Pensions Planning: The NUMBER

DairyQueen

It's now 10 months since I began the nitty gritty of retirement planning and I first posted on this thread. I have completed several iterations of income analysis and cash flow forecasts. I have spent many a late hour on here, and on other sites, researching asset allocations, tax efficiencies and drawdown strategies.

I made false assumptions in the early days. The mistakes have been many and I've covered the full spectrum of confusion along the way. Circumstances keep changing and throwing a spanner in the neat columns of spreadsheet figures.

Since January:
- OH has decided that he will continue working PT until age 65 (he likes his job). He reaches his DB NRD next year (age 62) so will benefit from deferment increases.

- We have fought, and lost, a planning battle. The legal costs of which have made a hole in our cash.

- But our DCs/SIPPs have increased approx 10%. (caveat: a gain that could disappear anytime)

- We have decided to sell the afflicted property and moderately upsize next year.

- This will require the drawdown of TFC in order that we can retain a small property within commuting distance of OH's work.

- Elderly mother-in-law settled in a good residential home and her house has been sold. This has freed OH from the geographic constraint imposed by the need to respond to frequent, emergency call-outs in the wee, small hours.

- Elderly parents finally decided against moving home so one regional constraint has been replaced by another.

- Stepdaughter at last committed to buying her first property (supported by the Bank of Stepmum and Dad).

- Immediately followed by the announcement of her engagement (delightful news but the couple have so far ignored all hints about eloping).

So, in less than a year, our cash reserve has taken a big hit but our projected pension income has increased. We have brought forward moving home by three years and have changed our search area. OH has delayed full-retirement by an equivalent period.

Conclusions: retirement planning is a years-long process. It requires a great deal of info and time. The plan needs to be flexible and it requires regular review pre-and-post retirement.

Back to the spreadsheets.

LAPORTS1

1st Aug 18, 4:24 PM
So is some of that money set aside for helping the kids thru Uni?

5K is far too small an emergency pot IMHO.

We have another account for the kids at Uni - There is about 10K in there now (5 years before the eldest may be going). We'll be supporting them a little but not fully. They'll need to fund themselves a fair bit.

Fair point on the emergency fund. We had to dip into it recently for funeral expenses, we'll be adding to it gradually.

Slinky

DairyQueen wrote: »

- This will require the drawdown of TFC in order that we can retain a small property within commuting distance of OH's work.

Have you considering renting rather than purchase if this is a short timescale situation, particularly given that you will probably be paying an extra 3% stamp duty?

Northamptonblue

Dairy Queen - I suspect that, just like me, you use the term ‘nitty gritty’ as part of everyday language. I only recently found out that the term referred to the human detritus left behind after a slave ship docked and unloaded their captives. The slaves were transported on metal grates which allowed no space for sitting or standing. One grate was placed a short distance above the other so that human waste fell through the grates, onto the levels of slaves below and eventually found the bottom. Crew members were paid extra to clear out the bottom of the hull, a very unpleasant job. I was horrified that I had used the phrase. I hope you will not be offended by my comments. No offence is intended.

AnotherJoe

There are many terms whose origins are no doubt equal distasteful and the connection to the original is long lost and not meant by anyone. If we bowdlerised our language to have to double check every word phrase and saying there will be very little left.

There are also many many incorrect derivations bandied around. The derivation you mention appears to be an urban myth for example, so you are likely getting exercised over something thats not even true, but are promulgating it nevertheless.

michaels

AnotherJoe wrote: »

There are many terms whose origins are no doubt equal distasteful and the connection to the original is long lost and not meant by anyone. If we bowdlerised our language to have to double check every word phrase and saying there will be very little left.

There are also many many incorrect derivations bandied around. The derivation you mention appears to be an urban myth for example, so you are likely getting exercised over something thats not even true, but are promulgating it nevertheless.

Problem is in today's PC world even if something is wrong doesn't stop people getting offended (on others behalf)

TBC15

gadgetmind wrote: »

If you're missing something, then you won't learn it from me as we've never done cash ISAs! Cash is for emergency funds and nothing more. We have a couple of years of essential spending in NS&I linkers and a fully offset mortgage as backup.

Could you explain the use of the offset mortgage in retirement please, having trouble getting my head around it. We currently have a Virgin One account in surplus.

Terron

Northamptonblue wrote: »

Dairy Queen - I suspect that, just like me, you use the term !!!8216;nitty gritty!!!8217; as part of everyday language. I only recently found out that the term referred to the human detritus left behind after a slave ship docked and unloaded their captives. The slaves were transported on metal grates which allowed no space for sitting or standing. One grate was placed a short distance above the other so that human waste fell through the grates, onto the levels of slaves below and eventually found the bottom. Crew members were paid extra to clear out the bottom of the hull, a very unpleasant job. I was horrified that I had used the phrase. I hope you will not be offended by my comments. No offence is intended.

Were you shown any proof? The earliest appearancee of the term in writing seems to have been 1963, though it appears to have been used by Jazz musicians before then. As far as I know this is just obe of several supposed origins for which there is no evidence. Note that dictioaries of sailors slang were printed in the 19th century and if this definition were true it would have been likely to appear.

lisyloo

Could you explain the use of the offset mortgage

An offset mortgage is the same as your one account except NOT in one account.
Debts are in one and surplus (savings/current) are in other accounts.


Similar except if it came to means tested benefits.

DairyQueen

Northamptonblue wrote: »

Dairy Queen - I suspect that, just like me, you use the term ‘nitty gritty’ as part of everyday language. I only recently found out that the term referred to the human detritus left behind after a slave ship docked and unloaded their captives. The slaves were transported on metal grates which allowed no space for sitting or standing. One grate was placed a short distance above the other so that human waste fell through the grates, onto the levels of slaves below and eventually found the bottom. Crew members were paid extra to clear out the bottom of the hull, a very unpleasant job. I was horrified that I had used the phrase. I hope you will not be offended by my comments. No offence is intended.

I have seen some strange thread hijacks on this forum but this one takes the biscuit (feel free to check my PC credentials on the use of that idiom).

Could you provide a reliable source for this tragic etymology? By that I mean an academic source, not The Guardian or wiki.

It has been years since I left university and I don't recall any reference to 'nitty gritty' in the numerous academic texts, primary sources and literature I studied on The Black Atlantic as an undergraduate (American history and politics), or postgraduate (American Literature). So, I decided to take a massive short-cut and referred your post (quoted exactly) to the big guns - a Professor of American Culture and Literature.

He is in France but kindly interrupted his holiday to send a rather succinct reply: "New one on me".

I thought I should cover all bases so next on the list were a few well-informed, American mates from both sides of the political divide. There were three "Never heard of its' before I received a reply from Georgia.

I am anecdotally informed that 'nitty gritty' in 'American English' was popularised in the jazz era and originated within the African-American community as slang for "humping" (quote/unquote). Oh and "why do you want to know?".

My mate is going to be disappointed. Not so my husband when he learns the latest context of my retirement planning .

My source has impeccable academic and cultural credentials: MA African Studiies, born in the Bible Belt and, yep, he's African-American.

Ironically, you erroneously targeted someone who has studied the history of chattel slavery and its social and cultural consequences. The brutality of the slave trade is starkly revealed in, for example, original documents held in the National Archives. I suggest you visit if you wish to speak from a position of authority rather than repeat media soundbites and internet fairy tales in a self conscious attempt to appear post-racial.

Combating prejudice and racism in all its forms is an ongoing process and ill-informed and assumptive comments on public forums do zero to help overcome the discriminatory legacy of history. There are plenty of deserving and obvious targets out there. May I suggest that your efforts are rather wasted on me.