Wealth Knowledge

Pension freedoms age rising to 57 in 2028 dashes early retirement hopes The age at which retirement savers can access their private pensions will increase from 55 to 57 in 2028 confirmed.  Introduced in 2015, existing pension freedom rules offer more options to over-55s when it comes to accessing their pension before retirement. Over 4.5

Help-to-buy equity loan scheme gets two-month extension The Government has extended a loan scheme which is designed to help those who are struggling to save for a mortgage deposit. Buyers who use the help-to-buy equity loan scheme now have until 28 February 2021 for their new-build homes in England to be finished.  The previous deadline

Workers in hardest-hit sectors face retirement savings crisis Many workers in sectors that shut down during the COVID-19 lockdown could be facing a retirement savings crisis, according to a report.  Scottish Widows polled 5,757 savers for its annual retirement report, which was undertaken in March 2020 – during the height of the pandemic. More than

Base rate cuts have significant effect on savings market Dwindling interest rates have seen average savings rates for ISAs drop to their lowest levels since records began in 2008, according to Moneyfacts. During the first six months of the year, the average easy access ISA rate collapsed to a low of 0.45%, from 0.85% in

COVID-19 forces Treasury to rethink the state pension triple-lock The Government is reportedly considering scrapping the pensions triple lock in an attempt to recoup billions of pounds spent on coronavirus support schemes.  The triple-lock system is what determines the annual increase in the state pension by whichever is the highest of average wage growth, price

Furloughed savers warned over relaxed workplace pension rules  Furloughed workers saving into workplace pension schemes are being warned to be on their guard about employers cutting their contributions without their consent.  Around nine million employees in the UK have been furloughed since lockdown measures were introduced. Millions of other workers are considering reducing contributions or

Coronavirus pandemic could halve global growth outlook to 1.5% Coronavirus could slow global economic growth to its slowest rate since 2009,  the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has warned. The organisation currently estimates global growth of 2.4% over the course of 2020 – down from 2.9% last year – and 0.6% down on

Most people are unsure how much is in their retirement savings Most employees do not know the current size of their pension pots, a study has found. Opinium polled 983 workers on behalf of the Pension and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) and found 54% did not keep track of their retirement savings. Knowledge levels among

11,000 retirees set to be worse off when state pension boost ends Thousands of retirees face being more than £3,500 worse off in retirement from April, when extra payments to adult dependants come to an end. The adult dependency increase is usually paid to a spouse or civil partner who is below state pension age

Fixed-rate mortgage prices and product fees in year-on-year fall A fixed-rate war between mortgage lenders is driving prices for decade-long products to enticing lows, Moneyfacts has said. At the start of last month, homeowners could take advantage of 62 ten-year fixed-rate mortgages on the market. These products freeze mortgage repayments for a decade at a