As financial planners, we love uncovering overlooked financial opportunities that can help to boost our clients’ wealth. Whether it’s hidden fees, unused allowances, or missed tax-saving strategies, we often find that many people unknowingly leave money on the table. So, as we approach Easter, we thought we’d uncover some valuable ways to help you build your nest egg.
“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.”
Benjamin Franklin
Small oversights can cost thousands
Many of us try to save and invest in the most practical way possible at the time. But we’re often caught up in the daily noise of our lives, careers or businesses. So, it’s worth taking a moment to consider whether you have the right financial strategy for your lifestyle and future.
Just like an Easter egg hunt, financial opportunities are often right in front of you, but very easy to miss. Although the internet has a wealth of information, there’s a lot of misinformation and it’s easy to make costly mistakes. Therefore, it’s important to seek professional advice to ensure you have the right approach for your personal situation.
Over time, minor oversights can cost thousands in lost savings and inefficient investments. People often don’t make use of annual savings or pensions allowances, as well as financial products with tax-efficient wrappers. As a result, you could be missing out on lucrative opportunities to make your earnings work harder. Minor changes and different approaches can help you to build a more significant nest egg or even enable you to retire sooner than expected.
Ways to build your nest egg
Whether you’re in your twenties or your fifties, saving into a pension is essential at any age if you want to enjoy a comfortable or luxurious retirement. The later in life that you start saving, the more you will have to contribute if you’re going to achieve a good standard of living in the future. Don’t make the costly mistake of ignoring the potential of your pension savings.
Pension providers use different investing strategies for other products, so it’s worth getting an up-to-date pension review. There might be a more suitable pension product. If you have more than one pension, it could be beneficial in some cases to consolidate. Always get professional financial advice before making a decision to transfer or alter a pension.
Do you have a large sum of money saved in a low interest savings account? The true cost of holding cash could be impacting your savings. There are tax-efficient savings opportunities if you know where to look, such as making use of ISA allowances. ISAs – Individual Savings Accounts – allow you to save up to £20,000 a year tax free. Otherwise, you’ll need to pay tax on traditional savings accounts if your savings’ interest is more than £1,000 each year.
When it comes to your investment strategy, are you aware of all of the fees relating to your portfolio(s)? Are you paying a percentage to a financial advisor when you could be paying fixed fees instead? In some instances, you might also prefer a different risk level to the one you’re currently on, which could generate higher returns depending on the markets.
Carry out a strategic financial review
A strategic financial review can help you uncover these ‘hidden eggs’, including reducing investment fees and claiming overlooked tax breaks. By assessing your current strategy, you can spot any opportunities to minimise taxes and charges that could be eating into your wealth. This is particularly important if you’re a high or additional rate taxpayer as many people are unaware of available tax relief.
There might also be more intelligent ways to structure your finances and build your wealth, as well as protecting it from unnecessary risks. A financial review allows you to focus on every area of your finances so you can save and invest your money more sensibly.
“It’s not how much money you make, but how much money you keep, how hard it works for you, and how many generations you keep it for.”
Robert Kiyosaki
Wealth Management, Nottingham and Lincoln
Finding lucrative financial opportunities doesn’t always rely on generating high investment returns. It can be as a result of simply uncovering hidden fees and using tax-efficient strategies. It’s important to make sure your money is working as hard as possible for you.
Our qualified and experienced financial planning team will help you uncover any missed financial opportunities, so you can build your nest egg. Our aim is to help you maximise your wealth and achieve financial security, so you can enjoy your life today and in the future.
If you’d like to find hidden wealth opportunities and create a tax-efficient financial plan, get in touch to speak to our financial planners.
Sources:
https://www.investopedia.com/investing/costs-investing/
https://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0511/the-top-17-investing-quotes-of-all-time.aspx
