Call us on: 01353 662 442 or email info@camouse.co.uk
Search
Archives
New year, new decade, new approach to your finances?
Posted on: 6th Jan 2020 by: CamOuse Financial Management Limited
You may have already made some New Year’s resolutions regarding healthy eating and exercise but could your finances do with slimming down too? The start of a new year, not to mention a new decade, is a great time to review your financial situation, examine your budget in detail and make plans for the future. Take a look at the following financial resolutions you could adopt for 2020.
Set goals
If you haven’t already set any financial goals, now is the time to do so. But be specific. Rather than just saying you want to ‘save more’ or to ‘improve your financial situation’, focus on what you really want to achieve. Do you want to retire a certain number of years early, buy a holiday property or pay off a loan? By pinpointing your objectives, you will spend more time reflecting and plan more carefully. It also means it will be easier to see how you far you’ve got when you come to review your progress this time next year.
Once you’ve identified your aims, share them with others to make yourself accountable. That way you have more chance of achieving them.
If you’ve already set some goals, why not take stock and review your objectives? Do they still fit with your circumstances and what you want to gain out of life? Or do you need to make some slight tweaks?
Track your budget
Setting a budget may sound obvious but sticking to what you’ve outlined is the foundation of good financial management. There are many apps around today that can help you log your spending and more importantly identify where the leaks are occuring. An end of year summary from your bank or credit card company will help you analyse which categories are the main culprits so you can address them in the coming year.
Watch those habits
Take a look at any financial mistakes you made last year. Did you overspend or overborrow?
Have you got into a bad financial habit, such as eating out too often, having too many take-out coffees or always paying full price for clothing? If so take a step back, think about the underlying reason and try and change your behaviour.
On the flip side, if you’ve adopted any good practices try and consolidate them by automating them. If you want to save more for your retirement or repay a debt, automate a monthly debit through your payroll or bank right now while you’re feeling motivated.
Why not get into the habit of having a ‘no-spend day’ or ‘no-spend weekend’ each month? Eat at home, don’t go shopping and find free entertainment. You may be all geared up to get fit at the start of the year but think twice about an expensive gym membership, particularly if you’re the type of person who ends up skipping sessions once the novelty has worn off. Instead try working out in the park, going for a long walk or using one of the many free exercise apps.
The goal is to make reviewing your finances a habit, not something you just consider on an annual basis. If you’d like to sit down and discuss your financial situation with us with a view to making changes for the coming year, do feel free to get in touch.
-
I thought CamOuse were very helpful and dealt with my enquiries promptly.
D Mowatt
Clive Nickalls
-
I have been a client of CamOuse's for many years. My advisors have provided assistance with mortgages, financial planning, investments and most importantly my future. The team remain passionate and professional and I would recommend CamOuse without question.
L Isbell
Trevor Honey & Clive Nickalls
-
The staff are always happy to help.
J Pearce
-
Lee has always given me excellent advice when choosing a new mortgage. I would highly recommend him.
R O'Dell
Lee Pooley
-
Everyone is very friendly, approchable, helpful and professional.
G Parr
Trevor Honey
-
I would like to thank Lee for all his help, he was amazing!
Silk & Schwarz
Lee Pooley
-
Lee was recommended to us by 2 of his existing clients, colleagues and friends of ours and I'm glad they did so! He made the whole process much simpler then we were expecting.
Burgess & Bedford
Lee Pooley
-
Lee has helped us on several occassions and we always appreciate and value his time and efforts.
I & A Murphy
Lee Pooley
-
I really appreciate the prompt, friendly, efficient service.
V Hardy
Clive Nickalls
-
Very pleased with the service provided and happy to recommend to my customers and friends and family.
M Chadburn
Clive Nickalls
-
I would like to express my thanks for the excellent service I have received and a special thank you to Hannah for keeping me updated and dealing with my queries in a very efficient and professional manner.
T Long
Matthew Theobald
-
Thank you (and Eve) so much for all your help and support towards our remortgage. We really appreciated your expertise.
Cant & Robbins
Lee Pooley
-
I would just like to thank you all on behalf of myself and Jordan. You, Eve and Max have been faultless and we couldn’t be more appreciative for all your help!
C Baldwin
Lee Pooley
-
Lee has provided me with mortgages and appropriate insurance for both my home and lease properties. He is professional and works to get policies in place in an extremely quick time frame. I would certainly recommend Lee and CamOuse to anyone and I personally will continue to use their service.
G Habbin
Lee Pooley
-
I have been a client of CamOuse Financial Management Ltd for many years and have always found their services to be of the highest quality.
N Parker
Jo Kurz
-
Amazing company, very friendly, professional, and always on hand to give sound advice. My family has been utilising their expertise for many years and have never been let down.
S Bradley
Jo Kurz
-
Sound financial advice and planning. Responsive and friendly service.
B O'Connor
Jo Kurz
-
The whole team at CamOuse are friendly, professional and always look after your best interests. Thanks for your help!
G Hall
Lee Pooley
-
We've only been with CamOuse just over a year but would highly recommend them. We deal with Matthew who is an excellent adviser, always very responsive to questions and goes the extra mile to help.
P Carter
Matthew Theobald
-
I was so pleased and relieved to find this company. Particularly pleasing is their communication - it's jargon-free, concise and clear. We've been very happy with advice given thus far, and also their responsiveness whenever we've had any queries.
A Cant
Jo Kurz
-
We used Lee at Camouse to arrange our mortgage and can highly recommend him to provide an honest and professional service in this area. We will certainly return to Lee for remortgage advice in the future.
A Attewell
Lee Pooley
-
Would like to extend our thanks to you and your team for a fantastic customer service as always.
E & R Mendoza
Lee Pooley
-
We paid a small fee to Camouse for whole of market mortgage broker services. As first time buyers, Lee and Eve were able to guide us through the process, find us a deal and sort out the applications in a really helpful friendly and efficient way. We were very satisfied and would recommend CamOuse to others for this service.
L Humphrey
Lee Pooley
-
I was extremely pleased with the quality of the service I received when arranging a mortgage as part of a house sale and purchase through CamOuse. Lee and Eve were very easy to contact and always quick to respond. I would definitely recommend their mortgage arrangement services.
G Dewdney
Lee Pooley
-
Jo has been extremely helpful and very patient and I will be recommending her highly to other family and friends of mine. I do sincerely appreciate the way Jo handled my issues and also the excellent and very professional way she conducted business. She is an absolute asset to CamOuse.
C Tate
Jo Kurz
-
CamOuse have been our go-to financial advisers since 2008 and have assisted with numerous mortgages, remortgages, insurances, and general financial advice. Lee Pooley and Eve Nowakowska have been invaluable during this time. We've built up an excellent relationship with both and trust them completely to do what's in our best interests. Both are an absolute pleasure to work with and I cannot recommend them, and by extension CamOuse, enough!
I Murphy
Lee Pooley
-
We used the services of CamOuse to help in buying our first home and setting up our mortgage and we were extremely happy with all the advice and help we got. We spoke to Lee mostly, who was really great! Very insightful, very friendly and helpful, very patient and all-round great service. Would happily seek their help again. Many thanks Lee!
C Bolas
Lee Pooley
-
We have been taking mortgage advice from CamOuse for over 20 years and are always impressed by their friendliness and professionalism.
N Amery
Lee Pooley
-
Thank you to Matthew and Julie for making a huge difference in my life when I thought I was so stuck and felt there was never going to be a way to move forward.
L Smith
Matthew Theobald
View our Privacy Notice.
Camouse Financial Management Limited is an Appointed Representative of Quilter Financial Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
None of the information contained in this website should be considered as personal recommendation and is for information only. Should you wish to make a financial transaction we recommend that you take personal financial advice after a thorough review of your personal and financial circumstances.
The information contained within the website is subject to the UK regulatory regime and is therefore primarily targets at customers in the UK.
Registered address: Unit 111, Lancaster Way Business Park, Ely, Cambridgeshire, CB6 3NX
Registered in England and Wales. Registered No: 05662116.
Understanding the true cost to your business
Pension arrangements must be available for all employees. There are three categories of employee:
Eligible
Aged between 22 and State Pension Age (SPA) with qualifying earnings over the Auto Enrolment earnings trigger
Non-eligible
Entitled
Important Notes
- Eligible jobholders must be auto-enrolled
- Non-eligible jobholders are allowed to be auto-enrolled if they want to
- Entitled workers are entitled to join a pension scheme, but the employer doesn't have to contribute
|
Qualifying Earnings lower threshold |
£5,772 |
|
Qualifying Earnings upper threshold |
£41,865 |
|
Automatic Enrolment earnings trigger |
£10,000 |
Minimum contribution level options:
|
8% of Qualifying Earnings of which |
3% is employer's (starting at 1%) |
|
9% of Basic Salary of which |
4% is employer's (starting at 2%) |
|
8% of Basic Salary of which |
3% is employer's (starting at 1%) |
|
(Where basic salary is at least 85% of total earnings) |
|
|
7% of gross earnings of which |
3% is employer's (starting at 1%) |
Pay reference period
Essentially the frequency that the jobholder is paid e.g. monthly, weekly etc. but with reference to the tax month, week etc. therefore it may not be the same as the payroll period.
Deduction and payment of contributions
It is the employer who is responsible to calculate, deduct and pay all contributions to the AE scheme. NOTE – the first and last contributions are likely to be for less than a full pay reference period and should be adjusted accordingly.
Payroll services
It can be seen that it is very important that the payroll system synchronises with the AE scheme otherwise the employer will not be carrying out all requirements and then penalties will be incurred.
Staging date
Based on the employer’s payroll size as at 1 April 2012 and can be found at www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/employers using your PAYE reference. The Qualifying Workplace Pension Scheme must be registered with The Pensions Regulator within 4 months of the staging date.
Compliance and communication
Postponement
Auto-Enrolment can be postponed for up to 3 months:
- For current eligible employees
- For workers that meet the criteria in the future for the first time e.g. avoid joining temporary or lower paid workers
Opt-Outs
All eligible employees must be auto-enrolled, but can, with the correct notification, opt-out within one month of joining the scheme and be treated as never having joined. They can opt back in and will automatically be auto-enrolled every 3 years in any case!
Communication
There is a wide range of information that must be provided to all employees at certain times, such as:
- The date auto-enrolment took place for eligible jobholders
- That non-eligible jobholders have the statutory right to opt in
- Entitled workers have the right to request the employer to enrol them into a pension scheme
Salary sacrifice
Contributions can be paid by effectively reducing salary, which saves on NI contributions, but employee must choose to do this – they cannot be forced, so a contractual variation will need to be implemented.
Default investment fund
Investment Options
All eligible employees will be automatically invested into a default investment fund, which is a balanced risk fund that is “life styled” to account for the employees approach to retirement. They also have the option to invest in a wide range of funds of their choosing.
Looks like there is an error with your comment. Please double check it and try again.
Your comment has been submitted for approval, please check back later.