magazine archive
magazine archive
Personal Finance
Don't struggle with a big university bill. Invest now for your child’s future
Thursday 21 Apr 2022Many American families already embrace the concept of a college fund and start saving for their children from when they are born. With the cost of university increasing in the UK, lots of parents might be thinking of starting a similar fund for their children. Anyone with younger children could...
Student loans are set to get more expensive – should you pay them off as soon as possible?
Thursday 07 Apr 2022Chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced a shake up of the student loan system, which will make it more expensive for people to go to university and mean graduates are paying off their loans for up to 40 years after they leave university. Graduates and potentially their parents may be left wondering if...
What will the cut in income tax to 19% really mean for you?
Thursday 31 Mar 2022In his spring statement, chancellor Rishi Sunak unveiled a surprise cut in the income tax rate, to 19%, which will take place from 2024. That will offer some relief from the frozen income tax thresholds he announced only last year, but a tax tsunami is still about to hit these shores, and it will...
Rate hike: what it means for mortgage borrowers and savers
Thursday 24 Mar 2022The Bank of England has increased interest rates for the third time in four months, taking the Base Rate to 0.75%. The Monetary Policy Committee, who decide whether rates will be increased or not, voted 8-1 in favour of a rise from 0.5% to 0.75%. The rate decision will have a big impact on anyone...
What not to do as the tax year end looms
Thursday 24 Mar 2022Sticking with cash in a high inflation world Inflation is expected to peak at more than 7% in April, just as ISA season comes to a close. Fears of savings being eaten away by inflation is probably near the top of investors’ list of worries right now. Inflation is the enemy of cash, as no cash ISA...
Five big personal finance changes heading your way in April
Thursday 17 Mar 2022April is the cruellest month, begins TS Eliot’s modern masterpiece, The Waste Land . The poem was published 100 years ago, but the sentiment could well apply today. UK consumers are facing a perfect storm of rising taxes and bigger bills from next month, which means that financially speaking, April...
Six big mistakes to avoid ahead of the end of the tax year
Thursday 10 Mar 2022Missing out on free money Whether it’s your pension, your Lifetime ISA or ensuring you claim tax breaks that you are eligible for, you want to make the most of any free government cash that you’re entitled to. Pensions benefit from tax relief at 20% for basic-rate taxpayers, but higher and...
How to value investments for inheritance tax purposes
Thursday 24 Feb 2022When someone dies and they have investments and other assets outside of a pensions environment, each of those assets needs to be given a value to determine the total value of the estate – and then in turn work out how much inheritance tax is due. But it can be tricky to work out how to value some...
How to shelter investments from an inflation storm
Thursday 17 Feb 2022Inflation is now forecast to peak at over 7% in April, which naturally has many people worried about how that will affect their savings and investments. Meanwhile the average Cash ISA is currently paying just 0.34% in interest, so many people will be looking to the stock market to help fend off...
Where’s the best place for £100,000 cash?
Thursday 10 Feb 2022Many people after a property transaction will be left with a large amount of cash that they may need in the relatively short term but not immediately. If we assume someone has banked proceeds of say £100,000, from a house sale or some other big transaction or windfall, where would be the most...