Lifetime ISA vs Pension: Balancing Tax and Access

This week, we have questions about planning property purchases together as a soon-to-be-married couple, investing an inheritance, balancing an age gap between spouses and much more besides!

Shownotes: https://meaningfulmoney.tv/QA27 

00:52  Question 1

Hi Pete and Rog,

I’ve been listening to the show since 2020, and I absolutely love it. It keeps me grounded in a generation that frivolously spends for the sake of Instagram. Thank you for offering such helpful advice for free.

I’m in my early 30s, I have no bad debt, regularly contribute to my workplace pension, and have been saving for a 2–3 bedroom house over the past three years. In 2 months I’ll have the 10% deposit (the minimum I want to put down) saved in my LISA. I'm currently renting a really affordable flat with a great landlord.

I started saving when I was single, but I met my lovely boyfriend almost two years ago. We’re serious and are planning to get married and move in together in the next 12 to 18 months.

Here’s my question: Should I delay buying a house for a year or so until I'm married, or should I buy now and plan to keep it for at least five years—even if, during that time, my boyfriend and I buy a different house and I end up renting this one out?

Many thanks, Leah

07:50  Question 2

Love the Podcast guys

My Question is about what to do with an unexpected inheritance (likely to be around £150,000 from the sale of my late parents' house) a year before remortgaging. For context; both my Wife and I have recently become Additional Rate tax payers with a defined benefit NHS pension. We can max out ISA contributions for a few years (including LISA for the next 6yrs) but with no personal saving allowance and only being able to effectively get savings rates of <3% in GIAs we are drawn to an Offset mortgage (current mortgage 21yrs to run ~£330k remaining LTV 40%) but these don't seem to be popular and don't get mentioned much. I estimate within 5yrs we'd be paying 0% interest and could start drawing down from the offset savings pot. This seems like a hedge against uncertainty (and allows us access to the funds cf to paying off the mortgage) and would be effectively paying us whatever the mortgage rate would be (>4%). Would welcome your thoughts on this

Gareth + Helen

12:27  Question 3

Hi Pete and Roger,

I've been following your channel for over a year now, and I’m really grateful for the practical insights—wish I’d discovered you years ago! Your guidance has helped me make some much-needed improvements to my financial planning.

My question is: Could you provide any guidance for couples with an age gap on balancing pension contributions and withdrawals, as well as utilising ISAs, to effectively phase-in their retirements together? My Civil Partner and I have an 8-year age gap, which didn’t matter in our 20s and 30s, but 20 years later, with some middle-aged aches and pains! We want to align our plans better to enjoy more time together, rather than one of us retiring much later or sooner than the other.

We underutilised pensions, unfortunately, but hold equity in two properties and decent cash savings. We are now mortgage free and plan to boost our pensions.  Within 10 years, we might buy a small flat in Malaysia (his home country) and downsize our UK home from Manchester to Scotland (my 'home country'!). We hope to split time between the UK and Malaysia or possibly settle over there, drawn by the affordable living and our fondness for the country.

Best wishes, James

18:53  Question 4

Love the show, you guys accompany me on walks when I have a break from work. I have two questions but this may be a bit much so I have broken them down

I have possibly an easy question for you but one that I can’t find the answer to online. My wife is a teacher with a final salary pension estimate of £23.5k p/a. We’re unsure whether or not this will provide for a comfortable retirement, so we are considering making additional savings for retirement.

My wife is a basic rate taxpayer and currently 39 so my question is whether it is better to invest the money in a lifetime ISA and effectively get the tax relief through government top up, as when she comes to retirement the additional income that would come from the LISA would be tax-free and not subject to income tax, or invest in a SIPP but this would incur income tax when accessed?

To me it seems a no brainer as the tax benefit on the way in is effectively the same but there is no tax burden on the way out of LISA versus a pension am I being dim or is this the right way to go?

I am a higher rate taxpayer so I know that to get the most tax efficiency it should go in my pension but there’s a possibility I would be a higher rate taxpayer in retirement too so not sure it’s sensible to have it all in my name (also mindful of lifetime allowance being reinstated)

Other question is more complicated and around planning for me. I’m 38, a higher rate TP recently earning £90k p/a, I currently have c.£215k in a few employer pensions. My current employer pension scheme is based on qualifying earnings only. My employer pays 3% (so