Monthly Archives: July 2018

Transferring ISAs

Time to bring your investments together?

If you have accumulated a number of Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) over the years, keeping them all in one place could give you better control and help you save money. There’s a common misconception that you can’t move your existing ISAs from one provider to another. Transferring your ISAs doesn’t affect its tax-efficient status, but you should make sure that you don’t have to pay penalties or give up valuable benefits.

Back to the future

Visualising what really matters to you is the key to the planning process

Have you ever thought about writing a letter to yourself to describe your ideal future life, long-term life goals and the process of how to plan for them? Imagining what you want your life to be like in the long term when you retire can help you think much further ahead than you might ever have done before. Research conducted for a new campaign[1] shows that over half (54%) of people plan their lives only days (31%) or weeks (23%) ahead.

Driving towards the next phase of your life

Getting the date right can help you reach your destination sooner

At some point you’ll say ‘goodbye’ to your co-workers, get into your car and drive towards the next phase of your life – retirement. But when will that be? The move to retirement is one of the most important decisions you’ll make, so it’s not surprising that determining the date is harder than you may ever expect.

To transfer, or not to transfer?

More than 100,000 people transferred out of Defined Benefit (DB) pensions in 2017/18[1]. A DB pension scheme is one where the amount you’re paid is based on how many years you’ve worked for your employer and the salary you’ve earned.

When I’m gone

How a simple list can help your loved ones after your death

Although it may not feel like it, your family finances are probably more precarious than you think. It’s all well and good when the breadwinners are healthy and working, but if something unfortunate were to happen, the outlook for those around you could change instantly.

Protecting you and your family’s finances

Top reasons people gave for not taking out protection

There are many things to consider when looking to protect you and your family. It may not be the most exciting of subjects, but it answers one of our most basic desires – to keep safe all that we hold dear.

Averting a later-life financial crisis

More retirees drawing pensions without LPAs

People are generally living longer these days. Increasingly, more people are living well into their 80s and 90s – and some even longer. This may mean you have a long time to budget for. That’s why it is very important to consider all of your options carefully and think about what will matter to you in retirement.

Pensioner debt

Worrying increase on last year’s figure

The over-65s in the UK are expected to owe around £86 billion by the end of 2018, according to latest figures from the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) and More 2 Life. Total debt had increased on last year’s figure of £78 billion, as borrowing grew £35 billion in just three years. The research forecast that all types of secured and unsecured debt to retirees would exceed £142 billion by 2027.

‘Pretirement’

Half of pensioners plan to work past retirement age

The onwards march of ‘pretirement’ – where people scale back on work or slow their retirement plans down rather than giving up entirely – is continuing, according to new research[1].

Taking early retirement

Making the most of the next chapter in life

With increasing numbers now working past traditional retirement ages[1], stopping work can seem a long way off, especially for younger people. However, new research[2] reveals that the early retirement dream lives on. Nearly two thirds (60%) of those stopping work this year are doing so before their expected State Pension age or company pension retirement date.