We’ve seen quite a lot of volatility in investment markets in recent months and while many analysts are forecasting single digit growth in 2022, there is also a sense that markets will continue to be volatile. Covid is still lingering, the US & China are having their differences over trade and Brexit issues remain unresolved.
Let’s make it a real resolution in 2022 to focus together on the big picture when it comes to your finances. All too often, it can be very easy to be dragged down into weeds – in our world that’s the (very important too) world of products, funds and fund managers. Don’t get us wrong, these really matter and need to be discussed, but never at the expense of discussing the bigger picture.
We spend our days helping clients to plan their financial futures. What we see is that people face similar challenges depending on their stage of life. At the same time of course, each and every one of us has a unique set of circumstances, has our own specific financial objectives and needs bespoke advice to help us reach our goals.
No, no, no – really how’s life? We’re not saying this just as a polite greeting, but instead are asking this as many people have become a bit more reflective after the pandemic, as we’ve all seen how our lives can be totally upended by something completely from left field. Unfortunately, a small number of our clients were (and one or two continue to be) quite sick from covid and we know people who also suffered bereavement because of the wretched virus. These people have unsurprisingly been reflecting on their new circumstances.
Tax is a necessary evil. If we want to live in a country with access to public services, taxation is the system used to pay for these services. We can (and do!) argue and moan about the different levels of tax payable and whether they are levied fairly. But at the end of the day, the money to be used for public services has to be collected somewhere.
Are we finally getting back to normal? It’s great to see people out and about again as the country eases itself out of lockdown. And for all of those retail businesses that were forced to close their doors, the early signs are good with the example of footfall on Grafton Street back to approx. 90% of the pre-pandemic levels.
We’re currently doing a lot of planning work with clients whose financial situations have changed greatly in the last 18 months. As part of this process, we’ve taken a little bit of time to stop and reflect on some of the changes to their lives in general, how these might impact their future and how these changes feed through into their financial plans. We’ve noticed a number of themes emerging.
We decided to write about this topic after listening to a very sad radio interview recently. It was with a father of three children, who had recently been bereaved after the death of his life partner of 20 years, the mother of his children. She passed away as the result of a medical condition, that was further complicated when she contracted Covid-19.
We were wondering recently about the impact that COVID has had on claims within the life assurance sector, and so we decided to do a bit of investigation by examining Irish Life’s (the leading provider of protection products in Ireland) claims data for 2020.
OK we admit – this may not sound like the most exciting topic in the world, but it just might make a significant difference to your financial future…
Evidence Based Investing (EBI) is gathering more and more supporters and advocates around the world, and as a result is starting to appear quite frequently in investment commentary and indeed the mainstream media. It is a term that you may or may not be familiar with, so we’re taking the opportunity to inform you of what you need to know about it.
Where do you start with Warren Buffett? Widely recognised as the world’s shrewdest investor, the “Sage of Omaha” is now 90 years young and still doling out nuggets of advice to investors across the globe. Using his investment expertise, he had amassed a fortune of some $79 billion as of August 2020, making him the 4th wealthiest individual in the world.
Pretty much all of our conversations these days open with a quick chat about the current situation with Covid. While it’s all a bit bleak at the moment with the latest surge in cases, hospital admissions and most unfortunately deaths, there is light at the end of the tunnel in the shape of the rollout of the vaccine starting to gather pace. This of course is the gamechanger for 2021.
We are fortunate to work with quite a number of clients who have reached or are well on the road to financial independence. This is a great place to be, where any money worries fade into the background and your desired future lifestyle is achievable, except of course where the assumptions underpinning the plan are ignored.
Ethical investing refers to the practice of using one's ethical principles as the primary filter for the selection of investment assets. Today it is seen as one element of the broader investing approach of Socially Responsible Investing (SRI). With the increased attention given to climate change, achieving a just society and the desire for good health, particularly in the current Covid era, there has been a surge in interest in SRI. Investors want to understand the impact of their money, and they want it to enhance the world we live in as opposed to simply achieving monetary growth at any cost.
2020 has been a year of great uncertainty. Of course Covid-19 has dominated the landscape, bringing with it insecurity for some people around both their health and also their economic circumstances. As countries are moving in and out of various states of lockdown, for many people this is creating a lot of worry about their jobs. For some this is temporary and they can see a relatively swift return to normality. For others their prospects are more bleak, as they are forced to close their business or they see their employers reducing headcount or shutting down altogether.
It’s not an easy ride for investors today, when you consider some of the actual and potential headwinds facing you,
Look, it happens regularly… people realise that with their current retirement planning approach, they are going to fall short of achieving the lifestyle they want in retirement. This happens for a whole lot of reasons – not having a plan, starting to save too late, not saving enough or the wrong investment strategy.
A huge amount of the time we spend with our clients is spent building an understanding of your goals in life and developing a financial plan to help you achieve your objectives. A lot of attention goes into your retirement strategy, your investment approach and other such important areas.
As we emerge from lockdown and the world is getting back to some sort of normality, unfortunately for some people the pandemic has had quite a significant impact on their income. We’ve had a small number of queries from clients in this situation who are looking to reduce their expenditure. Some are pausing savings plans and other regular investment products. One or two people have queried whether they should cut back on their levels of life assurance and specified illness cover.
As economies around the world start to cautiously emerge from their various states of lockdown, people are also stepping back into the light albeit gingerly and carefully. Some shops and services are open for business again, others have a while to wait still. Some activities that involve mass gatherings such as sports events and concerts face a quite uncertain future for some time to come.
A recent phone conversation with a client triggered this article, as we were discussing the volatility in markets over the last few months. This was a relatively easy conversation, as this particular client has a very measured view to managing her pension fund and her investments. She doesn’t make rash decisions, she maintains a long-term perspective and doesn’t fret over every movement in the markets.
Experience in the life assurance industry shows that most life assurance policies are taken out by people in their 30’s, 40’s and to a lesser extent in their 50’s. There is a very low uptake of life assurance by people in their 20’s who simply think they don't need it.
We believe that it’s time to look again at this line of logic, and we ask you to consider why we believe it makes sense to get cover in place sooner rather than later.
A marriage breakup is usually a traumatic time. Very significant life decisions are needed about custody of children and access arrangements, and where each party will live. Often relations between the parties become quite fraught… and then financial arrangements need to be agreed.
Lots of factors are currently creating a great deal of uncertainty for investors; markets have been a bit jittery after such a strong performance in 2019, USA and Iran are causing a lot of tension in the Middle East and Brexit is finally happening. The picture is quite daunting for investors today.
So what do you do?
Well the answer is probably, not very much! Let us explain…
We’ve written before about the importance of a very planned approach to retirement. Having a healthy pension fund is what springs to mind for all of us in this regard – of course this is very important, as having access to financial resources will help you to ensure that you can enjoy your retirement and live it on your own terms.
How has this happened? Surely we can’t already be facing into a new decade! Many of us remember fondly the big party we were at on New Year’s Eve as we entered the new century – and all the worries about the Y2K bug that was going to bring the end to many IT systems across the globe. We’re coming up to the 20th anniversary of that now…
In today’s era of consumerism on a grand scale, it can be hard to maintain a clear and constant perspective about the value of money. Many of us muddle along, surviving, making mistakes and getting by. However this is no example to give to the next generation who are likely to pick up on our behaviours and habits. Instead we need to carefully teach our children about how to act responsibly with money and to give them the best chance of building positive financial habits for life.
Find out how well your finances match your lifestyle needs