Blog
It goes without saying that war is a humanitarian tragedy. We are not ignoring this, but many may worry about the impact of war on their planning and their portfolio. We will not aim to give any geopolitical or strategic commentary. That is not, and never will be, an area we specialise in. Instead, we
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Inheriting a sizeable pension can dramatically alter a lot of financial plans. So how should someone make sense of the options available and use this money wisely? What is an inherited pension? When someone dies with money in a pension pot, this will usually pass down to whoever they have nominated to receive it. Wills
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Last year the government revealed new proposals for funding long-term care. At the time, much was made of the point at which someone needing to pay their care costs in full increasing to £100,000 and the overall cap on care costs being £86,000. The Government made out as if this fulfilled its manifesto promise that
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Following a financial plan and staying disciplined can be challenging. A good start can be with what someone shouldn’t be doing with their finances. Not having an Emergency Fund An emergency fund underpins a solid financial plan. We advise our clients to hold at least six months’ expenditure, plus any planned additional spending, in easy
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Some are lucky enough to be awarded shares in the company they work for. Companies can reward their staff with actual shares or options that they can exercise sometime in the future. What is the difference between shares and options? Shares and options have different uses and benefits. These include how they are taxed. It
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You might not be interested or feel comfortable in choosing where your retirement savings are invested. If this is the case, then it is likely you have the money in your pension invested into the provider’s default pension fund. We are never going to criticise providers for making it easier for people to invest their
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Relax. Live for the moment and enjoy life. Most of us know someone who, despite being well off, struggles to spend money on things that make them happy. Instead, the fear of running out of money controls their spending habits. On the other hand, there are those who struggle to think past the next few
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In the fourth quarter, shares in companies in developed markets (UK, US etc) continued to rally. This provided investors with the third calendar year in a row of strong positive returns. Fixed interest (Government Bonds, Corporate Bonds, etc) returns over the quarter were somewhat flat, as markets digested rising inflation and less accommodative policy from central
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We have previously covered the effect that inflation might have on your financial plan. However, you might also worry about its effect on your portfolio. Most of us invest to fund future spending. If the stuff you intend to spend that money on gets more expensive and you still want to buy it, you must
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A recent study promoting buying annuities has received some attention in the press. An annuity is where you exchange some or all the money in your pension for an income. The company you buy it off will pay this income for as long as you live. You can also have the income linked to inflation
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