Recent research from Royal London has found that around five million people in the UK have ‘forgotten’ pension pots from final salary schemes of former employers. What’s more, many of these deferred members of defined benefit funds don’t know how much a lump sum payout of this accumulated pension would be worth, thanks to a […]
We would like to introduce two new staff members that have recently joined the team at Radcliffe Cooper. Kirsty has recently started as our receptionist at Radcliffe Cooper and she will be the voice at the end of the phone taking all incoming telephone calls. When not working Kirsty enjoys watching the rugby and travels to […]
Introduction It is hard to start this commentary anywhere other than North Korea – or maybe crouching in Japan as a North Korean missile passes overhead. At the beginning of the month, Kim Jong-un threatened to bomb Guam, the US territory in the Western Pacific, and by the end of the month air raid sirens […]
A new study has found that paying to free up your time is linked to increasing your level of happiness. Individuals taking part in a psychological experiment said that they felt happier when using $40 (around £30) to save themselves time rather than buying material goods. Stress over not having enough time can lead to […]
A recent study by leading think-tank the International Longevity Centre has suggested that people should aim to save a minimum of 11% of their income in order ‘to achieve an adequate retirement income’, which is defined as 70% of the amount earned whilst working. The think-tank emphasises that this is a minimum amount and in […]
A proposal to free up properties in Paris was approved at the beginning of July 2017 and could result in a major increase in council tax payments for UK residents with second homes in the French capital. The changes would result in an average payment increase of over €2,000 (around £1,750), a hike surely likely […]
July got off to the best possible start when Janet Yellen, Chair of the US Federal Reserve, announced that there would be no more financial crises “in our lifetime.” Speaking on a trip to London, she said that the reforms of the banking system since the 2007 to 2009 crash had “minimised the risk of […]
A recent study has found that the average deposit first-time buyers need to pay on a home has now risen to nearly £33,000. This is thanks to the average price of a first home now climbing to a record figure of £207,693. The Halifax First-Time Buyer Review discovered that almost half (47%) of all house […]
The deputy governor of the Bank of England has stated that the bank should not be tempted to increase interest rates due to “imponderables” within the UK economy. The comments from Ben Broadbent, an ally of the governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, and a member of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), were […]
Retirement should be the time in your life where you’re able to relax and enjoy the fruits of your labour throughout your working life. However, simply paying into your savings or a pension for when you retire might not allow you to do this if you’re not putting enough away. But what does “enough” look […]