ISAs v Pensions: The Official Retirement Debate

EternallyGrateful

Cloudane wrote: »

@dunstonh thanks for that, much appreciated.

And yeah, on self interest, of course they do. I just mean it does need to be factored into what's said (say if their commission on a pension is better) QUOTE]

I think you'll find that IFA's have to put any such self interest to one side. Also, there are so many regulations in place these days that it's difficult for an IFA to operate outside of them.

If you were buying a new car or kitchen you would go to a number of potential suppliers and choose the one that best meets your requirements. It's the same with IFA's: go to see three or four and select the one which offers the advice that suits your needs the best. You will probably find too that they all say very similar things.

As somebody who is very close to retirement I would suggest that you choose a variety of methods to save for when you finish working. Cash ISA's, Stocks and Shares ISA's and a pension fund will provide you with some flexibility when you need to make those critical decisions.

dunstonh

And yeah, on self interest, of course they do. I just mean it does need to be factored into what's said (say if their commission on a pension is better)

By self interest, I meant family. I didnt mean commission. However, I, like many other IFAs (and all in a little over 12 months) dont take commission. If someone is paying for advice, then the product/platform does not impact on the remuneration to the adviser in any way. So, no bias will exist. On the investment side, there will be different opinions as investing is always about opinion.

Despite many times being looked into, the FSA has not been able to find commission bias in IFAs on a widespread scale. Pockets of it yes, but not widespread. Fee basis is nearly always cheaper and better so there is no reason for it to occur.

Cloudane

I must be driving my poor IFA batty with all the umming and ahhing over this. She recommended a pension and outlined the details so I should probably just go for it.

Still, it's an important decision - once that money is going into that little "hole" I won't see it again for at least 25 years so it's probably best to be certain before getting into it.

There was also the moving-out issue but I may put that on the back burner again and try to ascend the career ladder a bit more first.

(I must also consider that I pour a similar amount of money into another hole in the form of beer and certainly won't ever get that back, and I don't fret about that, so why fret about investing it)

Paul_Herring

Cloudane wrote: »

I must also consider that I pour a similar amount of money into another hole in the form of beer and certainly won't ever get that back, and I don't fret about that, so why fret about investing it

But with the beer, you're exchanging your money for something else, and you're getting the benefit of that something else 'now.'

With investing you're expecting to get the benefit 'sometime later.'

EternallyGrateful

But will the benefits of the invstment materialise in time to pay for the medical bills related to the alcoholic poisoning???

Cloudane

Note to self: avoid humour :P

EternallyGrateful

Maybe I will too

Paul_Herring

Oh come on guys - no need to be like that.

A fairly important point was raised in jest; some people do actually think of contributing to a pension as 'lost money' (or maybe 'spent money') when in fact it isn't.

Nine_Lives

Paul_Herring wrote: »

Oh come on guys - no need to be like that.

A fairly important point was raised in jest; some people do actually think of contributing to a pension as 'lost money' (or maybe 'spent money') when in fact it isn't.

If the individual feels comfortable terming it that way then what's the harm is my question??

One thing i've found throughout the various forums on this MSE message board is that WAY TOO MANY PEOPLE play strongly on words.

If we were having a conversation in person i'm sure these people wouldn't pick out every single imperfect sentence, so why do it on a message board? Is it because of the anonimity factor?

I've found myself having to be really careful what i say & how i say it on these forums because people just love to pick apart what you say.

Maybe that's their enjoyment in life? Who knows. Not saying you or anyone specific falls into this category, but i've seen it time & time again.



For fixed term saving, my mum terms it as "not her money" because she feels comfortable managing it like that in her head. What's the harm in it?

Too much play on words in these forums IMO.

Paul_Herring

K_P83 wrote: »

I've found myself having to be really careful what i say & how i say it on these forums because people just love to pick apart what you say.

You mean like you just have?

I see what you mean....

Seriously, it's one thing to complain about something, but to do it in the same post that you exhibit the same behaviour you're complaining about is something else!!