You’d be surprised at how many we meet who’ve never ‘got around’ to getting married, sometimes after many, many years of being together. Or those of fewer years, but with children, often both joint and previous. Being married can both complicate and decomplicate matters, of course, and money should never be the reason to do the deed. But you need to plan accordingly. You should always have wills, and wills which are up to date, as ‘common law’ usually protects no-one. Life cover should be in place and in trust if there are kids involved. And you should be aware, at least, that if Inheritance Tax is a concern, getting married, even at the last minute, can be an effective tax-planning strategy. As with many things, the real world moves far more quickly than that of the rule makers.
“Record year for annuity sales driven by advisers”
I was asked this week whether annuities are now ‘a good investment’. They’ve been recommended very rarely in recent years, since ‘pension freedoms’ allowed pretty much unlimited drawdown on pension funds and anything left to be passed on to beneficiaries free of Inheritance Tax.