Lifetime ISA - age discrimination

ARandomMiser

Why is the lifetime ISA age limited?
As someone who is over 40 I would like to contribute towards one as part of my pension/retirement plans but am not able to - why not?

badger09

ARandomMiser wrote: »

Why is the lifetime ISA age limited?
As someone who is over 40 I would like to contribute towards one as part of my pension/retirement plans but am not able to - why not?

Because that is what the government decided.

Just as children cannot open an adult ISA
Just as adults cannot open a Junior ISA
Just as people below a specified age (which can change;)) cannot draw their state retirement pension

etc etc

Kim_13

To keep the cost down for the treasury. It's probably based on research that the Under 40's are not putting enough by and if that continues, they'll end up having to fund those people in retirement via housing benefit etc.

There may not even be a state pension of any kind by the time younger LISA holders are old enough to retire.

Age discrimination of course, but the government gets away with a lot of things that would be illegal if done by the man on the street.

Rich2808

I do have a lot of sympathy on this point given this is primarily intended to be a subsidy to encourage people to buy a home - as that's the only way you can access the funds pre retirement.

If I was the government I would be very worried about people in their 40s or 50s who don't own a home - whether by circumstances, caring roles or divorce. Because quite soon they will be retired and a drain on the state with no assets to find their social care in time.

Of course the entire policy is comical in another way - and yet another gimmick which doesn't address the real problem. The government via help to buy, FLS, quantitative easing and low interest rates is doing it's utmost with Mark Carney to drive house prices up to ever more crazy levels. Getting a few grand in LISA bonus while government policies have possibly pushed up the price of the home you want to by £150k and more in the last 5 years doesn't seem like a fair trade to me.

Maybe we need to stop pretending we are 'helping' first time buyers when all we are doing is making middle aged and older homeowners even more asset rich.

Now I know it's the policy of the government - but it doesn't mean we can criticise it. Can we really keep bleeding the young dry to pay for the largesse of their elders including paying off our £2tn national debt.

PeacefulWaters

Rich2808 wrote: »

I do have a lot of sympathy on this point given this is primarily intended to be a subsidy to encourage people to buy a home - as that's the only way you can access the funds pre retirement.

I would argue that it's intended equally as a FTB and retirement concept. But it is flawed.

Of course the entire policy is comical in another way - and yet another gimmick which doesn't address the real problem. The government via help to buy, FLS, quantitative easing and low interest rates is doing it's utmost with Mark Carney to drive house prices up to ever more crazy levels. Getting a few grand in LISA bonus while government policies have possibly pushed up the price of the home you want to by £150k and more in the last 5 years doesn't seem like a fair trade to me.

When I was a FTB house prices were cheaper but interest rates were over 15%. I'd suggest affordability is little different now to then.

Now I know it's the policy of the government - but it doesn't mean we can criticise it. Can we really keep bleeding the young dry to pay for the largesse of their elders including paying off our £2tn national debt.

I would counter your point by suggesting the young consume far more than they used to when they could be saving.

planteria

it's a good question, and having made it beyond the forty year hill, i am biased in favour of opening up the scheme too

Rich2808

planteria wrote: »

it's a good question, and having made it beyond the forty year hill, i am biased in favour of opening up the scheme too

I just think it's a very arbitrary age limit and just creates more complexities. A bit like the starter homes scheme which gives a 20 per cent discount on new builds to 39 year olds but not 40 year olds. Why not apply it to all first time buyers of whatever age if it's about promoting home ownership.

The help to buy isa is available to any first time buyer even if they are in their 70s in theory. The LISA is for under 40s. They have different rules on when you can draw down the bonus as part of the home buying process now.

I think we could just do with more simplicity and less complexity - and correcting the mistakes of the HTB isa rather than saying we will just correct them for the LISA.

It just seems very ageist and arbitrary. Life doesn't end at 40 and for whatever reason many over 40s are still renting.

bigfreddiel

Talking about inclusivity at work we have all been reminded how of inclusivity in the workplace, and in the next breath they promoted a women's group conference. You couldn't make it up!

Cheers fj

Joe_Bloggs

Is this just a future dated 'helicopter money' scheme devised by a then desperate chancellor (G.Osborne), that will be allowed to peter out.
J_B.

bigfreddiel

State pension - age discrimination

It's so unfair that you can only get a state pension at 65!

Hehehehe

fj

badger09

bigfreddiel wrote: »

State pension - age discrimination

It's so unfair that you can only get a state pension at 65!

Hehehehe

fj

In your dreams:cool: