This first year of retirement has been truly amazing. Nevertheless it is worth standing back and taking a look at how things are and what we still need to work on. Continue reading “First year of retirement!”
Category: personal finance
HMRC reduced my tax bill from £143,000 to zero
I was not impressed when I received my latest HMRC tax code, something was wrong. Seriously wrong. Turns out HMRC had my pension income down as £359,000 for the year. So this post is how HMRC reduced my tax bill from £143,000 to zero. Continue reading “HMRC reduced my tax bill from £143,000 to zero”
The benefits of a varied portfolio
Despite the promising title, we have had a real disappointment with our little nest egg. One investment fund has gone down the pan and we are now being advised to sell the remains for whatever is there (probably peanuts). For a moment, this got me really worried…. will I have to go back to work? In the cold light of day, no I doubt it, but in the middle of the night and lying awake thinking about it, it’s a terrible situation. Continue reading “The benefits of a varied portfolio”
The cost of food and petrol
Rachel keeps a close eye on our cash flows and there are a few surprising things coming up. This is mostly the cost of food and petrol but thankfully we are okay with this; but definitely not complacent. Continue reading “The cost of food and petrol”
Interview with our Financial Advisor
I have been really looking forward to bringing you my interview with our financial advisor. Or to use the correct terminology, Independent Financial Advisor, or IFA for short. IFAs rightly place great importance on their independent status in not being tied to a limited range of financial products and yet it is wider than that. I have already blogged about the importance of some kind of financial/life planning and here I talk to Jon Cobb, our very own IFA. Continue reading “Interview with our Financial Advisor”
Buying a 12 year old car
We are in the process of changing cars and this, so far, has involved me buying a 12 year old car. Normally we have bought cars which are 3 years old, in other words when most of their depreciation has already taken place and yet there is still plenty of life left in the car. Continue reading “Buying a 12 year old car”
Remembering when we paid off our mortgage
Being debt free is a nice feeling. I found myself remembering when we paid off our mortgage and the huge weight which had been lifted from us. We only had a mortgage for about eight years and I hope I’ll never forget the immense joy and relief when we paid it off. Continue reading “Remembering when we paid off our mortgage”