magazine archive
magazine archive
Personal Finance
Want a guaranteed income for life? It’s worth noting annuity rates are going up
Thursday 18 Aug 2022There was a time when 90% of retiring investors bought an annuity with their pension pot, but in 2015, that radically changed. The pension freedoms swept away many restrictions and allowed retiring pension savers to access as much of their pension cash as they wanted. The result is that nowadays,...
How to transfer your nil-rate band and avoid a potential inheritance tax hit
Thursday 11 Aug 2022As a nation we’re paying a record amount in inheritance tax, as the value of property and has risen but the tax-free bands for inheritance tax (or IHT for short) haven’t. Government figures show that in the year to April 2022 we paid £6.1 billion in inheritance tax, a record sum and a 14% jump on...
Using a dealing account? You could be better off with an ISA or SIPP
Thursday 28 Jul 2022The surge in online brokers means that more and more people have opened trading accounts. But lots of newcomers to investing have opened the wrong account type that’s costing them hundreds (or even thousands) in tax that they could avoid. Many people who use online trading platforms will just opt...
Holiday reading for anyone who wants to learn more about investing
Thursday 21 Jul 2022The summer holiday season is upon us, and those who are brave enough to be risking travel disruption in search of more exotic climes will no doubt be thinking about what reading material to pack for whiling away the hours on the beach, or in the airport departure lounge. An engrossing bestseller...
Pension vs ISA: choosing between the two when it comes to saving for kids
Thursday 14 Jul 2022Lots of parents want to start a savings account for their child but are put off by the array of accounts on the market. From cash to investing, from Premium Bonds to regular savers, or an ISA versus a pension, there are lots of options. For the purposes of this article we’ll assume that you want to...
Parents: four things to consider before helping your child on the property ladder
Thursday 30 Jun 2022Parents are now financially involved in half of all property purchases for those under the age of 35, according to the latest estimates from Legal and General. This shows the importance of the Bank of Mum and Dad to the housing market. Estate agent Savills estimates that as of last year just shy of...
Discover how recent capital returns from Aviva are being taxed
Thursday 23 Jun 2022Investors are probably used to receiving dividends from companies, and the income tax that may be liable on those payments. But every now and then, companies choose to pay back some capital to investors, and that is taxed in a different way. Insurance firm Aviva ( AV. ) recently paid £3.75 billion...
50,000 buy a home with a Lifetime ISA and £1.1 billion tucked away for kids
Thursday 16 Jun 2022It’s sad to admit, but there is a flutter of excitement that ripples through the personal finance industry when HMRC releases its ISA statistics every June. The figures reveal a host of interesting trends about what everyday savers are doing with their money, and the latest data dump was no...
The best ways to maximise your holiday spending money
Thursday 09 Jun 2022Anyone setting off on holiday this summer will want to make their money go the furthest – and one easy way to do that is being savvy about how you spend money while abroad. The difference between using the wrong card and one with low fees, or getting your cash at the airport compared to a more...
Should I fix my savings now or bank on higher rates coming?
Wednesday 01 Jun 2022Higher interest rates are on the way, or so the boffins in the investment markets expect. This is great news for savers, but it presents a conundrum for those looking at whether to lock in higher interest rates by fixing their savings. In this article we’ll help guide you through whether you should...