Taking positive steps to achieve financial freedom
When are you thinking of retiring? With many pre-retirees reassessing their lives and priorities in the wake of the pandemic, there really is a seismic shift for many people towards achieving life balance. People need a plan to flex with their changing aspirations – it’s become more about living life rather than going through the […]
Look after your life
Only a quarter of Brits have life insurance or critical illness cover policies in place, despite two in five knowing someone who has had a serious accident or been too ill to work, a study1 has found. Compared to protection for our homes (55%), and travel plans (20%), the take up of insurance policies relating […]
Tax year 2022/23 – get your ducks in a row
Effective tax planning strategies can help shield you from the chill this spring. While there’s minimal change in the operation and structure of the taxation of UK individuals in the 2022/23 tax year, the ‘no change’ element is significant. Excluding the 1.25 percentage point increase to National Insurance and Dividend Tax rates from April 2022, […]
Fund inflows notch up second-best year on record
Despite the pandemic, new stats from The Investment Association(IA)1 show investors added over £43bn to funds last year, the second highest recorded. The IA details a key finding ‘inflows to responsible investment funds totalled a record £16bn, up £4.3bn on 2020.’ In December, net retail sales reached £2.3bn. Equity funds were the most popular asset […]
Home Finance – In the news
Looming crisis in older people’s housing With demand for homes for older people four times higher than supply, the government has been urged to investigate1. The UK’s largest retirement housebuilder is requesting the introduction of rules to ensure 10% of new housing is designed for pensioners. A new government initiative ‘The Older People’s Housing Taskforce’ […]
Money – In the news
Savers say goodbye to £34m in LISA bonuses During the 2020/21 tax year, HMRC reclaimed £34m in Lifetime ISA (LISA) withdrawal charges1. Although the government reduced withdrawal charges for LISAs from 25% to 20% in 2020 (to 5 April 2021) to help those who had no choice but to access their savings during the pandemic, […]
Wealth – In the news
Cautious optimism over 2022 dividend growth A recent report1 has revealed a dramatic rebound in UK dividends in 2021, increasing 46.1% last year to total £94.1bn. This figure was boosted by a record £16.9bn in special dividends, three times the normal level. Special dividends are non-recurring and usually larger than a typical dividend payment. For […]
Life changes – so should your mortgage
The cost of living has shot up in recent months, with inflation expected to reach a peak of 8.7% in Q41 and many families facing a significant hike on their annual energy bills from April. With finances squeezed, every penny counts – so it’s important to consider all the options for streamlining your outgoings. If […]
Pension wealth outweighs property wealth
New data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) Wealth and Assets Survey1 has revealed that the largest single component of household wealth is private pension holdings. In the latest recorded period (April 2018 to March 2020) pensions represented 42% of aggregate wealth, up from 34% (2006-08), an increase in pension wealth of nearly £70k […]
Renters feel the extra strain of cost-of-living crisis
The cost-of-living crisis is likely to be felt by most Britons this year, with increases in energy and food costs and the increase in National Insurance Contributions from April. In addition, renters need to add in the rising cost of renting a property, with the average price for a new tenancy up by 8.5% from […]