News

According to the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA)1, a ‘moderate’ standard of living that includes £55 per week on groceries, a two-week all-inclusive holiday, £10 a week on takeaways and £100 a month to take others out for a meal, could cost a single person £31,300 a year, which is £8,000 more than last […]

Increased investor confidence in equity funds over the last few months has been evidenced by a leading Index1, with UK investors at their most bullish in almost three years.  Equity fund inflows reached £2.01bn in January, one of the top ten months on record and the highest since April 2021. In addition, the January Index […]

It was a disappointing Spring Budget for anyone looking to get onto the housing ladder. There were no announcements on Lifetime ISAs, no changes to Stamp Duty thresholds, no replacement for Help to Buy and the Chancellor had already scrapped plans for 99% loan-to-value (LTV) mortgages after resistance from the banking community.  A deafening silence  […]

If elections have consequences, as Barack Obama said, then 2024 looks like being a highly consequential year. Some 64 countries are due to hold elections this year (including the US, India, Brazil, Russia and very probably the UK), representing over half of the global population and, in economic terms, half of the world’s gross domestic […]

With the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) predicting the UK economy will expand by 0.8% this year, and by 1.9% in 2025, Jeremy Hunt delivered his last Spring Budget ahead of the General Election, highlighting reforms aimed to ensure the tax system is simple, fair, keeps pace with economic developments, and supports public finances.  Expectations […]

A recent study1 suggests that some Brits are superstitious, as homes numbered 13 are valued lower than the average property.  Over 10 million houses have been analysed, each with a door number between 1–100. It seems many homeowners would like to be number one, as the first house on the street is worth the most […]

Research1 has shone a spotlight on the financial challenges that prevent women from accumulating the same wealth as their male counterparts.  The report found that having children continues to have a disproportionately large impact on women’s finances, as do other life events such as the menopause.  The findings  Amongst the report’s findings were the following […]

According to a study from NatWest1, seven in 10 people have been targeted by scams over the last 12 months. Vulnerabilities brought on by cost-of-living challenges have likely contributed to the high numbers.  Sadly, 13% of people have fallen prey to such scams, which are growing in both number and sophistication – targeting young and […]

Research1 has revealed that the ultimate retirement dream is actually very simple – financial security for the rest of your life.  This is according to a survey1, which questioned 2,000 respondents aged 50 and over on their aspirations for later life.  Hopes and dreams  Nearly all the respondents to the survey (94%) said that financial […]

Gazundering in a buyer’s market  Research1 has found that, in 2023, there was a 97% increase in people googling the term ‘gazundering’ – when a homebuyer reduces their offer on a property at the last minute, often just before exchange of contracts. About a third of sellers were subjected to gazundering last year2, indicating the […]