Pensions

At Breslin Financial Services our approach to retirement advice is based on clearly understanding your financial situation, your goals, and how much risk you are prepared to take with your money.

The quality professional guidance we will give you helps you through this process. This means we can make sure that our solutions are right for you and that you have all the information you need to make a clear decision.

The value of pensions and investments and the income they produce can fall as well as rise. You may get back less than you invested.
Tax treatment varies according to individual circumstances and is subject to change.

Your Choice, Your Freedom, Your decision

What does greater freedom mean for you?

Let’s rewind to 19 March 2014. Budget Day. Before George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, stood to give his Budget speech, any choice you had on how to spend your pension fund was restricted by tax law. After all, the government gave away generous amounts of tax relief to encourage people to save for a retirement income so they made sure that was exactly what you did with the money. Then George Osborne dropped a bombshell that blew away these restrictions in one hit. He said:

I am announcing today that we will legislate to remove all remaining tax restrictions on how pensioners have access to their pension pots. Pensioners will have complete freedom to draw down as much or as little of their pension pot as they want, anytime they want. No caps. No drawdown limits. Let me be clear. No one will have to buy an annuity.

Choice is good as long as you make the right one

Retirement freedom creates more choice; but it brings with it more risk. We may not have liked the restricted choice we’ve had until now but it did protect us from running out of money.

We now live in an era in which we live longer. We are retired for longer. We need to make our savings last for longer. We can only do this if we make the right choices.

We can only make the right choices with the right advice. In this guide we will take you through the choices that are on offer so that you can approach retirement feeling more informed and with the help and advice you need.

Retirement freedoms can help you plan and construct your retirement income but only with the right preparation and advice

Getting ready for retirement

You may be retired a long time

With life expectancy at age 65 increasing, being retired for 20 years or more means you need to plan for an income that funds retirement for this long.

Male life expectancy is projected to have increased to 84.9 years in 2022 – up 5.9 years from 1981. By 2047 this is projected to increase a further 2.2 years to 87.1.

Female life expectancy is projected to have increased to 87.2 years in 2022 – up 4.2 years from 1981. By 2047 this is projected to increase a further 2.1 years to 89.3.

Although actuaries calculate the average life expectancy of men and women based upon a variety of factors, you must bear in mind that these are only averages.

In fact, in most cases the nature of averages is such that you are around 50% likely to live longer than the average. This is important to bear in mind when planning for retirement. To make your money last, you need to plan carefully and as early as possible.

(source 1)

How retirement has changed

With the demise of final salary schemes, most people are taking more of a portfolio approach to retirement income. As well as traditional pension savings and the basic state pension, people are using ISAs and other investments, such as bonds, to supplement their incomes.

Also, semi-retirement is becoming more common with people continuing to work part-time in retirement either through necessity or simply because they want to.

Don’t pay any more
tax than you have to

Having spent a long time carefully building your retirement fund, the last thing you will want to do is give a big chunk of it to the taxman. This is another reason why you need to plan carefully how you use your retirement fund.

By carefully planning with your adviser you will work out the most suitable way to use your tax-free cash entitlement so you maximise your personal allowance. Understanding tax and its implications is an important part of retirement planning. Your adviser will provide you with everything you need to know so you can avoid paying too much tax unnecessarily.

The Real Value of Financial Advice

The Value of Financial Advice for Retirement

Financial advice plays a crucial role in securing a higher retirement income. Studies show that individuals who receive professional financial advice can expect significantly better financial outcomes compared to those who go without.

Key Findings:

Higher Retirement Income: Over a 21-year retirement period, those who seek financial advice experience greater financial security, resulting in a much higher average retirement income.
The Importance of Advice: Research from Quilter (Adviser Delta, 2019) reveals that receiving advice not only improves retirement income but also provides greater financial peace of mind.
Source of Insights: The Retirement Income Uncovered – The New Normal report further underscores the positive impact of professional advice, highlighting that strategic financial planning ensures more sustainable and secure retirement finances.

(source 2)

What happens in the event of your death

If you die before you reach age 75

Income tax

Your beneficiary will not need topay any income tax.

If you die after you reach age 75