In the early years this might translate into a surplus of toys or days out, but this stage eventually passes, and thoughts turn towards the future transition from child to adulthood and beyond.

This longer-term perspective raises the question of how best to provide financial support through, what could be an expensive transition and inevitably this leads to a variety of issues:

• Are there particular needs which should be targeted or is it more important to have money available as and when your child needs it?
• Which investments would be...

The government launched its Help to Buy equity loan in April 2013 and since then 210,964 properties have been bought under the scheme.

First-time buyers and people moving to a new-build home worth up to £600,000 have benefited from the scheme, which provides an equity loan of up to 20% of the cost of the property interest free for the first five years. But what happens when you come to the end of the interest-free period?

Continue paying
If you haven’t paid your equity loan off by the end of the five-years, you’ll be charged 1.75% interest...

The sooner you start saving, the healthier your pension pot is likely to be when you need to draw on it.

But what happens to your pension planning if your working hours reduce, or stop?

First things first
If you join a company you may be enrolled into their workplace pension scheme which, in most cases, your employer will also pay into. The self-employed, on the other hand, should set up a personal pension, which come in the form of a basic personal pension, stakeholder pension, or Self Invested Personal Pension (SIPP).

Workplace pension ...

If you want to help make sure your loved ones will have financial security if you pass away, life insurance cover is the answer. But, if you’re part of a couple and you both need cover, should you take out single policies, or a joint policy that covers both of you?

With a single life policy, the insurer would pay out on the death of the policyholder and the policy would then lapse. With joint life insurance, however, the cover will apply to both policyholders and would pay-out either on the first or second death, depending on how the policy...

Taking out a mortgage could be one of the biggest financial decisions you’ll need to make in life, so it’s important to get it right.

You could ‘go direct’ to find the right mortgage for your circumstances – as long as you’re prepared to spend time and effort scouring a very competitive market for the lender and deal you feel most comfortable with.

You’ll also need to consider things like lender administration and booking fees, the length and type of mortgage you need, valuation costs and repayment methods, all of which can affect the tota...

In July 2015, Mark received a call from someone telling him his house in County Durham was in flames and that a team of firefighters were currently at the scene.

He hung up – first, not quite believing what he’d heard was true – it must be a work colleague playing a prank! But when the police called back, Mark soon realised this wasn’t a joke; it was a real problem that required his urgent attention.

Mark had moved out of the house and in with his partner a few months earlier, and was currently renting it out, hoping it might be a good i...

A pension is a tax-efficient, long-term savings plan that you contribute to during your working life to provide an income when you stop work. You can benefit from tax relief on the contributions you pay in and your pension pot has the potential to grow.

 At the moment you can save up to £40,000 every year into your pension. However, tax relief will only be given on 100% of your earnings or £40,000, whichever is the lower. This will differ if the reduced Money Purchase Allowance applies, or if your salary exceeds £150,000.

 What if...

...y...

When your current mortgage deal comes to an end you might be tempted to do nothing and simply move on to your lender’s Standard Variable Rate (SVR). However, by doing so you could risk your mortgage rate more than doubling.

According to Moneyfacts, fixed mortgage deals taken out two years ago attracted an average rate of 2.31 per cent, thanks to increased competition between lenders. Two years on and with average SVRs sitting at or around 4 per cent, the jump in mortgage payments at the end of your deal could mean your repayments increase b...

In the 2019/20 tax year, you can save up to £20,000 tax-free in an Individual Savings Account (ISA), and when it comes to your ISA investment, you have a number of options.

Investors comfortable with the slightly higher risk Peer to Peer lending can also now invest in an Innovative Finance ISA, and those aged 18 to 40 can open a Lifetime ISA.

Although you can’t hold an ISA for anyone else, parents or guardians can open a Junior ISA and manage the account; but the money belongs to the child.

Put simply, an ISA is a tax wrapper for your mon...