Pension Planning
Whether you’re just starting to think about retirement or you’re getting closer to that next chapter, having the right pension in place is key to securing your future.
At County Associates UK LLP, we help take the confusion out of retirement planning. From straightforward personal pensions to more advanced options like Executive Schemes and Self-Invested Personal Pensions (SIPPs), we’ll guide you through the choices and help you find what suits you best.
We offer support with personal and stakeholder pensions, and if you’re going through a divorce, we provide specialist advice on how pensions are treated in settlements. If you’re looking for more control over how your pension is invested, we can talk you through SIPPs and Small Self-Administered Schemes (SSASs), great options for business owners and senior professionals.
If you’re nearing retirement and want to access tax-free cash while keeping your funds invested, we’ll help you explore income drawdown and phased withdrawal strategies. And when it’s time to turn your pension pot into income, we’ll guide you through annuity options so you can enjoy peace of mind in the years ahead.
No jargon, no pressure — just clear, tailored advice to help you make smart decisions for your future.
Investments and savings
Having decided what you want to achieve with your money, and over what timescale, we then investigate both what level of risk you want to take and what level of risk you can afford to take to achieve your goals. We then construct an appropriate investment portfolio for you, spreading your investments across a range of assets, ensuring that you never have “all your eggs in one basket”.
We will ensure that the most tax efficient options available are used and that the most suitable blend of assets are used to meet your chosen objectives and agreed level of risk.
Once established, we will ensure that a full review of your portfolio is provided to ensure that the advice and portfolio remain suitable for you as your circumstances change throughout your life.
Life assurance and protection
It is essential in any financial plan that you make sensible provision in case an unexpected catastrophe should occur. We will assist you in understanding the financial implications of a death, serious illness, or long-term incapacity to you and your family, and help you to protect against the unexpected.
Retirement plans
Pre-retirement – where we assess your likely needs in retirement, assess any likely shortfalls in income or capital, and plan to meet those needs wherever possible.
At-retirement – where we assess your income requirements in retirement by using our cash flow modelling tools which provide a detailed calculation concerning how much income is required and how this can be provided by the capital you hold. We will also explore the many options available to you from accessing your retirement benefits via a flexible drawdown scheme, annuity, or a combination of both options.
Post-retirement – This is where we review your existing arrangements to ensure that they are still meeting your objectives in the most suitable and tax efficient way possible and integrate them with your overall financial planning. We will also provide a cash flow calculation to ensure that the level of income you are receiving from your retirement plan(s) can be sustained for the rest of your life taking into account all other income streams you may be receiving.
Inheritance Tax Planning
We can help to ensure that the people you want to benefit from your estate do so in a timely and tax-efficient manner. Careful planning can avoid family disagreements, provide clarity at a difficult time, and make a significant difference to the inheritance tax liability on your estate.
We can also provide you with access to a fully qualified Will Writing service which can ensure that your wishes are documented correctly to ensure that your wishes are carried out without any problems occurring upon your passing away.
Business Financial Planning
We can help you to evaluate the protection needs of your business, identifying and protecting against the loss of key employees without whom the business may be at risk. We can help you put together employee benefit packages such as pension provision and death-in-service benefits, helping to identify you as a quality, caring employer. We can also advise on how to protect you and your fellow shareholders if one of the shareholders were to die, potentially resulting in the loss of control of your company.
Managing Cash Flow, Mortgages and Loans *
We will help you plan to ensure that you have sufficient income and that your borrowings are sensible and targeted. We will not hesitate to point it out if we feel your borrowings are out of control or dangerous to your long-term financial well-being. However, almost everyone has to borrow money at some time, usually to finance their home. Although we do not have an in-house mortgage adviser, we do have access to a very experienced and qualified fully independent specialist who will help to find you the most appropriate mortgage deal for your circumstances. For what is usually one of the biggest financial transactions of your life, it makes sense to take professional advice.
*County Associates (UK) LLP do not give mortgage advice, we have trusted local mortgage brokers who give the mortgage advice and arrange the mortgages needed for our clients.
Fixed Fee Will Writing Service – Fixed Fee Probate Service *
The earliest age you could make a Will is 18……but many of us delay doing so until we are much older.
Having a Will allows you to safeguard all the important things in life you’ve worked so hard for. A Will ensures you get to choose precisely who will get what. It also means you have a say in who will look after your children and, where appropriate, gives you the ability to make sure their inheritance is managed efficiently via a trust.
Not having a Will can cause all sorts of problems for those you leave behind. Most of us think everything will automatically pass to certain family members upon our death. This is not always the case because your assets will be distributed according to the Laws of Intestacy.
* We do not write Wills or offer Probate Services ourselves but we have trusted local professionals who offer these services to our clients. Why not contact us now to discuss how straightforward this process is on 01227 713845.