Are green mortgages worth it?
WE have been asked on many an occasion what our views are on green mortgages, so herewith. There is indeed a move to push toward net zero and energy efficient homes will gather pace in that regard. Many homes are far from efficient and will eventually lose value especially if energy costs remain high. A […]
Avoiding the extraordinary Christmas scams
IT’S that time of year again and Christmas scams are on the rise. Christmas can be a very magical time – a time of goodwill. It can be hectic, family time, fun, full of love, but also despair and those bad pups who just don’t seem to want to bother with the whole work thing, […]
Should you be worried about a recession?
SHOULD you be worried about a recession? Well, headlines headlines. If only we weren’t so dependent on them we might see through them. You’ll remember a piece I did a few months back showing historically when the press where very negative on markets how they responded so positively very soon after. The same was true […]
What matters more at Christmas – presence or presents?
PRESENCE or presents? That is the question! Christmas is quite something. I’m no humbug, unless you speak to my daughters who might have a different view. They know where I’m coming from. They understand my thoughts. I always had a ‘no present’ policy for me because I wanted them to leave behind nuts consumerism that […]
What is financial planning, financial kindness and what are the ‘Human Givens’
WHAT is financial planning and what needs are we really meeting? For all our self-importance, we’ve been on this earth for a tiny, tiny fraction of its existence. From our development as homo sapiens over the last 200,000 years, one characteristic is more evident in us than other species. Emotion. I’m writing this on World […]
£177,300 raised so far after CEOs take to the concrete for sleepout to help combat homelessness
HUMBLED and honoured are just some of the words used by our colleagues who joined an entire team of executives on Monday night for a sleepout to raise awareness and money for people who are homeless in the UK. Our ‘Leading Light’ and CEO Peter McGahan and our valued independent financial adviser and Community Ambassador, […]
Cryptic crypto and FTX
BACK in 2017, when asked about crypto currency, I gave my honest answers in this column. In short, buy and read the book ‘Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds’. There. I could stop now. In this book there were countless examples of crowds rushing to solutions and ‘investing’ ‘full tilt’ only to find […]
Autumn Statement and global bond markets
By Martyn Page, Investment Director LIKE the classroom bully who deliberately instils fear by telling you in advance how he’s going to get you after school, the government has spent the past week leaking tax rises via the media. This wasn’t just to soften up the public for bad news. Like the Chancellor’s ‘Autumn Statement’ […]
Is it really a mortgage panic and housing crash?
IN 35 years of financial services, much is like the yogi-ism from Yogi Berra – it’s déjà vu, all over again. There are crises, and that, mixed with the ‘new kid on the block journalist’ keen to get his front-page panic headline, bashes families into emotional turmoil. Poor financial decisions ensue. These are financial decisions […]
Peter McGahan listed as Top Leading Light in UK for Kindness and Leadership
THE CEO of Worldwide Financial Planning has been listed as one of the 50 Leading Lights in the UK for his kindness and leadership, an accolade aptly announced today which is World Kindness Day 2022. Peter McGahan, who leads a team of independent financial advisers and administrators from the firm’s offices in Cornwall, Southampton and […]
National pension (cauliflower) tracing day
It was ‘National pension tracing day’ (who thinks these up) last week, which I am sure took priority over pretty much everything you had planned and involved the cancellation of holidays and parties too. If you did miss it, which is possible of course, here’s what you missed – Popcorn at the ready. In ‘olden […]
Who You Gonna Call: Truss-Busters
By Martyn Page, Investment Director MONETARY policy and belts were both a little tighter this week after the Bank of England raised its base rate from 2.25 per cent to three per cent, as expected. Before the announcement today, markets had priced in an interest rate peak of 5.25 per cent. But, by mid-afternoon, that […]