It is not uncommon for our financial planning to include advice around inheritance tax. There is a threshold set by the government, above which the levy must be paid at 40% on any assets you own at the time of your death. Recent amendments mean eligible married couples now have Read More >>
For most of us, money doesn’t come easily. It takes a lot of hard work to build up savings, so how do you make those savings work hard for you? You need to consider all the options available and extract the most from your hard-earned cash. A stocks and shares Read More >>
Record stock market highs were recorded in February, which now seems a long time ago. A month later, Covid-19 and an oil price war between Russia and members of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), led by Saudi Arabia, brought about the biggest market downturn since the financial Read More >>
According to one of the UK’s leading protection companies, 91% of small and medium-sized businesses have four owners or less and 95% have fewer than ten employees. This puts these businesses at a much higher risk of failure, in the event one of their key employees becomes seriously ill or Read More >>
When you ask someone for investment advice, you need to know where your money will be placed. It should raise a red flag if they can’t explain their approach concisely and confidently. In my formative years, I witnessed pre-RDR (Retail Distribution Review) advice relying on ‘with profit’ or ‘balanced managed’ Read More >>
One-year performance doesn’t form the basis of our decision-making – we adopt a buy and hold strategy. However, we know it is important to see how your investments are performing, so here’s a quick overview to what happened in 2019. The headline news: It was a good year for nearly Read More >>
As financial planners, we like to concentrate on the things we can control, i.e. the risks you take, the tax you pay and the fees you incur. Fees are necessary, as they facilitate the management of your investments, but they must be appropriate and not so excessive, they impede the Read More >>
You’ve probably heard of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). It’s the body that regulates firms like Belmayne and should protect you from potential scammers. I say ‘should’ for a reason. In December, new rules were implemented that means the FCA no longer has to list advisers on its public record, Read More >>
The so-called WASPI women (Women Against State Pension Inequality) hit the political spotlight during Labour’s general election campaign. Whether you agree with their plight or not, one thing that is beyond dispute is that they clearly didn’t know about the changes to their state pension entitlement until the last moment, Read More >>
Her Majesty has spoken – action is needed! Don’t panic, this isn’t about Brexit, it’s about you and your pension savings. As part of the Queen’s speech, it was announced that a pensions dashboard would be launched. This initiative, first discussed back in 2016, will be an online tool to Read More >>
