A pension is one of the critical investments that you will make during your life and our aim at Forum Wealth Management is to ensure that we select the right pension plan for you.
Your sources of pension income will come from a combination of the following sources:
- State Pension Plan
This is a regular income from the state if you have made contributions throughout your working life.
- State Second Pension Scheme (S2P)
A 'topped up pension' scheme based on additional contributions made throughout your working life which has now replaced SERPS.
- Occupational Pension Scheme
This is a pension scheme that has been set-up by your employer and to which both you and them may have made regular contributions to over your working life. These may be either a 'Final Salary Scheme' or a 'Money Purchase' scheme and this will depend on the individual company that you worked for.
- Personal Pension Plans
This is where you may have set-up your own personal plan and contributed to it from your own personal income.
- Stakeholder Pensions
These became available from April 2001 and allow £3600 a year, irrespective of earnings, to be invested in a pension plan. Allowances are made for additional contributions based on age.
- Self Invested Personal Pension (SIPP)
Personal pension plans run by individuals, groups or companies offering a high degree of flexibility in how the money is invested. They also have a higher degree of risk than other pension plans.
The maximum that an individual can contribute and still receive
tax relief is the greater of their salary or £3,600 per annum
to a maximum called the annual allowance of £225,000 in the
tax year 2007/8. A company can pay up to the annual allowance for
an individual within a year.
The amount that you actually need to save will depend on your requirements in the next 20/30/40 years and how much money you will need in your retirement.
Our advisers have a wealth of experience in advising clients on the right pension scheme. They consider:
- Your current financial situation
- The level of income you would like to receive
- Your current and future income
- How flexible you want your payments to be
- Your employment status
- The track record of all pension providers
Once a pension plan has been chosen and you have made your initial investment, we will constantly review the plan to ensure that it continues to perform for you.
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