Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Other subjects
Original poster

Does you DH pay your pension? A question for SAHMs-particularly-those-who-choose-not-to-return-to-work

45 replies

morningpaper · 20/05/2005 08:38

Pension provision is perhaps my most worrying concern during this time I am out of the paid workforce. I am interested how other SAHMs have dealt with this issue.

Does your DH pay your pension? (or more appropriately, do you both pay into a pension for your from your DH/DP's salary?)

(Personally we are paying a minimum amount into a Stakeholder pension for me. I am aware that this is grossly inadequate and I would frankly be completely shafted if DP and I split up and I was unable to secure a share of his pension. However, because he is in the NHS pension scheme (which, along with the MoDs, if, I believe, one of the best in the country) it makes more sense to pay into HIS pension rather than my stakeholder pension.

I am not naive about my prospects were we to split up, however. In the event that he finds his secretary to be a better, newer wife, or I run off with the ParcelForce Man (he v. nice) then I know we are unlikely to agree amicably over my share of his pension, and I would be facing retirement in relative poverty.)

OP posts:
jessicasmummy · 20/05/2005 08:41

stupidly i feel too young to think about pensions.... dh is in the army so gets a decent army pension anyway - i ahve nothing. im only 22 and feel ill have time once kids are at school to get back to work and start contributing more. Not much use am i!

Forgetmenot · 20/05/2005 08:53

When i met my new Dh I had my own house which I'd bought after splitting from my first husband.

For my security I kept my house and I rent it out. So that hopefully will be my pension.

My financial advisor told me property was the best bet for a 'pension'.

TrophyWife · 20/05/2005 08:57

im the same as Jessicasmummy, i feel to young (25) to start worrying about that now, and think i'll have plenty off time once ds starts school, and i get a real job. also being as my dh is 16 years older then me his pensions is slighty more important at the moment. IYKWIM

horseshoe · 20/05/2005 09:00

Hi,

I work and have a company pension that provides quite well for me but we were faced with this question when working out DP's pension as his company do not provide one.

We have set up a stakeholder plan like yourself but like you say it is inadequate for our needs. We have also invested in an ISA to provide for our retirement. If we split up in the meantime it will be divided 50/50

If you can afford property investments then that would be good. However, I dont want to suffer now for the future IYSWIM and so would not have the finance to cope with that.

The only thing my Financial advisor said was concentrate on paying mortgage off asap and then use the extra funds for retirement.

horseshoe · 20/05/2005 09:01

the government also have a pensioncalculator website to help you decide how much you will need to pay........ Its worth looking at but I dont have the link....sorry.

emily05 · 20/05/2005 09:08

MP - could you increase the amount that you pay into your stakeholders pension? If you are worried abou this that is what I would do.

The way we work it is that I do our finances and even though DH earns the money so to speak in our household it is our money. (it was the same way when I worked and earned more than dh). On pay day a certain amount goes into essentials, then ds savings and my stakeholder pension. I have a frozen pension from when I worked as well. Dh has a company pension.

Forgetmenot · 20/05/2005 09:08

Horseshoe,

I was extremely lucky that I bought my property in the North West three years ago for £43,000 and it's now worth about £110,000. So I only have a very small mortgage.

Property around Blackburn is still available for under £50,000 and we have thought about buying another property.
My agent up there told me that a few Londoners have done just that.

horseshoe · 20/05/2005 09:49

Thanks Forgetmenot. I think I might look into that.

nutcracker · 20/05/2005 10:04

This is something that does worry me from time to time and last year I had a letter telling me that there will be a shortfall of £800 in my pension.

Dp had a compnay pension scheme at his old job but hasn't paid into one since leaving that company several years ago.

Actually can anyone tell me if it's right that dp will be able to release the funds from the compnay pension when he is 50, because that is what he is planning to do and I don't want him to.

beatie · 20/05/2005 11:01

I'm a SAHM but not planning to be a life-long SAHM. We pay a small amount into a Stakeholder pension for me.

dinosaur · 20/05/2005 11:07

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn by MNHQ at the poster's request.

tarantula · 20/05/2005 11:11

lol dinosaur Im with you on this. Mind you dp has never paid into a pension so damned if Im gonna do it for him now

TwinSetAndPearls · 20/05/2005 11:15

I have my teacher's pension, which is frozen, so I will continue to pay into that when I return to work and just bump up my payments to make up the difference.

I have my house so I will probably just say sod dd inheritance, sell it and live of the money!

Flum · 20/05/2005 11:16

I don't have a pension. I also have my head in the sand. Please stop talking about it you are scaring me. DP's parents are quite rich though perhaps that will help.

I hope I die before I need a pension then it won't matter and it will have been worth the risk

Original poster
morningpaper · 20/05/2005 11:20

Ah Flum that's the spirit!

OP posts:
Mud · 20/05/2005 11:21

I have small pension savings from when I worked

wondered whether to keep saving into pension when I stopped working but DH's pension is a final salary scheme and gives me a third of his final salary if he dies before me for life (as the mortgage would be paid off then) I decided the one pension fund would suit us both

Mud · 20/05/2005 11:22

Do modern pensions not include a spousal allowance nowadays then??

Flum · 20/05/2005 11:23

Also I intend to have many children in the hope that at least one of them will take pity on my in my old age and care for me (or shoot me).

DP promises we will be Squillionaires in the next 10 years though!!

merglemergle · 20/05/2005 11:28

Flum.

I find this so scary.

I can't see me returning to work before I am in my mid-30s (I'm 27). Even then, probably part time, and almost certainly for a charity/local govt (ie rubbish pension).

My job that I am on ML from involves helping people claim benefits etc. I see what it is like living on the state pension with no extra coming in and it is scary. Pensioners in this situation do routinely skip meals, go cold, etc. Its just terrible and set to get much worse with our aging population. I can't imagine we'll have proper state pensions in 40-50 years.

I need to put my head back in the sand now.

Original poster
morningpaper · 20/05/2005 11:30

Mud: normally I think that if you are married, you have some pension rights (if you have a good lawyer ) but I've not heard of 'spousal allowance'.

OP posts:
horseshoe · 20/05/2005 11:35

Mud,

Mine has the same allowance for spouces if I die.

I think if your a SAHM, then you are going to need to look at the bigger picture. IE....Do you have a council house? In which case when your on your pension, it's likely that you will get a benefit dependant on your income. If you dont get a good pension, council tax and rent will be reduced.
If you have a mortgage you need to consider if it is likely this will be paid off in time. If not concentrate on upping payments on your mortgage as opposed to trying to save. If your debt free by the time you retire, a state pension should afford your shopping bills etc.

horseshoe · 20/05/2005 11:39

Heres that link

\link{http://www.pensioncalculator.org.uk/}

Original poster
morningpaper · 20/05/2005 11:41

Thre is usually a spousal allowance IF YOU DIE, but TBH most of us would be better off if our partners were dead than if we divorced.

Good advice Horseshoe.

OP posts:
trix · 20/05/2005 11:50

Weve gone down the property line too. Neither of us have a pension at all.

Mud · 20/05/2005 14:30

horseshoe - no we own our house, if DH dies 'in service' we get life insurance to pay off outstanding mortgage plus death in service benefit plus widow's pension for life - I'll be rich I tell ya, rich

now where did I put the arsenic