Baby boomers turn 65 in 2011!

2011 is a remarkable year where record numbers of the 'baby boom’ generation reach retirment age 65 throughout 2011.

The Department for Work and Pensions have advised that around 650,000 people reach the age of 65 this year. It has been suggested that this will be the largest number to reach age 65 in one single year since the records began.

There will also be a record number of men and women turning 65 next year with around 800,000 expected to turn 65 in 2012. This is an indication of the ageing population problems still to come.

Turning 65 is an important retirement age for many men and women and it is an important time to consider the many decisions that should be made around retirment and the many retirement payment options available.

If this is a time where you or someone you know will be reaching age 65 either this year or in 2012 it is an ideal time to consider your overall financial planning requirements. It is recommended you discuss these retirement options with an independent financial adviser who is in a position to review with you the many retirement payment options available to you.

This will allow you to gain an impartial view on your options and make better decisions on your retirement future.

Garry Hale
www.hkwealthmanagers.co.uk

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