We’ve had quite a few clients call us over recent weeks asking ‘what do we do given that Brexit is coming?’ It’s an understandable concern given that change is coming – and yet we don’t know what that change is going to look like. As with any significant upcoming uncertainty our advice is to ‘sit …

You may have seen the headlines around pension scams in the media over recent days. It is a sad but true fact that scams can arise in any area of life, not just financial services. At present, pensions are being targeted because the recent rule changes mean that many people have questions on what they …

Further our last article on powers of attorney we have continued with another staple of later life planning – Wills. Arguably knowledge that it is very important to having an up to date, valid will (irrespective of age!) is much more widespread than the importance of having valid powers of attorney. Having said that, 1 …

There are many situations that can arise that may prevent people from being able to manage their own finances, and these can occur at any stage of life. The question is what happens when you are unable to manage your affairs and nothing has been put into place? The ‘default’ position is that your family …

We are delighted to welcome the lovely Kate McCarthy into our team. Kate is working alongside Tony O’Brien, with a view to taking on his role of Compliance Administrator as and when he retires (planned for mid-2019). As part of her training, she will undertake qualifications towards the Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning. Kate has …

As you might imagine the majority of our clients, in keeping with the rest of the UK population, typically don’t like to waste money – and nor should they! We therefore spend time helping our clients find the best rate of interest for their hard earned savings. We research the market and negotiate with investment …

It’s that time of year again! Exams are coming to an end and the thoughts of many students turn toward University – Freedom, freshers week, and fun. For parents (and students) there’s also the issue of finance. Who’s paying for the next three years? Should loans be taken out? Should we ‘stump up’ in advance? …

Following on from our article about Lifetime ISAs, this week we take a look at the ‘good old’ cash ISA. The humble cash ISA has been on a journey over time. In 1990 John Major, in his only budget as Chancellor of the Exchequer, launched tax-exempt special savings accounts (TESSAs). These were open to anyone …

The Lifetime ISA (LISA) was added to the suite of ISA choices in April 2017 and is designed to encourage those under 40 to either save for their first home or to provide for their retirement. They allow individuals to save a maximum of £4,000 each tax year within the LISA wrapper and any contributions …

We are absolutely delighted to win the ‘Service Business of the Year’ Award at the Make Your Mark Awards last night. The awards are open to all businesses on Aycliffe Business Park (over 500 of them) whatever their line of work. The business park has a strong community ethos and is the largest in the …