Self-Employed now entitled to sick pay With effect from December 2017, self -employed people in Ireland have finally became entitled to long- term sick pay. This is great news for this cohort of people, who typically have been treated unfairly in Ireland, especially when you consider that OECD figures show close to 20% of the […]
By the time you are reading this piece, the third flagship #BuildingEquality campaign event from the Construction Industry Federation will have taken place on International Women’s Day. The purpose of this is to recognise the women that already work in the construction industry and make them visible so that other women may a career in […]
I do not want to start 2018 off on a gloomy note, so I will start with the good news! With effect from December 2017, self-employed people in Ireland finally became entitled to long-term sick pay. This is great news for this cohort of people, who typically have been treated unfairly in Ireland, especially when […]
Tax Cuts in 2018 In this year’s budget the Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe, has announced €1.2 billion in new spending and tax cuts, split on roughly a 2:1 basis in favour of spending. CPAS has reviewed the details of Budget 2018 to provide you with some of the relevant information relating to pensions and […]
You may have recently heard of Grant Sabatier, a 31 year old apparently self- made millionaire – who blames avocado toast for the reason millennials can’t save money. Grant’s theory, when read properly actually makes a lot of sense, he advocates cutting back expenditure on things that aren’t necessities & banking these savings. However, the […]
Well.. No.. and Yes I’ve penned a few jargon busting articles here over the last few years as I’ve assumed (yes, I know what they say about assuming) that it is only the language around Pensions that is complicated. In talking to people about pensions for more of my waking hours than is ideal, I’ve […]
Ship Shape In trying to compile my annual top tips for the coming year, I researched far and wide for pearls of wisdom that I might not have already thought of myself….this was my favourite: “Get Your Finances-and Body-in Shape”. One study showed that more exercise leads to higher pay because you tend to be […]
Budget 2017 in Review We reviewed the details of Budget 2017 to provide you with the relevant information relating to pensions and your personal finance. Normally our focus is on pension matters and over the last number of years there has been much to report and discuss, but in this budget there are no changes […]
Post Retirement Planning As a financial advisor with specific focus on the Construction Sector, I find myself frequently discussing business on this basis. In recent years, terms such as BIM and Lean and Augmented Reality have crept into the discussion, and I’ve found myself having to ask for explanations… During a meeting with a client […]
Longevity When we talk about pensions we often talk about longevity – the fact that people are living longer and the increased need for income in retirement. From age 65, men can expect to live an average of 23.8 years, while women can look forward to an average of 25.3 years. While this has an […]
Pre – Brexit Prior to Brexit dominating our news flow and social media world, the phrase “Pension timebomb” had been getting a lot of coverage. I asked many of my friends if they have been reading these pieces, but it seems that the “P” word is still too boring a topic – even when you […]
Is this for you? If you are one of those rare people who is doing everything right with their money, this article is not for you. For the rest of us, here are 6 simple things to do differently in 2016 that will help your financial health flourish. Budget To maximise the efficiency of your […]
Educate your children and protect their future There seems to be a habit among parents in Ireland not to talk to their children about money. We teach our children about many things to help them in their lives, we teach them new skills and we help them develop good behaviours. But not about money! This […]
Investment Portfolios are for everyone Whether saving for retirement or investing in an ARF post retirement, one of the most important factors is having the appropriate investment portfolio. An “investment portfolio” sounds glamorous and perhaps sounds like something only the rich and famous have, however in fact, an Investment Portfolio is simply the collection of […]
The headline announcements provided final confirmation that the controversial Government Pension Levy is to cease after the calculation date of 30th June 2015. This levy will be charged at 0.75% in 2014 and 0.15% in 2015. There was also the addition of a DIRT refund in respect of the savings of first time buyers, which […]
Life Cover is an important yet often overlooked feature of good financial planning… To decide if it is something you need, you simply have to ask; how would your family cope financially if you, as either the main or joint income earner, died? If you read this column regularly, you’ll know we’ve covered the importance […]
Work hard, play hard You work hard to pay for an unending list of financial commitments; mortgage, property tax, car, utilities and food and after that maybe you invest in your future and live a lifestyle that you have grown accustomed to… but have you thought about how you would manage if you fell ill? […]
Reasons to start a pension The dictionary defines a pension as “A fixed amount, other than wages, paid at regular intervals to a person or to the person’s surviving dependents in consideration of past services” or “an allowance, annuity, or subsidy.” Can you live on just over €12,000 per annum? The state pension in its current form (€12K for an individual) is unlikely to meet the goals of most people and if you are 50 or under, you will have […]
We’ve all heard the noises over the last few weeks of the Chinese stock market falling sharply. But China is over 5,000 miles away from Ireland, so how can events in China impact on a pension fund member here? Investment return is how. Whether you are aware of it or not, some of your pension […]
Life Expectancy Increases There is a lot of the confusing terminology around Protection products. The list below should help you make sense of some of it. I’ve written about the importance of Income Protection in previous issues. The World Health Organisation (WHO) recently stated that globally, life expectancy has increased by 5 years between 2000 […]
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