Shortly after the credit crunch, UK household debt (not including mortgages) dropped sharply as lenders, with a reduced appetite for lending money, tightened lending criteria. This slowly loosened in subsequent years and it appears household debt is on the rise again. UK household debt now stands at a record £15,400 per household. The TUC will Read more ›

I was reading recently that women only save a third of the amount that men do by the time they approach retirement. This worrying statistic is primarily due to time taken out of their careers to look after a family but also due to the fact that there is a gender pay gap, with women Read more ›

At Sterling and Law it is our view that if a client was to meet with two different advisers and provide them with the same information and objectives the investment advice coming back from the advisers would be very much the same. This is the driving force behind our Central Investment Proposition. It represents the Read more ›

One of the great things about our modern age is the huge library of information available to us at our fingertips. You may, if you’re like me, simply be unable to imagine how we got anything done before the internet. How did we buy birthday presents for kids? How did we look for new places Read more ›

Statistics show that a shocking 70% of people in the UK do not have a Will! These are shocking figures. Life is full of uncertainty and you should be prepared for any situation. In the unfortunate event that you should die unexpectedly, a Will is a must-have document if you want any of your wishes Read more ›

I often hear people say that young people in the UK worry too much about getting onto the property ladder. Why not be more like some of our European neighbours, who are happy to rent for their entire lifetimes without feeling robbed? What are the facts? Is it true that Europeans differ from us completely Read more ›

Helping elderly relatives and you plan for the future (part 3) In the previous 2 notes in this series we have discussed the basic assistance required help an elderly person manage their finances, plus a couple of different options to help pay for their care. Today I wanted to discuss more tax planning around inheritance Read more ›

Caring for elderly relatives is a highly stressful time. As it happens to virtually all of us at some point in our lives, there are certain decisions you can make today to make life easier for both you and your relatives or parents. Previously we discussed the importance of making sure wills and powers of Read more ›

At the age of 18, I remember chatting to my friend George who was about to turn 18 himself. George was all excited. He simply couldn’t contain himself and his 18th birthday couldn’t come soon enough. I couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about however, after probing a little further, he revealed to me Read more ›

Watching someone you love get older can be a very difficult experience, but also one that we all will inevitably go through at some point in our lives. It certainly can have its challenges and sometimes thinking about the financial side is the last aspect anyone wants to discuss. In this series I’d like to Read more ›