To save/invest or put in pension?

trfc20222

Hi all,

So looking for some advice really,

Our position, myself, 40, OH 37, 3 children aged 10,7 and 4

We currently rent but have the money for a house deposit with the view of purchasing next year. I work earning £60k a year and OH has just returned to work P/T after the kids have gone back to school- OH wanted to be a stay at home mum while kids were not at school. As well as the deposit we have approx £20k in other savings accounts.

My pension is fairly good (NHS) but my OH is a lot less due to her being out of work while kids were growing up.

We don't have any loans of CC payments to make.

We are expected to have £10k available to us in the next 6 months. This was not forecast but is inheritance. 

I am wondering what people would advise is the best route for the £10k? I am wondering whether to put it into my OH pension pot? or would it be better to put into shares etc

I am conscious that although my pension looks okay my OH does not but not sure whether it would be better to just save it instead, the alternate is maybe some saving accounts for the children? 

Thanks in advance

HappyHarry

If you are looking to buy a house in the near future, you may end up wanting to use some or all of this £10k. 

One option could be to put the £10k in an appropriate savings account and delay the decision on longer term
investing until your house purchase has settled.

ColdIron

trfc20222 said:

 work earning £60k a year and OH has just returned to work P/T after the kids have gone back to school

....

I am wondering whether to put it into my OH pension pot? or would it be better to put into shares etc

You would get more tax relief if you put it into yours (SIPP, AVCs etc)

Keep_pedalling

There are nearly always some unforeseen costs with a house purchase, I would hang on to it until you have purchased and settled into your new home. 

Dazed_and_C0nfused

trfc20222 said:

Hi all,

So looking for some advice really,

Our position, myself, 40, OH 37, 3 children aged 10,7 and 4

We currently rent but have the money for a house deposit with the view of purchasing next year. I work earning £60k a year and OH has just returned to work P/T after the kids have gone back to school- OH wanted to be a stay at home mum while kids were not at school. As well as the deposit we have approx £20k in other savings accounts.

My pension is fairly good (NHS) but my OH is a lot less due to her being out of work while kids were growing up.

We don't have any loans of CC payments to make.

We are expected to have £10k available to us in the next 6 months. This was not forecast but is inheritance. 

I am wondering what people would advise is the best route for the £10k? I am wondering whether to put it into my OH pension pot? or would it be better to put into shares etc

I am conscious that although my pension looks okay my OH does not but not sure whether it would be better to just save it instead, the alternate is maybe some saving accounts for the children? 

Thanks in advance

Given you appear to be liable to the High Income Child Benefit Charge you should give some consideration to either purchasing additional NHS pension or starting a SIPP/personal pension and contributing enough to avoid HICBC.

With 3 children your effective marginal rate of tax above £50,100 will make them very tax efficient contributions.

Nurse2047

why don’t your OH use a Lifetime isa before age of 40 and use towards house purchase? 

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/lifetime-isas/

Albermarle

Looking at the title of the thread and this comment I am wondering whether to put it into my OH pension pot? or would it be better to put into shares etc then some clarity may be useful.
Assuming that your OH pension has a DC pension ( Defined Contribution), and not a DB ( Defined Benefit ) pension like your NHS pension. Then normally the money is in investments held within the pension, and these investments will normally include a wide spread of company shares.
Effectively a pension is just a tax efficient way of investing for the long term.

MarzipanCrumble

So  -  I am old.  Baby boomer.  I would ensure you get on the housing ladder first.  Then look at your partner's potential pension if you should die first  NHS = Defined Benefit Pension so should give your surviving partner apercentage of that.  Make sure she is accredited as your partner for that pension.  Or if your partner is the 'greater' pension provider where do you stand if your partner dies first?

It is never too late or to early to contribute to a SIPP - I did that in mid 50's knowing nothing and have now accumulated more than the average.  I have DB pensions so I am lucky in that the SIPP is a backup.  My partner is dead - so even though he had DB pensions, the payout was per month half his pension to the widow (me).  

Singles cost of living is NOT half of a couple's cost of living!

BooJewels

I would reiterate what @MarzipanCrumble has said - at least ensure that future family provision without one of you features in your financial thinking going forwards. I too am widowed and thankfully, decisions we made in our 30s (a private pension with life cover included and mortgage protection), which we weren't sure we could afford or were necessary at the time, are the reason I still have a roof over my head and food in my belly. 

Thankfully my son is already grown up and financially independent, but with 3 young people also to consider, it needs to be something you look at - especially if you're considering being home owners and taking a mortgage.  I don't know what the current trend is for 'mortgage protection' products these days, but I'd highly recommend taking something - it's a real 'weight off' product, knowing that a remaining partner has the mortgage paid off and maybe a lump sum too.

ETA: it’s not just death you need to consider, but the potential scenario of one of you being unable to work due to illness or injury.

eskbanker

Nurse2047 said:

why don’t your OH use a Lifetime isa before age of 40 and use towards house purchase? 

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/lifetime-isas/

That would potentially be worth doing, but only if the purchase is more than a year away - OP said they're buying "next year" but it would need to be after this time next year for a LISA to be useful....

toby3210

I would wait until you've purchased your house, you don't want to have the money tied up when you need it. Buy the house first then you know what you have to play with.