36 financial planning New Year, new financial plan


It’s that time of year when people have made (and some already broken) their new year’s resolutions. How about making 2014 the year to create your own financial plan? writes Chris Shaw, director, Beaufort Asset Management


We carefully plan for many things in life, whether it is a weekend away or a home renovation, but quite often people never make a financial plan. Creating a plan early will ensure financial decisions are much easier to make, provide an accurate forecast and help create security for you and your loved ones.


What is a financial plan? Financial


planning is one of the most important things you can do in your life


Before you develop your plan further you need to have a good idea of what you what to accomplish in life


Financial planning is one of the most important things you can do in your life. In today’s uncertain economy, financial planning has become increasingly important. With an overwhelming number of options for saving and investing, managing your finances alone can be difficult.


Beaufort advisers use an intelligent piece of software which plots out your financial lifecycle in a visually pleasing and easy to understand format.


The first step to creating your bespoke plan is carrying out a fact-finding exercise with your adviser. Looking at all of your assets, savings, debts, pensions, incomes, property etc – the more detailed, the better. Once this information is imported you can start to build a picture of your future financial situation.


It’s all about you – what is your ‘bucket list’?


Before you develop your plan further you need to have a good idea of what you what to accomplish in life. Think of it as a business plan, you couldn’t create an effective business plan without knowing what the company’s aims and objectives were in the first instance.


Would you like to retire at 60? Emigrate? Fund the children through university? Purchase a property abroad? Help your children buy their first home? Make some investments for the grandchildren?


Without a strong overview of your finances it would be difficult to predict if your life aims are feasible and your plan can show you what you need to do in order to get there.


Financial planning can also help answer some questions you may have. Could you afford to buy a second property? How much return on your investments will you need? Can you afford to take more risk? How much would you need to sell your business for in order to retire early? Can your partner retire early or reduce their working hours?


Your financial plan is completely bespoke and personal to you, your family and your ambitions. As your plan is ‘live’ it is completely flexible, it can be altered and adjusted at any time.


Risk management


With anything in life, however much we plan there are always unexpected events – whether it is a large inheritance or loss of employment, these factors can be


www.businessmag.co.uk THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – THAMES VALLEY – FEBRUARY 2014


put into your plan at any point and the figures re- calculated. Being prepared is critical.


For peace of mind and cautious planning, we can also account for ‘what if’ scenarios. So if you are worried about how the death of the main provider would affect the family’s situation, for example, this can be factored in to see the outcome.


For example, Mr and Mrs Green would like to retire early at 55 and purchase a property in Cyprus. However, if Mrs Green’s elderly parents require a nursing home they will not be able to reach this goal. Re-adjusting their plans to work until 60, however, would mean they can afford this.


Retirement planning


Planning for retirement is one of the most important aspects in the financial planning process. Many people do not understand how much retirement will cost and many postpone retirement planning due to the perception that they will have plenty of time in the future. This is not usually the case and many retirees wish they started to save sooner.


Retirement saving is factored into your financial plan and you can play around with the figures to see how much you can afford to save, bringing forward or pushing backwards the age you retire at to see how your goals can be reached.


It is strongly recommended to create a financial plan for your family as early as possible and speaking to a professional adviser could dramatically improve your financial future. Your bespoke plan can be a one- off piece of advice, looked at on a yearly basis, or as frequently as you desire.


Details: Chris Shaw 0118-9879400 cshaw@beaufortasset.com www.beaufortasset.com


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