Your Pension

[Abstra]

Generally speaking. If you add up your contributions of the past 10 years and deduct 20% you will get a general valuation of what it is now worth. To solve this problem official advice is to pay even more into the black hole; yeah right!.

Prospects for the future are even worse. If thats the performance after a boom I'd wouldn't want to wager my earnings on a pension through a recession.

Don't forget that your pension income will be means tested against state benefits when you come to claim it and any benefit will be deducted from those benefits. In order to get above this threshold someone worked out that a pension pot of less then a quarter of a million was a waste of effort and money.

Your better off saving money in an off shore account where no one can find out what you have. Not Iceland though. Sort out your own investments and unlike a pension make sure you can get the capital back.

Those that live for the day are getting a better life than those work like a dog and support them.

The whole system is now set up to destroy the hardworking law abiding people. The very people that are responsible for supporting everyone else. CHP's (Council House People) don't get repo'ed, their rent is paid when out of work, they get a pension equivalent to at least a quarter of a million upon retirement.

To get a standard of living equivalent to a CHP with two children you need an income of no less than 40K ish. Look at all the grads living in house shares after grad with no kids, paying debts for the foreseeable future. Now look at CHP's 'Sharon and Tracey with a couple of kids' they have a house, a car in the drive and a Spanish Holiday.

[refusnik]

It's much more simple. There is no pot. All contributions go into paying out existing claimants. So one's pension is a hope that at some time in the future others will be willing to pay into their non-existing "pots."

As soon as one understands this, it is easier to figure out what [not] to do.

Edited October 11, 2008 by refusnik

[Errol]

The time to go back into pension investing will come when the Dow is at 4000 and the ftse around 2000.

[Spoony]

Agree with all of that. Trouble is we can't put anything in offshore accounts now because of the bloody anti-terrorist powers that are abused by this government to spy on peoples money.

My pension has fallen about 25% despite a late switch into index linked gilts in Aug, which has also fallen 6% since I switched. My dilemma is if I should switch into cash and cut the losses or ride it out waiting for it to recover? My plan was to switch back into equities when it looked like things were up but because of the government borrowing it looks like gilts will be way down for a while. I have to admit I haven't got my head around gilts so I can't make any kind of informed decision as to how the market will go. Any comments from those who do understand them would be most helpful to me of you would be so kind!?

[Gormless Clown]

The whole system is now set up to destroy the hardworking law abiding people.

So true.

[DblEntry]

I am a 24 year old chartered accountant who had arranged for his first pension contribution to be made this month.

I had originally asked for 1% contribution to be matched by 1% by employer as paying for a wedding this year, but wondering whether I should be increasing this to maximum 3% to take advantage of low stock prices.

To those who say avoid pensions at all cost - you are underestimating the massive tax benefits of schemes. If your employer matches on a salary sacrifice scheme, a higher rate taxpayer only suffers the cost of something like 40% of the amount contributed to the scheme.

[Injin]

I am a 24 year old chartered accountant who had arranged for his first pension contribution to be made this month.

I had originally asked for 1% contribution to be matched by 1% by employer as paying for a wedding this year, but wondering whether I should be increasing this to maximum 3% to take advantage of low stock prices.

To those who say avoid pensions at all cost - you are underestimating the massive tax benefits of schemes. If your employer matches on a salary sacrifice scheme, a higher rate taxpayer only suffers the cost of something like 40% of the amount contributed to the scheme.

That's right, you have been incetivised to give your money away to people who will never return it in anything like the amounts you think it will.

Its almost as if it had been planned that way!

[Abstra]

I am a 24 year old chartered accountant who had arranged for his first pension contribution to be made this month.

I had originally asked for 1% contribution to be matched by 1% by employer as paying for a wedding this year, but wondering whether I should be increasing this to maximum 3% to take advantage of low stock prices.

To those who say avoid pensions at all cost - you are underestimating the massive tax benefits of schemes. If your employer matches on a salary sacrifice scheme, a higher rate taxpayer only suffers the cost of something like 40% of the amount contributed to the scheme.

Chartered Accountants are shortly to be dumped on mass in favour of Economic Engineers. Accountancy is a non science I'm afraid. Your role will be fulfilled by book keepers. You cant CROSS train I;m afraid, you have already been convinced of the value of money in an economy. Deprogramming you will take at least 5 years.

Tax benefits, geTTing married. You plank. A bright future. Someone turn his lights out he's an optomist poor thing.

Its over, give in. Accountancy - learn to do something useful like car mechanics. A lot of old cars on the road shortly, shit loads of money fixing them. What about Taxi driving - cash payments - your own profit and loss accounts, you can do that if you can get a badge to drive.

How are you feeling NOW.

GOOD!. An Accountant. GOD help us!.

Edited October 11, 2008 by Decom

[Wimbledon88]

That's right, you have been incetivised to give your money away to people who will never return it in anything like the amounts you think it will.

If they return it at all. Pensions are the ultimate pyramid! In fact, I cannot get my head round the logic of pension schemes. To my mind, theyy are just like these websites where you can "buy" a piece of the Moon.

[DblEntry]

Chartered Accountants are shortly to be dumped on mass in favour of Economic Engineers. Accountancy is a non science I'm afraid. Your role will be fulfilled by book keepers. You cant CROSS train I;m afraid, you have already been convinced of the value of money in an economy. Deprogramming you will take at least 5 years.

Tax benefits, geTTing married. You plank. A bright future. Someone turn his lights out he's an optomist poor thing.

Its over, give in. Accountancy - learn to do something useful like car mechanics. A lot of old cars on the road shortly, shit loads of money fixing them. What about Taxi driving - cash payments - your own profit and loss accounts, you can do that if you can get a badge to drive.

How are you feeling NOW.

GOOD!. An Accountant. GOD help us!.

You seem bitter?!

I feel quite secure actually - but then it helps that my clients are multinational companies in engineering, security services andstill consumer goods, rather than financial institutions. They will all suffer a downturn, for sure, but they will also still have profits on which they will pay tax, which we will help them to save.

As it happens, I have had my busiest quarter in three years (105% charged hours) and a number of projects in the pipeline that will keep me busy until next April.

You may not know that even accountants specialising in advising financial institutions are extraordinarily busy at the moment - somebody has to make these takeovers/mergers work.

[crashmonitor]

Don't forget that your pension income will be means tested against state benefits when you come to claim it

Especially if you are a tenant :you could lose full housing benefit of say £6,000 per year on your rent ,full council tax benefit of a further £1,000,plus the minimum income guarantee pension top up of say £1,500.You may need a pension pot of nearly 200 grand to claw that package back with annuity rates at about 5% on superannuated contracts.You only get rewarded if you are feckless in Gordy's world.

[The Atomic Bull]

i don't even want to think about what is happening to my pension.

50% paid into a "high risk adventurous" fund.

[Abstra]

i don't even want to think about what is happening to my pension.

50% paid into a "high risk adventurous" fund.

They gave it to me. Was I adventurous with it?. Very!. Yeah, its gone; all of it. Sorry about ThaT.

I did tell them though, I warned them. Don't give it to me you will never see it again. They threw it at me in 50 quid notes and ran like hell.

Edited October 11, 2008 by Decom

[the end is a bit nigher]

Generally speaking. If you add up your contributions of the past 10 years and deduct 20% you will get a general valuation of what it is now worth. To solve this problem official advice is to pay even more into the black hole; yeah right!.

But if I don't pay it into a pension then I lose, yes LOSE, 40% of it in tax to the shambles that is running the country to piss on other people's houses and supporting migrant workers taking all the new jobs (1.2m out of 1.5m jobs created in last 5 years). You will seriously struggle to find anything that competes even with a 22% lower rate tax saving, never mind the 40%. You can also just hold cash in your pension pot if you think the markets are too risky. Government bonds are currently the best buy for new cash.

I would rather take my chance with the marketsa pension, thanks.

Edit as per strike-through for clarity

Edited October 11, 2008 by the end is nigh

[Injin]

You seem bitter?!

I feel quite secure actually - but then it helps that my clients are multinational companies in engineering, security services andstill consumer goods, rather than financial institutions. They will all suffer a downturn, for sure, but they will also still have profits on which they will pay tax, which we will help them to save.

As it happens, I have had my busiest quarter in three years (105% charged hours) and a number of projects in the pipeline that will keep me busy until next April.

You may not know that even accountants specialising in advising financial institutions are extraordinarily busy at the moment - somebody has to make these takeovers/mergers work.

Be careful.

Without the tax system accountancy is a job for 12 year old math savants in the days before computers and anyone of reasonable intelligence in the PC age.

Knowledge of the ins and outs of regulation means nothing if the regulators vanish into history.

[ken_ichikawa]

Be careful.

Without the tax system accountancy is a job for 12 year old math savants in the days before computers and anyone of reasonable intelligence in the PC age.

Knowledge of the ins and outs of regulation means nothing if the regulators vanish into history.

probably why I can't get a job in Hong Kong , (easily) , the tax system there is so simple everybody completes their tax returns online takes 10 minutes tops , I watched my granny (who is 93) do it.

But then I'm trying to get out of accountancy anyway second I get my ACCA status and do 'something' else..

[ubuntu]

probably why I can't get a job in Hong Kong , (easily) , the tax system there is so simple everybody completes their tax returns online takes 10 minutes tops , I watched my granny (who is 93) do it.

But then I'm trying to get out of accountancy anyway second I get my ACCA status and do 'something' else..

out of interest why do you want ACCA status if you plan to get out,why not just get out now? Btw, I'm ACMA but don't work in accountancy field.

[ken_ichikawa]

Its because I've come so far and I am very very close to getting those 4 letters after my name....

I'm > < from finishing it (about 5-6 more months experience and 2 more exams), might as well finish it , beats walking away and having nothing to show for years of study and work experience right? , as said I can have my chartered status and do something else instead.

As a bit of a bonus its worth quite a large number of points on Aus/NZ/Canadian citizenship applications , though I already have a couple of citizenships already.

[ubuntu]

Its because I've come so far and I am very very close to getting those 4 letters after my name....

I'm > < from finishing it (about 5-6 more months experience and 2 more exams), might as well finish it , beats walking away and having nothing to show for years of study and work experience right? , as said I can have my chartered status and do something else instead.

As a bit of a bonus its worth quite a large number of points on Aus/NZ/Canadian citizenship applications , though I already have a couple of citizenships already.

yes makes sense to complete it, good luck.

[Abstra]

You seem bitter?!

I feel quite secure actually - but then it helps that my clients are multinational companies in engineering, security services andstill consumer goods, rather than financial institutions. They will all suffer a downturn, for sure, but they will also still have profits on which they will pay tax, which we will help them to save.

As it happens, I have had my busiest quarter in three years (105% charged hours) and a number of projects in the pipeline that will keep me busy until next April.

You may not know that even accountants specialising in advising financial institutions are extraordinarily busy at the moment - somebody has to make these takeovers/mergers work.

I'm not bitter, I'm just winding you all up, thats all. Don't take me seriously no one does. You are doing well at the moment I can see that. Well done ThaT man, up to the podium.

[council dweller]

.....let me just say that although I'm a council dweller, at least I'm not an accountant.

Also, I turned down my company pension as the state pension will be enough for me. If there's no state to provide a state pension there'll be no pensions of any kind.

[Ethel]

But if I don't pay it into a pension then I lose, yes LOSE, 40% of it in tax to the shambles that is running the country to piss on other people's houses and supporting migrant workers taking all the new jobs (1.2m out of 1.5m jobs created in last 5 years). You will seriously struggle to find anything that competes even with a 22% lower rate tax saving, never mind the 40%. You can also just hold cash in your pension pot if you think the markets are too risky. Government bonds are currently the best buy for new cash.

I would rather take my chance with the marketsa pension, thanks.

Edit as per strike-through for clarity

Isn't the lower tax rate 20% now? (sorry to split hairs)

[refusnik]

First wake up alarms if you are willing to listen.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7664825.stm , etc

Soon it will sound like intro to Pink Floyd's Time.

[Abstra]

First wake up alarms if you are willing to listen.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7664825.stm , etc

Soon it will sound like intro to Pink Floyd's Time.

Someones doing the ground work for the next trench of bad news I think!.

[Ethel]

Generally speaking. If you add up your contributions of the past 10 years and deduct 20% you will get a general valuation of what it is now worth. To solve this problem official advice is to pay even more into the black hole; yeah right!.

I don't agree.

If you've been contributing for 10 years you'd have 10 years worth of market gains prior to the recent loss.

You also get your contributions topped up by 20% tax relief (or 22% - 40% over the last 10 years) so a 20% loss in value is still going to leave you with roughly what you've paid in.

Dontcha think?