Category: News
Oddly, those thoughts came into my mind yet again when I read the many commentaries and predictions both before and after the Chancellor’s Spending Review last month. Inter alia: Capital Gains Tax – will it be brought into line with Income Tax and/or will rates be be raised to help cover covid-driven government spending? Income… 
You and I know that life is not all plain sailing but, as far as financial planning is concerned, if you plan ahead you can maximise your resources for your future income and capital needs and for those of your family – and reduce the risks while on life’s journey. We call it Lifetime Financial…
Covid-19 has changed the way most financial planners, we included, are able to deliver advice – at least for the time being. At the drop of a hat, the industry has had to embrace years’ worth of technological innovation so that we could continue to provide our services to you during a tumultuous time. The…
At the moment, only those who are married or who are registered civil partners are exempt from paying inheritance tax (IHT) on money or property left to them by their spouse. This was expanded to include heterosexual civil partnerships at the end of 2019. But the law does not cover people, e.g. siblings, who are…
How often have you heard us say that! You and I know that life is not all plain sailing but, as far as financial planning is concerned, if you plan ahead you can maximise your resources for your future income and capital needs and for those of your family – and reduce the risks while…
My career in financial services commenced 50 years ago, and I started our firm 45 years ago. During that time we have worked through, and advised clients throughout, the many vicissitudes that life presented – the 1973 oil crisis; the secondary banking crisis that followed; the stock market crash when our stock market fell 73%….
In the UK, we are faced with the challenge of an ageing population. Many of us will live longer than we might have expected and, because of improvements in healthcare and nutrition, this figure only looks set to rise. A demographic shift to an older population brings unprecedented change to the way the country would…
Following the financial crisis of 2008 when a number of big British banks came close to collapsing, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) was strengthened by the government to the extent that the FSCS currently guarantees the first £85,000 of a person’s cash savings per banking licence in total, and including interest. But what does…
“When we have shuffled off this mortal coyle …the rest is silence” … but not for our pension death benefits, methinks! Hamlet’s words in Shakespeare’s longest play (30,557 words if you want to count them!) reminded me of a very, very important aspect about death. Well, not so much about death – more about the…
Whenever we are in market conditions such as those affected by Brexit, it is sensible to review the balance of our investment portfolios – and to assess our income and capital needs over the next few years. For example, looking at asset allocations, many balanced portfolios contain holdings in property funds when appropriate. While such…