Financial planners in Cambridge

• How do you help clients integrate their mortgage into their overall financial plan?

  Working with a financial planner can help you integrate your mortgage with your financial goals, cash flow, risk tolerance and long-term objectives. We can give you a more accurate picture of your cashflow, overall debt profile, and tax planning opportunities to develop strategies that optimise your financial position. Our team can also help you maximise stability by accounting for interest rate fluctuations, job loss or unexpected expenses.

• Do you offer advice on remortgaging?

  Remortgaging can offer an opportunity to save money on your monthly payments. However, assessing different options and accurately considering “hidden fees” can be difficult. Our team can help you analyse your financial health to determine if remortgaging is right for you. We can also assist you with comparing rates, terms, and features from various lenders to find a suitable mortgage deal based on your needs and preferences.

• How can I qualify for better mortgage rates and terms?

  You can take many proactive steps to improve your chances of a good deal. As financial planners, we can highlight realistic options for raising your credit score. We can also assist with building a savings strategy which optimises your progress towards growing a deposit. Our team can also help with other areas, such as recommending reducing your debt-to-income ratio and considering government schemes.

• Can you help me evaluate mortgage terms to ensure I get the best deal?

  Taking out a mortgage is a big decision. You may have it for many years, and it will likely represent your most significant monthly expense. We can help you compare interest rates offered by different lenders to identify the most competitive rates available. We can also assist with evaluating additional loan features and terms, giving you the information you need to determine the deal with the best overall value.

• How can a financial planner help me navigate the mortgage process?

  The advantage of working with a financial planner is that you can better integrate your mortgage into your comprehensive financial plan. For instance, we can assess your income, expenses, assets and debts to help you understand how much of a mortgage you can afford.

• What about Inheritance Tax?

  Inheritance Tax (IHT) is a remarkably complex area of tax planning, and getting professional advice will help ensure you are fully prepared for it. We can break down the jargon for you and highlight key areas of estate planning that could keep more of your wealth within the family, such as using gifts and trusts.

• Can you help plan for significant life events such as marriage, divorce and home buying?

  Absolutely. Having built-in flexibility within your plan to prepare for these scenarios often helps you enjoy more of what you have now, knowing that it may not impact your life in the future.

• How do you keep me compliant with current tax laws and regulations?

  Our business rests on keeping clients prepared for potential changes to laws, markets, and economic conditions that affect their financial plans. We take many key steps to stay abreast with tax legislation and keep your tax plan updated. These include engaging in continuous professional development, listening to feedback and attending/hosting industry events which facilitate ongoing discussions about tax laws and regulations.

• How can I keep taxes down in retirement?

  There are many factors to consider when approaching taxes in retirement. One important subject is what to do with your 25% tax-free pension withdrawal(s). For some people, it can be more tax-efficient to make gradual withdrawals rather than taking a single lump sum. Flexible Access Drawdown gives you more flexibility over your withdrawals (and, therefore, your tax rates). However, it may provide less financial stability than the regular income from an annuity.

• How can I maximise my after-tax income?

  The UK’s tax landscape is complex and changes regularly. Also, each client’s tax planning goals and situation are different. Carefully analysing your unique position and objectives will help highlight areas where you can improve your after-tax income. Ideas include using salary sacrifice to keep income within lower marginal rates and diversifying income sources (such as dividends), which may have separate tax allowances and lower rates.

• Can you help me address concerns about identity theft and cybercrimes?

  Increasingly, our financial lives are digitised, with savings, investments, pensions, and protection policies stored and accessed online. At Betterment Wealth, we follow up-to-date cybersecurity practices to ensure client information is protected and processed safely. We also encourage clients to follow the latest advice from IT professionals to keep their data safe, such as always using a secure WiFi connection and avoiding suspicious emails or messages.

• How often should I update my protection plan?

  It is always a good idea to check your insurance policies regularly to ensure that they continue to reflect your circumstances and goals. A significant “life change”, such as a divorce or children leaving home, can also necessitate an update. Working with a financial planner will naturally bring up these discussions as you assess your plan each year.

• How do you help me ensure a continuing income if I cannot work?

  This scenario has two key protection types: income protection and critical illness cover. The former provides a “replacement income” (e.g. up to two-thirds of your salary) if you become injured or ill and unable to work. The latter provides a lump sum if, say, you are diagnosed with a medical condition such as a severe heart attack. We can help you assess the different options on the market for such policies and build a robust protection plan.

• How do you determine the appropriate amount of cover I need?

  A range of factors go into the process. For instance, life insurance will likely be a pressing consideration if you are a homeowner with dependents such as young children. The required cover will probably need to cover the remaining mortgage liability. Your health, family history, age, and lifestyle can also affect the availability, pricing, and required coverage of different protection policies.

• What types of insurance do you recommend to protect against unexpected events?

  For individuals, there are four main types of financial protection to consider: life insurance, critical illness cover, income protection, and private medical insurance. Each serves different needs, and their suitability will vary depending on your goals and circumstances. At Betterment Wealth, we help you consider each option carefully.

• What steps can I take now to ensure I have enough savings in retirement?

  It is best to discuss this with a financial planner (remember, your first meeting is free and without obligation!). Some general ideas include starting pension contributions as early as possible to give your savings more time to benefit from compound returns. It is also wise to monitor your National Insurance record to ensure you build up as many “qualifying years” as possible for your future State Pension.

• Can you provide guidance on estate planning and wealth transfer strategies?

  Estate planning is often intricately linked with retirement planning. At Betterment Wealth, our process carefully integrates the two, helping provide a comfortable retirement income while ensuring maximum wealth is kept in the family when you eventually pass. Pensions are often a valuable tool for both areas of financial planning due to the attractive tax benefits they offer to individuals.

• Do you offer advice on managing pension accounts and those from previous employers?

  Yes. Your existing pensions must work as hard as possible for you – containing a suitable investment strategy and competitive fees. Our team can assist with tracking down old (and “lost”) pensions, consolidating them into a single easy-to-manage “pot” where appropriate. We can also look at your current workplace scheme and make recommendations to ensure maximum effectiveness with your pension contributions.

• How do you account for inflation and potential healthcare costs?

  Inflation is the “silent killer” of savings. Using various planning tools, we help you preserve as much spending power as possible throughout retirement. We also assist with contingency planning for potential care costs in later life.

• How can I convert retirement savings into a reliable income stream?

  For most clients, there are three main options: buying an annuity, going into drawdown, or using some combination of both. Your options may be different depending on your circumstances. At Betterment Wealth, we aim to ensure you have a strategy to provide a comfortable, secure, and sustainable retirement. We help you examine the relevant information to understand it and make confident decisions you are happy with for years to come.

• How can you help me prioritise competing savings goals?

  It can be difficult for clients to know where to allocate their resources. For instance, should you save for retirement, pay off debt, or save for a child’s education? At Betterment Wealth, we help clients gain clarity on these questions by considering their current position, the broader investment landscape, and their personal goals. By discussing options strategically, we help clients make more confident, wiser choices with their money.

• Can you explain the fees and expenses associated with managing my investments?

  As financial planners, it is common practice to pay for wealth management work through an annual percentage of a client’s investments. Clients should also note various platform and fund-related fees (e.g., management fees), which can often be “hidden.” At Betterment Wealth, we help clients identify and understand these costs so they have the best idea of their potential “real returns.”

• How often do you review and rebalance investment portfolios?

  Keeping your assets aligned with the strategy is essential. However, too much “tinkering” with your portfolio can result in underperformance and excessive trading fees. We recommend rebalancing portfolios to ensure they remain within set parameters to manage risk, which helps you maximise your “time in the market” (rather than trying to “time the market”).

• Which strategies do you use to minimise taxes?

  We want you to keep as much of your hard-earned returns as possible – limiting fees and taxes where possible. Tax planning is embedded in the financial advice and planning we offer. Our financial plans include tax-efficient solutions such as pensions, ISAs, and bonds, and we look to utilise annual allowances, reliefs, and exemptions for maximum return. Each client is different, so the precise set of tools we recommend in each case will vary.

• How do you determine the most suitable asset allocation for me?

  A range of important factors go into building your unique portfolio. These include your financial goals, your time horizon and risk tolerance. Your investment interests and values also matter. We also carefully vet different fund options before presenting them to clients and ensure appropriate “diversification” is built into our portfolios.

• What does the financial planning process entail?

  When our vision is clear about your circumstances, planning is more effortless. The process begins with a conversation to understand what and who is important to you and how you would like to live your life now and in the future. We then analyse your circumstances more and make recommendations to determine how best to move towards your goals. Together, we build your financial plan, which we review regularly and adjust to keep you on track throughout your lifetime.

• How do you stay updated and make changes to my plan?

  Our role is to closely monitor the economy, markets and legislation that could affect your financial plan and investments. Significant developments will be brought to your attention and discussed. Where necessary, we then update your plan (with your consent) to give you the best chance of keeping one step ahead.

• How do you determine the best investment strategy for me?

  It is essential that you fully understand what you are investing in and that you are comfortable with the risk involved. We consider your investment horizon and, using our investment principles, identify investments that align with your goals. Ensuring your portfolio is appropriately “diversified” to mitigate risk and access the most comprehensive opportunities is vital.

• Why is financial planning different from financial advice?

  The two concepts overlap in significant ways but have fundamental differences. Financial advice often focuses on helping someone with a one-off transaction (e.g. finding a lost pension). A financial planner, by contrast, usually seeks a multi-decade relationship with clients – bringing together all aspects of their “financial lives” into a single cohesive plan that can be tracked.

• How often do you review financial plans with clients?

  A well-built financial plan will be robust, have much built-in flexibility, and be updated when your needs and goals change. Or market conditions may cause your portfolio to become gradually imbalanced. Therefore, we usually meet clients once a year to discuss significant changes and make updates.

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