Top 10 New Year’s resolutions for 2011

Not long now until 2011!! With a New Year many people are considering their future plans and considering New Year resolutions for 2011.
Here is a suggested list of the Top 10 New Year’s resolutions for 2011. See how many apply to you and would enhance your life and the lives of those around you.
1. Losing Weight
This is probably one of the resolutions which are common to many people who always dream of having a beautiful and lean body. Was this one of your resolutions from past year? If so, be encouraged this year to follow it until you see positive results. Make a plan of what you will give up (late night snacks, that extra meal) in exchange for a lean body. You only have to make this shift once in your lifetime to get lasting results.
2. Being Organized
Punctuality and organization is very crucial in everyone’s lives. People should always organize things accordingly and never delay any work what so ever. Work planning is very important both in office and also in home. The 2011 resolution must also include being organized and well planned. This will not only help in becoming a disciplined person but can also help in earning appreciation. In life problems are inevitable but handling these problems in planned and organized way is the main thing. Therefore a person’s resolution must include being disciplined. Simple things such as making a daily goal list before you start the day can go a long way.
3. Financial Planning
How did you do financially in 2010? Make 2011 your year to create your future Financial Plan. Many people spend money on unnecessary things without any justification. Money is an important thing in life and should be spent very carefully no matter how rich a person may be. Here’s a simple rule for you to follow in 2011. Before you buy something, always spend some time justifying the reason. You should spend the same amount of time it took you to earn that money on reasoning before you buy. If you do this, you will be able to cut most of the impulse purchases and you will be drawn to a better deal elsewhere.
4. Enjoy life to the Fullest
Life comes once and should be enjoyed as much as possible in the right way. Staying alone and isolated, and staying morose does not help. It is an individual’s duty to motivate oneself more and more so that they can reach the goal that they intend for. As the years are passing by, you are moving closer to the end of life. This should be seen as a positive aspect in life, because it encourages you to enjoy what you have in your life right now. Therefore make a resolution to find a reason everyday to enjoy life, enjoy everything that you do and enjoy every little moment in life, and then the life becomes worth living.
5. Staying Fit and Healthy
There are many people who lead a much undisciplined life and do not take care of their health. Staying physically and mentally fit should be another important resolution which can change your life positively and effectively. Regular exercise for half an hour everyday can help a lot in keeping mental peace.
6. Learn Something Exciting
Time waits for none and it should never be wasted. There are so many things that a person might engage himself or herself into apart from what they do. Where do you waste most of your time everyday? Do you spend idle time during waiting for the bus or train? Carry a book or an audio book on your career or profession every time you travel. Can you cut down on the time you spend watching TV, and learn a new skill? You’re never too young or old to learn a new skill. Therefore, make a resolution to upgrade your skills.
7. Quit Smoking
Smoking is injurious to health and it is known to all. Many people cannot give up smoking even after trying a lot. If you’re still addicted, your 2011 resolution should be to quit smoking. It will not only help you, but it will help everyone else whom you see everyday.
8. Helping Others in Their Dreams
Everybody thinks about oneself but there are few people who care for others. A great resolution is to help others. It always feels very nice to know that our actions can make other people smile and this is something to be proud about. You don’t need to be rich to help others. You can help others in 2011 with your time and skills. The more you help others, later you will also receive favors from other people because of the law of reciprocity.
9. Fall in Love
Love is a wonderful feeling, a feeling that comes from within. Are you in a relationship and is it the time to get engaged?, or is it the time to find someone in your life to share your experiences with? It’s never too late to fall in love.
10. Spend More Time with Family
Your 2011 resolutions should include loving family members. Every family member is dependent on each other and so spending time with family is very essential. An individual stays with its family for most of the time and should devote as much time as possible. Something that most successful businessmen and women regret is not spending enough time with their families when they could’ve. Spending time with the family gives a person a chance to know each other, share feelings with each other, share joy and sorrow. This is indeed an important resolution that will give you fulfillment in life.

These are some of the top 10 resolution’s for 2011 and I am sure some will be applicable to you. 2011 could be a new beginning in your life. Why not create your own list of resolutions and make a quantum leap in your life this new year! Good luck for 2011…..
Garry Hale www.financialadviserstirling.co.uk

20 October Spending Review 2010

Chancellor George Osborne delivered his Spending Review yesterday afternoon to the House of Commons.

In summary key highlights are:


• Tax relieved pension contributions/accrual will effectively be limited to an annual allowance of £50,000 from 6 April 2011, although it will be possible to carry forward unused annual allowances from the previous three years

• Auto-enrolment goes ahead from 2012 and NEST, the centralised default option for employers without their own good quality pension scheme, will also continue. NEST plans to launch on a voluntary basis in spring 2011

• Male and female state pension age will be equalised at 65 by November 2018 and the increase to 66 for men and women will be completed by April 2020

• Many low income individuals, and some higher rate taxpayers, will be impacted by wide ranging changes to state benefits.

Garry Hale HK Wealth Managers Ltd

www.financialadviserstirling.co.uk

Alternative Financial Advice!

Lifestyle Financial Planning

HK Wealth Managers (HKWM)are Alternative Financial Advisers™ and use a three stage process that firmly puts the focus on you - and on helping you identify and achieve your goals, your aspirations.

The first stage of the process is called Life Planning - getting to know you, helping identify what's important, and understanding the things you want to achieve in your lifetime, particularly the sort of lifestyle you want to enjoy now and throughout life. HKWM Will then carry out a thorough financial analysis. Not only are the details of your current income, outgoings, assets and liabilities considered, but all resources that may become available to you in your lifetime. This gives an accurate measure of your net worth and current and future financial situation.

Having a full understanding of your needs HKWM then goes to the second stage called Financial Planning. We now begin the process of helping you realistically estimate the cost of the life you want to enjoy in years to come. Using leading financial planning software, we produce for you what can often be a dramatic picture, which will spell out the reality of your financial future. Suddenly you will see it, understand it, and believe it. HKWM will then model realistic "what if" scenarios that will demonstrate the different outcomes that can be achieved for you through various financial strategies all designed to help you get what YOU want. Many clients have found they can retire years earlier when they are armed with this knowledge - which we call the 'truth about money'. Others learn how they can spend more now and still be financially secure for the rest of their lives. Other clients identify how much they need to sell their business for to be totally financially independent.

Finally, if your financial plan indicates that you might need a financial or investment product, then, and only then, will HKWM offer the third process which is independent financial advice. At that stage, armed with a full understanding of your needs, they will be able to offer truly independent advice to identify and (if required) implement financial products or investment strategies that are best suited to your real needs.

This three stage process is the exact opposite to how most financial advisers work.

Osborne plans emergency Budget for 22 June

Chancellor George Osborne has announced there will be an emergency Budget on 22 June.

Osborne set the Budget date for 22 June at a press conference this morning, where he also announced the creation of the Office of Budget Responsibility. Osborne had previously pledged to hold a budget within 50 days of taking office.

The focus of the emergency Budget will almost certainly be on the cuts to government spending and services. The Conservatives and Liberal Democrats agreed to make £6 billion in spending cuts this year as part of the coalition deal between the two parties.

Ahead of the Budget there has been plenty of speculation about what might change. Expect to see changes to Capital Gains Tax (CGT) on non-business assets, pension tax relief and possibly Value Added Tax (VAT).

Investors should be aware of the potential for change in June, but not delay making important financial decisions. Effective Financial Planning can only really take place based on what is known rather than what is expected.

The June Budget will be the second of 2010 and we will provide informative commentary and reaction to the announcements made in the Budget.

Cash ISAs labelled unfair, unclear and poor valueBy Victoria Bischoff Citywire | 00:01:00 | 31 March 2010

Banks are not giving consumers a fair deal on cash ISAs, campaign group Consumer Focus has told the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) today.

Consumer Focus has attacked the cash ISA market for the:

•Difficulty in switching. Very few people are switching between ISAs despite the apparently large number of products available on the market. This is because it can take weeks to go through an unnecessarily bureaucratic and inefficient switching process.
•Lack of transparency. It is often unclear how much interest people are earning on their savings. Rates are hidden in complex tables and it is often hard to find interest rates on old accounts.
•Relative decline in interest rates. Interest rates on cash ISAs have fallen much further than what homeowners pay on their mortgages or even the rate of interest paid on other savings accounts.
•Banks are ‘bait pricing’. Many providers are using ‘bait’ or ‘bonus’ interest rates to attract savers, but after the initial bonus period has finished there is little competition and the products often offer poor value. Meanwhile, banks are secure in the knowledge that when rates plummet consumers are unlikely to switch.
The Financial Services Consumer Panel has welcomed Consumer Focus’ complaint, comparing the way banks sell cash ISAs to payment protection insurance sales and unauthorised overdraft charges.

Adam Phillips, chairman of the Consumer Panel, said: ‘Here is yet another example of banks being more interested in making money than in their customers getting a fair deal’.

‘We will press the FSA to take action. It cannot be a fair outcome for consumers – or what the Government wanted to achieve in providing this tax incentive – that people end up with little more interest from their tax free account than they would get from an ordinary account,’ he added.

However, the British Banker’s Association criticised Consumer Focus for not discussing its complaint with the banking sector, claiming if it had been given the chance it could have explained the work it is already doing with the regulator to help ISA customers.

The BBA said: ‘From May, customers will be given advanced notification of any material reduction in the interest rate on a cash ISA, plus advance notice of the end of any bonus or introductory rate. Consumer Focus erroneously refers to the Banking Code rules on this issue, but these were superseded by Financial Services Authority rules last November’.

BBA has also said the Consumer Focus investigation is ‘misleading’, as it was an online poll of just over 400 www.moneysavingexpert.com users.

Responding Martin Lewis, the founder of Moneysavingexpert.com, accused banks of ‘deliberately confusing’ consumers. He said their lack of transparency is a ‘clever trick’ and claims it is not ‘beyond their wit and wisdom’ to make the details of cash ISA accounts much clearer for consumers.

He advises customers to be more active in their approach to managing their savings accounts and above all 'ditch and switch' to a better account if they are not getting a good deal.

Capital asset pricing model

Capital asset pricing model

In finance, the capital asset pricing model (CAPM) is used to determine a theoretically appropriate required rate of return of an asset, if that asset is to be added to an already well-diversified portfolio, given that asset's non-diversifiable risk. The model takes into account the asset's sensitivity to non-diversifiable risk (also known as systematic risk or market risk), often represented by the quantity beta (β) in the financial industry, as well as the expected return of the market and the expected return of a theoretical risk-free asset.

The formula


E(ri) = Rf + βi(E(rm) - Rf)


where:

E(ri) = return required on financial asset i
Rf = risk-free rate of return
βi = beta value for financial asset i
E(rm) = average return on the capital market

New client testimonial today - Professional and Trustworthy Approach‎

"I have been a client of HK Wealth Managers for over 5 years and have benefited from the professional advice and management of our portfolio, such that even during the recent economic turmoil we have felt assured that we had the right financial strategy in place. Approachable, trustworthy and with high integrity".‎

Interest rates could be held until 2011

Interest rates could remain on hold until 2011 but are likely to rise sharply thereafter, according to Skandia.


Skandia Investment Group (SIG) says interest rates are likely to remain on hold until at least the autumn, with tighter monetary policy after the general election delaying an increase.

SIG senior fund manager Ryan Hughes thinks a cautious outlook on behalf of the Bank of England could mean rates may not even rise until next year.

"The Bank may want to wait until it has seen two quarters of above trend growth, which on its forecasts will not happen until January 2011," he says.

But Hughes thinks once rates do rise they will do so sharply.

"The current level of interest rates is the lowest on record and a long way below the 5% rate many economists think of as neutral," he says.

"While there are good reasons why interest rates may stay low relative to history for some time to come, that should not stop significant rate increases in a year or two."

In the meantime, he adds, the low interest rate environment will support the economy, equities and corporate bonds.

His comments follow the MPC's decision to keep base rates at 0.5% earlier this month.

Garry Hale
www.hkwm.co.uk

Sound financial advice - client testimonial provided today:

We have been clients of HK Wealth Managers for a number of years and continue to be impressed with the advice Garry provides. His ability to explain matters in a simple manner has helped us make the right financial decisions for the future. We particularly appreciate Garry’s style of advising which is to lay out the facts and let us make the decisions. He is thoroughly professional both in meetings and in his communication pre- and post-meeting. An excellent source of sound financial advice. Thank you Garry!‎

Shelter your money from the tax man...

The Individual Savings Account (ISA) is a rare opportunity which the Government offers you to shelter your money from the tax man. For every pound you put in, you pay no further personal tax on any profits earned and do not even have to declare its existence to the tax man. This year, you can invest up to £7,200 - or, if you are over 50, up to £10,200. However, as the year end - and then tax year end - start to creep up on all of us, you need to make sure you act or you lose this year's opportunity forever.

Of the £7,200 (£10,200), up to £3,600 (£5,100) can be invested into cash - on deposit with a bank or building society or via cash funds. The rest can be invested in the much more volatile world of stocks and shares - or a funds of stocks and shares, the latter of which will at least spread your risk a bit further given that the value is at risk in this area and it is possible you may not get back the amount you originally invest.

ISAs are available for lump sum investment but also for regular savings. Whatever you choose to do, however, the deadline is approaching and you therefore need to start planning to make sure you can take full advantage. Of course, you do not have to use the whole allowance - but if you can, or if you have investments elsewhere that could be transferred over, sheltering them within an ISA does provide a more tax efficient way to hold on to any gains you do make.

Please note: the exact tax benefits of ISAs vary depending on your circumstances and are subject to change.

The 'Truth About Money'.

The Truth About Money is to help more people, mainly business owners, professionals, successful high earners and those retired with capital, gain access to the TRUTH about money.
It’s a fact that the majority of people have no idea where they are heading financially. They may have assets, investments, and/or high levels of income, but most people have no idea what it all means, or where they are heading.
That is because the majority of financial advisers lack the necessary tools to demonstrate to clients ‘what their future looks like’ – quite simply they are guessing about their clients' future. They focus their attention on ‘products’ rather than REAL solutions that give clients what they want out of life.
More importantly, they fail to answer the BIG questions which really need answering.
Questions like:
• “When, precisely, can I afford to stop doing the things that have become a drag…and start doing the things
I really enjoy?”
• “What do I have to do to ensure I NEVER run out of money?”
• “How much do I need to earn, save or sell my business for to give me what I want out of life?”
• Exactly what level of investment return do I need to achieve my objectives?
And possibly the biggest question of all…
• “How much is enough!?”
These are questions that need answering, and answering fast. Life is not a rehearsal.
The good news is HK Wealth Managers Ltd are advisers that can answer these questions.
They are financial planning professionals who use a special financial planning tool called truth™. It’s designed to tell you the truth about money. Pure and simple.

Making YOU the Centre of Attention
We put the focus back on you – on your goals, on your aspirations. Through a process called Lifeplanning™ we help you identify what’s important to you, the things that you want to achieve in your lifetime. Then we carry out a financial planning analysis. Not only are the details of your income, outgoings, assets and liabilities considered, but resources that may become available to you in your lifetime. This gives an accurate measure of your net worth and current and future financial situation. We help you estimate the cost of the life you want to enjoy in years to come.
We use truth™ software to put the two together. It produces a dramatic picture, which spells out the reality of your financial future. Suddenly you see it, understand it, and believe it. You and HK Wealth Managers Ltd can then model realistic “what if” scenarios that will demonstrate the different outcomes you can create. Many clients have found they can retire years earlier when they are armed with the truth about money. Others learn how they can spend more now and still be financially secure for the rest of their lives. Other clients identify what they need to sell their business for to be financially independent.
Finally, if your financial plan indicates that you need financial or investment products, then HK Wealth Managers Ltd are able to offer advice to identify products suited to your needs.
Whatever your situation, HK Wealth Managers Ltd can help take the guesswork out of your planning and help you make more sense of your money. To find out the Truth About Your Money contact HK Wealth Managers Ltd today – www.hkwm.co.uk.

Garry Hale AIFP, Dip PFS
Owner of HK Wealth Managers Ltd

ABI warns of looming pension age cut-off date - IFAonline

ABI warns of looming pension age cut-off date - IFAonline

pension tax loophole warning

Could the basic pension contribution allowance be the next target in the Government’s plans to cut pension relief?

This could be an obvious target for a Government looking to raise income.

Currently, those who do not pay tax can make a contribution of up to £2,880 a year and receive tax relief on it, grossing the money up to £3,600.

However, the loophole is often used by the wealthy, who give money to a spouse or child who can then make a pension contribution and receive an additional £720. This loophole could soon be closed.

There is a situation right now where the Government has no money to fund its projects, and they will be on the lookout for loopholes like this.

Because the exemption is mainly used by the wealthy and their close relatives, the removal of the basic pension contribution allowance is unlikely to be noticed by the majority of voters, and could even be seen as further taxation of the rich.

Would this change to basic pension contribution allowance send out the wrong message on pension saving yet again?

Would it send out a message that long-term saving is not a priority for the Treasury, at a time when we should be encouraging people to save for the future.

Retirement age issues

From 6 April 2010, the minimum age at which benefits can
be taken under a pension arrangement, moves from 50 to
55. This will not affect those clients already retired, or those
with no plans to retire until age 55 or later – but it will
impact on those clients approaching 50, or aged between
50 and 55.

Important Retirement News!! Were you born between 06/04/55 and 05/04/60?

Did you know…..The minimum pension age is due to change on 6 April 2010. Because this might affect you or one of your clients, I wanted to tell you a bit more about it.
The change means that from 6 April 2010, the earliest an individual will be able to take their pension benefits will increase from age 50 to age 55.
In other words, people aged 50 on 5 April 2010, will be able to take their pension benefits, but if they don’t manage to take them by midnight that night they won’t be able to access their pension for up to five years.
This change won’t just affect individuals who want to retire early, it will also affect individuals who may wish to take their 25% tax-free lump sum early but leave the rest invested, perhaps while they continue to work.
Time is running out, but there is still time to take advantage of some excellent tax-planning opportunities before the change occurs. For example, by tapping into an existing pension fund now may enable someone to generate an additional tax free lump sum later.
Remember, though, that tax rules can change and the value of the tax advantages can depend on your personal circumstances.
This can be a complex area and advice would be required strictly on an individual basis. I recommend speaking with an independent financial planner who can offer impartial financial planning advice on this area.

Garry Hale AIFP, Dip PFS
Director of HK Wealth Managers Ltd.
garry.hale@hkwm.co.uk