As 2015 kicks off many of us are wondering what fresh challenges the upcoming year will hold.

These challenges will come in different forms

The big ones, the little ones and, erm, the medium sized ones.

The challenges which have an immediate impact, and challenges which impact longer term.

and

All of these challenges will involve making decisions.

Decisions we need to make which result in both opportunities and challenges in our lives.

Decisions which we’ll sometimes make alone but often with the engagement and support of others.

and

If you’re approaching retirement, decisions which have never been more important (or more complicated) than ever before.

The reason for this clear.

In the 2014 budget the chancellor announced the fact that he intended to allow individuals to have far greater choice with what to do with money held in pension schemes.

For the overwhelming majority of our clients this is positive news…

The changes allow freedom to individuals who have worked hard to build their financial provisions for their later years.

However these positive changes mean that if you’re approaching retirement you need to ensure you make clearly planned moves to ensure that all of the hard work which went into building a decent pot of money for retirement works for you both now and in the future.

The main question if you’re in this position you need to ask yourself is:-

How can I make sure the money I’ve built up is used as effectively as possible to give me the lifestyle I want in my future years?

For many it’s a tough question.

Also, whilst some of us might be comfortable planning on our own for many of our clients it’s also a question which for many of us where a professional planner providing independent perspective, a clarification of the changing environment and the ability to bring their experience of helping clients just like them.

Also whilst there is a cost involved in engaging with a professional to guide you through the number of decisions you’ll need to make over the next few years it’s always worth thinking about the value this relationship can add (or alternatively the potential loss incurred by making mistakes at this key point in time).

So if you’re approaching retirement now, and the new year has focused your mind on how to deal with these changes in your life there’s three things worth doing…

Firstly consider how you want to ideally spend your time as meaningfully as possible.

Secondly review how your financial affairs to ensure that they allow you to live this meaningful life not only now but also for many years in the future.

and

Thirdly if you’re planning to make these decisions without support taking the time to understand how these upcoming changes might impact your decisions.

Alternatively work with a professional who can explain and guide you through how these changes, which are likely to be positive for you but need to be understood, can work in your favour.

To speak to us about how we can help you if you’re approaching retirement feel free to contact us on 08450 568 959