Putting your savings into a fixed-rate bond is a great way of getting a good interest rate. Anyone who locked up their cash a few years ago will have been enjoying great rates of return compared to what is on offer now. But make sure you know the terms and conditions of your bond and most importantly, when it matures.
When most bonds mature, providers move the balance into standard easy-access savings accounts, which tend to pay highly uncompetitive interest rates. So if you aren't on the ball and don't move your money to an account with a better interest rate, you could lose up to £1,000 a year in interest, reckons Moneysupermarket.com.
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MPs warn over Lifetime ISAs which could leave savers out of pocketThe Treasury Committee has highlighted confusion around the Lifetime ISA withdrawal charge, which risks consumers losing “a significant part of their savings”
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FCA reveals 'once in a generation' advice changes - what the reforms mean for youConsumers to get free access to financial advice type help for pensions and investment following proposed changes from the regulator
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Our pension system, little-changed since Roman times, needs updatingOpinion The Romans introduced pensions, and we still have a similar system now. But there is one vital difference between Roman times and now that means the system needs updating, says Merryn Somerset Webb.
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We’re doing well on pensions – but we still need to do betterOpinion Pensions auto-enrolment has vastly increased the number of people in the UK with retirement savings. But we’re still not engaged enough, says Merryn Somerset Webb.
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Older people may own their own home, but the young have better pensionsOpinion UK house prices mean owning a home remains a pipe dream for many young people, but they should have a comfortable retirement, says Merryn Somerset Webb.
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How to avoid a miserable retirementOpinion The trouble with the UK’s private pension system, says Merryn Somerset Webb, is that it leaves most of us at the mercy of the markets. And the outlook for the markets is miserable.
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Young investors could bet on NFTs over traditional investmentsOpinion The first batch of child trust funds and Junior Isas are maturing. But young investors could be tempted to bet their proceeds on digital baubles such as NFTs rather than rolling their money over into traditional investments
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Pandemics, politicians and gold-plated pensionsAdvice As more and more people lose their jobs to the pandemic and the lockdowns imposed to deal with it, there’s one bunch of people who won’t have to worry about their future: politicians, with their generous defined-benefits pensions.
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How to have a low-tax retirement in the sunNews Greece is to offer a ten-year tax incentive to foreign pensioners. That’s a pretty good offer, says Merryn Somerset Webb. But it might not last.
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Prepare yourself for a rise in capital gains taxOpinion With the UK desperate to raise more money to cover the massive rise in public spending, squeezing more revenue out of capital gains tax looks like an obvious thing to do.
