The Annual Spending Plan

The Annual Spending Plan

As we prepare for the end of the tax year in a few weeks’ time, we are also preparing your annual spending plans. On Wednesday clients should have received a new copy for you to update us with your plans for the year ahead.

If you would like to simply update your details from last year, we can provide a copy, which we will send to you securely. We are now using the Citrix ShareFile system which is encrypted and doesn’t require you to use a password. You can also return documents to us that way too (which makes life a little easier if you can save pdfs or create them). Alternatively we could send you an excel version of the same information. Just let us know.

A plan is not an account

We are all aware that despite the official figures showing inflation of roughly “nada”. Most of us need to keep an eye on where our money is going. Your financial plan is based upon your lifestyle. There are a couple of obvious sources of information about your lifestyle, things that tend to be more accurate than our own memory – your bank account and your diary. These tell us how we spend our time and money.

So whatever life stage you are at, it’s time to review your spending plan. Note that this is a plan, not an account.

The big-ticket item… in your plan?

I don’t follow American football, but I did see an “interview” with a Bronco’s fan at the Superbowl last weekend. He was asked how much he spent… he replied “Twenty-one”… then when asked how much on the whole trip, he said,

“thirty thousand – I spent twenty-one thousand on four tickets, but with the tailgate package it was thirty thousand…. Don’t tell my wife”.

I’m guessing that by now she has seen the video on NBC…. Well at least the Broncos won…. I’m not entirely sure that the interviewee knows the difference between hundreds and thousands though (a problem in financial planning and life generally!). When I looked up the price of a ticket the tailgate package is considerably less, so either he paid a fortune to a ticket tout or missed the day they did hundred, tens and units…

Dominic Thomas
Solomons IFA

You can read more articles about Pensions, Wealth Management, Retirement, Investments, Financial Planning and Estate Planning on my blog which gets updated every week. If you would like to talk to me about your personal wealth planning and how we can make you stay wealthier for longer then please get in touch by calling 08000 736 273 or email info@solomonsifa.co.uk

The Annual Spending Plan2023-12-01T12:19:25+00:00

As safe as houses… more IHT

As safe as houses…. more IHT

You have probably heard that the nil rate band or inheritance tax allowance is increasing on a main residence, provided that it is inherited by your family and provided that it isn’t worth too much. As probably intended, many are under the impression that this new “£500,000” allowance has started… it hasn’t and many will not see the benefit.

For starters, the new “Main Residence Nil Rate Band” … MRNRB is being gradually introduced from April 2017 starting with an extra £100,000 rising each tax year by £25,000 until the full extra £175,000 becomes applied from April 2020. However if the net value of the estate is worth more than £2m, then this extra allowance is gradually lost. I think that’s called giving with one hand and taking with the other and of course is ignored by those who think that this is a tax break for the super rich…. reality is quite different.

IH405

IHT405 is the form you use to tell HMRC about all of your properties upon death. Have a look at the form, the valuation of a property (or plural) can and will make a considerable difference to the value of an estate. If you have a second (or further) property, then please keep really good records about it. This includes dates and purchase prices, valuations, work done, insurance costs and so on. You need to be fastidious in your record keeping… not least because these records may also be pretty vital whilst you are alive.

Getting your house/s in order

If you have acquired property over the years, perhaps just for your own family use or perhaps as a commercial concern to generate rental income, this all needs accounting…(sorry for stating the obvious). The value of property obviously changes and there is some degree of flexibility in how this is valued for probate… on the basis that what someone will actually pay for a property is more fluid than a simple figure.

As an aside, landlords that are off-setting interest against rental income, thereby reducing profit and tax, are having the amount permitted altered (another feature of the last Budget). So beware! Also as an aside, those with second properties that have soared in value are loaded with capital gains and thus subject to capital gains tax. There are ways to manage this… which I shall outline at another time – but be advised that there are solutions that may appeal.

Dominic Thomas
Solomons IFA

You can read more articles about Pensions, Wealth Management, Retirement, Investments, Financial Planning and Estate Planning on my blog which gets updated every week. If you would like to talk to me about your personal wealth planning and how we can make you stay wealthier for longer then please get in touch by calling 08000 736 273 or email info@solomonsifa.co.uk

As safe as houses… more IHT2023-12-01T12:19:53+00:00

Budget 8 July 2015

Budget 8 July 2015

Following my recent email and Mr. Osborne’s announcements, I am pleased to confirm the following changes and amendments have been made to our App (which is available free of charge for iphone, ipad and Android platforms).

As the 2016/17 rates are being added after the Autumn Statement, there is only one small change to the 2015/16 rates and the change has already been made earlier this afternoon and is live in your App. The change was within the Main Capital and Other Allowances section of the tax tables and related to the change to the Annual Investment Allowance from 1st January 2016 from the previously announced limit of £25,000 to a new limit of £200,000.

On a separate note, the chancellor has, from April 2016, abolished dividend tax credits. This will fundamentally change 3 of the tax calculators so they will need to be changed when we complete our updates prior to the April 2016 budget. However for the remainder of this tax year, all calculators and tax tables remain fully accurate.

Dominic Thomas
Solomons IFA

You can read more articles about Pensions, Wealth Management, Retirement, Investments, Financial Planning and Estate Planning on my blog which gets updated every week. If you would like to talk to me about your personal wealth planning and how we can make you stay wealthier for longer then please get in touch by calling 08000 736 273 or email info@solomonsifa.co.uk

Budget 8 July 20152023-12-01T12:20:16+00:00

Estates: Inheritance Tax

Estates: Inheritance Tax

So it’s 8th July already and into the second half of the Wimbledon  Championships. Looking at your own life, which half do you imagine you are in? (ouch… didn’t see that coming!). Like most people inheritance tax (often referred to as IHT) probably isn’t something that is top of your current concerns (you don’t pay it) however it is a tax that generates more ire than most. In essence, inheritance tax is paid by the Executors of an estate following someone’s death. The amount of tax due will depend on the value of the estate and how it was arranged.

Today the Chancellor will give yet another Budget, but this one, the first as a Conservative Government. Like many I shall be waiting to hear what he says and see how he plans to deliver it. One of the pre-election manifesto promises was to increase the threshold for inheritance tax, perhaps to £1,000,000 for a couples main residence.

He may be less willing to follow through with this now as it was announced that in April HMRC collected £397m as inheritance tax payments, the largest in a single month and way above the longer term average of £260m a month. In fact March, April and May 2015 saw over £1bn of inheritance tax paid to HMRC. If interested, you can see the various taxes collected by HMRC from the data they published at the start of the month, just click here.

The Budget 8 July 2015

We shall simply have to wait for the Chancellor to tell us how and if he intends to adjust the nil rate band (the amount an estate can be worth before any inheritance tax is payable). The nil rate band has been frozen at £325,000 since 2009 and had historically increased with inflation each year, but of course that was before the credit crunch. As ever our APP will be updated with all the changes as quickly as possible (usually before the end of the day). Don’t forget it’s free and easy to use.

Pensions and ISAs are now IHT friendly

The main gripe is that property has continued to soar in value and is invariably the main asset that is left once someone dies. The pension freedom rules have enabled pension funds to be exempt from inheritance tax (though some taxes may apply) and ISAs are able to be passed on to a surviving spouse (previously they would have lost the tax-free status of an ISA).

As a result more people, or rather estates have been brought into the inheritance tax threshold, probably not the original intention of the tax. However the Chancellor will be seeking some wriggle room to keep things as they are given that it raises such significant sums for the Treasury.

A 40% tax rate

As of this morning, inheritance tax is charged at 40% on the excess value of estates worth £325,000. Each individual has a nil rate band and so a couple effectively has a nil rate band of £650,000. In addition, for those that have been previously married to someone now deceased, it is possible to use part of their allowance too.

Dominic Thomas
Solomons IFA

You can read more articles about Pensions, Wealth Management, Retirement, Investments, Financial Planning and Estate Planning on my blog which gets updated every week. If you would like to talk to me about your personal wealth planning and how we can make you stay wealthier for longer then please get in touch by calling 08000 736 273 or email info@solomonsifa.co.uk

Estates: Inheritance Tax2023-12-01T12:40:17+00:00

The Budget 2015 – A New Mad Max

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The Budget 2015 – A New Mad Max

So, the Budget is already ancient history, the political hoo-hah has been left to fester, tweak and develop into an election manifesto campaign. So what, if anything grabbed my attention?

Jilted Bribe

Firstly, I have to admit that I was expecting there to be a little more of an electoral bribe. Whilst the Chancellor certainly made much of the fact that he wasn’t going to (and thus seek to be understood as prudent or sensible) the truth is that, well… he didn’t really offer a bribe (unless its one I missed). Frankly with the national purse in the shape its in, I was rather glad, (though I remain open to the possibility of  solving the problems differently).

ISA with tax relief? – future implied?Mad-Max-5

That said, the first time buyer ISA does sound like a good idea. The detail needs further examination, but in essence there is 20% tax relief on the annual ISA allowance for people that are 18 or over and don’t (and have never) own a home. £3,000 of the £15,000 ISA allowance will be paid by the Government. Whilst everyone that qualifies will benefit, in practice, this will be a very good way of saving if you qualify… if not you, perhaps your children… opening up further options for more wealthy parents.

Pensions and Politicians… taking the …point?

As for pensions, I have to admit that the utter folly of politicians in relation to pensions has shifted gear over the last 10 years. Whilst knowing that we all need to save more so that there is less reliance on the State system… perhaps even the prospect of a means-tested State pension (who knows?) they are determined to punish successful investing and saving.

Here in the UK we are now restricted on how much can be paid into a pension and how much the pension fund can be worth. Utter madness. Yes £1m is a lot of money, but are we also going to cap how much can be held in a bank account or the value of property? what about the value of a business? These are measures to appear a poorly informed crowd by a poorly informed media. I would immediately abolish the Lifetime Allowance and simply restrict how much tax relief is provided on payments to pensions. It doesn’t have to be more complex than that. However we have a new maximum pot size for your pension. To say that this complicates life further for anyone in a Defined Benefit (DB) pension such as the NHS, would be a masterful understatement. Just so that we are clear… the Lifetime Allowance has reduced from £1.8m to £1.25m already and the Budget has reduced this to £1m in 12 months time. Ok, there will be some form of protection, but if recent experience is to go by, this is about as useful as pushing someone out of an aeroplane with an umbrella instead of a parachute. As for those that put a commercial property in their pension pot… good luck with that! The Annual allowance is now £40,000 a year as the maximum value of contributions to pensions, which may as well be written in algebra when attempting to calculate this for DB members.

Final note: our free APP is updated with all the changes announced for personal allowances, savings rates and so on.

Dominic Thomas

The Budget 2015 – A New Mad Max2023-12-01T12:40:00+00:00

What About Common Sense? Budget 2015

Solomons-financial-advisor-wimbledon-blogger

What About Common Sense?

There is another Budget tomorrow (Budget 2015). Sadly, the older I get the more cynical I become about whether these achieve anything. I shall be keeping clients posted in due course, but if the last Budget is to act as an indication, expect the unexpected… and as we have an election looming, expect a bribe.

I am concerned about pensions and the constant meddling by Governments of all persuasions. The point of pensions is to encourage people to save for their retirement, so that they are not dependent upon the State, something that would seem in stark contrast to “reforms” over the years. Pensions are meant to be simple, and frankly they could be. The fact that they are not is entirely due to politicians, not the pensions industry. Complicated doesn’t begin to touch the surface of rules that are designed by  short-term thinking…. so I shall reserve judgement until tomorrow, once I can actually digest the information rather than rely on newspaper stories.

Dominic Thomas

What About Common Sense? Budget 20152023-12-01T12:39:59+00:00

Retail Therapy

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Retail TherapyWho Pays the ferryman

Most of us have probably at some point dabbled in a bit of retail therapy, bought something nice to make us feel a bit better. Invariably the feeling is all too fleeting, which most of us observe and move on, however some, much like addicts, seek out another high or buzz, returning to the shops. Unfortunately most western economies are based upon this reality to a greater or lessor extent.

However, whatever your economy is based on, the cold reality of life will eventually be something that cannot be avoided. You may have seen the rather sad tale of Louise Gray, a widow of the 7/7 London bombings. Mrs Gray received a substantial sum from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority and awards were also made to her son and daughter, which were placed into Trust (presumably a Bare Trust) as the son gained access to the funds at 18. However, he simply took funds out and entrusted them to his mother, who it seems had spent her funds and then spent his. Sadly this resulted in her son Adam taking his mother to court to return the money to him, which she couldn’t so was recently sentenced to imprisonment for 2 years and 8 months.

Of course, I know nothing of the detail of this case, but I imagine that Mrs Gray has found it very hard to adjust to life following the loss of her husband and rather than seeking professional help and support sought comfort in things. Of course, she may have sought and even found some counselling, but even if she did, her behaviour suggests that she was avoiding confronting some very harsh realities, which I imagine would be a difficult process for most people. war bonds

It would be easy to dismiss her actions as foolish, yet it is plain that it is far easier to avoid reality than face it. The Greek election vote is something of a vote for denial of reality, but then, aren’t our own politicians in a rush to make promises that in reality delay the unyielding inevitability of collective need to get our finances in order? Whether its tax cuts, tax breaks, spending increases, decreases… it all boils down to some basic sums… you cannot continue to spend what you don’t have, without a day of reckoning. Talk of finally paying off the FIRST World War debt (some £1.9billion is still owed) is somewhat flawed… the debt hasn’t been repaid, its been repackaged… much like switching a credit card balance to a cheaper one isn’t clearing debt. Perhaps you thought that the country would have paid for WW1 by now, some 100 years later…war is expensive in every possible sense! How much better off our Nation would be if we had found the courage to repay debt rather than simply maintain it. The truth can be pretty painful can’t it…..

Dominic Thomas

Retail Therapy2023-12-01T12:39:55+00:00

Autumn Statement – 3rd December 2014

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Autumn Statement – 3rd December 2014Autumn Statement 2014

So the Chancellor has delivered his Autumn statement, most of which was leaked in the media or announced in his radical budget (well radical for financial planners). The main points of the budget that we didnt know already is the provision to pass ISA allowances between spouses on death. This will certainly please married couples with large ISA funds. Prior to this, upon death an ISA becomes part of the estate, unless it has been held in specific AIM listed holdings for at least 2 years thereby benefitting from an IHT exemption, but invariably increasing the degree of investment risk (p56 of statement).  The ISA limit will increase for 2015/16 to £15,240 from £15,000 as it is today.

Stamp Duty

QE2 stampA signficant change to Stamp Duty on property was announced, which mirrors the system used for income tax rates, that is, the more you earn, the more you pay, but only over certain thresholds – higher rates are only applied once thresholds are reached and nor applied to the full amount. Stamp Duty has now adopted this approach, some will be better off at the lower end of the property price range, some will be considerably worse off.  The aim probably being twofold, to increase and encourage first time buyers and be more of a help to people trying to get onto the property ladder, whilst also attempting to dampen price increases at the top end. You can see a helpful chart on the impact of these changes on pages 53-54 of the Statement.

On a similar theme, the higher rate (40%) threshold has been increased marginally more than previously announced (by £100). We will have to wait until 12 December to find out what the interest rates will be on the new NS&I Fixed Rate Pensioner Bond (only for those age 65+).  No doubt the free newspaper you pick up this evening or the TV and radio coverage will have pundits discussing the changes. You might want to look at the figures towards the back of the report, (page 100) which essentially show the UK’s income and expenditure. All the talk of austerity (which is certainly more real for some than others) has still resulted in national  overspending and this looks likely to continue until 2016/17 with lots of “if’s, but’s and maybe’s”. If you do have any questions about your own situtation and how it might be effected by today’s Autumn Statement, do get in touch.

Dominic Thomas

Autumn Statement – 3rd December 20142023-12-01T12:39:42+00:00

Cash for ISA Questions

Solomons-financial-advisor-wimbledon-blogger

Cash for ISA Questions

Let me be very clear – I LIKE CLIENTS TO HAVE CASH… its VITAL. The real question is “what is a sensible amount of cash to hold?” This will be different for everyone. Cash should really be available for planned expenses within the next 0 to 3 or 4 years, that way you know its there ready for your use. Thereafter, cash is vital to run any business and any personal finances. Whilst budget calculators and spreadsheets suggest nice neat twelfths, many costs are not monthly. As thoughts turn to Christmas – this is something we all know happens annually, once the presents have been unwrapped and you start looking forward to the potential of the new year, thoughts turn to summer holidays… and so on. So having cash on deposit is a very good and wise thing and don’t forget that some expenses are unplanned – such as repairs or replacements due to loss or damage.

Interest rates are so low is it worth bothering with a Cash ISA?high_and_low

The short answer is “maybe” – it rather depends on your circumstances and when you need the money. Sadly, despite ISA allowances never being higher, interest rates haven’t been lower in living memory. Many if not most, deposit accounts are paying less interest than the rate of inflation (1.3% according to ONS). So your pound is declining, slowly, in purchasing power. This is an unfortunate reality that we currently live with. I would also take issue with official figures about inflation which bears little resemblance to the spending patterns of various people (think of the price increases in gas, electricity and rail).

Just to be clear… what is a Cash ISA?

A Cash ISA is simply a deposit account where interest is tax-free. Interest is taxable normally and should be reported on your HMRC self-assessment tax return. The amount you can put into a Cash ISA is linked to tax year allowances and the ISA rules (all of which are within our free APP or you can look them up). These changed in July 2014, lets stay brief and current, the new allowance is £15,000 each for the current tax year. You can now hold all of the allowance as cash or as investments, or any combination between the two within an ISA (previously you could only contribute 50% of the ISA allowance towards cash). As a result of the new rules, you can have a more suitable balance between cash and investments within your ISA to suit your requirements.

Should I just pick the best rate?

A word or warning, picking a cash ISA (or any deposit account) based entirely upon the headline rate, may not be wise. Perhaps you will remember the Icelandic banking crisis in 2008, which ought to provide some cautionary tales.

It is worth the effort?

It depends on your current rate of interest within your ISA and what the alternatives are. Remember that an interest rate of 1% will be worth 0.8% to a basic rate taxpayer and 0.6% to a higher rate taxpayer. Within an ISA you get the full untaxed amount. However if the sums are small or modest, say £10,000 then shopping around for an extra 0.5% is only going to provide £50 over a year, which given that if the better new rate is with a different Bank (or Building Society) you have to go through the ususal opening an account procedures – demonstrating your identity and UK residency and so on.

If this cash is just a part of my portfolio, should it now be mixed within my investment ISA?

Maybe. If you have a modern investment ISA on a “platform” which holds lots of funds, shares etc, then the platform may well have cash deposit options too. However be warned that platforms generally charge for their adminstration based on the balance on it, so you may well (probably) get charges for cash holdings too. If its ok at your Bank/Building Society then as long as your adviser knows that you have it and therefore not “too much” in cash, that should be OK. However for long-term wealth I would encourage people to use an ISA as an investment vehicle, rather than a place to dump cash as savings. Context is everything and needs thoughtful assessment with an adviser.

So where can I find current ISA rates?

Try looking here at Moneyfacts. However, I suggest doing a proper search using their search engine or any other that is widely available. Remember fixed rates are lock-in’s. If you think rates will rise, then you may wish to question the wisdom of locking into a low rate that is fixed for ages and if you are really locking away cash for 4 years or more, then perhaps you should be thinking about investment instead.

Anything else I should know?

Well, the age old one about bias. Financial advisers and financial planners like me are in part remunerated based upon the amount of money we look after, so if you invest more, we earn more. Of course the hope and expectation is that this is a very worthwhile exercise for you – getting better returns etc (but more importantly getting your money right for you). However it needs to be clear that its not free. Of course a Cash ISA with a Bank/Building Society can appear free – there are rarely any charges, but that doesn’t make it free. This is part of the problem with the delusion that the retail banking system maintains – that banking is free. It isn’t. The bank invariably pay bonuses to their staff for new accounts opened.  They lend the money back out at far higher rates of interest and make profit as a result.  However that money is at risk (of not actually being repaid to the Bank) and possible Bank collapse – hence the £85,000 FSCS protection and of course there is the inflation to also consider, you may actually be losing money – as many people are if their rate of interest is less than the rate of inflation (which is the majority of current accounts and many savings accounts).

A final point – this (the above) is not advice. You should naturally always plan with your own goals and context. A Cash ISA can be a very good tool in your financial box, but it may also be a rather blunt instrument – it all rather depends on the job at hand and the degree of skill you have using it. Here is a decent little video from Nationwide which is pretty clear. I’m not promoting Nationwide and depending on when you read this the information may be out of date. However the principles are right… oh yes, Nationwide do not pay me to mention them… so no cash for promotions.

I hope this is helpful.

Dominic Thomas

Cash for ISA Questions2023-12-01T12:39:41+00:00
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