Please tell me I am not the only oldish person without a pension plan

[QuentinLettsisAbitofAtool]

Not a TAAT well it is a bit but sod it

I'm having a bit of a panic attack brought on by the MN survey about pensions. I don't have one, have a big mortgage, not due any parental inheritances and am in my 50s.

Please tell me I'm not alone as that might make me feel less dumb!

Oh and I put "oldish" in the thread title because I mean old in terms of a pension. Twenty somethings who don't have a pension don't fit my criteria!

Eh? If they can't afford to buy they have no choice but to rent.

What if they are one of the million who actually don't wish to buy? Students, people working away on fixed term contracts, people working and saving up to go travelling, and many others.

Where are these people going to live, if no one can buy to let?

Put your political dogma aside and actually think it through.

There's nothing immoral about being a responsible landlord. Providing clean, functional, safe accommodation at a fair market rate, providing a valuable service whilst making a reasonable profit on your investment.

Talkinpeece. No not in south east. Jobs here too. Lots of us work. Life does exist outside of the south east.

Yes but a "fair market rate" in a lot of areas = extortionately expensive.
The more houses that are bought, the higher prices go. Supply and demand. In countries where renting is common, rents are half what they are here. So yes, buy to let landlords do add to the housing crisis. They do add to people being priced out of the market. Please don't try and say they are doing some sort of public service! That's just an insult. It's financial greed pure and simple.

At least my 'hackneyed cod philosophy' (whatever that might be!) hasn't left me wondering how I will provide for myself in my old age!

Maybe not but you do sound like a bit of a twat to be honest.

Having a little panic myself after reading this, so have just upped AVC with work pension. I am going to increase it every year if I can.
I've got a total of 24 years company pension with my last job and this job. (I imagine it will be a pittance, no way of knowing until I retire)
Have full NI of 33 yrs so will get the full £164 state pension p.w.
I won't have a mortgage by then so hopefully be ok.

I looked at mine the other day. It's pitiful. Dh's is huge.

Turns out your DH is your pension plan the Oblomov as is probably the case for most who have taken on lower earning role due to family responsibilities. These types of threads always confuse me a bit because people don't recognise this reality. It can of course mean that a DC pension from a spouse may be better than a DB one as if you survive your spouse with a DB one you are reliant on survivor benefits whereas with a DC one you get to keep the whole pot.

OP
Reverting to name calling says more about you than anything. I'll leave you to the panic attack you referred to in your original post.

I hope that others - like me - have found some helpful advice from those who've shared their knowledge on this thread - it's proved to me that you can never stop learning!

@ajandjjmum - not panicking any more. With a few exceptions (people like you) this thread has been great. I'll be fine, now off you go.

Bump bump.

Anyone want to add “nicish places in the uk where downsizing oldies can go to when they are retired which aren’t silly money”?

Largs.
Places in Scotland.

Yep. Didn't pay into one in my 20s...just didn't occur to me! In my 30s, I started paying into one, but then abruptly became a very poor, single parent. Not enough money at all for a pension! I'm in my mid forties and have been paying into one for the past 3 years, but I'm on a very low wage, so it wont be much.

My DP has quite a good one, and considers it 'our' pension...but things can change, as I well know.

To be honest though, I'm more worried about things like how my DC (a teenager) will afford a home and whether they can afford to go to university if they want to :-/

OOI, what happens with PIP when you hit retirement age? At the moment it's my only income, but I may have to start claiming UC so I get half a chance of of the stamps I've missed through lack of money. How's that for irony?

Yes but a "fair market rate" in a lot of areas = extortionately expensive.
The more houses that are bought, the higher prices go. Supply and demand. In countries where renting is common, rents are half what they are here. So yes, buy to let landlords do add to the housing crisis. They do add to people being priced out of the market. Please don't try and say they are doing some sort of public service! That's just an insult. It's financial greed pure and simple.

Here we go, it's the people's socialist republic on Mumsnet again. Stock up on the piano wire, the revolution is coming. Where terrible landlords renting out rat infested hell holes with dodgy boilers and mould on the walls are hanged from the lampposts along side the decent ones who provide nice living accommodation and have the sheer bare faced cheek to also turn a profit on their investment.

Communist crackpots, who won't be happy until the economy is ruined and everyone is equally poor!

Communist crackpots, who won't be happy until the economy is ruined and everyone is equally poor

Yes because our economy’s great right now isn’t it

Yes because our economy’s great right now isn’t it

Compare to Venezuela, and a whole host of other failed socialist experiments.......it's bloody brilliant.

I have a pension. I think I have about £400 in it now.

I am 37 and don't think it is going to go far.

I don't really understand them to be honest. I have one because my work automatically signed me up to one. I don't own a house and can't see a time where I ever will.

My ex husband had a fantastic NHS pension. Sadly he died and his pension will pay my child maintenance until the children turn 21. If I return to work in the NHS when I finish my course, then I guess I will get a good pension too.

Clueless/

The fact remains that if a buy to let is your retirement income, you are not supporting yourself, you are living off someone else’s money. And you are not making a positive contribution to society by letting out an overpriced shoe box. Fine if that is someone’s choice to do that but don’t try and paint it as a noble act.

Storm whats your beef about Landlords??

I don’t have a personal beef against landlords, lol.
But the thing is people are saying it’s “wrong” if a retired person has to rely on housing benefit. But it’s ok to live off a buy to let income. But either way you are taking money from others. It’s precisely because rents are so high that the younger generation are struggling to save to buy a home (that and inflated house prices) Yet people are happy to fling blame at the older generation for needing benefits which are unsustainable, again impacting on the younger generation. You only need to look at numerous European countries where renting is the norm to see what a mess this country is in. My mum is from one of those countries where rent is low/affordable, so people are able to save well for retirement. My grandparents were well off and rented all their lives. They ended their lives in a brilliant nursing home, paid for by money they had saved throughout their lives (partially through having an affordable rent). It works well. Our system does not.

I have a pension. I think I have about £400 in it now. I am 37 and don't think it is going to go far.

£400 in total? That’ll give you about £1.50 per month!

I don't understand why some sort of money investments are immoral ? People can choose to invest for their future in many ways like; old cars, antiques, shares, BTL, holiday homes, art, peer to peer lending, premium bonds etc. I've heard that it's good to have a spread of investments, not put all your eggs into one basket, if you are fortunate to have money to invest. Some investments you need to pay tax, some you don't. People that sell stuff at car boot sales or eBay are they immoral ? People who work more than one job and save the second income are they ? People who live in their house and rent out a room ? ?

Placemarking for reading this thread through my fingers...

Storm
Btl is offering a service.

I am interested to know who owns all the properties that are rented in the countries where renting is predominantly the norm.

Maybe if the government worked with BTL instead of treating it as something that needs to be priced out of existence the rents could come down.

Things like not allowing mortgage interest to be put against tax just hiked rents further.

Either landlords sold up so fewer rental properties so rent increases or

Landlords kept the properties and passed on the extra tax bill on to the tenant.

In your 20s pensions and planning for retirement are boring and seem a long way in the future. At 20, 30 there are other things to save for. It is a different feeling when you are 50+. People are living longer and not always healthier. If you have savings or pension or investments it gives you more choice when you are older.

Also comparing the UK house price inflation to other countries isn't really comparing like with like.

I think we have around 600 people per square mile compared with something like 100 in France and around 200 in Germany..

It is supply and demand .

I would love to know what people are supposed to do if there were no btl landlords.

We will be going into rental short term between houses.

What would we do. Put our name down for a council property?