Brexit and Money

Gnocchi

Seeing GBP plummet after the EU Referendum really shocked me. Whatever the Express and Mail say, we've lost roughly 20% off Sterling and slipped from 5th richest country, to 7th, below India.

We didn't overstretch ourselves on mortgage, chose on location and space and in ten years we trebled our money on paper. Yes we still have a mortgage but the house would have to lose over 60% of value to put us in negative equity, by my bad maths.

Since interest rates are low, we decided to pay off loan and credit card which we did in Autumn. We're worried about interest rates going up or other things like fuel so we wanted max cash flow. Husband was supposed to get 1% payrise in September and that didn't happen.

Mayhem was on TV today talking about what sounds like a hard Brexit and because it was already Monday in Asia, Sterling slumped 50 points.

I see people on other boards saying it'll be fine, but I do worry.

We've decided to put spare cash into a Euro bank account. Just to keep what we need to spend on bills, fuel and food in sterling.

If we hard Brexit we want to leave the UK. Husband has been offered jobs abroad already.

Is anyone else making contingency plans ?

AnotherJoe

Obviously your next step is to run around screaming "the sky is falling"

Please do leave. Obviously this country is so pathetic it cannot live without being attached to Europe. Go where the European economy means any country under its umbrella is fine . Try Ital ... No? OK Gre .. well OK try Portug...oh OK errm Irel. .... no ...

Interesting to see your astute financial planning has you stash your cash in euros, where putting it in and then taking it out again to spend it here will lose you 10% guaranteed. And the pound is stronger against the Euro now than it was in 2008 or so, were you panicking them? Better put your money in US dollars, why did you bet it on the Euro whose value is drifting away every day, down 5% last couple of months.

Pathetic.

p.s. if our economy is so bad as you think, they would LOWER interest rates next, not RAISE them. Jeez. Though if you've seen the latest figures the UK is I believe doing better than that Eurozone place of which you speak so glowingly.

p.p.s I do have a contingency plan, it's focusing my investments in the global markets so that when people like you run around screaming their hair is fire and selling all their shares and selling the pound, my investments will rise should the Pound fall, and if they dont, and the UK doesn't sink under the waves after Brexit, well I'll be living in a country with a growing economy so all will be fine anyway.

p.p.p.s Dang i reckon I've fallen for trollbait

dunstonh

Seeing GBP plummet after the EU Referendum really shocked me.

Sterling was due a decline with our trade deficit amongst other things. The referendum result was the excuse. A drop would have come sooner or later.

Whatever the Express and Mail say, we've lost roughly 20% off Sterling and slipped from 5th richest country, to 7th, below India.

That is not quite how it works. It isnt to do with riches. India has been above us before. We may rise above them again at some point but sooner or later we are going to be miles behind them. That is inevitable.

Mayhem was on TV today talking about what sounds like a hard Brexit and because it was already Monday in Asia, Sterling slumped 50 points.

Perhaps a bit more respect for the Prime Minister of this country is in order.

We've decided to put spare cash into a Euro bank account. Just to keep what we need to spend on bills, fuel and food in sterling.

What are you going to do when sterling goes the other way? The Euro has greater potential issues than Sterling.

If we hard Brexit we want to leave the UK. Husband has been offered jobs abroad already.

Go then. Brexit makes no difference.

Is anyone else making contingency plans ?

none whatsoever. Things will be a little different here and there. Some things better, some things worse but not really a lot different. Things change. Personally, I am looking forward to the period ahead. Things have not been so interesting politically since the early 90s.

bowlhead99

Gnocchi wrote: »

we've lost roughly 20% off Sterling and slipped from 5th richest country, to 7th, below India.

India does have 20x the population and 14x the land mass of the UK.

We didn't overstretch ourselves on mortgage, chose on location and space and in ten years we trebled our money on paper.

Congratulations, would you like a prize?

Since interest rates are low, we decided to pay off loan and credit card which we did in Autumn.

Seems like interest rates being low is the wrong time to have been concerned about needing to pay them off, you could just refinance them to a cheap or nil rate.

Especially when you note that the pounds sterling in which your debts were denominated do not cost very much in other currencies and you expect them to cost even less in the future.

We're worried about interest rates going up or other things like fuel so we wanted max cash flow.

Yes, retaining max cash would have been a good idea, rather than paying off debt which could have been put on a known low interest rate or zero percent deal.

Husband was supposed to get 1% payrise in September and that didn't happen.

Comment above especially relevant given lack of certainty around husband's current job's prospects.

Mayhem was on TV today

You mean Theresa May; this is not the mail or express or sun.

We've decided to put spare cash into a Euro bank account. Just to keep what we need to spend on bills, fuel and food in sterling.

So when you want to buy anything that isn't a normal bill or fuel or food you will have to pay a second lot of commission to buy the pounds back again to spend them? Doesn't seem very efficient, and the interest rates on Euros are lower than pounds. Why Euros rather than the other major currencies?

If we hard Brexit we want to leave the UK. Husband has been offered jobs abroad already.

Take them, cheers

Is anyone else making contingency plans ?

Have you tried going back to the Discussion Time or Moneysavers Arms boards and asking there? That's where you usually find those with the tinfoil hats for sale. Or maybe Debate the Economy.

If it helps, most people with investments and pensions have them diversified across a range of asset classes and spread across multiple geographic regions, industry sectors and currencies. It is sensible to avoid having all eggs in one basket of sterling cash and shares when - regardless of Brexit or not - your future spending needs will be driven by goods and services whose costs are derived from the price of things all over the world in what is an increasingly globalised economy that we all live in.

hutman

after all that all she did was reiterate 'And I really do mean Brexit means Brexit - got beef?'

greenglide

after all that all she did was reiterate 'And I really do mean Brexit means Brexit - got beef?'

My interpretation of what she said was very much that she is drifting towards a move away from the single market. It seems that she is more interested in reducing immigration (at any cost) than she is concerned in the long term well being of the UK economy.

I assume she is being pushed further right by her party which, generally, isnt good.

Mr_Costcutter

Gnocchi wrote: »

Is anyone else making contingency plans ?

I do not share my time with 'what if'?
There is absolutely no point at all.
If you have invested wisely, I don't see why a contingency plan would be required - diversification is the way to go ......

Pincher

Gnocchi wrote: »

Is anyone else making contingency plans ?

I voted Brexit, to insulate the UK from the time bomb that is Europe.

Once Europe collapses, we will have to mine the coastline to stop all the human smugglers from building rafts and floating the French across.

It's looking like Scotland is getting all the rainfall, these days.
With global warming, it's going to be a tropical paradise.
I think I should buy a farm and grow papaya and mango. Or tea.

A growth industry will be security firms, manning machine gun nests around my plantation. How do I put Ghurkas under life time contract? There will always be some Russian oligarch that will pay more to poach them.

It always ends up with Killbots that I program myself.

rpc

Pincher wrote: »

It's looking like Scotland is getting all the rainfall, these days.

Curse those Westminster Tories! Wee Nippy will sort our weather out.

steampowered

Why would a "hard Brexit" mean you want to leave the UK?

I agree there may be economic damage, but we've been through several recessions in the past few decades and came out just fine at the end of them.

Have you even thought about what the term "Hard Brexit" actually means? If so, do tell because I don't have a clue ...

le_loup

Pincher wrote: »

How do I put Ghurkas under life time contract?

Don't be daft, Give then a zero hours contract. Then you only have to pay them when it suits your convenience. Then you can make deductions from their pay for the bullets they use. Win-win.