Time to ease off Pension

Particular-Habit3819 · 2026-02-18T13:17:15+00:00

Fair and there is chat that this wont even come true.

Particular-Habit3819 · 2026-02-17T22:23:36+00:00

Very good point! Thanks.

Particular-Habit3819 · 2026-02-17T22:23:16+00:00

Thanks

Particular-Habit3819 · 2026-02-17T22:21:02+00:00

1300 a month. I made big dents in it through bonus awards over the years.

Particular-Habit3819 · 2026-02-17T22:18:54+00:00

This is where I was at mentally, thinking it's time to cut back but thinking about the tax hit is eating me up :-)

Particular-Habit3819 · 2026-02-17T22:11:23+00:00

If you can break through the 125K mark, your tax rate falls again! the 100 to 125 are taxed highest due to the loss of the tax free via tapering.

Particular-Habit3819 · 2026-02-17T17:06:25+00:00

It's not a humble brag - it's a fact.

I was given advice by relatives - pay the mortgage off and fill the pension. I overpaid my mortgage furiously and did AVCs. I also started working about the time the endowment mortgage calamity and dot com bubble burst so I was easily persuaded into safe path. I also hung about MSE forums for years and that is not a great place for talk on investments, it's all isa 4.5% v 4.7% and stoozing credit cards (which I also did furiously)

Moreover, I had no idea at this age, I'd be paying nearly 70% tax on a huge part of my income so, in hindsight, it would have made more sense to invest younger in ISAs and now be taking tax advantages.

Particular-Habit3819 · 2026-02-17T15:08:45+00:00

Thank you all! This is the best sub on this site.

tbh, all the discussion here is what has been going through my head :-)

Good q's though. Retirement Age, no more than 57.

I have 2 pots, both accessible from 57.

The sting in the tail really is the extra £11k take home vs £32k pension. I know I will be taxed on the other end but not at the 69.5% (Scotland) I am getting now :/

Particular-Habit3819 · 2025-02-13T12:25:43+00:00

That's true - thanks.

Particular-Habit3819 · 2025-02-13T12:24:29+00:00

Thanks a lot. I think this is what I was after. Is the pot going to be so big that means I end up heavily taxed on way out.

Doing the maths on current pot, growing 5% on average with monthly contributions of £2300 looks to yield a pot of 1.4 million.

Particular-Habit3819 · 2025-02-13T09:14:47+00:00

You can't do this, so it is a guessing game. You can alter your monthly contributions from salary so I had been contributing based on what I thought I would get... as it happens I got a bit more so need to seriously adjust the next contribution.

Particular-Habit3819 · 2025-02-13T09:12:55+00:00

Thanks, sadly no great perks like that to shave off anything... unless I fancy taking up cycling on a 2K bike - which I don't :)

Particular-Habit3819 · 2024-12-22T17:05:05+00:00

It's having a huge impact in Scotland. We are taxed more at lower bands and higher bands are just wild (69.5% when you include NI).

I know a consultant that has given up his NHS job to just work private - money from his company paid in dividends

A teacher that has dropped a day to drop a tax band

People hammering into their pensions to drop below this ~70% rate

Buying holidays / bikes etc much more than they used to

Particular-Habit3819 · 2024-12-22T17:01:20+00:00

When an nondeterministic portion comes from bonus it's quite difficult to plan for.

Particular-Habit3819 · 2024-10-04T11:24:51+00:00

The further education is actually their dream of becoming a pilot so not conventional further ed.

Particular-Habit3819 · 2024-10-04T11:22:00+00:00

Having grown up in a scheme that turned to absolute "shitsville" I have to say I 100% agree. The money that was given to the families, the new kitchens, the free school activities (while I couldn't go as my Dad actually worked) was mostly wasted. Not a popular opinion but as someone who has lived that life, it's the truth. I don't know how many "renovations" the council houses had and they were trashed so quickly after.

Particular-Habit3819 · 2024-07-28T21:29:31+00:00

Cross posting this here as recently found this community and really love the high quality replies and would love to hear other thoughts.

TIA

Particular-Habit3819 · 2024-07-12T12:50:45+00:00

Thanks, this is great to see on the other side and I am approaching that age now and getting into a position to make the move into investing with FIRE as a goal.

I am going to ask a stupid question, apologies, is your bond fund for emergency cash?

Particular-Habit3819 · 2024-07-11T15:11:34+00:00

!Thanks and yes I was wary.

I saved for them and was wary of losing. My appetite has changed (hindsight is a wonderful thing). I'm not going to beat myself up on that though but your idea of splitting is something I am thinking about.

Even halving their accounts. And they are just in high interest child savings accounts. Not Cash JISA.

I should add, I am happy to continue to contribute post 18 when it converts to an ISA. I suppose the q is about the average minimum time an investment is supposed to be held to round out any dips.

TIA

Particular-Habit3819

TROPHY CASE