following on from:
http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/public-vs-private-leave-the-trolling-at-the-door

and

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/how-financially-stable-screwed-are-you

Financially, I am in an ok position, however, I haven’t got a pension, and can’t really afford one. My position is to try and pay off the compound interest off my mortgage as IMO that would be a more efficient use of my cash.

You?

neither mrsconsequence nor I have a pension. she be public sector, i be ex-public sector.

Yes.

But I have started putting a bit extra away each month in medium/long term savings in light of what’s going on at the moment.

had one for 18yrs, been frozen for 11yrs.
dont think i will bother paying into one again in my working life.

I have

But ………. the projections of what it’s worth have fallen each time I’ve had a statement for the last 3 years or so
Which is worrying as I’m in my 50s

I have five (I think) final salary pensions, each worth pretty much nothing.

However, now freelancing so I need to sort out a private pension asap.

Given that pensions attract tax relief, a more efficient use of cash would be difficult to find.

Yes, it’s a “money purchase” one i.e. invested in the stock market, no employer obligations once I leave their employment (retirement or otherwise).

I’m not relying on the state pension either a) existing or b) being worth owt for when I’m in retirement so am making my own provision i.e. big company pension AVC payments + maxing out annual ISA allowance each year.

got one (pulic sector scum that i am – i can feel the hate)

honestly don’t expect to get anything out of it till i’m 70.

i’ll be dead by then.

thinking of cancelling it, and paying off my mortgage faster.

Yep, personal one that I don’t really pay enough into at the moment based on it’s current performance, but it’s just a part of a bigger portfolio to mitigate the long term risk rather then putting all the money on red and rolling the dice just relying on equity in property.

Might work, might not – my crystal ball seems as cloudy as most when making financial projections 30+years into the future, never mind the other side of Xmas 😉

Yes I have one now, will I have one in 20 years time? **** knows it will depend what happens with the economy.

Yes as I work in the NHS I also had a private one that I was miss sold but I stopped paying years ago though but never tried to claim anything back on it.

No pension, I’m collecting houses instead

i’ve a money purchase one as well, started paying into it at 21, at 15% of my income PA. should leave a pot of around 6-10x my income when I come to retire, depending on how much growth there is in the long term

OP – you might find that, as pension saving is pre-tax, it is better to save into a pension (especially if you’re a higher-rate tax payer).

got one from my last job, not from this one, something i’m going to be thinking about soon though, pensions are frozen in my place, but when they start up again(well if, I’ll be sorting my self out). Much do youse reckon a 33 yo should be paying into pension?

Public sector scrounger and no pension. Paying off the mortgage and maybe investing in a buy to let is our plan

I have a frozen one, lost a 3rd of its value last year! Not that it bothers me as the the manegment fees should clear it out before I retire anyway!

to mitigate the long term risk rather then putting all the money on red and rolling the dice just relying on equity in property.

I am not looking at making money, just looking to reduce the amount I would have paid in interest vs net gains against savings/ pension. If i can become mortgage free ASAP the better.

I think the %age is traditionally the age you start paying in, minus 7. So if you start paying in at 33 (with no prior pension, i’ve no idea how to take that into account) – you should look at putting around 25% of your income in.

note – that’s just something I read somewhere. I’ve not done the maths to figure out how effective it is

i had one with the institute of cancer research
the pension scheme went under, we got some of it back (thanks to our union)
im now on the universies scheme, our contributions have just risen
im not sure that there will be anything left in that if our right wing neo-con governments keep screwing us all over

10 years final salary, since then money purchase paying in 13% of salary and a couple quid in savings.

Not overly worried as yet but I keep trying to save

cheers 5lab.

8 years in the NHS final salary (will pay out £2.5 KPA at current value) and a private pension that I pay 7% salary and the company pays 5% in.

I’ve got 30 years left to work so I’m sure it will all sort itself out.

2% of final salary for each year worked here, up to a max of 70%.

I didn’t have anything until my early 30’s, so will have to work until 67 to get a full pension.

I am not looking at making money, just looking to reduce the ammount I would have paied in intrest vs net gains against savings/ pension. If i can become mortage free ASAP the better.

That’s fair enough – What I meant was that I’m not prepared to just sit on property as my long term plan – my natural worrying nature coulnd’t take it (didn’t mean to come across as having a go at your situation). Generally when the interest rates are high the pension/cash savings does well and the mortgage costs alot and when they are low, the other way round. Having a spread keeps me sane in most situations (barring total economic collapse, when I sahll rely on a shotgun ;-), even if I’m not maximising my investments at any given moment in time.

I’m 40. Didn’t have one until my employer started making small contributions which I had to match a few years ago. I paid off my mortgage then started putting money into a SIPP. Not sure on current valuation but must be close to my pre-tax salary. Aiming for a few £100k by retirement as I think that’s what’s needed for a decent pension.

Nope

and working on the “%age is traditionally the age you start paying in, minus 7.” rule there’s no way on earth I can afford to, unless I moved into a cardboard box! 🙁

(Not that I can see myself ever reaching retirement age anyway – I’m sure it’ll keep moving just a few years further up the line than I am at any one point)

Another rule of thumb for how much to contribute is half your age as a percentage. So at 34 you’d be paying 17%. This will of course rise as you get older, it depends at what age you start etc etc. Professional advice needed, there are plenty of armchair pension experts (including me)

Got a variety of personal pensions with investment firms.
Wish i hadn’t bothered.Only advantage at the time was the tax benefit,but with the way the stock markets gone growth has been negligible.Should’ve bought a couple of cheap houses in the early nineties instead.

Yeh got a couple of pensions, one I pay very little into every month that I may cash in in a couple of years. Another is a % of salary matched by my employer. But I’ve got a couple of properties, one currently gives a great monthly return with the other will when its free of the current free loading tenant (my mum). My father in law will leaves us a fair whack when his time is up and my wife has a decent pension so we’ll be alright.

No pension here.

Equitable Life wandered off with mine.

My father in law will leaves us a fair whack when his time is up

It’s a terrible time when you’ve got to figure in your dead parents wealth in order to retire but I have the same thoughts

Pensions – whos got one?

😆 LMFAO !

Private sector worker here !.

I don’t have a chocolate tea pot either.

Had one, in fact several, since I was 19. Next year the Govt will make all private workers have a compulsory pension deducted from wages at source, and about time.

Can you imagine the cost to those of us who do have pensions, and have sacrificed all there working lives to paying in to, if the “others” never bother with a private pension ?

It’s a terrible time when you’ve got to figure in your dead parents wealth in order to retire but I have the same thoughts

True but we could manage without if he decides to blow it all on drugs and hookers.

dumb question time, cos i’m dumb about these things 🙂

Had one, in fact several, since I was 19. Next year the Govt will make all private workers have a compulsory pension deducted from wages at source, and about time.

Can you imagine the cost to those of us who do have pensions, and have sacrificed all there working lives to paying in to, if the “others” never bother with a private pension ?

what if i dont want a pension? what if the employer goes under and collapses as a business, what if the manager steals all the money and leaves the country?

how do people not having pensions cost people who do have pensions? do your pension funds get depleted paying for other people, and how comes they’ve got access to those funds but you dont? i’m confused 😳

yep! got a final salary pension, i was transferred from the civil service to a private sector position on EXACTLY the same terms and conditions!! i pay £63 a month, my employer pays about 10 times that each month! Projected to be worth £10k a year and a minty lump sum!
I can see why people are on strike, as it is a great deal, however i can also see why the government want to change it as it must cost an absolute fortune to cover all those payments, and is completely unsustainable!!
Got a military pension too, but it’s not worth a great deal!

Final salary pension.

@mudshark – you may be surprised how little money 100k gets you. if you’re single and retire at 65, that will get you under 6 grand a year (fixed) or 4,000 which increases in line with RPI at current rates – those rates will probably drop as time continues (and people live longer)

http://www.hl.co.uk/pensions/annuities/annuity-best-buy-rates

one I pay very little into every month that I may cash in in a couple of years.

You can’t cash a pension in, unless you retire. And even then you don’t ‘cash it in’ you buy an annuity.

what if i dont want a pension? what if the employer goes under and collapses as a business, what if the manager steals all the money and leaves the country?

a) Tough.
b) Pension funds are very separate from business funds now and are protected by an insurance scheme (after the Robert Maxwell debacle).
c) See b)