Do I pay through the nose for financial advice?
Am I better paying my independent Financial Adviser via a fee or commission? The answer here relates to any financial adviser rather than just an Independent Financial Adviser. There is a perception in most people’s eyes that if they have not actually paid out a cheque for financial advice that they have indeed got it […]
The bottom of the UK housing market?
It was only a matter of time before house prices eventually would be supported by quantitative easing and lower interest rates. The Bank of England have not made the same mistake as last time and were aggressive in their monetary policy which has clearly had an impact on the confidence levels of the homeowner.
Pensions – the annuity rip off
Pensions, that’s a conversation stopper. How to clear a bar in a split second. However it is one of our biggest investments next to our house and the pitfalls are considerable. I’ll review the impact from the budget but also start with a very important tip that could save you thousands.
How To Choose the Best Funds
How do you decide which are the best funds to invest into? I know they say that past performance is no guide to the future but what is the best way to analyse which are the best funds? This is one of the most interesting arguments in the financial services marketplace. There is more noise around this subject than any other and the confusion that is created is fodder for the unscrupulous. This will be a reasonably technical answer so I apologise in advance.
Should I encash my endowment?
I have an endowment policy and I am wondering if I should encash it. I took it out for a mortgage and I no longer have that mortgage so I thought about just keeping it for a savings plan. Is that a good idea? It’s quite common for this to happen and it’s all too […]
Your Day to Day Tax Journey
As we move closer to the budget, the political noise becomes louder and louder, but few can get away from the points in relation to capital gains tax we covered last week. Vince Cable is now telling us that wealth should be taxed the same way as income, commenting that ‘it is quite wrong and an open invitation to tax avoidance to have people taxed at 40-50% on their income but only taxed at 18% on capital gains’ and ‘for reasons of fairness and practicality’ he wants to overhaul the entire capital gains scheme.
Hung Parliaments, Debts & Deficits
Hung Parliaments, Debts & Deficits Hung parliaments (good idea but for a different reason), Greecey debt, and a mounting deficit. For most, this is too hard to read let alone study and understand. To the volatility makers (hedge fund managers et al) it’s a dream. A flat market is no good to them, but uncertainty […]
Financial impact of a hung parliment
Financial impact of a hung parliment It’s amazing the conversations that some parties are having around a hung parliament. I find it as exciting as an election campaign. Whilst some are saying that fear is not a part of their manifesto they continue to preach about financial Armageddon if there is a hung parliament. It […]
Can I transfer my pension?
I have had my pension valuation through from my insurance company and once again the valuation is poor. Can I transfer this so I can invest it myself? It is widely recognised that insurance company pension funds are pretty much guaranteed to underperform. Most are at best clumpy.
Tax, Tax and more Tax
Well there was no surprise regarding the budget. Tax, tax and a little more tax. But if you are bailing out banks at a rate of knots its no surprise that you need a sub from the unsuspecting tax payer. It is perhaps most worrying that the government appears intent on taxing the higher earners. This will be deemed as a penalty against success and sends a message out to the entrepreneurs who make the world tick that the UK is not a place to visit.
120p a litre, 150p or normality?
Petrol prices are very much the talking point as we speak but what is behind it? Talk of 120p per litre was quickly extinguished as fuel is already selling on some forecourts at that price. Prepare for it but if the logic we are being given to support 120p is true, 150p is just a few months away. Do I believe that will happen? Very probably unless all the relevant authorities take the correct and responsible action.
Banks with monetary dyslexia
‘State owned banks’. Boy do I detest that statement. That’s were the ‘government’, known to you or I as the UK tax payer, has promised to protect banks who have shown they are clueless in running a business. Let’s remember that Banks are responsible for 79.15% of all complaints upheld by the Ombudsman. (1) Lloyds tops the shop, holding three of the first eleven places. This appalling advice has cost the tax payer dearly in bad advice. The government’s response to this is to protect them, whereas I suspect if they were a less important sector on the ‘contribution to UK tax’ they would just have been closed as a national embarrassment.