A guide to understanding pensions and retirement in the UK.
A guide to pensions and retirement in the UK.
There is a lot of content on the internet about pensions and it can be confusing knowing where to start. This page brings together all our articles most focused on pensions and puts them into a logical order to make your life easier. Just click on any of the headings to read the full article.
Pension basics.
It’s important to understand the basics of pensions and investments to effectively plan for retirement.
A pension is a type of investment that aims to provide an income when an individual retires. In the UK, individuals can have a private pension, employers can provide a workplace pension and the government may also provide a pension (State Pension), as long as certain criteria are met.
What is inflation and how does it affect my money?
Inflation is the steady increase in the prices of the things we buy and the subsequent decrease in the purchasing power of currency over time - how does this affect your money?
How much do I need in my pension pots to retire?
To make sense of any retirement planning exercise, it’s crucial to set a pension pot target to work to.
How much do I need in my pension to retire at 55?
Early retirement at 55 is possible if you maximise your pension pot savings. How much do you need in your pension to retire at 55? Our guide to early retirement.
Pension tax relief is a ‘bonus’ paid by the government on money someone pays into their pension. At present, how much tax relief you receive is dependent on what you earn and what your highest rate of income tax is.
What’s better: Active or Passive Investing?
When you’re looking to invest in shares or bonds, you may think about putting your money into one or more funds. You can find funds which invest in a wide variety of markets and sectors. But wherever you invest, your fund managers will take one of two basic approaches to managing your money: active or passive investing.
What is sustainable investing and is it the same as responsible investing?
The terms ‘responsible investing’ and ‘sustainable investing’ are often used as a catch-all to describe investments made with social, environmental, or other responsible or sustainability criteria in mind. This is becoming increasingly important for investors, including those saving for retirement.
How secure are my investments?
We are often asked by clients what happens if a firm they are invested with fails. This article provides useful information on how to check a firm’s financial strength and more.
The normal minimum pension age is increasing.
The minimum pension age is set to increase from age 55 to 57 in 7 years. In this article, we will explore what this means and the impact it will have on people’s pensions and retirement plans.
How much does financial advice cost?
One of the first questions we are asked by prospective clients, is ‘how much does your advice cost?’. This is of course a perfectly reasonable question. In this article, we will look at the typical ways Financial Advisors charge and the range of costs people may come across when shopping around for financial advice.
What Is The Pensions Lifetime Allowance? What Are The Rules?
The Pension Lifetime Allowance is the amount you can save into your pension pot and retain all tax benefits. Exceed this amount and you may pay additional tax.
Lifetime allowance (LTA) frozen for five years.
This article explores the impact of the pension lifetime allowance (LTA) being frozen for five years and the key considerations for those who are close to breaching the LTA or who already have.
When Can I Retire And What Is The Great Retirement?
If you have been keeping an eye on the media recently, you will no doubt have heard about ‘the Great Retirement’. What does this phrase mean and when can you retire?
What Is A Small Self-Administered Pension Scheme (SSAS)?
SSAS stands for 'Small Self-Administered Scheme' which are set up by company directors to offer greater levels of control over how their pensions are invested.
What are Investment Pathways? A summary of your options.
Investment Pathways are a way for those not wanting to take financial advice to access their pensions. In this article, we explore what they are and how they came about.
Pensions at different stages of life.
How to manage your money from childhood to retirement.
It's confusing knowing where to start with managing your money. This is our guide on how to manage money at every stage of life from childhood to retirement.
The top 5 things to do with your money in your 20s.
Managing your finances in your 20s is all about balance, learning, change & planning. These are our top 5 recommendations for what to do with money in your 20s.
The top 5 things to do with your money in your 30s.
Managing your finances in your 30s is all about balance, planning and rhythm. These are our top 5 recommendations for what to do with money in your 30s.
The top 5 things to do with your money in your 40s.
If your 20s are for setting good habits and your 30s are for building wealth, your 40s are about reviewing, reflecting and plugging any gaps before retirement.
How much should I have in my pension savings pots at 40?
Turning 40 is a great time to review your finances, especially pensions. How much should you have in your pension savings pots at 40 and what is your target?
How much should I save into my pension pots in my 40s?
The question of how much to save into your pension pots in your 40s is an important one as it can have a significant impact on your retirement income.
The top 5 things to do with your money in your 50s.
If your 40s are for plugging gaps in your savings, your 50s are about preparing to retire. This is our guide to the top 5 things to do with money in your 50s.
How much should I have in my pension savings pots at 50?
Turning 50 is a great time to review your finances, especially pensions. How much should you have in your pension savings pots at 50 and what is your target?
The top 5 things to do with your money in your 60s.
Your 60s are when all those decades of planning & saving finally come into their own. It’s time to set your financial plans and get on top of your budget.
What is the life expectancy in the UK and what does it mean?
Without being too morbid, life expectancy affects all of our plans. From how much we need to retire, when we can retire to annuity rates and care funding, we all need to understand the arc of life and make plans accordingly. The question is though, what is the life expectancy for men and women in the UK?
What to do with an inheritance: spend, save, invest or give?
Receiving an inheritance should be a blessing and change your life for the better, however, if you are not careful in your planning it could have a negative impact on your life.
When can I retire and what is the Great Retirement?
If you have been keeping an eye on the media recently, you will no doubt have heard about ‘the Great Retirement’. What does this phrase mean and when can you retire?
Pensions and divorce.
Pensions And Divorce. What Is A Pension Sharing Order (PSO)?
A Pension Sharing Order (PSO) is a formal agreement to divide the value of a couple's pensions after a divorce. PSOs are not always suitable for every divorce.
What is a pension sharing order (PSO) in the UK?
Pension Sharing Orders divide the assets in pension pots between a divorcing couple, making it an essential part of UK divorce proceedings.
What happens if a Pension Sharing Order (PSO) deadline is breached?
We came across this scenario very recently with a client and felt it was worth sharing what the impact of missing a PSO deadline is and what the options are for resolving it.
How do Pensions on Divorce Experts simplify pension sharing?
This article explains the need for a Pensions on Divorce Expert (PODE) when getting divorced and outlines how a Pension Sharing Order (PSO) is calculated.
Pensions, tax & benefits.
Can pensions be used to reduce inheritance tax?
Pensions are normally exempt from Inheritance Tax (IHT). So with the right planning, pensions can be used as an effective way of passing on money after your death without incurring or increasing your IHT bill.
Women entitled to higher State Pension on divorce.
A divorced woman may be able to substitute her ex-husband’s National Insurance record for her own up to the date of their divorce when working out her Basic State Pension, thereby increasing her own entitlement.
Underpayments of State Pension - who is affected and how much will they receive?
The DWP has identified underpayments of State Pension relating to entitlements for certain married people, widows and over-80s back to 1992.
Pension calculators.
We all know that saving for retirement should be a high priority, but how much will you need and are you saving enough? Our Pension Pot Calculator is provided by the Money Advice Service and helps you forecast the growth in your pension savings, set a target and see how saving even modest additional amounts in your personal pension could add up over time.
UK life expectancy calculator.
Using data from the Office for National Statistics, our interactive calculator allows you to calculate your life expectancy in addition to your chance of living to be 100 years old. All you need to do is enter your age and sex into the calculator to find out your life expectancy.