What are you investing your pension contributions in?
Remember that pension contributions are tax free and you can get 25% of that out again at the other end tax free too. You also have a huge range of options for investment of those contributions.
I have...a shotgun and balaclavaIf you are over 30 and not paying into a pension, you need to seriously think about how you will fund your retirement.

We just upped our to £600 a month and am starting to think if it is more valuable elsewhere? I have been paying one for about 20 years, it has about 10k more than I paid in, what do you do?
I'm 33 and paying in £400 a month, I hope to increase this shortly.
If you are over 30 and not paying into a pension, you need to seriously think about how you will fund your retirement.
I'm 33 and paying in £400 a month, I hope to increase this shortly.
If you are over 30 and not paying into a pension, you need to seriously think about how you will fund your retirement.

My contributions have just gone up from around £38 to about £40 a week.Do you contribute? if not you will soon have to contribute 5%
I'm 29 and pay £330 a month into a final salary pension. It's a lot of money but from what I'm told is one of the best pensions around. Whether its still good in 30 years time I don't know.
Depends on what your outgoings would be, you wouldn't be paying any tax or ni for starters.Pensions, one of my biggest regrets in life. All these so called financial advisors had me throwing money into pensions in the belief I was going to benefit in later life. This was money I could have put to better use at the time.
If I retired now with a pension pot of £100,000 my annuity would give me circa £4500 pa. £200,000 would give me £9000 pa.
How can a retired couple live an above average life on £9000 pa?
admirable said:Pensions, one of my biggest regrets in life. All these so called financial advisors had me throwing money into pensions in the belief I was going to benefit in later life. This was money I could have put to better use at the time.
If I retired now with a pension pot of £100,000 my annuity would give me circa £4500 pa. £200,000 would give me £9000 pa.
How can a retired couple live an above average life on £9000 pa?
Depends on what your outgoings would be, you wouldn't be paying any tax or ni for starters.
We just upped our to £600 a month and am starting to think if it is more valuable elsewhere? I have been paying one for about 20 years, it has about 10k more than I paid in, what do you do?
I'm 33 and paying in £400 a month, I hope to increase this shortly.
If you are over 30 and not paying into a pension, you need to seriously think about how you will fund your retirement.
I'm 29 and pay £330 a month into a final salary pension. It's a lot of money but from what I'm told is one of the best pensions around. Whether its still good in 30 years time I don't know.
I'm 35 and currently about 700 a month goes into my pension.
admirable said:Pensions, one of my biggest regrets in life. All these so called financial advisors had me throwing money into pensions in the belief I was going to benefit in later life. This was money I could have put to better use at the time.
If I retired now with a pension pot of £100,000 my annuity would give me circa £4500 pa. £200,000 would give me £9000 pa.
How can a retired couple live an above average life on £9000 pa?
Don't be stupid , it costs me more than £9000 pa to run my house. I would need to sell it. What about a new car every few years, holidays etc?
Even if you retired in 10 years time wont pay squat in the future. Better off buying houses and renting them.250k
Don't be stupid , it costs me more than £9000 pa to run my house. I would need to sell it. What about a new car every few years, holidays etc?[/QUOTE]
That alone says a lot about priorities.
£9000 on top of your state pensions? Will probably work out not too bad. No mortgage,No tax, no NI.
I've been recommended a minimum of 250k in the pot if I want to be comfortable.
The other thing is you need to reach retiral age to receive the benefits.
New car every few years? If only I had that to worry about.... and the chap selling the 'Big issue'.
lots are reaching 90. Pension will be gone before that time, then what?

Don't be stupid , it costs me more than £9000 pa to run my house. I would need to sell it. What about a new car every few years, holidays etc?[/QUOTE]
That alone says a lot about priorities.
It's not about priorities.
Personal pensions were sold as an addition to the state pension. The idea was you would save when you were young and reap the benefits when you were older.
If I wanted a standard life living off the state pension then so be it but this was intended to give you the extra few luxuries in life.
matty said:are those figures what YOU pay or combined with your employer? Im on a good salary and have had a pensionplan in place for a long time and dont pay anywhere near that...
Sorry didn't realise you lived in a stately home.![]()
Daryl said:Even if you retired in 10 years time wont pay squat in the future. Better off buying houses and renting them.
Pensions are worth squat.
My other half has enough in one to buy a detached house in Surrey. when you retire lucky if you see a few K a year.
We are building this business up as far as we can. if it is salable in the future cool. if not we have a team of photographers and managers in place and keep it running. We will baby sit the business and get paid instead of the Naff pension system.
i only have 6years from a Police civie pension. So it will pay £5 a month.
pensions are a joke.
Even if you retired in 10 years time wont pay squat in the future. Better off buying houses and renting them.
Hardly, bloomin' council tax is £3000 pa to start with!
we are cashing ours in. House is payed and not retiring for 15 years if ever...
Got cars ,3 mistress's and a dog with mobile phone and crack addiction to pay for. ( The Dog, Harrison not mine)
Dogs texting is stopping me change the van every 3 years.
Massage parlours...... What is wrong with calling the 'Pouch mobile' I'll never know.
Is that before or after tax?The problem with retirement is not when you take it, it is the expectation that you can somehow live comfortably on about a third of the income you couldn't survive on whilst working. Pensions are a product of the last century - they don't work anymore. Successive chancellors have taken every opportunity to trash them - none more successful than Brown.
I guess I'm fairly fortunate as, although I have never paid into a conventional pension (apart from starting a SIPP a few months ago), I'm already in receipt of a small military pension and I have a residual income stream that continues to grow. I have no intention of fully retiring until my portfolio generates at least 3k pcm. I can't imagine retiring on anything significantly less than this amount.
I believe that everyone has to take ownership of their own financial destiny. Most now realise that the State Pension is next to pointless and many are now concerned about the inadequacys of conventional pensions. The future is to have multiple income streams and ideally both investment (including pension) and residual income.
Not everyone can be employed in B&Q in their later years![]()