Pensions

[Tashyboy]

Thanks for this @TB

What we can take into account is that my wife's pension is sufficient to cover all of our fixed monthly outgoings - including the monthly payment for any residual pension we decide to not clear at the present. This means that the worry about being able to afford live in our house (no matter what happens to any investments) is not one we should have.

We then have to look at capital available to do and buy stuff - and given my wife's health worries - that for the first time in our lives becomes important. And this is why looking at the CETV of my own final salary pension from a previous job comes onto the radar when previously I had never considered it.

I had a few choice words to say to me mum and Pa a few months ago. She mentioned about looking into the possibility of selling there bungalow and then moving into a council Bungalow. I told her she was talking testicles. She had spent a lifetime telling me to get me mortgage paid off and you have always got a roof over your head. "They can't take it off you "' she told me for years. Then she wants to sell up. It is not as if she needs the money. She goes on 3 or 4 cruises a year, and is away for a month as we speak.
Your story sounds similar to ours, wife's pension pays bills, my pays for golf etc.

 

[jim8flog]

Sconsiderable sum from the insurers
ILH, the trouble is with investing money, unless it is in ISA's etc, you stand a chance of losing it or a lot of it like I did. It leaves a nasty taste in your mouth, especially when your financial advisor is sacked for " being a bit of a maverick".
If you are paying £1k a month mortgage. And it's paid off, that's £1k a month going into savings. Lifestyle improves and stress over money issues disappear overnight. You can even buy branded biscuits. I did it and remember going to bed when we had the mortgage free letter come and grinning from ear to ear for a week.

Jim, when I mentioned about my investments losing brass it was in 2008, am sure one or two others did as well. Can understand what you are saying re houses and prices. But I have always looked at my house as a home and not an investment. If you had an house to rent in 2006, it may well be worth the same now as then but 12 years rental income would of been serious income.

When my wife died in 2005 I had a large sum to invest and I did look at investing in property, (for the 2nd time). When I compared the returns on buy to let compared to probable gains from stocks and shares I went the stocks and shares route. A decision I did not regret despite the 2008 crash.

The reason I got out of buy to let first time was based upon the experiences of one mate who had a flat completely trashed and a £6000 repair bill and my brother who was not paid any rent on one flat for absolutely months which he never recovered because the tenant committed suicide.

My daughter lets her flat whilst living with me and has had a similar rent problem with her first tenant plus a large repair bill for damage made by the same tenant.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

I had a few choice words to say to me mum and Pa a few months ago. She mentioned about looking into the possibility of selling there bungalow and then moving into a council Bungalow. I told her she was talking testicles. She had spent a lifetime telling me to get me mortgage paid off and you have always got a roof over your head. "They can't take it off you "' she told me for years. Then she wants to sell up. It is not as if she needs the money. She goes on 3 or 4 cruises a year, and is away for a month as we speak.
Your story sounds similar to ours, wife's pension pays bills, my pays for golf etc.

Similarities to yourself. We could clear the mortgage in one fell swoop using mum's estate and my wife's pension lump sum, but we'd have no readily available lump sum capital for big doings, comings and goings. However if the CETV of my FS pension is attractive enough, I might well buy myself out and invest it - knowing that I could take up to 25% of it tax free as 'big spend' capital. We could then pay off the mortgage using mum's estate and my wife's pension lump sum - and my wife 's pension would pay our bills.

Mrs Hogie probably going to retire end May or June, so much to sort out over coming 2 months in advance of her resigning and triggering her pension. She'll go for the largest lump sum (smallest annual pension) as she's pretty negative about the future, thinking no point in her having a larger pension but losing £35k lump sum if she only lives for a few years more... But that is how she thinks given her BC.

Me? I'll just plough on for a bit, meanwhile looking forward to paying my club subs in one go rather than have a £150/month DD go out.

 

[Val]

Hot topic pensions in our office currently as we've 3 guys between 57-60 and 2 have taken their 25% sums.

Unsure of how to pursue my own position having had next to nothing invested in pensions between the ages of 18-34 (other 2 small frozen pensions of 3 years each). I've been paying healthily into mine for over 10 years and now at 45 now i'm currently sticking between me and employer 20% into mine and hope to increase that to 25% over the next 2-3 years with an aim to take as much as I can at 55. I'll also be mortgage free in a matter of weeks thankfully so that will free up a bit that I hope to invest in something.

Lets get the interest rates up again :rofl:

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Hot topic pensions in our office currently as we've 3 guys between 57-60 and 2 have taken their 25% sums.

Unsure of how to pursue my own position having had next to nothing invested in pensions between the ages of 18-34 (other 2 small frozen pensions of 3 years each). I've been paying healthily into mine for over 10 years and now at 45 now i'm currently sticking between me and employer 20% into mine and hope to increase that to 25% over the next 2-3 years with an aim to take as much as I can at 55. I'll also be mortgage free in a matter of weeks thankfully so that will free up a bit that I hope to invest in something.

Lets get the interest rates up again :rofl:

These two guys taking 25% on 'paid up' FS pension schemes? Don't think you can take 25% unless the scheme is 'paid up' and so you are not paying into it. Maybe you can - but not an option I'm considering for my current 'live' scheme (like you 20% in total going in between self and company).

I have another two paid up pension pots with in total a fair amount in them that I could take and pull 25% out of tax free. Truth is - between what I'm getting from my parent's estate; my wife's NHS pension options; my 'paid up' pension schemes; and my Final Salary pension - it's frankly too complicated for me to sort out the best thing to do - so our Financial Advisor is on the case.

I'm sure I'd have been mortgage free by now if I lived in Central Scotland and hadn't had to put two kids through university However living in Surrey and getting no state support on Uni costs and fees that ain't so easy...

Using our house as equity for extending the mortgage has been the only way...and we have been able to do that as house value has gone from £93500 to £610000 in 21 yrs. which means of course come June this year I've got some £600k or so to stick in my pocket if I so wish (and go live in a tent) - and that's another consideration as we are likely to move in coming couple of years

 

[Val]

Their FS schemes are paid up. Our company stopped and froze existing a few years ago now

 

[Canfordhacker]

I did exactly this with my old Barclays pension, i was in for 17 years till 1996 and my pension at 65 (im 56 now) was projected to be about £5500 pa, reducing by 50% on my death.with a lump sum of £30K.
had a transfer value in excess of £300K and moved it lock stock and barrel to the Pru where the projections are for a lumpsum in excess of £100k with an annual pension of £20K without reducing the capital amount which now forms part of my estate and can be passed on.

cost me £7000 in fees, but easily the best financial move I have ever done apart from buying our previous house .

Interested to know if any others took advantage of their CETV? Like Phil I'm exBarclays (22 years) and moved it all to a SIPP in August last year. My financial adviser tells me the CETV's have finally started to fall like a stone, so the window of opportunity may be slamming shut - but glad I did it when I did, despite the last couple of weeks in the stock market.

 

[Jacko_G]

I lose 15% of my salary to my final pension scheme.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Interested to know if any others took advantage of their CETV? Like Phil I'm exBarclays (22 years) and moved it all to a SIPP in August last year. My financial adviser tells me the CETV's have finally started to fall like a stone, so the window of opportunity may be slamming shut - but glad I did it when I did, despite the last couple of weeks in the stock market.

I signed the Letter of Authority a few weeks ago for our FA to go to my FS Pension Scheme for a CETV. Hopefully it's well underway. We'll see. Truth is - taking the CETV was never in my plans so if it's good sum then fine - if not then it's as planned.