New research
revealed today states that couples typically need £26k a year and single people
need £19k a year to have a comfortable retirement. This amount would
cover essential bills plus regular short-haul holidays, leisure activities,
alcohol and charity donations.
In order to achieve this, a couple would have to save private pensions worth £154,700 between them whilst an individual would need to build a pot worth £192,290 according to the study by consumer group Which?
You can read more
about the study at This is Money: https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/pensions/article-9640827/Couples-need-26k-single-people-19k-year-happy-retirement.html
It’s worth bearing in mind that this model overlooks issues such as care costs
and declining homeownership.
There are several ways that you can look to
boost your pension:
• Check for
missing funds: The Department for Work and Pensions estimates that there could
be 1.6m lost pension pots, containing a total of £19.4bn. The government offers
a scheme to track down lost pensions at: gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details.
• Make use
of pension freedoms: From the age of 55 you can do what you want with your
retirement savings: you can draw an income, buy an annuity, take a cash lump
sum or a combination of these options. Making the best use of a mixed approach
to your retirement income could boost your income, and an adviser can help with
this.
• Inform
your pension provider: If you are considering delaying your retirement, tell
your workplace pension provider in plenty of time. This will prevent your
pension moving into lower-risk assets and missing out on further opportunities
for growth.
There are
plenty of free resources out there that can help you plan for retirement. For
example, you can speak to the government-backed free guidance service Pension
Wise about any concerns. You can find out what you are on track to receive from
the state pension, and when it will be paid, by using the government’s online
forecast tool at: gov.uk/check-state-pension.
Whatever
stage of life you are at, Hammett Wealth Management offers unbiased expert
pension and retirement planning advice. Our professional, qualified Independent
Financial Advisers will look at whether your current pension arrangements are
likely to help you achieve your retirement goals. If not, we will recommend
actions to take and the likely effect of them in order to secure your financial
future.
We ensure
that you fully understand all of your numerous retirement options and that you
don’t have to take the first offer from your existing pension provider. There
is nearly always better value to be had from the open market when considering
annuities and the new flexible pension option should also be fully considered.
Our impartial advice takes into account all of this as well as the latest
retirement and pension legislation, including the new limits on lifetime
allowances. If necessary, we will also recommend any steps you can take to
limit your tax liabilities.
We can also
review all of your existing arrangements and look at the performance of the
underlying funds, the charges being levied and assess the projected income at
your chosen retirement date.
Please call us on 0114
235 3500 for a free initial meeting. Our office is operating as normal but we can also offer
appointments by telephone or Facetime, Microsoft teams & Zoom.