With the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) predicting modest UK economic growth of 0.7% this year and 1.4% in 2025, during the Autumn Statement Chancellor Jeremy Hunt outlined 110 growth measures intended to get more people into work, cut business taxes and raise business investment, to get the economy “back on track.” Contrary to speculation, […]
Author Archives: matthew
Economic Review – December 2023
Inflation drop sparks rate cut speculation A surprise sharp decline in the rate of inflation has ignited hopes of an interest rate cut by spring, despite the Bank of England (BoE) insisting it is ‘too early’ to speculate about when rates might be reduced. Following its latest meeting, which concluded on 13 December, the BoE’s […]
Residential Property Review – December 2023
Sellers knock £18,000 off asking prices Sellers accepted an average discount of £18,000 on their property sale in November 2023 – the highest average price cut in five years. This is according to property portal Zoopla, which stated that high mortgage rates are continuing to impact housing affordability for buyers – meaning that sellers are […]
Commercial Property Review – December 2023
‘Grey’ warehouse space on the rise According to recent analysis by Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), real estate and investment management services provider, ‘grey’ warehouse space is increasing. Classified as available space unofficially marketed for either sublease or assignment, grey warehouse space has historically been limited to smaller pallet storage space, less frequently associated with warehouses […]
Protection – a financial and wellbeing safety net
Life has a funny way of turning out differently to how we expect it. When faced with the unpredictable twists and turns of fate, it is comforting to have the support of the right protection cover for your needs. Rising bills reinforce need for protection Increased household bills, mortgage and rent costs, mean that protection […]
Gender division extends to money matters
Despite women’s earning power increasing significantly over recent decades, the division of financial responsibilities does not appear to have evolved. A survey1 of 4,000 UK adults earlier this year found that women still typically have greater oversight of domestically focused financial matters, such as household costs (67% of women versus 51% of men) and utility […]
Understanding your behavioural biases
As an investor, you will have your own financial personality and preferences, which your adviser will consider when helping you to make financial decisions. Parallels with F1 You may not think so, but parallels can be drawn between Formula One (F1) and investing. In F1, drivers may make suboptimal decisions during races due to cognitive […]
‘Spot the dog’ fund
According to the latest data1, the number of ‘dog’ funds have increased by 27% since February this year, that represents 56 equity investment funds versus 44 earlier in the year, but a reduction on the 86 dog funds identified in January 2022. A ‘dog’ fund is defined as one which has failed to beat its […]
The FIRE investment movement
Many of us dream about retiring early so we can devote more time to things we enjoy; but financial realities inevitably mean few of us actually realise those dreams. A growing number of people though are turbo-charging their chances of early retirement success by embracing the FIRE principles of investing. We didn’t start the fire […]
It’s good to talk
A pandemic closely followed by a cost-of-living crisis has undoubtedly created a challenging financial backdrop for us all and inevitably heightened money-related stress and anxieties. At times like these, it’s more important than ever to open up and talk any concerns through with loved ones or a professional adviser in order to protect both financial […]
