Life

The wealth gap between generations is growing at an alarming rate. Young British adults, ‘Generation Y’ – in the face of low salaries, student debt and extortionate house prices – are becoming ever more reliant on the bank of mum and dad. It’s a trend that I believe will only continue, with more and more families pulling together, living as one, and combining their earnings and investments to map out their financial security as one.

We recently carried out a piece of consumer research with Opinium to find out about couples’ investment habits¹. The results revealed, rather unpleasantly, that many people today feel forced to remain in a relationship purely because they can’t afford to leave their partner.

One of the common misconceptions of ISAs is that you can’t switch your ISAs from previous years to another provider. Actually, you can. It’s relatively easy to transfer ISAs and, in doing so, you may well be able to increase the returns on your money.

As the rate of inflation falls within the Government’s 2% target for the first time in four years, the key questions remain: How does this actually impact consumers’ spending power, and what does it mean for those looking to make the most of their savings and investments?

A recent Nutmeg survey, carried out by Opinium, revealed that less than one in five people (18%) would turn to professional services such as a bank or independent financial adviser for guidance on their investments. The rest of the 2,000 online respondents said they’d primarily look to friends and family for help (43%) or wouldn’t even consider involving anyone else with their money management (31%).

A recent Nutmeg survey revealed that the difference between a couple’s salaries is causing relationship issues for those in their 20s and 30s. But, while they’re firmly focused on short-term household income, are they losing sight of their longer-term investment plans?

There’s such a glut of economic commentaries and forecasts out there that digesting them can be time-consuming and bewildering at times, even for the most savvy among us. So how can we focus in on the useful stuff and filter out the scaremongering and political posturing?

In the last decade we’ve seen industry and jobs change in a big way, becoming more tech-focused, agile, mobile and temporary. And even greater change is on the cards for the future. So what will your working life and income look like 10 years from now? And how do you evaluate your investment plans to keep everything on track?

It’s 6.20 on a Monday morning. The only noise drowning out the sound of the planes overhead is the occasional wail of a police siren. You get up and walk to the nearest Tube and find the drivers on strike. So you go to the bus stop. The first three buses are full. The fourth…

Even if your school days are now a distant memory, you might recall your parents complaining (sorry, “gently mentioning in passing” after you got a D in GCSE geography) that it cost an arm and a leg to pay the private school fees. The bad news if you’re considering private education for your own children is that it now costs two arms and two legs. And a kidney. According to a study by Lloyds TSB in August 2012, average fees have risen by 68 per cent over the last decade, from £6,280 in 2002 to £11,457. That’s 1.8 times faster than retail price inflation over the same period.

In for a pound, in for a penny – that pretty much sums up the numbers game with loyalty schemes. At Waitrose, Sainsbury’s and The Co-operative – as well as Amazon and Waterstones – you get a penny back for every pound you spend, while Tesco offers a mighty 2p and Boots a racy 4p.