Household finances voyeurism

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gbb

gbb

Squire
Location
Peterborough
Some of the above posts remind me (i HATE being reminded) what a bad deal savers get at the moment and how you have to jump through hoops to get even a percent or two of interest. I have enough in the bank to buy a brand new near top range Mondeo for instance...and get virtually nothing for it.
Its my fault of course, i WANT to use the money efficiently, i know i' was effectively losing money and still probably am...but the wife and myself want that money there, no strings, no conditions etc etc...so we (grudgingly) accept we're not being very prudent, but have full access to our savings.
I must start looking again, see whats out there.
 
Sandra6

Sandra6

Veteran
Location
Cumbria
I'm fascinasted by other peoples spending, and often pretty shocked at just what they spend on shopping.
I watch that extreme couponers on TV and I'm in awe, of course its american and they're all mad, but getting your shopping for nothing is impressive. But then theyll go on to say they save £20000 a year, how are they spending that on food in the first place?!
My weekly shop averages £100 and there are six of us a dog ,a rabbit and two guinea pigs.
 
B

brand

Guest
[QUOTE 3595906, member: 9609"]a month after we sold up the the world economies collapsed (i neve[/QUOTE]
Sounds like you hit right there?
 
B

brand

Guest
Turbo Rider said:
Latest predictions for the US are an upcoming crash with the effect being a 90% drop in the value. This from leading economists. T
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Leading economists equals the ones you want to believe. What proportion of economists are predicting a first ever fall of 90%?
Upcoming fall? When exactly is upcoming? One stock market economist said for 4 years the market is going to fall, when it did "I told you so" If you had stayed in the market you would have been better off ie the market did not fall back to the start point.
Economist change there predictions on inflation and growth every month based on the previous months change. How can they fail to get it right eventually.
 
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B

brand

Guest
Turbo Rider said:
Might be time to consider an annuity if you're worried. At least that way, you get a fixed income.
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I think if your worried about inflation a fixed rate annuity is definitely not the way to go. It is not a fixed income, if inflation rises what you can buy with your fixed income is less than when you took out the annuity.
 
Turbo Rider

Turbo Rider

Just can't reMember
Location
A compounded speck of dust
brand said:
Leading economists equals the ones you want to believe. What proportion of economists are predicting a first ever fall of 90%.
Upcoming fall? When exactly is upcoming? One stock market economist said for 4 years the market is going to fall, when it did "I told you so" If you had stayed in the market you would have been better off ie the market did not fall back to the start period.
Economist change there predictions on inflation and growth every month based on the previous months change. How can fail to get it right eventually.
Click to expand...

You're absolutely correct, yes and to every argument there is a counter argument and reality is that economy is as predictable as the weather. Chaos theory at it's finest, but as time progresses, the pencil does get sharper. Negative speculation also hurts the markets, as does stock dumping...of which, there is a lot going on right now. I take the negative view though and you take the positive. It's all fair game. If you must invest though, invest long term and spread your portfolio through the various markets.

brand said:
I think if your worried about inflation a fixed rate annuity is definitely not the way to go. It is not a fixed income, if inflation rises what you can buy with your fixed income is less than when you took out the annuity.
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I'm not worried about inflation. I'm just pointing it out and I'm actually helping your point about savings. If you want to save with interest and make it worth your while, you need to hunt out the best deals and make the effort. If you want larger interest accumulation, you have to take the risk and the larger the return, the larger the risk but unfortunately, a great risk does not guarantee even any return.

As for an annuity...you can get an escalating annuity...you can have it increase in line with RPI, LPI or you can set your own growth, which is generally capped at around 8%, as far as I'm aware. This will reduce your starting income though and what you need to weigh up, is whether you think you will die before you break even. Most people opt for a level payment as, when they see the figures, they see the massive difference. Mortality is on the up though, so this is fast becoming an oops...or will do in years to come, unless people stop living longer. There are other products though...sort of halfway houses between annuity and drawdown...but they are generally crap...Pru Income Choice being the most relevant, but due to recent changes, not as great as it used to be. What you get with an annuity is peace of mind and the ability to plan your life. The alternative, until April 6th (pension freedoms - argh!), is drawdown and drawdown, for costing and market fluctation reasons, offers poorer returns than an annuity for most people, though it can be highly beneficial for those who can afford to do it, which is generally felt to be people with other sources of income or people with large pots...most firms wouldn't advise anything under £100,000 into drawdown, but even that is felt to be way too low. Average maturing fund size is somewhere between £40k and £60k. Oh and last but not least, always shop for an enhanced annuity rather than standard. The differences are rather large and you'll know why when you get there.
 
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B

brand

Guest
Turbo Rider said:
I take the negative view though and you take the positive. It
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I don't actually take any view other than not the extreme view. A fall in the market, a rise in the market, a fall inflation, a rise in inflation, a fall in growth, a rise in growth, they are constant. They are bound to happen. Extremes are not predictable.
 
B

brand

Guest
Sandra6 said:
I'm fascinasted by other peoples spending, and often pretty shocked at just what they spend on shopping.
I watch that extreme couponers on TV and I'm in awe, of course its american and they're all mad, but getting your shopping for nothing is impressive. But then theyll go on to say they save £20000 a year, how are they spending that on food in the first place?!
My weekly shop averages £100 and there are six of us a dog ,a rabbit and two guinea pigs.
Click to expand...
I suggest you eat the last 3 or feed the dog with them. That should reduce your cost a bit. Better still get rid of one more, not the dog, obviously.
 
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contadino

contadino

Veteran
Location
Chesterfield
Our weekly food shop cost around 11 or 12 euros. Electricity around 10 euros/month. Internet 15. Heating/hot water free. Poll tax 20 euros/year + 50/year garbage tax...

Security service 90/mo. Car insurance 900/year for 3rd party only on a car worth 200. I spend a month each year cutting firewood (hence the free heating) No telephone, no mains water, no post service, no garbage collection, no telly, no pension...

Comfortable, but kinda stuck in a situation where we can't really earn money if we needed it. Tax and accountants would take it all and more.
 
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