Blog
From 6 April 2022, no-fault divorce came into effect in England and Wales. No-fault divorce is a long-awaited revolution in family law, finally removing the need for blame as a basis for divorce. The result is that the only ground for divorce is that the marriage has ‘irretrievably broken down’. No one enters into a
Read more
New research [1] has exposed the staggering impact of the gender pension gap. The study shows that women have smaller pension pot sizes in every age bracket, and the situation worsens the closer retirement gets. Worryingly, women, on average, retire with less than half the income of men. Reduction in amounts paid into pensions The amount
Read more
The deadline for registering trusts on the new Trust Registration Service (TRS) of 1st September 2022 is fast approaching. As a reminder, the new rules, introduced on 6th October 2020, extended the scope of the TRS to UK (and some non-UK) trusts. Previously, only Trusts that had to pay tax had to register; the requirement
Read more
When you are off work due to an illness or injury, worrying about how you will pay your bills can make an already stressful situation worse. So much so that many people are finding themselves in the challenging position of having to put the need to earn money over their health by continuing to go
Read more
We tell our clients that investing is risky. However, it is during bear markets that this becomes real. Like most fears, the best way to deal with them is to understand them, know your options, and be confident that they will pass. What is a bear market? A bear market occurs when the value of
Read more
Factor investing is a specific way to approach investing. This approach targets specific drivers of returns across asset classes and can help improve returns and enhance diversification. How does factor investing differ from traditional investing? When looking at investing styles, there are two ends of the spectrum. At one end, you have purely active managers.
Read more
LCP, a pensions consultancy that counts former pensions minister Sir Steve Webb amongst its employees, has published a guide looking at the pros and cons of someone combining all their pensions in one pot. To a certain extent, the guide is aimed at those looking to consolidate their workplace pensions, but the points covered can
Read more
The government has removed the limit they had on the amount of money you can save in your pension over your lifetime. This was called the Lifetime Allowance (LTA); exceeding it meant paying a tax charge. This has opened up different opportunities for different clients. Should I restart contributions? If you have stopped contributing to
Read more
One of the two limits on how much you can put into your pension each tax year is the “Annual Allowance”. This limit was £40,000, but the government increased this to £60,000 in the Spring Budget. There has been a rule that this limit is reduced if your income is too high. If your income
Read more
Many business owners have used their pension funds to buy the properties where their businesses operate. But now, people who don’t own a business are interested in purchasing a commercial property using their pensions. However, it’s important to remember that commercial property values can go up and down, and many factors can affect them. It’s
Read more
