Are pensions capital?

r_i_c

xylophone wrote: »

As the AVC is it itself a pension fund, would it not be possible just to arrange for transfer to the SIPP in its entirety, if that was what was required?

Or take the 25% lump sum and transfer to the SIPP?

You would need to check with Prudential/Hargreaves Lansdown.

Thanks - will look at this

r_i_c

Both HL and the Pru are okay about transferring the (T)AVC. However, since the AVC was originally part of my TPS, wouldn't it make better sense to access it at 60 when I will only be in receipt of the modest teaching pension?

Because further down the line there is a state pension to come in, then a couple of years later the SIPP, I would hardly notice the AVC as part of the SIPP, but I will notice it quite a bit in 6 months time when I am looking for funds to meet DDs with I should think?

Otherwise, I have now set up the 1-2-3 account and am in the process of transferring several household DDs over to it. Because of the £500 standing order (in process) I will eventually start using the 123 as my current 'debit card' account. Does that make sense please?

Many thanks.

xylophone

http://www.pru.co.uk/pdf/TAVK0789.pdf

You can discuss your options with the Pru. If you decide that it improves your financial situation to take the AVC at the same time as your scheme pension you can do so.

It would also be open to you to access it now if you wished?

I find the 123 a very useful everyday account.

r_i_c

xylophone wrote: »

http://www.pru.co.uk/pdf/TAVK0789.pdf

You can discuss your options with the Pru. If you decide that it improves your financial situation to take the AVC at the same time as your scheme pension you can do so.

It would also be open to you to access it now if you wished?

Thanks. You mean the AVC? This must have something to do with the new 55 age rule which came in earlier this year?

And it seems I now have a 6 month gap to plug before my TPS arrives, the AVC might come in useful. Would that not mean arranging for an annuity though?

Prior to April I was set to care for mum for at least - we both thought - 10 years. I now need to make the most of what is available to me in terms of pension, capital, and savings.

I find the 123 a very useful everyday account.

Thanks again. They also do a Post Office arrangement which would be very handy for me, since there are no ACMs locally, the nearest is a car journey away.

xylophone

See the booklet referenced in my previous and read carefully- the AVC can be accessed from 55 - an annuity is not the only option.

You need to ring the Pru to discuss what is available to you - they might suggest that you discuss the situation with an IFA.

You might also find an appointment with Pensionwise would clarify your thinking? https://www.pensionwise.gov.uk/

r_i_c

Will see the IFA - give it a couple of weeks till all the paperwork has settled and the 123 is up & running. I'm leaving the AVC till I retire at 60, that's what it was set up for after all. I'll just have to grit my teeth between now and March. Mum also left me - bless her heart - a small cash legacy and I will use that to bridge the next six months.

Will probably phone the IFA on Monday and make an appointment for a fortnight's time. It will take some time to get all the figures together, so maybe in a month's time.

Is there a standard fee for the IFA please, or does it vary - I mean, what is reasonable?

Thanks.

xylophone

Is there a standard fee for the IFA please, or does it vary - I mean, what is reasonable?

There is no standard fee.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/best-financial-advisers

http://www.moneywise.co.uk/investing/financial-goals/how-much-should-i-pay-independent-financial-advice

r_i_c

Thanks. Just wondering, mum & I were recommended to a brilliant solicitor, do you think the solicitor might also be able to advise on a local IFA? I did find one - looks promising - but it's pretty random - having not used one before.

HL also do financial advice - they charge a percentage - but then, they are not independent are they? They will obviously be in favour of their own products - fine as they are.

jem16

r_i_c wrote: »

Thanks. Just wondering, mum & I were recommended to a brilliant solicitor, do you think the solicitor might also be able to advise on a local IFA? I did find one - looks promising - but it's pretty random - having not used one before.

It's possible that they may have a recommendation. You can ask. Failing that just select two or three from https://www.unbiased.co.uk and pay each of them a visit.

HL also do financial advice - they charge a percentage - but then, they are not independent are they? They will obviously be in favour of their own products - fine as they are.

They are independent and shouldn't just recommend their own products. However from posts on here they quite often do just that and are considered expensive.

As to your AVC, the rules have allowed access at age 55 for quite some time now. However what you can do from April this year is to access the pot without having to take an annuity. So nothing to stop you taking flexible drawdown amounts.

r_i_c

jem16 wrote: »

It's possible that they may have a recommendation. You can ask. Failing that just select two or three from https://www.unbiased.co.uk and pay each of them a visit.



They are independent and shouldn't just recommend their own products. However from posts on here they quite often do just that and are considered expensive.

That's my concern - I don't want financial advice if that advice turns out to be giving all my funds to them, especially if we are talking multiple advisers.

My funds are now split between my old current account and the new 123 account which earns interest. Otherwise, all the shares mum held - after the dreadful tax paid - all the remaining shares are transferred into my own name, and should start paying interest after a month or so. I don't actually see what more advice I would need?

My modest TPS comes in this approaching March and I have to take it, it does not appreciate with time or by being deferred (I was told). I think it actually states this on the forecast. My state pension comes in at age 67, and I won't touch my SIPP till I'm 70. That way there should be enough in the pot for my seriously senior years, if I roll out the pensions instead of taking them all at once.

I'm only jumping at the TPS at 60 because there is no advantage in deferring it, and taken the catastrophic events of earlier this year I am now currently without gainful employment or state benefit. I can't see myself finding temporary work for some time, I am in a 'low' state as my GP put it, I need time to come to terms with what has happened.

Anyway, my investments are safe and with a reputable company. What more advice could an advisor - and for a fee - give me I wonder, apart from 'carry on and see me again in six months'?

As to your AVC, the rules have allowed access at age 55 for quite some time now. However what you can do from April this year is to access the pot without having to take an annuity. So nothing to stop you taking flexible drawdown amounts.

So, annuities are potentially a thing of the past, you can arrange your pension by filling in the relevant forms? In that case, I might as well bite the bullet now, it's only 6 months before my TPS commences, and these will probably be the leanest months in terms of income.