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As we start another year, getting your financial life in order should be a top priority and there are a number of ways to help make sure that you start 2022 on a positive financial footing.
In this edition of Intelligent Wealth we discuss the following topics:
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Better answers begin with better questions: What’s important to you, your family and your business, today, tomorrow and further down the track? And what do you have to do to make these important things become a reality? To discuss how Fairstone can help you, please contact us. We look forward to hearing from you.
Match an AdviserPensions and retirement plans still remain a taboo for many couples. In this issue we explain why when it comes to marriage and money, it’s good to talk.
Millions of married couples have no idea about their spouse’s pensions and retirement plans, according to new research, and many non-retired married people are also not aware of the tax-efficiencies of planning retirement together.
With the festive season fast approaching, have you thought about gifting your children or grandchildren something different this year? Festive financial gifts teach children the value of money. We explain how by giving them a good start in life by making investments into their future, you can make all the difference to them in today’s more complex world.
How can you protect your money from inflation? Inside we answer five questions you need to ask before inflation really takes off. Many savers may currently be receiving very low returns on their cash deposits, but with many households sitting on more cash than ever following COVID-19, protecting cash from inflation is becoming vital.
Better answers begin with better questions: What’s important to you, your family and your business, today, tomorrow and further down the track? And what do you have to do to make these important things become a reality? To discuss how Fairstone can help you, please contact us. We look forward to hearing from you.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, delivered his Autumn Budget and Spending Review 2021(SR21) to Parliament on Wednesday 27 October 2021.
The Autumn Budget and SR21 take place as the country focuses on recovering from a period of unparalleled global economic uncertainty and challenge to move towards a more promising future.
With the economic recovery underway and emergency support winding down, the Autumn Budget and SR21 set out the government’s plans over the rest of the Parliament. The SR21 sets departmental budgets up to 2024/25.
At the heart of these plans is the government’s ambition to level up, reducing regional inequality so that no matter where in the UK someone lives, they can reach their full potential, find rewarding work and take pride in their local area.
The optics of the Autumn Budget were that taxpayers’ money will be spent where it makes the most difference to people’s daily lives: creating high-wage and high-skilled jobs, reducing NHS waiting lists, putting more police on the streets, upgrading roads and railways, and building new homes, hospitals and schools.
The pandemic has demonstrated the risk of unforeseen shocks and there remains uncertainty around the path of the virus. The Chancellor admitted the months ahead will be ‘challenging’. He said: ‘The Budget does not draw a line under COVID’ but he declared it will pave the way for a ‘new economy post-COVID’.
Mr Sunak said employment is up and investment is growing, outlining that the UK is ‘recovering faster than major competitors’. He announced he would prepare the country for an ‘age of optimism’.
A further 50% of people polled across all age groups echoed this sentiment, with 98% saying they thought starting a financial plan as early as possible is beneficial.
The findings of the new report by Fairstone, are more pertinent with recent government statistics estimating that 10 million people in the UK are expected to live to the age of 100.1
Despite the increased financial pressures this will have on consumers, only around 8% of all UK adults have received financial advice, according to a recent report by the financial services regulator FCA2, with “many consumers still holding money in cash that could be invested to provide higher returns.”
The results of Fairstone’s Annual Client Survey are published today as part of a new report, entitled Fairstone Report 2021 – Changing Landscapes – Retirement is not just for the old. The report timely coincides with National Pension Awareness Week, an annual initiative organised by Pension Geeks and supported by the Department for Work & Pensions, which sheds the spotlight on the importance of retirement planning.
For the survey, Fairstone polled over 1,600 of their clients, seeking their attitudes over a range of financial issues from their views on making provision for the fact people are living longer and the importance of investing ethically, to why they chose to take financial advice.
Further highlights of the survey revealed:
Fairstone CEO Lee Hartley said that the latest survey painted a changing landscape for the future of financial services and had implications for both financial advisers and their clients.
Mr Hartley added: “One statistic that stood out was that 98% of clients thought that starting a financial plan as early as possible was critically important. This clearly shows that our clients see the value of expert advice with a long-term view to maximise their investments, navigate volatility and achieve financial security.
“On a broader stage though, there is still much to be done across the sector to educate people about the importance of seeking financial advice and the value in starting that journey as early as possible.
“That poses a challenge and a wake-up call to our sector; as financial institutions we need to be focused on assisting consumers to have access to first-class advice and support at the right time in their lives, to empower and enable them to make better financial decisions.”
Fairstone’s client survey also identified the importance of education and learned behaviour to starting the foundations of financial planning, with nearly 70% of clients surveyed saying that they had introduced their children and/or grandchildren to the concept of financial advice.
Hartley added: “It is important for younger generations to be educated and informed on financial matters to demystify the subject and to empower them with the confidence to start their financial journey early.
“These conversations should start within the family as savings and investment habits develop over a lifetime, with family culture and age all impacting on decisions that are made.
“To support this, we are launching our Junior Finance Academy, which will include educational platforms which have been developed by university academics in partnership with financial institutions, to help inform the children of our clients on important financial issues, in a fun and accessible way.
“As a sector we need to prepare ourselves for the future where the younger generation will be with more money that they are used to having and needing to make it work harder than ever before.”
Looking to start your financial journey? Let us match you with an expert adviser based on your individual needs.
1 https://www.gov.uk/government/news/over-ten-million-people-to-live-to-100
2 https://www.fca.org.uk/news/press-releases/fca-publishes-evaluation-financial-advice-market
If you are worried illness or injury could leave you without enough to pay bills, there are solutions to help protect your income. While some people could rely on state benefits as a safety net if they experienced a sudden loss of income, for many the drop in income would be too severe to maintain their standard of living. In this issue we look at the areas you may wish to consider.
Changed job? Moved house? It’s not always easy to keep track of a pension, especially if you’ve been in more than one scheme or have changed employers throughout your career. Over time, pension schemes close, merge or become renamed. In this magazine, we look at how you can go about tracing any pension schemes you have paid into at some point in the past.
Never before has there been such a big difference between the wealth of the UK’s older and younger generations. The coming years will see trillions’ worth of investable assets and housing wealth move primarily from the Baby Boomer generation to their children, the Millennial generation. According to a new report, two-thirds of people whose parents have an adviser also use them. Read the article on page 10.
At Fairstone we want to help you make the most of your money and future. Our expert financial advisers will work with you to build a personal financial plan that’s designed to help you achieve your individual, family and business ambitions. To discuss how Fairstone can help you, please contact us. We look forward to hearing from you.
As we enter another new phase in the pandemic, each UK nation has set out a roadmap out of lockdown, a positive sign that we can hopefully start to get back on track both financially and emotionally.
Meanwhile, rest assured, the entirety of the Fairstone team is continuing to work tirelessly on your behalf to support you and your financial health. If you have any queries or concerns, no matter how small, please do not hesitate to get in touch – we are here to help you.
It’s always a good time to consider financial planning, but even more so at the start of a new tax year, when you have a fresh set of annual allowances to take advantage of. Tax rules and regulations continually change so it’s important to stay up to date. In this issue we look at why now is the perfect opportunity to get your financial affairs in order and align them with your goals.
The Government has confirmed that it plans to increase the minimum pension age at which benefits under registered pension schemes can generally be accessed, without a tax penalty, from age 55 to age 57, from 6 April 2028. In this edition we explain the implications of this announcement and the potential impact it could have on the timing for taking your pension benefits.
Are you ‘mid or late career’ or planning to retire within 10 years? If the answer’s ‘yes’, then you will probably want to know the answers to these questions: Will I be able to retire when I want to? Will I run out of money? How can I guarantee the kind of retirement I want? We’ve provided five ways to boost your pension savings and help you achieve your retirement goals sooner.
Everything we do is dedicated to growing, managing and protecting your assets. We align our expertise with your individual needs, putting you at the centre. To discuss how Fairstone can help you, please contact us. We look forward to hearing from you.
Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, delivered his first Spring statement to Parliament. In a break from recent tradition, the chancellor did not use the financial statement midway between budgets to present a pre-budget report.
We look at the key announcements:
To discuss how Fairstone can help you, please contact us. We look forward to hearing from you.
