Who should be your SMSF Trustee?

A Trustee of a Self Managed Superannuation Fund (SMSF) is the person responsible for the SMSF. Similar to a director of a company. An SMSF Trustee can be an individual person (i.e. Individual Trustee) or a company (i.e. Corporate Trustee).

A corporate trustee is usually recommended as it offers much more flexibility to add or remove members of the SMSF. 

Individual trustees are cheaper to set up. However, you need to have a minimum of two individual trustees. All members of the fund have to be a trustee. The trustee names are recorded on all assets of the fund, e.g. bank account. When you add or remove a member of a fund, all fund assets need to be updated to show the changes. Single-member funds need a minimum of two individual trustees.

A corporate trustee is shown on all superannuation fund assets. When you change the members of the superannuation fund, you only need to prepare ASIC change of directors forms. The fund assets do not change. Single-member superannuation funds with a corporate trustee only need one director of the corporate trustee. 

Spend a little more setting up, it will save you time and money in the long run.