A financial adviser will typically recommend that you start preparing for retirement as early as you can. But what if you’re in your 40s or 50s and have only just started thinking about pension planning? Have you missed out on the possibility of enjoying a secure and comfortable retirement? Well, not necessarily, as there are …
Retirement may seem like some way off, but it pays to start preparing as soon as you can. So what specific areas should you think about, in order to make sure you can afford the type of retirement you want and deserve? Set your goals Think about what you want to get out of retirement. …
All of us have felt the pinch as inflation has soared to its highest level in 40 years. From energy bills and grocery costs to filling up your car and eating out, the rising cost of living has affected everybody to some extent. But one group that’s being particularly hard hit is retirees. According to …
Typically, a person who receives a state pension will have made 35 years’ worth of National Insurance contributions.* But there will always be people who haven’t and will therefore miss out. You might have been off work for several years because you had children or caring responsibilities. Or perhaps you lived overseas, or were recovering …
If you’re paying into a pension scheme, you can get tax relief on your contributions, with money that would otherwise be paid in tax going into your pension pot instead. That can make a big difference when you’re saving for the future, and working to achieve the kind of lifestyle you want in retirement. The …
It’s worryingly easy to lose track of old pensions, many of which will be worth considerable sums of money and could make a big difference to your retirement. But the fact is, a huge number of people are losing touch with these pots of cash as time passes. For example, many people will know that …
If, like many people, you’ve had several jobs throughout your working life, you’ll have picked up multiple workplace pensions. But these can be hard to keep track of, both in terms of how much you’re paying for them and how well they’re doing, so you might be thinking of consolidating your pensions into just one …
Early last month, City AM had a dramatic headline: ‘Cash-strapped homeowners turn their properties into personal cash machines.’ They reported that equity release was ‘booming’, with homeowners releasing a total of £4.8bn from their homes in 2021. Ten years previously, the amount released was just £790m with only two years out of the ten – …
A happy retirement doesn’t just happen by itself. You’ve got to make it happen, and that involves lots of careful planning and asking yourself what you really want from your post-working life. The most obvious answer to that question is money, as we’ll all want financial security when we retire. But that’s not all. We’ll …
Do you know how much your home has gone up in value since you bought it? If you purchased your house more than 20 years ago, chances are it’s worth a great deal more than it was originally. According to Aviva, the average value of a property owned by 65 to 74-year-olds is now £287,000. …
