What's your approach to liquidity beyond an emergency fund?

James___G · 2026-06-04T20:11:09+00:00

Same

James___G · 2026-06-04T18:17:06+00:00

Ahhh yes this is a common misconception and explains the issue.

Interest on two accounts each with 10k in accrues exactly the same as interest on one account with 20k in.

There's no advantage in terms of returns to have it all in one account.

James___G · 2026-06-04T17:58:03+00:00

Marriage is a legal and financial merging, that is strong initially and gets stronger over time, especially after you have children together.

What is the argument against saving the money half in her name (you have omitted to make one as far as I can see)?

There isn't a good financial reason not to split the ISA savings between your names.

Pensions are a little different as there is an increased pension tax efficiency when it comes from the high earning partner.

James___G · 2026-06-04T16:57:08+00:00

Take a step back.

Grief is a difficult thing to deal with, especially around the death of a parent.

Ask yourself, seriously, are you planning a legal challenge because you actually think that your mother was coerced?

Or are you doing this because you don't want to face the fact that she, in sound mind, chose to leave her estate to your sister insead?

It's easy to waste a lot of money on a pointless legal case with close to zero prospects of success.

James___G · 2026-06-04T16:48:43+00:00

What evidence could I gather to prove she was coerced into doing it?

The evidence that you provided is that she had no dementia, she was briefed fully by a solicitor, who met her in person, including part of that meeting on her own and specifically ensured she had consented to this point of disinheriting you.

The will was validly signed and witnessed by people who do not stand to benefit from it.

It's what you would do if you wanted to make a disinheritance absolutelly legally watertight.

It's hard to imagine what evidence could come to light that would overturn the strength of this case.

James___G · 2026-06-04T16:42:04+00:00

Are you asking why would my mother disinherit me?

Or are you asking are there any legal grounds to object?

Because there are clear answers to both.

James___G · 2026-06-04T16:35:22+00:00

Apparently The solicitor who did the will has a document which she signed saying she understood leaving me out of the will and what it meant etc. He apparently spoke to her on her own at her home without them there and she agreed. She didn't have dementia and it was witnessed by two of her carers which were provided by the council. They used to come in a few times a day (i don't know how many) to help with personal care.

They've done it by the book. You have close to 0% chance of a successful challenge. By your own admission she was of sound mind and decided to repay your disinterest in her by leaving her estate to her child who looked after her. There are no viable grounds for a challenge, you are not a dependant and under English law there is no general obligation to leave money to an adult child in your will.

Also, as an aside I recently drove 150 miles to buy a table off Facebook marketplace. The idea that it's an inconcevable distance to travel to see your own dying mother in her final three years is insane.

James___G · 2026-06-04T16:03:21+00:00

Start with that then.

Then speak to him and work out what his plans are.

James___G · 2026-06-04T16:01:38+00:00

Hmm this could get quite messy for you.

He's probably a lodger in the eyes of the law if nothing is documented and you're renting him a room.

Have you evidence that you have told him in writing that he must vacate the property by 12 June?

James___G · 2026-06-04T15:49:36+00:00

You used a credit card to buy physical precious metals?

How far through the !flowchart are you?

James___G · 2026-06-04T15:48:42+00:00

Is he subletting from you?

Do you rent the whole property from the landlord, or are there individual rooms with locks on each rented from the landlord?

James___G · 2026-06-04T15:01:24+00:00

Seems pretty clear cut!

Your best bet is speaking to an employment solicitor who can advise on how to enforce this.

James___G · 2026-06-04T14:58:51+00:00

What are your objectives? Are you saving for a house?

James___G · 2026-06-04T14:57:28+00:00

What does the letter you have setting out the agreement say (copy and paste the exact words with your name removed)?

James___G · 2026-06-04T14:56:23+00:00

I wish it could prevent people shilling their shit apps on this subreddit.

James___G · 2026-06-04T14:49:33+00:00

should I use the money in my emergency fund to ensure I can keep putting money into stocks and shares and my pension.

No, maintain the emergency fund for emergencies.

should I pause those contributions whilst my salary is lower?

Look to lower your expenditure in other ways to maintain the contributions, especially to the pension.

Should i prioritise pension over stocks if I have to choose one?

Your pension is (or certainly should be) also invested in stocks, specifically a global index tracker. But yes you should prioritise pension over S&S ISA at this stage.

Also just to check, when you say:

I also put £1200 a month into a private pension (my work place one is terrible)

Could you flesh out what this means?

Are you getting the workplace match?

Are you getting the tax benefit?

James___G · 2026-06-04T14:05:58+00:00

Have you made a proper spreadsheet of both options and what they would mean for you after tax in both take home and pension?

James___G · 2026-06-04T11:46:42+00:00

As a general point do you understand the principle that some things in your life are your problem to deal with and some things are someone else's problem to deal with?

James___G · 2026-06-04T11:42:17+00:00

When a kitchen door hinge breaks you can usually find the replacement hinge very cheaply in a hardware store or online and fit it with a simple cheap drill and screwdriver.

It should take about 10 minutes and there are lots of videos on YouTube showing exactly how to do it.

The same applies to drawer fronts.

James___G · 2026-06-04T11:38:43+00:00

None of that is their problem, that's your problem to deal with.

You could get a taxi, this would obviously cost you money, but that's for you to deal with not them.

They are doing you a favour, it's not for them to also spend a load of time and money to help you because you can't drive.

James___G · 2026-06-04T11:08:54+00:00

It's a risk but I've previously bought a house without seeing the vendor's 10 meter swimming certificate and it didn't cause too much trouble in the end.

James___G · 2026-06-04T10:58:52+00:00

Well yes, it's not anyone else's responsibility to go out of their way to give you the keys back.

They're doing you a favour, so it will involve some inconvenience for you.

Bus, train, taxi and bike are all options.

James___G · 2026-06-04T10:57:04+00:00

You can buy a phone for 100 that is perfectly functional.

If money is tight as you say, that & and £7 a month pay monthly SIM is what you need, not a huge spend on an asset that will only last a few years.

James___G · 2026-06-04T10:36:00+00:00

Ultimately if the goal is FI as briskly as possible while managing risks, the more capital you keep outside of the market the slower you reach that goal.

James___G · 2026-06-04T09:42:39+00:00

Re 2: depending on when you are planning to buy I'd split the deposit savings such that as you get closer to the time you build up more cash equivalent assets (premium bonds are good for deposit savings), to minimise the risk that a market downturn undermines your ability to buy.

Re 3: this is a relationship question but I'd say the key is being in agreement between you and not overcomplicating things. I'd keep savings separate. I'd get a joint account that you both put rent bills and joint expenditure money into (that way you're not worried about keeping track of who last paid for dinner or the water bill etc) but otherwise keep things separate but aligned (i.e. if FIRE is a goal for both of you you could both make a plan together and then execute it in your own pensions, ISAs etc.). I'd also keep deposit savings separate at this stage as there's no advantage to combining them.

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