PensionBee and similar services, retirement planning

stevehoot

Hi all, 

BACKGROUND 
I'm 38 and worked all my life. I have a high salary but no real wealth (renting, leasing my car etc). Have been doing auto enrollment since it started and had company provided pensions for most employers for the last 15 - 18 years or so, all with various pension companies. (Scottish Widows, Aviva, Royal London etc).

With my fiancée being out of work for the last year and us having two kids, plus a huge debt burden I'm not currently in a position to be saving or adding more into my pot at the moment. 

PENSIONBEE AND SIMILAR PRODUCTS 
My question is really about PensionBee and similar sevices. They seem to offer a way to consolidate your existing pots scattered around and give you more control of your pension via their app. All sounds lovely, but other than not needing to keep tabs on your various pots, what's the benefit? 

Outside of reducing admin slightly, are there any other notable benefits? I like idea, but not sure if it's worth the hassle. If it is worthwhile in your opinions then are there competitors with similar or more benefits but with lower fees? 

GENERAL RETIREMENT ADVICE 
My final question is very broad... Any advice around pensions, retirement planning etc?! Realistically I need to pay off the huge debt I'm carrying around which I'm doing in the most effective and recommended way. Once I've addressed that I would very much like to get on the housing ladder. Will be about 44 or so before I'm debt free.

HOUSEHOLD INCOME 
My salary is very good for my age, (£100k pa gross), and I'm paying into my company pension plan through the auto enrollment scheme. (Unsure what the contributions are from me or my employer). My fiancée is trying to move forwards and continue her prior success in a difficult field (broadcast journalism, but was made redundant nearly a year ago) and is making progress in terms of her profile and exposure, but currently is making a net loss (I'm paying for London hotels so she can make her appearance on TV, so whilst they pay her a token amount and will pay for her transport, unfortunately public transport is not suitable due to where we live). I mention this as within the coming few months she should be contributing to the household financially as she used to. Right now we are spending more on household bills than our joint income.

Thanks in advance,


Steve 

eskbanker

stevehoot said:

Any advice around pensions, retirement planning etc?!

[...]

I'm paying into my company pension plan through the auto enrollment scheme. (Unsure what the contributions are from me or my employer).

Determining your starting point is an obvious first step, i.e. as well as the other pots, is your current workplace pension likely to deliver an adequate lifestyle in retirement?

Marcon

stevehoot said:

My question is really about PensionBee and similar sevices. They seem to offer a way to consolidate your existing pots scattered around and give you more control of your pension via their app. All sounds lovely, but other than not needing to keep tabs on your various pots, what's the benefit? 

Outside of reducing admin slightly, are there any other notable benefits? I like idea, but not sure if it's worth the hassle. If it is worthwhile in your opinions then are there competitors with similar or more benefits but with lower fees? 

The main benefit is having things in one place so you don't need to keep track of lots of small pensions.

What exactly do you see as 'the hassle' if you're just transferring some former pensions into one place, if they are all defined contribution schemes? Why not move them all into your current workplace scheme if it accepts transfers in, which if it's an auto-enrolment scheme it will.

Before doing any of that, check the fees you're paying in each scheme. There can be significant differences, especially for older pensions (but make sure you're comparing like for like - the underlying fund choices could have very different levels of fees).

stevehoot said:

My salary is very good for my age, (£100k pa gross), and I'm paying into my company pension plan through the auto enrollment scheme. (Unsure what the contributions are from me or my employer). 

You are not alone...

For someone on your salary, with high levels of debt, taking a rather closer interest in all matters financial might be no bad idea. How are your pension contributions paid - does your employer offer salary sacrifice and if so are you taking advantage of it? If not, one to discuss with them - the NI saving for both parties makes it well worthwhile.

Given the higher rate tax relief available, paying a bit more into your pension might make sense - there are likely to be some areas of your spending where you could cut back if you chose to do so. Certainly worth it to ensure you stay below the £100K earnings mark to avoid losing any of your personal allowance.

dunstonh

Outside of reducing admin slightly, are there any other notable benefits? I like idea, but not sure if it's worth the hassle. If it is worthwhile in your opinions then are there competitors with similar or more benefits but with lower fees?

All the providers you already have are competitors with similar or more benefits and potentially lower fees.  Along with your current workplace pension.

NlghtOwl

Continue the company pension but tackle that debt with intensity before you build wealth as it will be an anchor on moving forward. 6 years is a long time, can you significantly cut back on spending; car, housing costs? As Dave Ramsay would say, you’re broke so no holidays or going out to dinner. If you have kids then Get married in the lowest cost way possible and fiancée has to get work, even if not her ideal position. Further pension contributions as a higher rate tax payer is the next strategy. Good luck.

LHW99

You could try:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/categories/budgeting-bank-accounts

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/categories/debt-free-wannabe

for some ideas as to how to free up a bit more of your income for pensions / savings.

My question is really about PensionBee and similar sevices.

PensionBee is a "RoboAdvisor" / platform, that just offers a set of ready-made portfolios based on (I think) a questionnaire to decide your risk level. People here have suggested their charges are a bit high as they are still a fairly new option.

There are pleanty of other platforms - Hargreaves Lansdown, AJBell, Vanguard, iWeb are among ones frequently mentioned here, who will all happily arrange to transfer in DC pensions from other companies and in many cases can also offer some kind of "portfolio funds". Their charges differ and may be more / less than your old company pensions.

Worth checking the details of your existing pensions (DB / DC, charges, any guaranteed benefits...) and coming back here if you don't understand.

shortseller09

stevehoot said:

 Right now we are spending more on household bills than our joint income.

With £100k gross coming in, what kind of bills do you have???

squirrelpie

Frankly it sounds like pensions should not be your major concern right now. "no real wealth" and "huge debt burden" sound like far more important and urgent issues. I think you need to reduce your outgoings; so swallow your pride, cancel your car lease and buy an old banger instead. And adjust your expectations and make savings in as many other areas as you can. Hope for the best and plan for the worst.

Coppice10

NlghtOwl said:

Continue the company pension but tackle that debt with intensity before you build wealth as it will be an anchor on moving forward. 6 years is a long time, can you significantly cut back on spending; car, housing costs? As Dave Ramsay would say, you’re broke so no holidays or going out to dinner. If you have kids then Get married in the lowest cost way possible and fiancée has to get work, even if not her ideal position. Further pension contributions as a higher rate tax payer is the next strategy. Good luck.

Just jumping in if i may, why the comment on getting married? What am i missing?

penners324

I use PensionBee, easy to use. Felt I was losing track of my pensions when in 5 different places.

Like the app. Only 7 or 8 fund options but for me at present, that's enough 

Albermarle

penners324 said:

I use PensionBee, easy to use. Felt I was losing track of my pensions when in 5 different places.

Like the app. Only 7 or 8 fund options but for me at present, that's enough 

That is good, but it is also just as easy to transfer pensions into many other pension providers.
Pension Bee are just good at marketing/advertising the option.