Money - Pensions
At this particular point in time in our lives the rather gloomy word ‘Pensions’ tends to loom large. The whole area is rather like eating sawdust and then not really feeling satisfied at the end of it all. However, how you are going to live and what money you have available does need to be looked at.
Pensions are long-term investments
Pensions are long-term investments with special tax rules. You usually cannot access your money until you reach the age of 50 going up to 55 by 2010. There are 3 three main types of non-state pension.
Occupational salary-related schemes- offered by employers.
Occupational defined contribution schemes (also called money purchase pensions) offered by some employers.
Stakeholder pensions and personal pensions offered by some employers or you can have one of your own.
The Government pays the basic State Pension to people who claim it and have reached state pension age. You qualify for it by paying into it, being treated as having paid or been credited with National Insurance contributions for a minimum number of years.
There is Pension Credit, which is an entitlement for people aged 60 or over living in Great Britain. This could mean extra money for you every week if you are on a low income.
Look at all the possible sources of income. Find the big ones first like what pension you are likely to get from your present employer or whatever private scheme you paid into and what you will get from the State Pension. Track down any old pensions, bank or building society accounts or other investments with the Pension Tracing Service, the British Bankers Association or Building Societies Association and the Unclaimed Assets Register.
When you have gathered as much information as you can about your pensions and other alternative sources or income the next part is to see whether what you are going to have coming in is going to cover what is going to go out. Once you know where your income is coming from and what you want to do with it you can take control and make the most of what there is available.
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Note: 4 Elderly health provides this site for information purposes only and insists that you should consult a doctor before engaging in anything mentioned here.