The money in your FIRSTSUPER account earns a return that depends on the performance of assets purchased by the Fund as investments. One of the most important decisions to be made is how much of your super you want in growth assets compared to defensive assets.

Growth assets are likely to go up and down in terms of performance from year to year but have the potential to grow over the long-term (which is at least five years). FIRSTSUPER's Growth investments are Australian & Overseas shares and Property.

Defensive assets are used when trying to protect your investment from the chance of a negative return. They tend to produce lower long-term returns, but are more stable. FIRSTSUPER's Defensive investments are Cash and Fixed Interest.

As a general rule, your investment decision should be based on your own risk profile and time horizon - your willingness to take risk and how long the money will be invested.

FIRSTSUPER INVESTMENT CHOICES

The Fund offers 4 investment choices for Members with the following general exposure to Growth and Defensive assets:

If you have at least $1,000 in your account, you can split your super to make up your own mix in any percentage split across the four investment options that totals 100%. This enables you to tailor how your super is invested to more closely fit your individual needs and attitude to risk.

Two switches each year are free. Extra switches cost $30 each. Because superannuation is a long-term investment most Members are likely to switch their investment options much less frequently than that.

Forms are available on our resources page to change your investment choice.

* Balanced is the default option - if you make no choice, your account will be invested here.