Back to the Future
VERY LITTLE of our life doesn’t involve some form of financial participation, whether it’s work, rest or play. Nothing much is free anymore; even water is more expensive than milk these days in a supermarket. There’s an old saying “where there’s muck, there’s brass (money)” – nowadays, a more appropriate phrase might be “where’s there’s […]
PARENTAL RESPONSIBILITY
EVERYONE knows that having children is a lifetime commitment. That commitment is growing and growing because we are all living longer. There’s the emotional responsibility that never goes away, even though young Jack is now aged 35 and married with two kids. Worrying is part of parenthood and you have to learn to live with […]
Willing Victim
IT’S difficult enough keeping any eye on your money while you’re living, but now it seems as though that will extend far into the afterlife! The news that the Court of Appeal has overturned the specific requests inscribed in a will so that a daughter can inherit some of her mother’s estate has led to […]
A Guiding Hand
Why would anyone apply for a mortgage without the help of an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA)? For a start, the IFA will sort out fact from the fiction, letting you know what is feasible with your financial resources and the best lender to approach in your circumstances. Every week, there’s a new media report about […]
IN FOR THE LONG HAUL
It’s quite astonishing how many newspaper and television stories have a direct bearing on our lives and our plans, especially in the financial world. The fact that those joining the workplace today will not receive their state pension until they are 70, or even later, will surprise nobody. There are already planned increases in raising […]
Long Walk To Freedom
The reality of freedom and revolution is always less enjoyable and straightforward than when the concept is first proposed. The pension world is proving no different as the reforms and freedoms, announced by the chancellor in 2014 and introduced this April, are not working as smoothly as many expected. Those, who expected to use their […]
Where There’s A Will
Why are we so reluctant to make a will? Is it purely down to the fact we always think there will be time to get everything straight before we depart? In some cases that might be correct. Statistics show that, on average, we are living longer than ever before – but there is always the […]
Taking Care To Save
There is a treasure trove of over £10 billion in the UK just sitting there waiting for us to claim it. That is the amount is in dormant bank accounts, forgotten pensions, unclaimed inheritances and investments and even over payments to energy companies. The unclaimed sums are quite staggering – £41m in premium bonds, £153m […]
Financial Safety Net
The dream for most investors, whether that hard-earned cash goes into property, equities, premium bonds or pensions, is to see that money grow and provide increasing financially security. The nightmare scenario is that the investment loses value over the years, perhaps disappearing altogether. For many investors, losses often figure larger in the decision-making process than […]
Computer Age
It is not up there with Einstein’s “Theory of Relativity”, but there is a property equation that is becoming increasingly puzzling and baffling! We are all living longer, yet the “House Years” – the window in which we can obtain a run-of-the mill average mortgage – seem to be diminishing! The average age for first-time […]
Finding That Little Extra
DEBT seems to have become a way of life. It’s hard to imagine how you would make your way in the modern world without it. The generation that saved first and then bought is long gone. We exist, normally and easily, with levels of debts that would probably have sent our grandparents, if not our […]
Stress Testing!
Finally – and fortunately – we have confirmation that our obsession with property ownership has gone too far. Forget the madness of £140m price tags on London flats, 30% annual increases, sealed bids way over the asking price or the successful buyer paying estates agents “finders’ fees” as well as the seller. None of the […]