Most of our clients come to us at a point in their lives when priorities are starting to change.
We have prepared some short case studies below which address common objectives and demonstrate how we work with our clients to help them achieve their goals.
If you would like to find out more, please do get in touch.
Matthew is in his early fifties, a prominent and highly specialised surgeon who has worked very hard to build a successful career and his own private practice. He has rightly focused on building his wealth, but has not had the time to plan his finances to consider tax planning and ultimately understanding when he will have enough money to retire on, and how much he will need at that time. Like many successful professionals, his work has been all-consuming.
Matthew was referred to us by a fellow medical professional and we have been able to help him with:
a. Having peace of mind about how much he needs to save for his retirement.
b. Understanding more about his previous (Defined Benefits) NHS pension benefits and what his options are.
c. Understanding all the different pension rules, legislation and funding limits – including the potential tax he may have to pay now if he over-funds.
d. What he still wanted to achieve before retiring and what his retirement could look like.
e. Analysing how much he had already saved and what he needed to save between now and his retirement date.
f. Making sure his family and loved ones are taken care of, if anything should happen to him.
We have been able to help Matthew enjoy his work/life balance now, but with an eye on his retirement – giving him peace of mind that his affairs are being professionally managed and proactively monitored. Each year we sit down with him to look at any changes in his personal circumstances and how, or whether, the financial plan we have set out for him needs to be changed or amended.
We identified that his current arrangements were not adequate for what he aspired to do in Retirement. This allowed us to put a clear plan in place to ensure that he will have enough money to continue enjoying his comfortable lifestyle whilst also meeting his particular needs now.
Matthew has now been able to identify a retirement date, an achievable retirement income and is comfortable in the knowledge that he has a robust, financial plan supporting him and his family in the years leading up to, at and in Retirement.
This has enabled Matthew to fully focus on his work with a deeper understanding of what he needs to achieve now, and what he has to look forward to in the future.
Richard and his wife Vanessa are in their early fifties, have worked all their lives and lived within their means. Richard recently received an inheritance from his late parents which has given him the opportunity to re-assess his future and the possibility of retiring early and enjoying his hobbies whilst young, fit and able.
Fidelium being a local, highly personalised financial planning firm, interested Richard, and we were able to devise a bespoke plan to help him and his wife, which included:
a. Reviewing their assets and overall Estate to ensure their investments were current, up to date and in line with their needs & objectives.
b. Enabling both Richard and Vanessa to understand what memories they wanted to form over the next 30 years.
c. Evaluating and Analysing the balance between quality of life and affordability.
d. Answering the burning question ….”Can I afford to retire tomorrow?
We helped Richard and Vanessa by analysing their current assets including their recent inheritance and identifying how efficiently everything was organised in respect of income, capital gains and inheritance tax, and whether we could improve their current investments to maximise their returns within their comfort zone.
By undertaking CashFlow modelling enabled them to tangibly understand the implications of retiring immediately, what their future cashflow would look like, would they have enough to live on for the rest of their lives and when/if they could run out of money.
Together, we created a personalised, financial plan to ensure that their pensions and investments were managed according to their attitude to risk, provided them with an income for the rest of their lives, in the most tax efficient and easy to understand way.
Because of the above analysis, Richard was able to retire earlier than he anticipated and within 6 months of our review, with Vanessa deciding to work Part time, purely because she enjoys it. He now spends 6 months of the year sailing around the world, with his wife joining him when a Country or ocean appeals to her.
They are the happiest they have even been, coupled with peace of mind, financial security and a thorough understanding of what their expenditure should look like. They can rest in the knowledge that their investments are being managed in a truly customised manner to help them to achieve their dreams, so they don’t have to worry.
After Sandra’s divorce, she came to Fidelium to seek both advice and support through what she saw as a financial maze that she was unfamiliar with. Sandra had given up her career in HR to look after their 3 children. Her husband had always dealt with their finances and she found herself in a situation where she had to quickly adapt and manage her own financial affairs to ensure the divorce settlement provided her with financial security for the rest of her life. Feeling vunerable and concerned, she wanted to understand:
We worked closely with Sandra to give her peace of mind, by educating her on what her divorce settlement meant in monetary terms and by giving her an insight into investments and pensions, and how they could be used to provide her with the financial security she needed.
We created a comprehensive but simple Financial Plan, ensuring her savings were safeguarded but accessible, and that her savings and pension were invested in the most tax efficient manner.
We provided a cash flow forecast which included income from Sandra’s business, looking at the future value of her investments and pension. This allowed her to see how her short and long term financial needs could be met. In short, we enabled Sandra to feel in control of her own destiny.
Sandra runs her own business, working flexible hours to give her a good work/family life balance. She has now started saving into her Pension, planning for her new future and is a valued client to Fidelium, acting as a member of our Client Steering Committee. This committee provides us with valuable feedback about how we Fidelium can work best for our clients.
Our involvement with our clients often starts at big moments in their life and we are grateful to be able to provide support to our clients at difficult times.
Sarah has looked after our family for 22 years, and as part of our Inheritance Tax Planning, now provides support and advice to myself, daughter and grandchildren. Her advice has always been clear and easy to understand, and the level of service Sarah and the Fidelium Team provide is exemplary – they go above and beyond.
I am so grateful for her guidance and understanding.
Call us for an informal chat on 01442 508111 or email: info@fidelium.co.uk