To ask if anyone else DOESN'T have a HUGE pension pot?

[PaprikaPringle]

I can't be the only one on MN who

doesn't already have 100s of 1000s in a pension pot
or a defined benefit pension awaiting me
or a stonking great property portfolio

Am I .....?

And if you have any of the above this isn't the thread for you

HMRC reckoned that in 17/18 the average amount paid into pensions is £2,700 p.a. per person... so a final retirement pot of probably under £100k after average working lifetime.

Given that there's such inequality between people in terms of: (a) their income; (b) the quality of their pension schemes; and (c) generations, e.g. ppl born in say the 50s or 60s tend to have better pensions than people born in the 80s or 90s, it's fair to assume that relatively few people actually have as much as in the average final retirement pot referenced above & that many, especially younger people/people on lower pay/people with bad work pension schemes have literally peanuts set aside.

this all looks plausible.

www.pensionbee.com/press/average-pension-pot

Savings and pension talk on Mumsnet is like discussing poker. Only people who win post so you think you are the only ' loser'.

I'm 50 and could never afford to pay into a pension until a couple of years ago.

If I keep my nose clean and work till mid 60's, I might have a few quid.

Problem is, 67 is still earlier than mortgage pay off date. God knows how we have found ourselves in that little dilema!.

One of two things are going to happen

1. I'll survive retirement until death on inheritance from parents property and assets

2. I'll be like Ken Barlow and stack shopping trolleys until I drop dead in Morrisons car park at the age of 92.

I'll be like Ken Barlow and stack shopping trolleys until I drop dead in Morrisons car park at the age of 92

I can't stop chuckling at that - thank you!

What age are you op? Do you contribute anything at the moment?

Boujee you shouldn’t really hold any more than say around 10k (at a push) in cash. I would recommend 3 x your monthly earnings. Otherwise you are guaranteeing to lose money each year. Inflation is eating away at your capital. You should speak to a financial adviser about investing a portion of your savings in order to make it work harder for you. They will assess your attitude to risk and make sure you are invested in the correct fund to match your risk appetite.

It is never too late to start. Even if your pension covers one of your bills a month, it’s something less to worry about. If you own your own home there is always the chance to downsize and release some capital. Even equity release could be an option for homeowners. If anyone is concerned you should really speak to a financial adviser. I’ll put some projections up in a moment

So if you are 35 and had a pension value of 1000 just now, if you contribute £100 a month the fund projection is showing a value of circa 114k (not guaranteed!) that’s assuming a medium risk fund, no adviser fees and assumes your contributions will remain the same throughout the term of your policy. Sorry this was quite rushed. I am a financial adviser but on maternity leave at the moment. Surprised I actually enjoyed doing those projections 😂

I've just checked my state pension and it says that between 1992 & 1995 (so when I was working PT at uni) I underpaid NI. It also says it's too late for me to top up those years now so what does this mean my state pension?

So you need at least 10 qualifying years to get any state pension. 35 years to get full state pension. So if you work 35 years you’ll get full state pension regardless of those years you underpaid.

Also years out of service having children count as qualifying years

www.telegraph.co.uk/pensions-retirement/financial-planning/state-pension-top-up-pay-741-now-get-extra-5925-retire/

Aged 45 and am planning on working my ass off over the next 10 years (all being good with my health) to get my mortgage paid off and to hopefully put more into my pension as have had to work part time during child rearing years and less went into my work pension then. It’s currently worth around £10,000. I do worry about a future old age spent in poverty and want to minimise this risk as much as possible.

For all those worrying that there will be no state pension when they reach old age, I just can’t see that happening. I think there will always be some kind of state pension as no political party would want to be responsible for allowing old age people to die of starvation or out on the streets from exposure.

There will be a cost to this however. Already the Centre for Social Justice (set up by Iain Duncan Smith) are recommending that the state pension age be put up to age 75 and other agencies are recommending that NI contributions are increased by 5% to stop the UK pension pot running out by 2032. A sure way of forcing working people to pay more towards their state pension.

Some links to read
citywire.co.uk/funds-insider/news/state-pension-fund-running-out-warns-government-actuary/a1082316

www.centreforsocialjustice.org.uk/

I feel so annoyed that the financial burden of parenthood costs mothers so much more than fathers.

My kids are teens now and I'm 49. I've had a ft job for 2 and a half years now and I will have to keep working as long as possible even though all of my colleagues around me will get younger and younger and younger.

At the moment I like working as most people are 10-15 years younger than me (there are very few older, but yes, a few) and as I get older I don't think work will feel as social as it does now. It will be isolating and it might be 'bad' for me in some ways (socially I mean) but I will have to keep going regardless.

I'm a single parent so I really do have to keep working. There's no other income.

What annoys me is that when I get my annual pension statements they never break it down to how much I'll get a month. And also, will that amount increase over the next 20yrs or are they already basing it on me paying the next 20yrs

That's because it is up to you to sort out your pension when you retire. You could receive an annuity from the people you pay your pension to, or another provider, you might take some as a lump sum, depending on how much you take it could be tax free or a mix of tax free and tax paid.

Thanks @Ticky80 that's helpful to know

Mine is terrible. I went from a job which barely paid a pension to a part time job so I have no money to put into a pension.
I'm relying purely on my husband and the inheritance money from my parents which is completely not fair on them! I wouldn't hold them back if they chose to spend it.

Trevorwhatever there's no such thing as a UK pension pot! It's a political decision as to how much the state pension is/when we receive it and how much tax/NI they take to pay for it. There's always plenty for tax breaks for the rich and any old war the USA would like to drag us into. Stop believing the BS

since posting on this and then being worried I did a lot of checking and posting to share as its confusing and hard to work out what you may get and what you need to put in and when

The £60 k in personal pension pot was made up of my contributions of around £15- £20 pcm from 1989 to 2004 totalling £6k which now equates to £60k in pot which if it keeps getting interest best estimate is £140 weekly on retirement
I am going to restart contributions at £ 100 pcm and reach retirement age in 2037 which should increase this

checked my state pension as well I contribute through class 3 NIC which this year are £780 I have an extra year that I can make up through voluntary contributions which if I do is predicted to give me £163 a week in 2037

my suspicion is that the Government will be forced to keep raising pension age
really interesting to get a statement from DWP
DWP phone number is 0800 731 0175

According to the ONS average life expectancy if you reach 65 is 83 for males and 86 for females

Good to hear the pot has grown and you're able to contribute more. You'll get tax relief too so that's an extra 20% going in. My husband decided not to take an annuity but invested the lot and draws down as and when. This means the money is ours and will be part of our estate so the kids can get some if there's any left!

interesting point about an annuity I will cross that bridge when I get there they only seem to pay about 4 % on the total pot