Pre-Christmas Planning
Going by TV commercials, the official countdown to Christmas starts right after Remembrance Sunday. In terms of financial planning, now is really the deadline for getting your Christmas in order so that you avoid going into the New Year with a financial hangover. There is one top tip, which we would like to emphasise ahead […]
Will pension freedom leave you unable to manage your money?
Whatever criticisms can reasonably be made about annuities, they do have one great benefit. They are simple. You make a one-time purchase in return for which you get an income for life. Unfortunately that income may not be anything close to what you hoped it would be. In recognition of this, the government brought in […]
High Street Prices And What A Lower Pound Means For Your Purse
There are winners and losers in every change and this also holds true for changing currency values. In the most basic terms, a weak pound means that you need more pounds to buy other currencies and less of another currency to buy pounds. An effect of this is that in practical terms, it costs more […]
SME Finance Tips
SMEs’ needs are different both to those of individual freelancers and to those of big corporations. Here are some finance tips to help SMEs deal with the issues of pensions, loans and money-saving in general. 1. Pensions Arguably the most important money-saving tip of all is to make sure that you are fulfilling all of […]
Interest Rates & Inflation
In principle, interest rates and inflation act a bit like a child’s see-saw. When interest rates go up, people are encouraged to save rather than spend. This reduces demand, which encourages suppliers to lower their prices, which results in lower inflation. When interest rates go down, the reverse happens. That, at least, is the general […]
Saving for big occasions
Little things can mean a lot but big events can cost a lot. Hopefully you will either be planning them well in advance or have a lot of notice of them, so that you have time to get your finances in order with the help of our useful saving tips. 1. Start by making a […]
Pension Scams – Don’t Get Caught Out
While the new pensions freedoms have been welcomed by many, some have raised concerns about the prospect of retirees being scammed out of their hard-earned pension pots. While this is a possibility, it’s worth remembering that the days of buying annuities had their own challenges, with people realistically looking at a seriously-impaired quality of life […]
Saving For Your Holiday
The weather outside is frightful, but summer is so delightful and now that the shortest day is over, it is on its way. Summer brings holidays with it and so the dark days of winter could actually be a great opportunity to make plans for how to pay for them. First decide what kind of […]
Are employers blocking pension freedom?
The topic of retirement savings has had a lot of publicity recently. The introduction of the auto-enrolment scheme was accompanied by a series of adverts highlighting the importance of “saving for my pension”. The withdrawal of the requirement to buy an annuity has also made headlines and sparked plenty of debate. The ability to leave […]
Don’t Let Your Christmas Debts Hang Around
Christmas comes but once a year. Sadly its financial effects can be felt for a lot longer. Ideally Christmas should be paid for out of a budget you can afford. This could be through savings you make throughout the year. In reality however it is very easy to overspend at Christmas. If the children have […]
