Fixing a fair fee for finance advice Figuring out whether the fees and commissions your independent financial adviser charges are fair can be difficult. Are the charges you are paying to invest in an annuity or unit trust appropriate? Could you find a more appealing deal?
Government threat to restrict the alternatives The Treasury has thrown the pensions market into confusion by appearing to threaten the future of a valuable tax break for older people introduced in April.
Providers call for better deal on pension transfers Pension providers are calling for the government to give a better deal to pension fund members who transfer out of final salary schemes when new regulations come into force next year.
Make sure your cover prepares for the worst The vast majority of the thousands of travellers who were delayed by the security clampdown at UK airports to foil an alleged terrorist plot will not receive a penny in compensation because of terrorist exclusion clauses in their travel policies.
Older borrowers wise up on securing finance Many of us will have to work extra years, and take our pensions later, to accommodate rising life expectancy. But for those looking to move up the property ladder later in life, most mortgage lenders are failing to keep up.
Hedge funds have not done what it says on the tin Hedge funds are frequently promoted as offering positive returns regardless of conditions in the markets. But the recent performance of funds of hedge funds, which offer the additional security of investing across a range of underlying funds, has cast dou
Tax inspectors seek power to search and arrest evaders HM Revenue & Customs is pushing for new powers to make arrests, take fingerprints and execute wider search warrants without the police as part of a government clampdown on tax avoidance.
Sound buildings will survive the rate tremors Property has been an excellent investment for the past decade but this month’s quarter percentage point rise in the bank base rate is expected to put a brake on the sector’s already slowing momentum.
I hearby leave my mortgage to… A new mortgage allowing homeowners to pass on their mortgage debt when they die and thereby cut the inheritance tax bill faced by their heirs was launched this week.
Savers frustrated by three-week delay Many lenders have been quick to raise their standard variable rates on mortgages but many of the UK’s major banks have yet to declare what they are doing with their savings rates.
Education in letting as landlords look for bargains Students may have a reputation for being rowdy, disorganised and less than houseproud, but according to mortgage lenders, they can make for some of the most reliable and lucrative tenants.