Q. My father keeps telling me to start my pension, but I think it’s too soon as I am still young, not on a high salary and have many other priorities. Is it important to start a pension now? A. For most people, talking about pensions is like watching paint dry. Boring they may be,
Q. We’re first-time buyers hoping to buy or build later this year. We were leaning towards a new house, to take advantage of the various schemes available. However, we’ve been told that we would be better off buying second-hand rather than buying or building a new house. What do you advise? A. This is a common
Q I bought my home almost three years ago and the three year fixed rate is up soon. The interest rate I was on has risen from 2.4pc to 5.25pc. I’m really worried as this is a massive increase and I’m not sure that I’ll be able to afford it. Is there anything I can
Q. I’ve recently completed home improvements and brought my family home up to a BER rating of B2. I now have a mortgage and a home improvement loan and was looking to combine them to reduce my outgoings. I’ve heard about Green Mortgages. Should I get one and is it worth it? Anyone fortunate enough
My New Year’s resolution is to stop being such a disaster with money. I want to save money and stop living day to day while waiting on my next salary payment to pay my last bill. What should I do? While a big part of learning how to save money is down to determination and
My New Year’s resolution was to finally clear some debt and get my finances in order but I’m already falling back into bad habits. Buying coffees, eating out and spending more than I earn. How can I ensure that this is a resolution I can stick to? Many of us treat our bank accounts like
I’m doing house renovations. Can you offer financial advice? Q I’m looking to do some renovations on my house. Nothing major, some landscaping, painting and decorating etc. but I’m unsure as to how best to finance this. My bank offered me a personal loan of 50k and I presume my Credit Union would at least
Q I’ve just turned 50 and I want to retire early. How can I make that happen? You are not alone, research from pension providers Royal London Ireland found over a third of Irish people would retire at 60 if they could, and a fifth saying they would “stop working today if finances allowed”. Twice
I want to start a pension. Can you tell me more about the auto-enrolment scheme? I want to start a pension, I’ve heard a new compulsory scheme might be coming soon. Do you advise starting now or waiting to see what might happen with this compulsory scheme? A I would advise you to go ahead,
I’m about to retire, but what is the best option to take with my personal pension fund? Q I’m due to retire soon and I recently received a maturity notice from my pension provider. They say it’s a personal pension and that I have the following options. Take 25% of the fund tax free and