Specialist Chartered Accountants based in East Anglia

Lovewell Blake Chartered Accountants

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Is your pension in recovery mode?

1 June 2010

All of us have a pension fund, or ideally should have, as we work all our lives and assume that by putting money away regularly we will create a fund, which should provide us with a worthwhile income when we eventually retire. 

Historically, pension funds invested in the stock market have shown remarkable long-term growth – the FT All Share Index has risen by more than 800 per cent over the past 25 years.

 However, many existing pension funds have seen negative returns recently through the collapse in the stock market a year ago. Yet, many astute pension clients have benefited from the stock market rebound of almost 50 per cent since the dramatic falls. Like us all, they do not wish to miss out on the opportunities available as markets continue to advance, and there is no need to miss out.

Why not therefore consider the advantages of a Self Invested Personal Pension (SIPP). With a SIPP you are in total control of where your monies are invested, and with advice, you have the choice of thousands of funds. You also have access to some of those managed by the best fund managers in the country, as well as shares, investment trusts, exchange traded funds, bonds and gilts. You can even hold cash if you wish.

Having this fund choice can dramatically improve your pension, as the better the investments inside your pension fund, the more money you should have when you retire.

With internet access today, you can view values at any time convenient to you, so you can easily stay in touch with the value of your fund.

It is also quite easy to transfer from low performing pension funds to a SIPP, but there would be a need to check that you may not lose any guaranteed annuity rates, or incur any excessive penalties by doing so. It is therefore important that you take some advice with regard to these points.

So if you wish to improve your pension, possibly amalgamating several small pension funds that you have gathered over the years, this route may be for you as it could have a dramatic effect on your future lifestyle.

Please remember that your pension fund is likely to be one of your most important assets, so take advice and take control.

If you wish to discuss pensions and investments please do take a moment to contact John Mee on 01502 532290 or e-mail him on jhm@lovewell-blake-fp.co.uk