Finance
SETTING A COURSE
T
Andrew Fort, Fort Financial Planning & Jeremy Brett, Brett Investment
he difference that a real financial planner can make can be illustrated by the following case study. Michael Confused owned his own business, but quite frankly he had had enough. Work was no longer enjoyable as it once was and Linda, his wife, was about to retire, so he wanted to know if he could too. The trouble was that although he had various investments and pensions, as well as a business to sell, he didn’t know if it was going to be enough for him and his wife to lead the kind of retirement they always envisaged. Essentially what he wanted to know was how big his bucket needed to be. Michael and Linda had accumulated various assets during their lifetime. They owned their own home (value of £350,000), had investments and pension funds of about £600,000 plus they also had Michael’s share of the business (the value of which they weren’t sure about). To be honest they were confused and needed help. First of all we got Michael and Linda to think about the kind of lifestyle they wanted for now and into their retirement. It turned out that each had a passion for travel, so using powerful financial planning software we looked into their financial future, taking account of inflation and based upon realistic returns from their investments. This helped calculate how much they would need in their ‘money’ bucket for Michael to retire and be able to live the life of their dreams without the fear of running out of money. More importantly, we were able to calculate how much Michael would need to sell his share of the business for (after costs and taxes) to have enough money. It turns out it was less than Michael thought but it also turns out, somewhat paradoxically, that now that Michael knows his number he has greater certainty and confidence about his future and has now begun to enjoy work again. Michael and Linda are now well on course to achieving their plan. They meet annually with their financial planner, so that real progress can be made and their dreams become reality. Some years they find themselves slightly off course so minor adjustments need to be made. Their investments now have a structure to them and a strategy that suits their long term goals. In addition, they are pleased to be financially well-organised and consider that they only worry about money once a year – the day of their annual planning meeting! ffp.org.uk brettinvestment.com trustedadvisorgroup.co.uk
132 | Sherborne Times | June 2021