Pension advice

[AlfredJPruffock]

My advice ?

Hope I die before I get Old ...

I dont have a 'pension' futhermore I dont subcsribe to the entire concept.

I do have my ain hoose and a few bob put away - but you see thats all under my control - not some pension fund manager and I can access my funds when I want - not wait till I reach 64 or worse if you croak it before that age you get nowt - and you cant give it to your cat or relatives etc ..my take is that Pensions are a sophistcated form of robbery.

Work till you drop I say otherwise get statebens to keep you going on pies and bovril.

[EternalOptimist]

My advice ?

Hope I die before I get Old ...

I dont have a 'pension' I dont subcsribe to the entire concept.

I do have my ain hoose and a few bob put away - but you see thats all under my control - not some pension fund manager and I can access my funds when I want - not wait till I reach 64 or worse if you corak it before that age you get nowt - my take is that Pensions are a sophistcated form of robbery.

Work till you drop I say.

och. Plus when you do drop, you have a nice bundle you can spray around

[Purple Dalek]

Hi,

I would like some recommendations for pensions, I don't have one and am 33, would like to do it straight from the Ltd account to save tax. Also how much should I be paying in a month?

Utterly pointless. You'd be better off using the money buying some books about how to grow food, a collection of good hand tools, and training in the use of farm machinery. If you've a bigger wad to put down then buy some good farm land.

If you live near a large connurbation some weapons and proper training will also come in handy.

[moorfield]

Use sippdeal and start a high yield portfolio as advocated by Motley Fool.

[expat]

Use sippdeal and start a high yield portfolio as advocated by Motley Fool.

OP particularly mention "would like to do it straight from the Ltd account to save tax" which would suggest concentration on a SIPP (that's the option that gets the money in tax-free).

An online SIPP is a good idea: cutting fees over the life of the investment makes a difference to the end result. The commonly recommended online SIPP providers are
Sippdeal
Esipp
Hargreaves Lansdown
ISTR that Motley Fool also have one.

All have their points: I use H-L because they have good discounts on Funds, but others may be better for other aspects.

The Motley Fool High Yield Portfolio (HYP) is an interesting idea. Do research it. Note that the author of the idea, Stephen Bland (TMFPyad) has now left Motley Fool, but the original articles are still sound and the duscussion boards are good. It has (as the author admits) not yet been tested long enough to have proven itself through all market conditions.

[Cyberman]

I should point out that I omitted to mention anything called a Pension Fund. A SIPP is merely a type of saving and investing account, with special characteristics of taxation and paying out, to reflect that its purpose is to allow you to save for your pension. It's not a pension fund, it's a saving/investing account. The money remains yours.

But DP's specific advice here is good. It is better to diversify, and having cash ready for when a good investment comes along is also a good idea.

As the Talmud said about 1400 years ago, you should have a third of your wealth in land, a third in business, and a third in cash. Your own house may be a good start on the "land" investment class, shares in a SIPP are investing in business, so you still have the cash to do.

A SIPP is definitely a pension fund, and stands for Self Invested Personal Pension. The money remains yours BUT is not accessible until retirement, and cannot all be taken as cash. Pension rules may change but it is still a very restrictive scheme, and I have one myself with Hargreaves Lansdown. Annual charges are quite low if you select the right one.


My view is that property is still the best investment in the long-term, and surely the best investment is to pay off your mortgage early, rather than build a pension fund. If you cannot avoid 40% tax then there are good arguments to use a pension fund, but personally I try to leave funds in my company and trickle dividends out annually to remain under the 40% bracket.


Remember, that you still have to pay tax on your pension when you draw it, and tax levels then may be very high because we will all have to fund public sector pensions(current future liability is estimated at 1 trillion pounds!!!) unless drastic action is taken. Property can always earn you good rents, and that is what I would aim at.

[DimPrawn]

A SIPP is definitely a pension fund, and stands for Self Invested Personal Pension. The money remains yours BUT is not accessible until retirement, and cannot all be taken as cash. Pension rules may change but it is still a very restrictive scheme, and I have one myself with Hargreaves Lansdown. Annual charges are quite low if you select the right one.


My view is that property is still the best investment in the long-term, and surely the best investment is to pay off your mortgage early, rather than build a pension fund. If you cannot avoid 40% tax then there are good arguments to use a pension fund, but personally I try to leave funds in my company and trickle dividends out annually to remain under the 40% bracket.


Remember, that you still have to pay tax on your pension when you draw it, and tax levels then may be very high because we will all have to fund public sector pensions(current future liability is estimated at 1 trillion pounds!!!) unless drastic action is taken. Property can always earn you good rents, and that is what I would aim at.

WHS

Pensions (inc SIPP) are inflexible and subject to future unknown legislation changes (e.g. can't retire until you are 85).

Buy land, property and commodities, put cash into tax free savings and live off these tangible investments.

[expat]

A SIPP is definitely a pension fund, and stands for Self Invested Personal Pension. The money remains yours BUT is not accessible until retirement, and cannot all be taken as cash. Pension rules may change but it is still a very restrictive scheme, and I have one myself with Hargreaves Lansdown. Annual charges are quite low if you select the right one.

I do know what SIPP stands for, thank you. I was contrasting it with a "Pension Fund" administered by pension fund managers, which type of pension fund has in recent years shown poor returns, not to say losses.

I was replying to DimPrawn's

This [a SIPP] is a good thing. If you'd have poured good money into a pension, the funds now would be worth bugger all.

The point at issue is the difference between a classic pension fund, and a self-invested personal pension.

Sorry I had to spell it out in such detail.

[Bagpuss]

I'm with the Pensions are a waste of time brigade. They are just a gamble on your increasing likelihood to snuff it

[pmeswani]

Hi,

I would like some recommendations for pensions, I don't have one and am 33, would like to do it straight from the Ltd account to save tax. Also how much should I be paying in a month?

Hi there,

It depends on how much you want draw on when you retire. Do a search on Google for "Pension Calculator" (without the quotes) and select a few calculators and enter some figures. I would advocate going into a SIPP rather than a Stakeholder / Personal Pension plan, mainly for the reason of having control of the investments you make.

It will be prudent to speak to an IFA to see what they say. But pick one that considers both Commission and Fees as they would give more impartial advice.