Improving the home buying and selling process
Home information packs (HIPs) have been scrapped from 20 May, pending primary legislation for a permanent abolition, but sellers will still need to provide an official energy efficiency assessment of their property. Improving the home buying and selling process was a Labour manifesto pledge in 1997 and HIPs were designed to do this.
Posts By: admin
Investment matters
Optimistic investors return to tech stocks
It is now ten years since the dotcom bubble burst and today the technology sector landscape is completely different to that of a decade ago. At the end of the 1990s and beginning of the 2000s, companies were floating based on an idea rather than profit or even sales.
Pension reforms
How the government changes to pension rules could affect you
On 6 April this year, several changes were introduced by the Department for Work and Pensions aimed at helping women, carers and low earners in retirement, but it was not good news for everyone.
Why it’s time to talk inheritance tax
The downturn has provided an unexpected upside
What many people are not aware of is that a pre-inheritance gift can still lead to a potential inheritance tax (IHT) issue. Any large, outright gifts are treated as Potentially Exempt Transfers (PETs), which means that there could still be a liability to IHT if you die within seven years of making the gift.
Taking control of your existing pensions
Transferring your pensions to a SIPP
If you would like to have more control over your own pension fund and be able to make investment decisions yourself with the option of our professional help, a Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) could be the retirement planning solution to discuss with us.
Budget 2010 at a glance
Were you a winner or a loser?
Take a look at our guide and see how your finances may have been affected by Budget 2010.
Budget 2010
Questions Answered
Some major tax changes that had been announced in previous Budgets came into effect on 6 April 2010. From 6 April, income tax has been set at 50 per cent on earnings above £150,000. In addition, income tax allowances and bands have been frozen – meaning that everyone will pay more tax on their earnings if they receive a pay rise.
Spring-clean your portfolio
Taking the opportunity to review your financial affairs
There is no one investment strategy that suits everyone and your decisions on how to divide up your investment portfolio into different types of investment will change over time. If appropriate to your particular situation, now may be a good time to reconsider your attitude towards risk for return and give some thought to whether the structure of your portfolio is still in line with your wishes or whether your investment attitude has changed.
How to invest for growth, income or both
Whether you want to grow your capital, increase your income or both, this will determine the type of investments you choose. A growth investment is designed to expand the original amount of money you’ve set WHEREAS an income-driven investment is meant to generate regular payments to you, ideally without eating into your money.
A survival guide to inflation
Planning for inflationary pressures and the effects on your assets
Rising inflation poses a risk to any investor. Cash and gilts are the most vulnerable asset classes when it comes to erosion from inflation: cash because the returns are generally quite low and gilts because they pay a fixed interest. In contrast, rental income and company earnings tend to rise in line with inflation. Equity income funds, which invest in companies, aim to pay and grow dividends above the rate of inflation.