Forecasting The Reality - Hot Topics Q&A

Q. I am a dentist and a widower approaching retirement in the next 2 years. I will have an NHS pension of around £34,000 per annum at age 60, and a State Pension from age 65 of say £4,500 per annum. I want to make sure I continue to be careful with my money, and have mostly used cash based savings in the past, but apparently my NHS lump sum will be £110,000 which will need investing. I would prefer not to invest in the stockmarket really, but equally I am aware of the risk of my money losing real value over the years. Do you have any suggestions please?

A. This is a common dilemma for our clients in their late fifties and sixties onwards. What we would say is “if planning to invest - don’t. Invest in planning.”# 

Forward planning will pay huge dividends if done properly. The way we handle it is to diagnose before we prescribe. Using sophisticated forecasting software, and measuring your wealth against your goals, we will be able to answer perhaps the most important question of all "am I going to run out of money before I die?" 

If you can achieve your goals by taking the low risk cash route, and also sleep at night, why not indeed do this. Then you'll have a well researched strategy, not just crossed fingers.

#  Attributed to Justin Urquhart Stewart.

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