Pensions
How Delaying Your State Pension Could Impact Your Retirement
When it comes to your state pension, timing is everything, and many retirees wonder if waiting a bit longer is a smart move. Should you claim it as soon as you’re eligible or wait to get a bigger payout? While delaying your state pension can lead to a higher monthly income, it’s not always right […]
Posted in Pensions, Retirement Planning
Is 2025 a Good Year to Retire?
Historically, retirees have been able to finish their careers feeling confident about their financial future. However, in recent years, the retirement landscape has changed significantly and there’s less certainty for many people nearing retirement age. From the risks you can’t control to those you can, and whether your financial situation can withstand the pressures of […]
Posted in Pensions, Retirement Planning
Financial Retirement Risks – Is Your Pension Pot Enough?
The fundamentals of retirement planning are changing and dynamics are shifting. This means that traditional pension saving might not be enough and that alternatives must be found. This article will delve into some of the most likely retirement risks and help you combat them with your savings and investment strategies. A Shift in Pension […]
Posted in Pensions, Retirement Planning
The Budget, Inheritance Tax, and Your Pension
The biggest pension bombshell of the Budget came in the form of an IHT (inheritance tax) announcement. It states that as of April 6th, 2027, inherited pension funds will be liable to IHT, so some savers will have to rethink their retirement planning. In this article, we’ll explore the changes and explain who will be […]
Posted in Financial Planning, IHT Planning, Pensions, Retirement Planning
Starting a Pension if You’re Self Employed
Pensions are the lifeblood of your retirement but unfortunately, self-employed people tend to disregard them. This is problematic in many ways, primarily because if you work for yourself, you don’t have workplace pension contributions in place. This means organising a personal pension is hugely important, but how do you start? This article will explain everything […]
Posted in Financial Planning, Pensions
Pension Tasks to Tackle Right Now
With rising life expectancies, higher retirement ages, and fewer workplace pension schemes, the onus is on individuals to boost their pension savings. Unfortunately, however, too many people treat their pension as an afterthought and don’t save enough for a happy retirement. In this article, we’ll teach you the most pressing pension tasks to tackle now. […]
Posted in Financial Planning, Pensions, Retirement Planning
Trend Towards Long-term Mortgages Could Hit Retirement Income
A recent freedom of information request to the Bank of England has revealed a worrying increase in the number of homeowners who will still be repaying their mortgages in retirement. Even though homeowners will have a significant asset on their hands once their mortgage has been repaid, very few today would have been planning to […]
Posted in Mortgage, Pensions, Retirement Planning
Shielding Pension and Trust Assets from Inheritance Tax
Before we look at ways of structuring asset ownership to minimise inheritance tax, it is essential to address one common misconception. People will often talk about tax evasion and tax avoidance (management) simultaneously. Tax evasion is an illegal method of minimising your tax liability, while tax avoidance is a legal method of reducing your potential […]
Posted in Pensions
The Impact of Inflation on Pensions
As we enter 2024, UK inflation is trending downwards, with the latest figure for November coming in at 3.9%. It’s easy to forget that this time last year, UK inflation stood at more than 10%, having hit a 41-year high of 11.1% in October 2022. While still some distance from the Bank of England’s target […]
Posted in Pensions
What are third way pension products?
Recently, we have seen an element of control given back to private pension fund holders and more flexibility in how they invest and receive their money in retirement. Many people perceive these long-term choices as fairly stark; they either move into drawdown, with an element of risk or acquire an annuity to provide an income […]
Posted in Pensions