Another Investing what would you do - But with Inheritance

Albermarle

funkyfin2000 said:

thanks all - yes as you say - I did increase my pension contribution to maximise earnings from employer.

Could I ask for more information on what else to do with the pension over and above paying off the mortgage - I have to say I'm a little green on this area? I also want to think about my wife - this inheritance is actually hers not mine - she currently has a 2 day a week job - low income, doesn't pay any NI or Tax due to salary and gets a Local Authority based pension. Is there any benefit helping her out rather than me?

Sorry to ask!

Rich

As mentioned earlier, your wife can still get tax relief on pension contributions, even though she is not paying any tax.
Although she will only get basic rate tax relief, she might well be able to withdraw from the pension later without paying any tax if her income is below her personal allowance. 
In general it is better for both partners to have some pension provision, as it can make use of personal allowances better on withdrawal. I am assuming if she is only a low earner her local authority pension will also be low.

I know there have been a lot of answers mentioning pensions, but if you have any ambitions to retire early ( or both of you) you really need to build up a pretty large pot to be able to do this comfortably.