We all look forward to the day when the nine-to-five grind ends and we can enjoy one long Saga holiday after another. But how many of us will be able to fund the lifestyle we long for by the time our working days are done?
It had never occurred to me before, but something dawned on me when reading about Bernard Madoff’s colossal fraud: the way UK pensions and illegal ‘Ponzi’ investment schemes work is eerily similar. Are you happy about that? And, since all such investment schemes eventually collapse, will we ‘late entrants’ be ripped off?
Why is it then, that the biggest, most important accomplishments in our lives are so
flippin’ costly?
Whether it’s education, procreation or superannuation, everything that’s worth doing seems to come with a massive price tag.
We look at the 5 costliest things you can do in your life and try to find ways in which you can
lessen the burden and dodge the blows…
Are you sure you’ve got enough to live on when you retire? No? Join the club, because you’re certainly not alone. But it seems we could be due a piece of good news on pensions in the not too distant future.
For it’s been reported that pensions minister Steve Webb and work and pensions minister Ian Duncan-Smith will soon unveil the idea of a universal pension of £140 a week, regardless of the level of savings an individual has put away. This looks set to be good news for all those who have been uncertain about whether it’s worth saving for a pension…
Answer: When you’re over 55.
It’s an odd concept, isn’t it, but the more ailments and bad health habits you have when you’re about to retire, the larger your income should be in retirement.
Why don’t more people go for enhanced annuities when they retire? We find out what advantages ill-health can bring to those who are on the verge of cashing in their pension pot to buy an income for the rest of their life. And we explain how you can make sure you get the most for your money when you get to retirement.
There aren’t many of us who haven’t had a bad day at work and thought “roll on retirement”. For a long time we’ve been able to count the years until that day comes.
But all that may be about to change if the government follows through with its plan to raise the retirement age for men to 66 from 2016.
If you’re aged 59 or under, is this pure bad news – or is there a positive side? I’ve been weighing up the pros and cons.
