Getting the house in order!

sqwiffy

Was going to post to ask for advice but realised as I started writing that I am guessing all my figures.

I'm going to find out the actual amounts before I ask you all anything. It's hard enough to get my head around all the stuff on here without talking complete goobledygook to start with....

saver861

sqwiffy wrote: »

Was going to post to ask for advice but realised as I started writing that I am guessing all my figures.

I'm going to find out the actual amounts before I ask you all anything. It's hard enough to get my head around all the stuff on here without talking complete goobledygook to start with....

ermmm..... yeah .... that kinda sounds like a good idea ......

so glad to know that you are going to know the stuff you need to know before you know what it is you want to know .....

right on bro .. ... I'm all for simple .... :cool:

sqwiffy

So are being sarcastic or am I not making sense?:o

saver861

sqwiffy wrote: »

So are being sarcastic or am I not making sense?:o

No, that's the comedian in me ..... although I have been told I would not make it as a stand up ..... or even sitting down ....

Well, I was a bit curious as to why you started a thread to say you did not have any info. Why not just get the info and then fire the questions. Seems like a better plan!!

Eco_Miser

Possibly they posted the question, then realised that without proper figures it was pointless, but couldn't delete the thread, so changed the content instead?

sqwiffy

I thought you sounded like my Hubby's.I never quite get him either and he loves to wind me up!

But Ecomiser is nearer the mark. I wrote a long post and everytime I was putting in a figure I was not sure and had to try and find some papers indoors to help me. My filing needs doing too.It was taking too long and I've decided to do it later. Yes, I know I shouldn't be putting it off. Actually I now need to log off here and get on to work.

I'll be back (as Arnie says).:D

saver861

sqwiffy wrote: »

I thought you sounded like my Hubby's.I never quite get him either and he loves to wind me up!

You meet all sorts in this wonderful life!!

sqwiffy wrote: »

But Ecomiser is nearer the mark. I wrote a long post and everytime I was putting in a figure I was not sure and had to try and find some papers indoors to help me.

Gotcha. That makes perfect sense.

sqwiffy wrote: »

I'll be back (as Arnie says).:D

Oh dear ..... should I be worried .....

sqwiffy

Not sure if this is posted in the right place but I'm sure I'll be told if so!

We(hubby and I, aged 57 & 58)always hoped we'd be able to retire early. I'm finding things particularly tough due to being in a pretty stressful job and having some health problems with arthritis. I have worked for 26/27 years in local authority so could access my good work pension already if I was prepared to loose some or even ask for part time work. The balance between having less money in retirement or better quality of life is always the rub.

After some thought(and support/advice via occupational health), we agreed that I try to continue as long as I can. We finish our mortgage in 2018 as of course our outgoings would also reduce. Last year we paid off a chunk of the mortgage(the endowment part) leaving us about £16,600 now on a repayment mortgage. It's a low rate of 1.49%. We are expecting some money although not sure how much it will end up being,(not the £40,000 originally expected, some likely £25,00?) and were planning to spend some on reroofing and then probably investing the rest in savings. We spent quite a bit of savings in house and garden work, so just have about £15,000 in ISA's currently.

Hubby has just been given an early inheritance from his parents unexpectedly of £70,000. We were in a bit of shock, and it really hasn't sunk in about best thing to do. Hubby's parents have been suggesting that as another brother hasn't put any money away for a pension, that the two of them put the money together and invest in buying, doing up and selling a house ( then maybe continue this) to get him a pension pot. He's a builder. My hubby is not keen on actually working then doing extra DIY at weekends so says he'd probably only be willing to be a sleeping partner. We are not even sure that there would be enough money to get a property and do it up without a further bit of mortgage in the South.

No decisions have been made yet, but if we don't do the house thing, what might be the best way of investing the money so that I can retire earlier than another 8 years.

kidmugsy

You might start off by working out how much each of you could profitably contribute to a personal pension of some sort in this tax year and next. Since you are both over 55, you can always access that money quickly if you change your minds. In other words the great disadvantage of pensions, their inflexibility, doesn't apply to you.

Or perhaps, because you work for a local authority, instead of a personal pension there's some more attractive contribution you could make to your LGPS?

What is your scheme retirement age at LGPS?

You might also consider an ISA each. Then there are high interest current accounts, which will be even more appealing for many people with the new laws about taxing interest - or more accurately, about not taxing interest - from 6/4/16 onwards. Depending on your circumstances these are likely to be more attractive for you than cash ISAs.

It's just a personal opinion, but just at the moment I wouldn't be keen to rush into investing in equities (shares) or property. If you want to be able to access the money during the next eight years shares seem a bit too risky to me, added to which there is the current turmoil in the markets - which might eventually make shares an excellent long term investment, of course. But 8 years isn't really long term.

The trouble with property, apart from entering a business that you may (for all I know) know nothing about, is that the BTL market is likely to be seriously shaken up in the next few years by the new policies on tax and stamp duty. Plus you already have a large investment in residential property i.e. your own house. You might at least wait until the March 16th Budget Statement from Mr Osborne to see whether he's had any second thoughts on BTL.

mgdavid

you say you've been given £70k by parents, I presume still alive as you called it 'early inheritance'.
What provision are you making in order to be able to pay the IHT if the gifting parent dies within 7 years?

grey_gym_sock

so is 65 the normal age for your DB pensions? and presumably you'll get state pension at 66?

suppose you stopped working now, but don't start drawing your DB until the normal age. in that case, how much would your DB pensions pay? would that, in combination with state pensions, be enough (once you're getting those pensions)?

if it would be enough, then ideally leave the DB pensions until their normal age, and use all other resources to cover the intervening 8-9 years.

for instance, £70,000 could be kept in cash, and spent over 8 years, giving you about £9,000 per year. low-risk is the natural approach when you're only looking at an 8-year period. (though you could, as kidmugsy suggests, perhaps boost the value of this money by making large pension contributions while you're still earning, gaining tax relief, and drawing it out again over the next few years, using flexible drawdown.)

if you could work part time during these 8 years, then add in expected part-time earnings.

add in any other resources, and deduct any other expected outgoings, and see if it all adds up for the 8-year "gap". that would give some idea of whether you can retire now, or at least early.

OTOH, if the DB pensions will give you substantially more than you will need, but you're having trouble funding the 8-year gap, then there may be a case for taking DB pensions a bit early, despite the reduction that will be applied.