Pension planning

Viagara ferinstance? You're stuffed anyway then.

Indeed. It's been pointed out to me many times that one can become acclimatised. I know of retirees in Malta who couldn't move back here because the winter would probably kill them but who find the summer heat too much at times.

You can buy viagra and other product purporting to do the same for two quid a pill according to the spam I get. If that's worrying you let me know and I'll forward some of the spam.

Mike

"God Almighty", I'm 58 but the summer on the med even in June/July has been such that we've just been relegated to an air conditioned hotel (or restaurant) room after 11.30 am every holiday since we first went when I was 28.

FFS it's what the natives do, a whole culture has developed around it. We sit there in air conditioned coolness and watch them shut up their shops 'till 16.00 hours. Not much of a retirement IMO, but there you are.

DG

Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the heat when they don't have to. Isn't that what some of those natives used to say about us?

Still, there are always other countries to retire to that aren't so hot.

Martin <

Or possibly not!!

This was one of the things we considered, as we live in a house that would sell now for about £220,000. But curiously enough, as we get older, the idea of upping sticks and going to live in some foreign country starts to seem less attractive. After a while, we realised that the economic arguments were playing too big a part in our thinking. Despite the English weather, we actually like it here...

One thing that would really solve the problem for us is if there was a way to turn the value of the house into a pension and still live in it, and the pension company takes the house when we die. This would make far more sense to us than trying to survive (and maintain the house) on a small pension, and then passing the value of the house to some distant relative. But the nearest I have found to that idea seems to be getting an interest-only mortgage on the property and then paying the interest out of the capital. Which strikes me as problematic if you live a very long time and/or interest rates rise during that time. I don't really want to be my own actuary.

When we looked at this, compulsory health insurance (increasing annually as you get older) seemed like a big problem. Plus, a lot of countries require a minimum annual income before they will grant you permanent residence, which could be a problem if your main reason is not enough money to afford to stay here.

The chances of us amassing a pension fund of £198,000 + £132,000 are probably about the same as winning the lottery. In fact, we might be better off using the pension contributions to buy lottery tickets. :)

If any political party proposed a Government backed pension scheme where if you paid in £x a month you are guaranteed a pension of £y then I would vote for them like a shot. I don't see why people who don't have the luxury of a company final-salary pension scheme (like the politicians and civil servants have) should have to gamble their chances of a comfortable retirement on investing in the stock market through incompetent crooks like Equitable Life.

There are loads of such plans. Make sure they belong to SHIP though.

Even better if you can avoid the lenders profit margin by DIY with your beneficiaries.

Daytona

Just a thought - Are you aware of the PAYG pay-as-you-go health care market in the UK ? It's an extra option many people don't realise exists.

Daytona

used it twice when the NHS waiting list was going to exceed by months the date by which irreparable damage would occur. Ring round and get quotes for healthcare like you would car tyres or fridges :-)

MRI scan ? certainly sir, can you come tomorrow.

Phil

In message , Daytona writes

BUT be very very careful of pre owned asset tax and developing an interest in possession in the house thereby exposing to Inheritance Tax.

Excellent !

Although I imagine for the complicated stuff they won't do a fixed price, or they have to build a large contingency into the price, so it might be a last resort option in that case.

Daytona