Personal Finance Today

Prices for everything in our economy seem to be going nowhere but up right now. With fuel, stamps and other things on the rise, it is becoming necessary to cut corners wherever you can. Grocery shopping is one area to do this in. There are several tips and guidelines to follow when making and executing your grocery list that can make all the difference.

Of course, there are the obvious coupons. These may seem like a too easy way to save money many times, but they are definitely worth it if you are willing to be diligent. Keep them in a safe place, put them all together, and check expiration dates regularly. A dollar here and there over a month or two can begin to make a decided difference in your grocery shopping budget.

If possible, shop in bulk. There are many grocery stores and bulk stores that offer foods in large quantities for drastically reduced prices. If you know you will need more than a box or two of something, why not buy it in bulk? You spend a bigger amount of money at the present, but in the long run, it ends up saving you in a very big way.

Do your homework by comparison shopping. Do not keep going to the same grocery store out of loyalty or convenience. If you have to go another mile or so to one that has significantly lower prices on the items that you consistently purchase, do not hesitate to do it! Spend that extra five minutes in the grocery store and find out what items you regularly buy are cheaper. Sometimes you may not have to switch grocery stores at all, just brands. Many times you buy a brand because you are familiar with it. There is nothing wrong with this, but if you look closely, many of the generic brands are almost exactly the same for a considerably different price. If you have to, take a notebook with you to the grocery store and mark down what brands are the best after you have compared them. Nex (more…)

One of the challenges we face as Fee Based Planners and Wealth Managers is how do doctors and dentists get to know about Graeme and Ray and the job we do?

After all, we know (and our existing clients tell us), that we are providing our clients with exactly the kind of service they want, and they love the way we work for them and not the product provider.

But of course how would a dentist in Yorkshire or a doctor in Surrey get to know this? One method that has seen success is that we are prominent in the major search engines (especially google). So, for example, if you search for ‘financial advice for dentists/doctors’ (without quotes) you should see us up there towards the top.

And this is where the story starts. One of the calls received in December was from a dentist in the Durham area. I referred to this client in an earlier newsletter, but the essence was this.

An Independent Financial Adviser, well known as someone who targets the dental market, had visited the caller - let’s call him John - and had asked him a few questions, and John had told him what he thought were his priorities, and the adviser had made some notes.

Apparently, after about an hour, the adviser said “OK. What I recommend is that you invest 2,500 per month into a personal pension plan”. John was already paying almost 500 per month into a couple of personal pension plans on top of his considerable NHS Pension, and so he asked if that meant it would be 2,000 in addition to these.

You may have guessed the answer…

“Oh no, it will be a new plan for 2,500 and we will stop the others, and I have the paperwork here”. John looked at his wife (let’s call her Jan), and said he would think about it. So that’s how it was left when I received John’s call.

He expressed his concerns at the indecent haste in coming to a big decision like this, (more…)

The goal of such mortgage companies is to provide you with all the necessary details in order to make the mortgage process simple and efficient, and to provide the best options for you. There are many different types of mortgages and therefore it is important to find the mortgage that’s suits to your needs and forms important part of the decision.

The most popular mortgage is generally based on term and interest rate. The term in general is 30years, but 15-year mortgage is usually more preferred by people. Some mortgages have fixed rates for the entire term, some have variable rates that can change monthly or yearly and others have a fixed rate for a certain number of years followed by a variable rate. The rate- means the interest rate and the annual percentage rate (APR). While following finer aspects need to be known by the customer opting for a specific type of mortgage for a variety of budgets.

5-Year Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) - Interest-only payments are due for the first 10 years. After 10 years, principal and interest payments are due. Payment quoted above includes interest-only for the initial fixed rate period. After 5 years, the rate will adjust every 6 months.
10-Year Interest-Only Loan - Mortgage rate is fixed for 30 years, interest-only payment due for the first 10 years. After 10 years, principal and interest payments are due. Payment quoted above includes interest-only.

30-Year Fixed-Rate - You will make 360 equal monthly payments. Payment quoted above includes principal and interest. You need to know four important features to shop for a mortgage: i.e. a mortgage with a fixed interest rate for the life of the mortgage.

There are many online mortgage lenders in New York who will take your application, submit it to hundreds of lenders, and then provide you with the 4 best offers in order to de (more…)