Budget: Small businesses and the Budget

Bishop Stortford based IFA’s at Enable can see that George Osborne’s most recent Budget speech has put small businesses at the centre for a change, this time small businesses  are the clear winners with big businesses picking up the bill.

One of the most challenging things for small businesses are business rates, which far exceed the amount they pay in corporation tax. To ease this burden Mr Osborne announced that 630,000 small businesses will pay no business rates at all from next year. He claims that this reduction will save £7bn per year for small businesses.

Commercial property investors will have to pay 0% for properties worth up to £150,000, 2% on the next £100,000 and 5% on properties above £250,000, in a move to help smaller firms.

Big firms face however will face a crackdown on practices which reduce taxable profits, including offsetting debt interest against profits and using losses in one year to offset profits in another.
The government says this combination of measures will raise £9bn.

Both big and small businesses will be grateful that he didn't raise fuel duty. The "feel good factor" that creates is at least as important as the threat of a Tory backbench riot. The overall picture for the economy may not be as many had hoped but there have been moves to help freelances and smaller businesses move forward.  Enable’s IFAs in Bishops Stortford can help you with your financial planning.

Source: BBC


Issued by: Enable Independent Financial Life Planners • 
25c North Street, Bishops Stortford, Herts CM23 2LD • Telephone: 01279 755950 - Fax: 01279 657339
Enable Independent Financial Life Planners is a trading style of Enable Independent Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
It is important always to seek independent financial advice before making any decision regarding your finances. If you would like any assistance, please contact us.
NOTHING CONTAINED IN THE ARTICLES SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS GIVING INDIVIDUAL FINANCIAL ADVICE 

Budget: Savers benefits

Enable’s IFAs in Bishop’s Stortford can see no downside to the new annual ISA limit being raised from £15,240 to £20,000 with a new “lifetime” ISA to help the under 40’s save by the government giving them £1 for every £4 saved and people who save a maximum of £4,000 towards a home deposit or retirement will get a £1,000 top-up from the state every year until they turn 50.

These also sit interestingly alongside the new personal savings allowance (PSA), available from April 6 which allows savers to earn £1,000 interest (for basic-rate taxpayers) or £500 (higher-rate) tax-free per year.  Under the PSA, returns on non-Isa savings within the tax-free limit look to be greater than the returns offered by ISAs, because rates paid are generally higher.

But is the Lifetime Isa just another version of the Help to Buy Isa it looks pretty much as though it is but it’s a slightly better version.  The contribution limit of £4,000 is higher than Help to Buy and it can be invested in shares as well as cash and here is no restrictive maximum bonus figure (£3,000 for the Help to Buy Isa). A bonus will be paid on contributions made up to the age of 50, although there will be a consultation for bonuses on contributions beyond that age.

If you have already opened a Help to Buy ISA you will be able to transfer the balance to a Lifetime ISA, according to the Treasury, you will receive the 25pc bonus on the full balance. As a vehicle to save for a first property, this looks like quite a good option.

Source: The Telegraph


Issued by: Enable Independent Financial Life Planners • 
25c North Street, Bishops Stortford, Herts CM23 2LD • Telephone: 01279 755950 - Fax: 01279 657339
Enable Independent Financial Life Planners is a trading style of Enable Independent Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
It is important always to seek independent financial advice before making any decision regarding your finances. If you would like any assistance, please contact us.
NOTHING CONTAINED IN THE ARTICLES SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS GIVING INDIVIDUAL FINANCIAL ADVICE 

Budget: Tax situation

After George Osborne’s most recent budget the tax situation for individuals looks slightly improved with the threshold for 40% income tax payers to rise from £42,385 to £45,000 in April 2017. And the Tax-free personal allowance, to rise from £11,000 in April 2016 to £11,500 in April 2017. Even Capital Gains Tax is to be cut from 28% to 20% and from 18% to 10% for basic-rate taxpayers.

But the proposed hike in Insurance Premium Tax is proving controversial.  The insurance premium tax will rise from 9.5% to 10% and Chancellor George Osborne has been mulling plans to raise the Insurance Premium Tax from 9.5% to 12.5%. Many say this will simply penalise customers for insuring their valuables.

The Association of British Insurers has estimated the tax — levied every time someone buys an insurance policy in the UK — will add £13 to car insurance policies and £10 to building and contents insurance on average. Liverpool Victoria boss Mike Rogers said customers would bear the brunt of any increase and urged the Treasury not to raise the tax, which was hiked from 6% to 9.5% in November. “It will increase the financial burden for millions of responsible households,” Rogers said. “It is not a tax on insurance companies — it’s a tax on insurance products which is paid directly by customers, effectively penalising them for doing the right thing and protecting the things they value most.”

Enable’s experienced IFAs in Bishop’s Stortford can help you work out the best way to make sure your work and property are protected and help you plan cover for you family should anything happen to you.

Source: BBC/Standard

Issued by: Enable Independent Financial Life Planners • 
25c North Street, Bishops Stortford, Herts CM23 2LD • Telephone: 01279 755950 - Fax: 01279 657339
Enable Independent Financial Life Planners is a trading style of Enable Independent Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
It is important always to seek independent financial advice before making any decision regarding your finances. If you would like any assistance, please contact us.
NOTHING CONTAINED IN THE ARTICLES SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS GIVING INDIVIDUAL FINANCIAL ADVICE  

Retiring with a buy-to-let

Helping people plan for retirement Enables’ experienced IFA’s have seen more and more retirees looking to invest their tax free pension cash lump sum into the buy-to-let property.  Despite the looming tax clampdown, this market has stayed fair constant according to data from Fidelity International.
 


From the 6th of April 2016, any buy-to-let investor will have to pay an extra 3% stamp duty surcharge more than other residential buyers. Higher-rate tax relief on mortgage interest is due to reduce from April 2017 to the basic 20% rate and landlords overall will have to claim less for wear and tear on their properties. Despite these impending changes retirees’ continue to look to bricks and mortar with 7% of Fidelity’s retirement customers using their tax free cash lump sum to invest in a rental property this January. In the latest budget Osborne also announced further Stamp Duty increases to large property investors, those with 15 properties or more. 


Investment director for personal Investing at Fidelity International, Maike Currie said: “for many retirees, buy-to-let is seen as a ‘no brainer’ investment given the spectacular rise in property markets, particularly in London, over recent years. But tax changes aside, the illiquidity of the housing market as well as costs in the way of maintenance, stamp duty, mortgage arrangement fees and a host of unpredictable outgoings can chip away at income. Not to mention the time and effort required to manage a property and the risk that it may lie empty between tenancies.”… “Buy-to-let in retirement may work for some but with the added extras that come with it, it’s worth asking yourself, whether you really want to be managing a property in your eighties?” Enable’s IFAs in Bishops Stortford can help talk through your retirement options.

Source: Landlord Today

Issued by: Enable Independent Financial Life Planners • 
25c North Street, Bishops Stortford, Herts CM23 2LD • Telephone: 01279 755950 - Fax: 01279 657339
Enable Independent Financial Life Planners is a trading style of Enable Independent Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
It is important always to seek independent financial advice before making any decision regarding your finances. If you would like any assistance, please contact us.
NOTHING CONTAINED IN THE ARTICLES SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS GIVING INDIVIDUAL FINANCIAL ADVICE 

Million pound properties on the up?

New research shows that the number of million pound properties in the UK will more than triple by 2030 and one in four London homes will cost £1 million or more according to a study by Santander Mortgages.

By 2030 The report suggests that the average property price in the UK could double, surpassing the half a million pound mark. Currently less than half a million homes in the UK are valued at £1 million or more, says the research done in partnership with economist and London School of Economics professor of economic geography Paul Cheshire. Overall, the average UK property price, which currently stands at £283,565 is expected to increase 23% by 2020 to £349,3000. Fifteen years from now in 2030, the average UK property price will have almost doubled with a 97% increase, surpassing the half a million pound mark at £557,444.

At present in the UK, the average property price is 7.9 times the average income, but by 2030, this is expected to hit 9.7. Again, this trend is elevated in London, where prices are currently 11.5 times incomes and predicted to rise to a staggering 16.5 by 2030. Property price inflation is beneficial for existing owners who will see their net-wealth increase, but entering the market becomes harder for new buyers, further highlighting the importance of the right timing and financial planning.

Source: Property Wire

Issued by: Enable Independent Financial Life Planners • 
25c North Street, Bishops Stortford, Herts CM23 2LD • Telephone: 01279 755950 - Fax: 01279 657339
Enable Independent Financial Life Planners is a trading style of Enable Independent Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
It is important always to seek independent financial advice before making any decision regarding your finances. If you would like any assistance, please contact us.
NOTHING CONTAINED IN THE ARTICLES SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS GIVING INDIVIDUAL FINANCIAL ADVICE

Windfall for 95% of struggling savers coming into effect soon

Enable’s IFA’s in Bishop’s Stortford want to remind you that last year the Chancellor abolished tax on first £1k of savings income and the new benefits are coming into effect this April. This essentially means 'tax free saving' for 95 per cent of the population.  No one but the rich will pay tax on their savings as the 20p basic rate on savings will soon be abolished.

The move will mean that 95 per cent of savers will pay no tax on their savings whatsoever. However it is likely to help those with large savings deposits considerably more than those with more modest savings as no tax is payable on interest earned on the first £15,000 saved already when the cash is put into an Isa. It could render cash ISAs effectively redundant for all but the wealthiest as from now on most savings deposits will already be sheltered from tax.  George Osborne said savers have paid tax already on the money when it was earned – they shouldn't have to pay it again.

Savers have lost as much as £130 billion or £5,000 per household since rates were cut, according to estimates from Hargreaves Lansdown.  Financial services firm Hargreaves Lansdown analysed Bank of England data, comparing actual interest paid on cash deposits with what those payments would have been if interest rates had remained at 2008 levels. Kevin Mountford, head of banking at MoneySuperMarket, said: 'The measures announced should be applauded and it’s great to see that the Government is incentivising the nation to put more money away, especially in the current low interest rate environment where savers have been hit particularly hard.'

Source: This is Money

Issued by: Enable Independent Financial Life Planners • 
25c North Street, Bishops Stortford, Herts CM23 2LD • Telephone: 01279 755950 - Fax: 01279 657339
Enable Independent Financial Life Planners is a trading style of Enable Independent Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
It is important always to seek independent financial advice before making any decision regarding your finances. If you would like any assistance, please contact us.
NOTHING CONTAINED IN THE ARTICLES SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS GIVING INDIVIDUAL FINANCIAL ADVICE 

Improvement in household spending power

The latest figures released from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveal that the typical level of spending power, or disposable income, for the average UK household in 2014-15 was £25,700. This figure is £1,500 higher than the low point seen in 2012-13. This marks a milestone from the hit taken by disposable income levels seen during the financial crisis.

This good news was compounded for pensioners who have been in receipt of the state pension, as the triple lock promise from the Government, whereby the state pension is guaranteed to rise each April by the highest of inflation, average earnings, or 2.5%, has seen the average pensioners household income rise by 7.7% or £1,500 between 2007-8 (the start of the financial crisis) and 2014-15.

However, by comparison, those people in employment have not been quite as lucky as they have seen their household disposable income rise by only 3.1%, or £900, over the same period.

Commenting on these statistics, the Chief Economist of the think tank, Resolution Foundation, was reported to have said: “Strong jobs growth and ultra-low inflation have finally pushed living standards back above where they were before the financial crisis. But the downturn has been felt very differently between generations, and across the UK.

“This generational divide opened up well before the financial crisis landed. As a result, typical working age families are no better off today than they were a decade ago, while typical pensioner incomes are 15% higher.

“This divide is unlikely to widen in the coming years, but nor do we see any sign of narrowing. By 2020, pensioner incomes are set to be over a third higher than they were at the turn of the century – more than double the increase experienced by working-age households.”

Issued by: Enable Independent Financial Life Planners • 
25c North Street, Bishops Stortford, Herts CM23 2LD • Telephone: 01279 755950 - Fax: 01279 657339
Enable Independent Financial Life Planners is a trading style of Enable Independent Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
It is important always to seek independent financial advice before making any decision regarding your finances. If you would like any assistance, please contact us.
NOTHING CONTAINED IN THE ARTICLES SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS GIVING INDIVIDUAL FINANCIAL ADVICE