The Meaningful Money Personal Finance Podcast

It’s session number 103, and for the first time ever, I’m bringing back a guest who isn’t Justin Urquhart Stewart! You may remember Abraham Okusanya from session 74, the most downloaded episode of all time. Well, I’ve brought Abraham back on to talk about the dangers of what he calls pound cost ravaging on portfolios in retirement. Stay tuned for more…

This week, we’re going to be talking to a lady called Louise Hill, who is co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of GoHenry. I’ve just signed up to GoHenry for my daughter and myself and so far, I’m delighted with the service. So pleased in fact, that I thought you would like to hear about GoHenry and how useful it is going to be for creating healthy discussions with children about money. Stay tuned for more…

Here in session 102 we’re going to be talking about the end of the tax year and some of the things you could be thinking about. Even though the tax year is pretty much at the same time each year, it still takes many of us by surprise! In this session we’ll cover the main things to consider at this important planning time.

Here we are at session number 101 , and we’re going to be talking about what we have learned in the first 100 sessions of this podcast. I want to summarise the key points that we have covered, point to some previous shows and pick out the best bits. Then, at the end, I’ll set us up for what’s coming in the next 100 shows! We also have a listener question from Stuart, so stay tuned for that.

It’s session 100 – woohoo! This week I have something a little bit different for you. It’s just a bit of fun, so if you came to this session for serious financial information, then I’m really sorry, you’ll have to wait till next week!   The bulk of this episode is a daft interview, of me, by my two daughters, Ellie & Kate, aged 15 and 11. I’ll spare you the details of that, but let’s get on to the important bit: Thanks for the last one hundred sessionsSo, after 100 sessions of this podcast, I think it is worth marking the occasion with some thank-yous for those who have helped me get this far. 100 sessions is a heck of an achievement, though I say it myself – many podcasts don’t make it past episode 10! So thank you too: My ever-patient wife, Joanne, plus the two mingbag girls you heard earlier! My colleagues at Jacksons Wealth Management, Roger, Chas and all the staff. My sponsors, Seven Investment Management who have supported me for over three years and without whom this whole thing would not be possible. Rob Bence and Rob Dix from The Property Podcast for giving me an early shout-out on their phenomenally popular show. They are going great guns and they deserve all the success which is coming their way Some super-fans who are quick to comment on Twitter and iTunes: Andy N and Sarah B, Miss Moneypocket All the many people who have left ratings and reviews on iTunes – please continue to do so! Everyone who has listened to the show and sent emails, left comments and the few of you who have sent voicemail questions (please more people do this!) – This show would be nothing without the listeners – it would just be me talking to myself! I have now busted through 250,000 downloads, which is another cracking milestone. That’s taken just under two years since I began a weekly show in May 2013. If the current trajectory continues, then I could break half a million downloads possibly by the end of the year. I am now getting 5,500 every week. Please tell everyone you know!

This week we’re going to be talking about Financial Planning for ex-pats. This is a session I’ve been asked to do many times, so for all of you who have asked – thanks for your patience, and I hope it is worth the wait! Today I’m going to be chatting to Richard Taylor, a financial planner current based in the UAE – stay tuned…

This week, we’re going to be covering the ten financial commandments, as laid down by the almighty Andy Hart. You may remember Andy from session 79 when we talked about financial forecasting - that was a very popular session indeed. Now Andy has drafted what he believes are the ten commandments of finance, and I know that he uses these as a hook for discussion with his clients at review meetings. I saw them and asked if I could use them for a podcast session because I reckon they’re great stuff. Stay tuned…  

This week, we’re going to be talking about how to review an investment portfolio. Those of us who have some money set aside need to keep an eye on it to make sure it continues to do the job we intend for it. Needless to say, this is about more than just performance, so stay tuned to find out everything you need to know and everything you need to do when reviewing your investments Introduction If you have money put away for the future, it needs looking after. One thing is for sure, any portfolio left to its own devices will, over time, veer from the path which it was intended to run on. Asset allocations get out of kilter, funds which were once hot become dogs – you get the picture. But the key thing to understand is that investment performance is about much more than investment performance. Confused? Let’s look at what you need to know first…   What you need to know 1 – A portfolio is not a financial planIt’s just a tool which is intended to help realise the plan 2 – Outperformance is not a valid goal‘To get richer’ is a pathetic goal. You need to understand what you’re aiming for 3 – Benchmarks are bunkThey only help the fund management industry What you need to do 1 – Ask Why?Why has the performance been what it was? Systemic issues or fund problems? 2 – Look at the balance of the portfolioRebalance where necessary. 3 – Review the costs.Layers of cost: Platform, plan, fund and advice. Are you getting value? Don’t forget tax – it’s a direct cost 4 – Keep calm and carry onThose who react too quickly, lose. Instead, try to keep everything in perspective Summary The four action steps above are exactly what I do when reviewing portfolios with clients. Sometimes, depending on the client, I’ll do this work beforehand, make notes for my file, and then the conversation with the client will be very cursory indeed. Others do want to know the detail behind the performance figures. But I will always be at pains to reaffirm my belief that if a portfolio is intelligently set up in the first place, with passive funds underneath a multi-asset allocation, it should need precious little adjustment over time, other than rebalancing. People first, money second, always

Here we are at session number 95, and we’re going to be covering some basic financial advice for the self-employed. According to latest figures from the Office of National Statistics, there are 4.6 million self-employed workers in the UK, or 15% of the total working population and that’s the highest proportion there has ever been. But what are the financial implications of being self-employed? Stay tuned…

This week, we’re going to be talking about planning across generations. Most people who have children and grandchildren want to be able to leave them something when they die. Many people are often wary of Inheritance Tax, which thanks to rising house prices now catches more people than ever. How can you effectively pass money down to those you love in an efficient a manner as possible? Stay tuned for more on this…