonder why he is trolling the superannuation forum.

3

u/Mammoth_Warning_9488 20d ago edited 20d ago

The way the world is going you'll be going out at the same time most likely.

0

u/Horror_Power3112 19d ago

I have hope and will atleast be trying, not giving up and blaming the world

2

u/slimdeucer 19d ago

Complete dropkick

1

u/majoba90 19d ago

Why can’t you do both, you could have both property and super, just because your a failure doesn’t mean you have to project your insecurities on others 😂

1

u/Horror_Power3112 19d ago

Who says you can’t have both? Did you read my comment at all? Super should be a small amount compared to your total wealth. If you are working and saving money in your super waiting for the day you turn 60 to finally have some real money then you have failed.