You Think Thailand Is Bad? Try The Uk Pensions Lot!

[F1fanatic]

I'm still not sure what you expect the government in the UK to do about the problems you perceive. My original comment, to another poster, was that people shouldn't blame the government for their own lack of success. You seem to have an axe to grind with large corporations, or perhaps you don't like the system of capitalism at all, I'm not sure.

Perhaps I'm annoyed 'cos even though I've been lucky, I hate the way others are being screwed...

The government has proven itself incompetent and incapable - not to mention only interested in their own wealth. Expenses scandal?

The country is 'going to the dogs' whilst Rolls Royce and expensive boat purchases are (I gather) increasing. There is something seriously wrong.

[bendix]

"Tucking away 5% of their income" to a private pension provider will provide even those on average salaries a pitiful pension!

Times have changed and, now that companies rarely provide the sort of pensions I was lucky enough to enjoy, the private pension providers are making the most of it by charging outrageous fees.

True. 10% is better and increased over time, but over 40 years even 5 points will do it. In fact, start early enough and you can stop contributing at 40 and still get on ok.

Fees? I pay 0.5% management fee. Hardly punitive.

On the 'average' UK salary you believe a 5% pension contribution will pay for a reasonable pension??

Check out how much the same amount paid towards a private pension plan in other EU countries will provide compared to the same amount paid in to a Brit pension provider...

Do you have a clue how pension funds work? They are based on contributions which are then invested in the assets you choose - bonds, cash, shares etc.

Given that, the only way EU countries would provide better returns is if they are invested in different assets but, again, this would be the choice of you and me.

Seriously take some personal responsibility.

[bendix]

How old are you ? Be truthful and state your jobs pension fund.

I'm 47 and my job has no pension fund. In a 20 year career I have only spent 4 of those years in jobs with a pension scheme, two in Australia a long time ago and two and a half most recently in the UK.

Notwithstanding that, I have saved regularly for my retirement since I was around 32 and had paid my first mortgage off. When I have been able to do that in a tax effective way (eg in the UK when I put GBP120k into my pension fund in total) I have taken advantage of that. At other times - like now - I simply make it a habit to save at least 40% of every pay cheque into my retirement savings.

As a result, I will be retiring on Aug 21 2014, the day before my fiftieth birthday.

[F1fanatic]

"Tucking away 5% of their income" to a private pension provider will provide even those on average salaries a pitiful pension!

Times have changed and, now that companies rarely provide the sort of pensions I was lucky enough to enjoy, the private pension providers are making the most of it by charging outrageous fees.

True. 10% is better and increased over time, but over 40 years even 5 points will do it. In fact, start early enough and you can stop contributing at 40 and still get on ok.

Fees? I pay 0.5% management fee. Hardly punitive.

On the 'average' UK salary you believe a 5% pension contribution will pay for a reasonable pension??

Check out how much the same amount paid towards a private pension plan in other EU countries will provide compared to the same amount paid in to a Brit pension provider...

Do you have a clue how pension funds work? They are based on contributions which are then invested in the assets you choose - bonds, cash, shares etc.

Given that, the only way EU countries would provide better returns is if they are invested in different assets but, again, this would be the choice of you and me.

Seriously take some personal responsibility.

Rubbish. I paid AVCs and did not have to choose where the money was invested - the pension provider did that.

But, I could be wrong. Perhaps times have changed and nowadays anyone giving money to a private pension provider has to choose how their money will be invested.

[F1fanatic]

How old are you ? Be truthful and state your jobs pension fund.

I'm 47 and my job has no pension fund. In a 20 year career I have only spent 4 of those years in jobs with a pension scheme, two in Australia a long time ago and two and a half most recently in the UK.

Notwithstanding that, I have saved regularly for my retirement since I was around 32 and had paid my first mortgage off. When I have been able to do that in a tax effective way (eg in the UK when I put GBP120k into my pension fund in total) I have taken advantage of that. At other times - like now - I simply make it a habit to save at least 40% of every pay cheque into my retirement savings.

As a result, I will be retiring on Aug 21 2014, the day before my fiftieth birthday.

What can I say other than 'lucky you'?

You paid off your first mortgage aged 32. Presumably it was not in the UK, but if it was you are in a miniscule minority.

[bendix]

Rubbish. I paid AVCs and did not have to choose where the money was invested - the pension provider did that.

But, I could be wrong. Perhaps times have changed and nowadays anyone giving money to a private pension provider has to choose how their money will be invested.

Can;t comment on your experience, but i know of no current contributions based pension schemes that don't give people the right to choose their asset classes. Many will have a default mixed asset position if people show no interest in it, but all have a choice.

The problem with pensions is that people aren't interested in them enough to investigate all the options available.

[dean999]

If it makes you feel any better, the greeks are probably very happy with are tax payers money and the other EU countries that have payied in. http://www.metro.co.uk/news/890912-george-osborne-130bn-greece-bailout-good-for-britain

I never understand people that say," I have payed my dues".

Do you think there's a big piggy bank with your name on it. The tax we pay is spent and the government don't care if we have no pension when we retire. All they care about is themselves. They make the rich richer and the poor poorer.

[GuestHouse]

, so we were all born with a high IQ like you eh. God, words fail me Dave.

Sufficient IQ to be able to understand the impact of inflation, movements in currency exchange rates and factor these into working out how much it actually costs to live long term overseas might be enough.

Or at least it might have given pause for thought before making a plan for which sufficient funds were not available.

[bendix]

What can I say other than 'lucky you'?

You paid off your first mortgage aged 32. Presumably it was not in the UK, but if it was you are in a miniscule minority.

Luck has nothing to do with it, although i did benefit from a house price surge in NZ at the time (but which person in the 30-50 age group hasn't benefited from that somewhere in the world?).

I paid off my mortgage by sacrificing, doing two jobs, freelancing and god knows what else. The last fifteen years have been the second half of the strategy; working to build up a nest egg and wandering around the world chasing jobs that will get me retired by 50. That was my goal from since i was 25.

[GuestHouse]

How old are you ? Be truthful and state your jobs pension fund.

I'm 47 and my job has no pension fund. In a 20 year career I have only spent 4 of those years in jobs with a pension scheme, two in Australia a long time ago and two and a half most recently in the UK.

Notwithstanding that, I have saved regularly for my retirement since I was around 32 and had paid my first mortgage off. When I have been able to do that in a tax effective way (eg in the UK when I put GBP120k into my pension fund in total) I have taken advantage of that. At other times - like now - I simply make it a habit to save at least 40% of every pay cheque into my retirement savings.

As a result, I will be retiring on Aug 21 2014, the day before my fiftieth birthday.

AKA making a plan and working the plan.

Rather than the alternative..... not planning, not saving and then whinging "..... 'snot fair'."

[stoneyboy]

What can I say other than 'lucky you'?

You paid off your first mortgage aged 32. Presumably it was not in the UK, but if it was you are in a miniscule minority.

Luck has nothing to do with it, although i did benefit from a house price surge in NZ at the time (but which person in the 30-50 age group hasn't benefited from that somewhere in the world?).

I paid off my mortgage by sacrificing, doing two jobs, freelancing and god knows what else. The last fifteen years have been the second half of the strategy; working to build up a nest egg and wandering around the world chasing jobs that will get me retired by 50. That was my goal from since i was 25.

Do you do this as a single man or cart a family round with you also.

[F1fanatic]

, so we were all born with a high IQ like you eh. God, words fail me Dave.

Sufficient IQ to be able to understand the impact of inflation, movements in currency exchange rates and factor these into working out how much it actually costs to live long term overseas might be enough.

Or at least it might have given pause for thought before making a plan for which sufficient funds were not available.

I doubt that many of us realised that the baht would fall from 70 to 47/48(?) per pound.

But obviously our IQ is deficient.

[bendix]

Do you do this as a single man or cart a family round with you also.

First half married, and my Kiwi wife got half the house too. Good luck to her. We're still friends.

Second half single, except for the last five years after remarrying.

It's about making choices. The last 3 years I have been living separately from my wife, who has her own job and life in Bangkok. We discussed it and agreed that it was worth me working in London and (now) in HK for 4-5 years to build the nest egg, provided it allowed me and her the financial freedom to do what we wanted once I hit 50.

Nothing in life is free. It was a calculated strategy and it's paying off.

[F1fanatic]

What can I say other than 'lucky you'?

You paid off your first mortgage aged 32. Presumably it was not in the UK, but if it was you are in a miniscule minority.

Luck has nothing to do with it, although i did benefit from a house price surge in NZ at the time (but which person in the 30-50 age group hasn't benefited from that somewhere in the world?).

I paid off my mortgage by sacrificing, doing two jobs, freelancing and god knows what else. The last fifteen years have been the second half of the strategy; working to build up a nest egg and wandering around the world chasing jobs that will get me retired by 50. That was my goal from since i was 25.

If you were living in the UK the average house price 12 (?) years ago would have been around 100,000 POUNDS. Not something that can be paid off so quickly by someone on an average wage, even if they have a second job...

It becomes increasingly obvious that you are one of the few that enjoy a well-paid occupation. Good for you, but try to understand that others are not lucky enough to enjoy the same privileges.

[bendix]

What can I say other than 'lucky you'?

You paid off your first mortgage aged 32. Presumably it was not in the UK, but if it was you are in a miniscule minority.

Luck has nothing to do with it, although i did benefit from a house price surge in NZ at the time (but which person in the 30-50 age group hasn't benefited from that somewhere in the world?).

I paid off my mortgage by sacrificing, doing two jobs, freelancing and god knows what else. The last fifteen years have been the second half of the strategy; working to build up a nest egg and wandering around the world chasing jobs that will get me retired by 50. That was my goal from since i was 25.

If you were living in the UK the average house price 12 (?) years ago would have been around 100,000 POUNDS. Not something that can be paid off so quickly by someone on an average wage, even if they have a second job...

It becomes increasingly obvious that you are one of the few that enjoy a well-paid occupation. Good for you, but try to understand that others are not lucky enough to enjoy the same privileges.

It was NZ. My first house cost around GBP70000 and I bought it when I was 27, with a deposit of 12k. So I paid a debt of 58k in in nearly six years - it wasn't a huge burden to repay 10k a year. I had a revolving credit facility - quite simply every penny i earned that I didnt spend on living went into it. Such a loan really reinforces how expensive a meal out or holiday has the potential to be over the life of a loan.

I sold it for 150k then, and did pretty much the same again on my next house.

So yes, lucky to a degree, but no luckier than homeowners anywhere in the world over the last two decades.

As for high-paying jobs, I concede that. I'm paid better than average. And THAT is exactly why I have decided to make hay while I can, with the sole intention of giving it up by 50. Again, a conscious strategy.

[exeter]

I thought the UK was just under 6,000 miles from Thailand - have they moved it?

No its still there, please send any spare cash and asylum seekers if they can work and pay tax for a bit, they must promise not milk the system or they wont be allowed in, except on certain days when Euro Star have a special offer on ( no border checks).

[exeter]

Brits between the ages of 50 and 70 (that's the old gits whinging about pensions) have been raised in a welfare state, left school at a time of full employment, had free higher edication if they had payed enough attention in school to pass selection, alternatively had access to apprenticeships, lived through decades of increasing personal wealth, rising house prices, had access to jobs with defined benefit pensions...basically this demographic group have had oportunity and wealth handed them on a plate.

If you're a Brit coming up to retirement and the only pension daving you have is the state pension then you must have ducked, ignored or squandered the multitude of oportunities handed to you over decades.

Now you want us to listen to "it's 'snot fair"

, so we were all born with a high IQ like you eh. God, words fail me Dave.

Opportunites has 2 p's or it did when I went to school, thanks for the lesson anyway, next!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Bangkokhatter]

Bendix, first let me congratulate you on paying off your first mortgage at such a young age, no doubt this probably set you on the road to financial stability and the chance to have spare cash to top up your pension.

However you state earlier about any young man earning 20.000 per year should be able to save enough to have a decent private pension, problem is not many people can earn that amount in the Uk these days at that age and as for getting on the housing ladder, well am pretty sure its not as easy as it probably was for you back in 80's

You benefited greatly from a booming housing market and invested wisely, so hats off to you, am in a similar position myself, but to say its as simple as just putting a small amount away each month in a PP is off the mark. The charges you enjoy for one are not like that now.

Sure there are plenty of people in the UK that think the world owes them a living , but it's a minority and some of your comments are insulting to the majority of hard working people struggling to make ends meet right now.

[F1fanatic]

What can I say other than 'lucky you'?

You paid off your first mortgage aged 32. Presumably it was not in the UK, but if it was you are in a miniscule minority.

Luck has nothing to do with it, although i did benefit from a house price surge in NZ at the time (but which person in the 30-50 age group hasn't benefited from that somewhere in the world?).

I paid off my mortgage by sacrificing, doing two jobs, freelancing and god knows what else. The last fifteen years have been the second half of the strategy; working to build up a nest egg and wandering around the world chasing jobs that will get me retired by 50. That was my goal from since i was 25.

If you were living in the UK the average house price 12 (?) years ago would have been around 100,000 POUNDS. Not something that can be paid off so quickly by someone on an average wage, even if they have a second job...

It becomes increasingly obvious that you are one of the few that enjoy a well-paid occupation. Good for you, but try to understand that others are not lucky enough to enjoy the same privileges.

It was NZ. My first house cost around GBP70000 and I bought it when I was 27, with a deposit of 12k. So I paid a debt of 58k in in nearly six years - it wasn't a huge burden to repay 10k a year. I had a revolving credit facility - quite simply every penny i earned that I didnt spend on living went into it. Such a loan really reinforces how expensive a meal out or holiday has the potential to be over the life of a loan.

I sold it for 150k then, and did pretty much the same again on my next house.

So yes, lucky to a degree, but no luckier than homeowners anywhere in the world over the last two decades.

As for high-paying jobs, I concede that. I'm paid better than average. And THAT is exactly why I have decided to make hay while I can, with the sole intention of giving it up by 50. Again, a conscious strategy.

You have proven that the average Brit is feckless.

Earning 20,000 p.a. (20 years ago?) obviously they should have been able to spend half of this on their mortgage.

[exeter]

As has been said many times before, UK pensioners abroad get a rough deal, unless you are or were a civil servant! No point in goind on about it, there are a few options, live in country where you get the increase, tell a fib etc. So now we have sorted that out, kick the cat, grab a beer and relax, its still better here. My brother fell over in the ice and snow last week and broke his arm, it will get fixed free of course although it might be facing backwards and thats the problem if its his drinking arm

[bendix]

Bendix, first let me congratulate you on paying off your first mortgage at such a young age, no doubt this probably set you on the road to financial stability and the chance to have spare cash to top up your pension.

However you state earlier about any young man earning 20.000 per year should be able to save enough to have a decent private pension, problem is not many people can earn that amount in the Uk these days at that age and as for getting on the housing ladder, well am pretty sure its not as easy as it probably was for you back in 80's

You benefited greatly from a booming housing market and invested wisely, so hats off to you, am in a similar position myself, but to say its as simple as just putting a small amount away each month in a PP is off the mark. The charges you enjoy for one are not like that now.

Sure there are plenty of people in the UK that think the world owes them a living , but it's a minority and some of your comments are insulting to the majority of hard working people struggling to make ends meet right now.

Two points, mate.

Firstly the 0.5% management fee I pay on my pension plan is still the same. It is low because it is a passive scheme - i don't change much with it. Even the more actively managed schemes provided by my pension company - Winterthurlife - have fees of only 1.5%, hardly a lot of money to pay.

Secondly, I stand by my 5% figure. People do not stay at the same salary for ever. It grows. If you go to any pensions calculator (there are hundreds on the internet) you will see the effects of saving 5% of your salary (which increased over the 45 years of working life, remember) invested and getting an average 7% return per annum has on the final pension pot figure.

Investing for a pension is about doing a little over a long time frame. Time is your friend.

[F1fanatic]

As has been said many times before, UK pensioners abroad get a rough deal, unless you are or were a civil servant! No point in goind on about it, there are a few options, live in country where you get the increase, tell a fib etc. So now we have sorted that out, kick the cat, grab a beer and relax, its still better here. My brother fell over in the ice and snow last week and broke his arm, it will get fixed free of course although it might be facing backwards and thats the problem if its his drinking arm

Or lucky enough to be one of the generation that enjoyed good company pensions.

[bendix]

You have proven that the average Brit is feckless.

Earning 20,000 p.a. (20 years ago?) obviously they should have been able to spend half of this on their mortgage.

At the time I bought that property, I was earning NZ35,000 per annum. My wife was earning slightly less.

It's possible.

[bendix]

As has been said many times before, UK pensioners abroad get a rough deal, unless you are or were a civil servant! No point in goind on about it, there are a few options, live in country where you get the increase, tell a fib etc. So now we have sorted that out, kick the cat, grab a beer and relax, its still better here. My brother fell over in the ice and snow last week and broke his arm, it will get fixed free of course although it might be facing backwards and thats the problem if its his drinking arm

Or lucky enough to be one of the generation that enjoyed good company pensions.

Or disciplined enough to save over a long period, make sacrifices and build your own nest egg.

[Thongkorn]

I think we're needing a Brits in Thailand forum, possibly sub-titled Wingeing Brits in Thailand.

Spot on, the UK is one of the best places to live ask Eastern Europeans, Its one of the most democratic places in the world, Safe, fare, and Just. people forget the past, like when they have needed Hospital care, when they need the police, and oh yes what about there education, I forgot because you pay tax, every thing is for free for infinity.

I don't like the present Government or how i am treated. I still live in the UK, I pay my taxes, and because i have been a hard working man, never had credit, own my own home, and had to jump through all the Hoops and pay My Money to get my Thai wife permission to live here, who incidentally has worked payed tax since the second week she came to the UK, and still we cannot claim anything of Any insignificance, But I get on with it and we are happy. I know when i am well off, mainly because i have seen the way my wife and her Family have to live in Thailand,Just existing from day to day , only earning enough to live, not every one has big money in Thailand. maybe people have forgot how Good the UK is in comparison.

[stoneyboy]

Here's all those 21 year olds earning 20 grand.

Nick Clegg is launching the plan to tackle rising levels of youth unemployment

Firms and charities are to be invited to bid for a payment-by-results scheme to try to get "Neet" teenagers into work or training, in a project launched by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg.

The £126m scheme is aimed at 55,000 teenagers in England with poor qualifications who are currently not in education, employment or training.

Mr Clegg says it will help youngsters "into the world of work".

But Labour says the project is "too small and much too late".

Chris Keates, leader of the Nasuwt teachers' union, accused Mr Clegg of being responsible for an increase in Neets by scrapping the Education Maintenance Allowance.

'Ticking time bomb'

Mr Clegg described the problem of rising youth unemployment as a "ticking time bomb".

"Sitting at home with nothing to do when you're so young can knock the stuffing out of you for years," he said.

"We urgently need to step up efforts to ensure some of our most troubled teenagers have the skills, confidence and opportunities to succeed.

"Many of them will have complex problems: truancy, teenage pregnancy, a lack of GCSEs and health problems."

Mr Clegg said to see teenagers who have left school with no qualifications "slumped on the sofa in front of the telly is not only tragic for them... but it stores up huge problems for the future if we don't help them now".

He said it was also about getting "crucial early years in a child's life at school right" to "save on so much heartache later".

"If you start early it then allows children to start their school career with a sense of enthusiasm for learning," he said.

The scheme, part of the Youth Contract announced in the autumn, will invite bids for contracts worth up to £2,200 for each teenager who can be sustained in work, education or training for 12 months.

The target group will be 16- to 17-year-olds without any GCSEs at C grade or above.

The aim is for long-term savings from an early intervention.

Almost one in five young people aged between 16 and 24 are classified as Neet - with the most recent figure standing at 1,163,000.

This response from the government is aimed at teenagers at the lower end of this age range who are already at risk of "disengagement" from the world of work.

The organisations that win these contracts will have a free hand to decide their approach - with the emphasis on rewarding a successful outcome.

Payments will be staggered, so that the full amount will be paid only to contractors when young people have remained in work or training for a year.

The funding will reflect the highest level of Neet youngsters in this age group - with £14m available in the West Midlands, where 11.5% of 16- to 17-year-olds are in this category.

The project has been challenged by the ATL teachers' union, which accused the government of damaging the chances of teenagers "by dismantling the careers and advice service and abolishing the education maintenance allowance".

"We have deep misgivings that getting charities and businesses to provide support for unemployed youngsters outside the education system will undermine the likelihood of success," said ATL officer Adrian Prandle.

Shadow work and pensions secretary Liam Byrne also said the Youth Contract would not help most young unemployed people.

Mr Byrne said of Mr Clegg: "He promised big answers to the problem of youth unemployment yet what we have got today is something that won't help 95% of Britain's young unemployed.

"This is much too small and much too late to tackle a problem that is likely to cost our country £28bn over the next 10 years.

"The government needs to bite the bullet and put in place a sensible tax on bankers' bonuses in the next budget to help get 100,000 young people back to work."

'Job snobs'

Meanwhile, Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith has branded critics of the government's separate work experience scheme for young jobseekers as "job snobs".

The scheme offers unpaid work placements in stores such as Tesco and Maplin to 18- to 24-year-olds who have been unemployed for more than three months.

Mr Duncan Smith said in the Daily Mail: "The implicit message behind these attacks is that jobs in retail, such as those with supermarkets or on the High Street, are not real jobs that worthwhile people do.

"How insulting and demeaning of the many thousands of people who already work in such jobs up and down the country.

"I doubt I'm the only person who thinks supermarket shelf-stackers add more value to our society than many of those 'job snobs' who are pontificating about the government's employment policies."

[Thongkorn]

How do expect Politicians who have been born with a silver spoon in there mouths never actually had a real job, Run the Country. take a look how many MP in the UK are Millionaires. thats where things have gone wrong,

[bendix]

How do expect Politicians who have been born with a silver spoon in there mouths never actually had a real job, Run the Country. take a look how many MP in the UK are Millionaires. thats where things have gone wrong,

Seriously F1fanatic - you endorse this childish view?

Christ alive. If people spent as much time working out how to progress in their lives by taking individual responsibiity for their affairs as they do 'blaming the rich and evil politicians' they would be wealthy.

You live your life inspite of government, not because of it. Stop blaming everyone else for your issues and look in the mirror.

[msg362]

I'm 65 in April,last September I notified UK pensions of my address in Thailand,later they sent me the forms to make a claim,sent them back to them and have now had my monthly payment amount to be started paying in May,no probs.They also sent me a letter saying that a company that I worked for in the 60's-70's are trying to get in touch with me to pay me a pension.I can't fault the UK pension system at all.

It would be intresting to know to whom you wrote . My problem seems to have arisen by writing to the pensions office that was dealing with me while resident in the UK, Somehow it could not talk to the 'International Pensions' lot in Newcastle, that was the only point I was trying to make. Nothing about rates etc except a feeble joke around inflation proofing.

[StreetCowboy]

How do expect Politicians who have been born with a silver spoon in there mouths never actually had a real job, Run the Country. take a look how many MP in the UK are Millionaires. thats where things have gone wrong,

Are there more MPs who are very rich than there were previously? Do you think that people who are successful should not become MPs? Perhaps people who no longer need to work, but who have the ability build a successful business, might make good MPs - better than someone like me who has to toil to put bread on the table; I'd need to line up all the favours and perks that I could, in the few years I was in office, for fear of falling at the next election...

SC