Headway Wealth

TAKING THE TENSION OUT OF YOUR PENSION

The truth is that despite all this, your pension is a brilliant way of growing your wealth in a really tax-efficient way (even if you won’t reap the benefits for a while). We can help you with the following pension options:

- Pension Planning;
- Pension Consolidation;
- Pension Finding;
- Managing your Pension Contributions;
- International SIPPs & QROPS;

Tailored Pension Advice

Having seen where you are, we can help in two ways:

- Let you know whether you have the best pension plan in place for your needs.

With your permission we can speak directly to your pension provider to understand your options, your pension’s performance, your charging structure, and, most importantly, the amount you are likely to receive on retirement.

- Recommend what else you can do to improve your pension plan (if it needs improvement!).

This could involve pulling your different pension pots together, switching providers, changing the level of your contributions or more.

If you decide to move forward with us, we’ll help you with all the administrative paperwork. The aim is for you to relax knowing that your pension is working hard for you.

Tax has a reputation for being complex and frustrating. It requires a huge amount of work at least once a year and, inevitably, there always seems to be more to pay than you imagined. It would be fair to say that, other than for a small bunch of specialists, tax isn’t fun.

On the other hand, it is perfectly sensible to structure your finances in a tax-efficient way. The government offers a wide range of tax allowances and reliefs- that enable you to save money in the following areas:

Income Tax – Capital Gains Tax – Dividend Income – ISAs and Pension Contributions for married couples, parents, and more.

We are here to help you take advantage of those incentives, minimising your tax payments now and into the future. We’ll keep it simple, allowing you to relax knowing that there will be no hidden issues later.

ISAS and your Allowances:

These come in all shapes and sizes and they are subject to change in the Budget every year. By knowing you and your full financial situation, we can ensure that you utilise every penny that you are entitled to. We’ll help structure your finances to take advantage of everything from income and capital gains tax to ISAs and pensions contributions.

Tax Planning is vital:

It is very hard to become tax-efficient retrospectively. Once the tax year ends, most opportunities close with it. On that basis we can help you structure your finances from this year on. To do that, it’s crucial that we have a chance to meet virtually or in person to discuss your current tax status and goals. With our support, your tax plan will work in conjunction with your wider financial plan.

Working together:

During our first meeting, we will listen to what you want going forward and provide you with the best mortgage solutions based on your personal circumstances. We are able to do that because we work with a wide range of lenders to secure the best mortgages rates, fees and terms. Our aim is to make mortgages “simple” and we will try to take-on as much of the administrative burden as possible to provide a stress-free mortgage experience.

We offer bespoke mortgage advice in a number of areas around property finance.

- First Time Buyer Mortgages;
- Buy to Let Mortgages;
- Expat Mortgages;
- High Value Mortgages;
- Specialist & Complex Mortgages;
- Remortgages;

High Value Mortgages:

We have experts specialising in sourcing and arranging large mortgages. They have years of experience in this area and a network of contacts able to assist. We are keen to work for you discreetly and efficiently to deliver the best deal and terms to suit your individual needs.

Expat Mortgages:

Our founders are British expats who understand the unique needs and opportunities of those living overseas.

- Buying investment property;
- Buy to Let mortgages;
- Releasing equity from your home;
- Mortgages or Property financing for British Expats overseas;

We know how tricky it can be to organise a mortgage when you are living in a different time zone or where there’s limited options. We’ll take all this into account and relieve you of the burden often associated with buying property from afar.

Get in touch to discuss your mortgage needs. We would be happy to help.

Our Insurance Review:

Our advisers will ask you to share details of any insurance policies you might have such as:

- Life Insurance;
- Critical Illness;
- Income Protection;

The outcome will allow us to suggest whether you have the best insurance for your needs, whether it’s costing you too much and what we could do to give you more certainty and better value.

Moving forward:

If you would like our help tuning that feedback into a new insurance plan, we will happily take-on the hard work for you.

We’ll also organise regular reviews of your arrangements to ensure that they stay up to date with your circumstances and that you are also getting the best insurance deals possible.

Getting started together:

Your retirement isn’t simply a case of matching a date to a specific plan. No two people have identical circumstances or dreams. And retirement is as much about your lifestyle as the state of your investments. It’s all about choice. You may wish to retire early and be happy to live off a small pension. Others may feel they need significantly more to enjoy life after work.

So you can start with a free, initial consultation where we’ll ask you what you want, what your current plans are and what state your pensions and investments are in.

With that information at hand we can give you a sense of your:

- Retirement Opportunities – where does that balance of retirement age and pension size sit?;
- Retirement Age – when can you do what you want without needing to work any more;
- Retirement Income – literally, how much will you get on an annual basis;

Your bespoke retirement plan:

With your input from that meeting and our understanding of your needs, we can go away and create a tailored plan for you. It will draw together your investments, your current income, and your expenditure. It will look at where you want to be and how much you need to save. It will draw-in repayment of debt, potential changes in salary (or dividends) and potential market movements.

All-in-all it will enable us to predict what’s possible for you and the best way to get there. And we will continue to review it moving forward so you can be sure that it remains as relevant and effective as possible.

Estate planning isn’t simply about making provisions for the future. It also ensures you have what you need while you are here to enjoy it (and to relax knowing that that the longer-term is sorted too).

The key, as with pensions and other long-term planning, is to start as early as possible. That’s not just for peace-of-mind, but also because there are ways to manage your inheritance tax that take a few years to kick-in. We can discuss your plans, help you with will writing, and ensure that all your finances are set-up to be as inheritance tax friendly as possible.

INHERITANCE TAX:

Inheritance tax can be punitive on your loved ones, but effective management can ensure that:

- As much as possible is passed-on tax free;
- There are no unexpected surprises;
- You retain complete control over where your money goes (be it to relatives, friends or specific causes);
- You keep enough to enjoy yourself for as long as possible;

Gifting loved ones:

Anyone can gift money to friends or family. While you are alive, these remain tax-free whether they are:

- One-off gifts;
- Regular gifts;
- Held within Trusts;

There is an annual gifting allowance to bear-in-mind. But there are also tax liabilities on gifts received within a certain period of your death.

We can advise you on what to do, when to do it, and the potential risks involved. As ever, making Headway is all about matching your plans against the opportunities available.

Passing on your property:

We have all heard stories of families inheriting debt and tax on properties that they can’t afford. Property is usually a wonderful asset to hold, but it can create inheritance tax issues.

We can advise you on whether:

- You can take advantage of the residence nil rate band;
- If it is worth making some changes to minimise the negative impact on those inheriting your property?;

Trust & Will Planning:

Trusts are investments put into specific ‘pots’ with certain restrictions around when and how they can be used. They can help you create a perfect balance by minimising potential inheritance tax without giving instant access to the funds too soon. We can advise on the possibilities including putting your life insurance within a trust that allows it to be used to pay an inheritance tax bill immediately on your passing.

Discussing your Options:

Estate planning can be difficult for some people. We will discuss all the options with you and do so in an objective, rational way that guides you to the right decisions for you and your loved ones. Once those choices are made, we’ll keep reviewing your position to ensure that there are no negative legislative surprises in store.

Interested in learning about how to pass on your wealth and assets in the best possible way?