Discover why National Savings & Investments is cutting rates. National Savings & Investments (NS&I) has been busy reducing its interest rates in recent months. NS&I has roots going back to 1861, when Gladstone, then Chancellor of the Exchequer,...
Chartwell Wealth Management
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The Budget: Inheritance Tax Revisited
The Budget brought inheritance tax (IHT) into the news headlines, but its impact is not well understood. Understand the impact of Inheritance Tax through the example of Mark and Hannah, a couple who have an estate valued at £1.25 million, including their jointly...
Retirement Readiness: Are You Prepared for the Future?
A recent survey has raised questions about retirement readiness. One of the world’s largest investment managers, BlackRock, recently published its latest review of the UK’s retirement landscape. The work was based on a survey of 1,000 savers in defined contribution...
Tax Planning For The New Year
From new year to year end – Are you keeping a tax planning resolution? The start of the year is the ideal time to focus on year-end tax planning. This is usually driven by the approaching tax year-end (Saturday 5 April 2025) and the Spring Budget. However, this year,...
2024: A Year of Global Market Growth
Exploring 2024's Global Markets The global market outlook showed an improvement for 2024 with the US achieving more than 20% returns for a second consecutive year. A quick look at a Global Market Growth table (below) comparing changes across key global indices puts...
Why Are Mortgage Rates Increasing When Interest Rates Fall?
Not every interest rate moves in the same direction. If you are approaching the end of your five-year fixed rate mortgage and currently enjoying an interest rate of around 2%, you have probably been watching the fluctuations of interest rates with some trepidation....
Impact of Increased Employer National Insurance Contributions
The impact of the Budget’s increases in national insurance contributions (NICs) are not limited to employers. There were three main changes to employer’s NICs announced in the Budget, all of which will take effect from April 2025: The secondary threshold – the...
£31.1 Billion Missing: The Pension Crisis
The Pension Crisis There are now over three million ‘lost’ pensions worth over £31 billion. We all lose things, be it the proverbial change down the back of the sofa or TV remote. But how do you lose a pension? The answer is very easy as suggested by recent research...
The Rise of Student Tuition Fees in England
The End of the Student Tuition Fees Freeze The long freeze on student tuition fees in England has come to an end in 2025. Do you know what the RPIX is? You might guess it’s related to inflation given that RPI is the Retail Prices Index. But what does the X mark? X...
Cash ISAs Are Still Popular Despite Rate Cuts – Should You Invest?
New statistics show that cash ISAs remain a popular investment. Every autumn HMRC publishes a set of annual savings statistics, setting out detailed information about individual savings accounts (ISAs), lifetime individual savings accounts (LISAs), child trust funds...
The NICs Top-Up Countdown Has Begun
A third deadline for topping up State Pension entitlement is now coming into view. “Don't it always seem to go That you don't know what you got 'til it's gone?” The words of Joni Mitchell’s Big Yellow Taxi, recorded over half a century ago, always come to mind when...
The Autumn Budget Summary
Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ first Budget was a significant one in all senses. “…this Budget delivers a large, sustained increase in spending, taxation, and borrowing.” So said the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) in the first paragraph of its overview of the...
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