Month: July 2016

With this post, I am going to move into the realms of some radical financial advice thinking. That’s right, it is time to challenge some of the so-called golden rules of investing and what better axiom to start with than the ‘numero uno’ of investment sayings – “it’s the time in the markets, not timing the markets.”

I have just finished reading an article about a new theory which endeavours to explain how extra-terrestrial life could have evolved in the universe This theory is so radically different from accepted norms, that it has garnered a great deal of attention both inside and outside the scientific com- munity. And, as per usual, with the postulating of any new concept, comes a multitude of criticism from the established ranks of whatever field the postulator may be involved in.

I received a phone call the other day from the Tax Office, or should I say, purportedly from the tax office. The recorded message suggested that I had failed to comply with some taxation obligation and that they had therefore issued a warrant for my arrest – yes, that’s right, arrest!

Wow, what a tumultuous week we had recently in financial markets. Britain unexpectedly votes to leave the EU and suddenly the world is full of ‘Chicken Little’s’ proclaiming the sky is falling! Now, I am certainly not one to underestimate the gravity of such a decision, but sometimes these events can be blown out of proportion.

I do not like retirement calculators. After many years in the financial advice industry, I see them as misleading and certainly not a tool to base long-term plans around.

I recently received a phone call from my bank. The usual thing, how was I going with my banking, am I happy with the service, and could they help me with anything else.” “Actually, there was some- thing you could help me with”, I said. “Could you give me the current mortgage rates”(My daughter and her partner were in the process of looking for a property so I thought I would do some research on their behalf) “No problems” was the response, as the sound of a keyboard in the background tapped in the request.