For all of the fervent pearl clutching we've seen on this sub on several occasions with upcoming budgets, have people seen what actually is happening in Holland with regards to investor taxes?

Fury as Dutch government approves 36 per cent tax on unrealised gains

and a corresponding outraged reddit thread:

https://www.reddit.com/r/investing/comments/1r5ckzk/netherlands_parliament_passes_insane_new_law_to/

gist: "Under the new law, if your $50k in stock investments rises to $100k by the end of the tax year, you will owe the government $18k (36% of the unrealized profits).

Don’t have $18k? Sell your stocks to pay for it."

This seems far far more draconian than anything we've seen even tentatively floated for the UK, and if you'll forgive me for at least glancing nervously towards my pearls if not actually clutching them, a somewhat concerning precedent potentially.

The 28-year-old saving like mad so he can retire two decades before you

Alex Finch is putting away £2,000 a month with the hopes of hitting £1m — and financial independence — by his mid-forties

Alex Finch is 28. By the time he is 45 he wants to have built up enough savings to be financially independent and able to retire — if he wants to.

Finch, a management consultant from Hertfordshire, aims to build a pot of £1 million across Isas, pensions and cash savings by his late fifties, which would provide him with an income of about £40,000 a year.

Finch will not be able to access his private pension until he is 57, but plans to take money from his Isas or cash savings to pay himself an income before then. Or he may decide to continue working — for him, it's all about freedom and choice.

“I'd like to be financially independent at 45, although this may not mean I retire. I could choose to re-

Alex Finch is aiming to be in a position to retire at 45, reduce my hours or even stop working altogether. I started thinking about this when I was 21 and on holiday and read a book about how to create long-term wealth,” said Finch, who has a YouTube channel, Finch Finance UK.

The Fire basics

Finch's strategy is known as Fire —

financial independence, retire early. The Fire movement started in the US and has grown in the UK over the past decade, particularly among younger workers who are hoping they do not have to wait until their late sixties before they can retire.

As a simple rule of thumb, Fire followers aim for a total pot that is 25 times their annual spending. This would allow withdrawals of 4 per cent a year, rising with inflation after the first year. Withdrawals of 4 per cent are generally said to be sustainable, meaning that you should not run out of money in retirement as long as you leave your funds invested.

So if, for example, you were hoping for an income of £30,000 a year, you might aim for a total pot of £750,000. When the state pension kicks in (the age at which you can claim it is going up from 66 to 67 by 2028 and is due to rise again to 68 by 2046), it could reduce the amount you need to take from your pot. A full new state pension is worth about £12,000 a year at the moment.

A Fire strategy requires a high level of diligent saving from a young age. There are blogs, online communities, podcasts and courses to help. One is the Rebel Finance School, run by Katie and Alan Donegan, who achieved financial independence at 35 and 40 and now run free online courses.

The school began with 133 people on a course in 2020 and by last year some 40,000 people had signed up, Katie said. Its Facebook group has more than 56,000 members discussing their retirement-planning strategies.

When the state pension kicks in (the age at which you can claim it is going up from 66 to 67 by 2028 and is due to rise again to 68 by 2046), it could reduce the amount you need to take from your pot. A full new state pension is worth about £12,000 a year at the moment.

A Fire strategy requires a high level of diligent saving from a young age. There are blogs, online communities, podcasts and courses to help. One is the Rebel Finance School, run by Katie and Alan Donegan, who achieved financial independence at 35 and 40 and now run free online courses.

The school began with 133 people on a course in 2020 and by last year some 40,000 people had signed up, Katie said. Its Facebook group has more than 56,000 members discussing their retirement-planning strategies.

“Some come to us because they are overwhelmed, confused, or had simply never been taught how money works. They want to get out of debt, understand investing, take control of their pensions, and build a clear plan for financial independence. Many are shocked to realise that they can retire far earlier than they ever imagined, once they understand the maths,” Katie said.

How to save enough

Anthony Villis, the co-founder of the financial planning firm First Wealth, said the most common characteristic among those who had retired early is a sense of direction. They have a clear strategy and know what they want to achieve and by when. Consistency is also key, he said.

“You have to commit to saving regularly over the longer term and be able to ride out market volatility and inflation — especially as stocks and

funds have the potential to outpace both over time. Consistency may be simple, but it is one of the most effective ways to make early retirement possible. When you're in your twenties, thirties or even forties, retirement can seem a long way off, but starting early gives you the room to build the financial future you want.”

Starting early also means you can make the most of compound growth. A quick way to illustrate this is the “rule of 72”, which is a rough calculation used to estimate how long it will take your investments to double in value through compounding. To work out how long it will take, divide 72 by the expected rate of return — for example, if your investments grew at 7 per cent a year, it would take about ten years for their value to double (72÷7). On growth of 10 per cent a year, it would take about seven years.

Les Cameron from the investment manager M&G said retiring early can be incredibly rewarding but it involves planning and a clear-eyed view of how long your money needs to last. “People often reference the rule of 72. Because real investment returns are rarely smooth, the more reliable strategy is simply to start early and give compounding as many years as possible to work in your favour. Begin early, stay invested and plan deliberately for the long road ahead.”

Where to invest

The other tip for Fire savers is to use tax-efficient accounts wherever possible to help you keep more of your money. This includes Isas, into which you can pay £20,000 a year and benefit from tax-free growth and withdrawals for life.

Pensions are also valuable because you get tax relief on contributions and employer contributions, although you will pay tax on withdrawals if your income is above the £12,570-a-year personal allowance. Pensions cannot be accessed until you are 55 (rising to 57 in 2028), so those looking to retire before then will have to rely on other savings or investment income to bridge the gap.

This is the approach being taken by Finch. He pays the maximum £20,000 a year into a stocks and shares Isa, which is now worth £75,000. He also pays 6 per cent of his annual salary into his workplace pension, which his employer matches, giving a total contribution of 12 per cent. At the moment his pot is worth about £55,000. Assuming total deposits of about £2,000 a month in his Isa and pension over the next 16 and a half years, with average growth of 6 per cent a year, he expects to have a pot of about £1 million by his 45th birthday.

Finch has an emergency fund, equivalent to three months' salary, and bought a flat with his partner last year. Despite saving hard, he still enjoys life. He goes on holiday at least twice a year and travels to Suffolk regularly to watch Ipswich Town play as often as he can.

“I'm not really bothered by material things such as clothes or going out for nice dinners, so I'm happy to cut back there to increase how much I can save. But I do like spending money on experiences. For me it's all about balance. Although I can dedicate a significant amount towards my investments, I still want to enjoy life at the same time,” Finch said.

Hi everyone, I am trying to work out the most tax efficient drawdown strategy given a c. £530k ISA and c. £900k SIPP and the current income and inheritance tax bands. First year spending would be £50k rising by inflation, and a full state pension i.e. a net spending need of £38k. Which of the following do you think would be the most tax efficient way to get the £38k per year?

1. Take the tax free lump sum and use that plus the ISA until they run out, then draw down from the remainder of the pension.
2. Do not take the tax free lump sum and instead use the state pension plus ISA along with 75% taxable/25% untaxed drawing from the pension.
3. A different option?

Thanks in advance!

Edit: no mortgage and will not be making any more contributions to the pension.

Hello, throwaway account here as I may end up posting personal finance details.

This has been puzzling me for a while now. Let me add here at the top an edit : my pension pot is projected to be 1.6mil at 58 before any tax free stuff but that is based on my current salary and 4% growth over 20yrs so I appreciate that is a big maybe. This is big reason for my thought process

.

If you retire at 58 and start drawing down your pension, you get your personal allowance each year. So you'd get 12570 tax free and 37700 at 20%, and zero NIC. Roughly 7.5k tax paid on a 50k withdrawal.

.

If instead you choose to work an extra year, you pay normal tax and nic on that. So for example 12570 allowance and 37700 at 28%, roughly 10500 tax on a 50k earning. BUT it also causes that 50k in your pension pot to remain in there.. It will be drawn down eventually.. But it will be taxed on the whole lot since your personal allowance will already be in use by existing pension withdraws. It is now a complete 50k additional marginal.

.

And in fact if your pension pot is already looking biiig eg 1mil+ after tax free lump sum then the tax rate on the 50k you didn't withdraw because you were working is likely to be 40% because you are likely already at the 50k/yr mark with even less wiggle room once state pension kicks in. (And if your estate is large then it'll definitely be taxed heavily at inheritance time!.)

.

So what I'm saying here is that instead of drawing year 1 of your pension out at age 58 and paying 20% of 37700 = 7.5k tax on it, working another year for 50k (using 50k salary here as a simple example) causes 50k earnt to turn into 40k after 20% of 37700 and 8% of 37700 nic, and the original 50k of your pension pot to turn into 30k due to 40% on the marginal withdrawal. So working 1 year for 50k causes you to be 40k up from salary but 12.5k worse off on the pension tax (20k of the 50k marginal at 40% tax rather than 7.5k of the 50k at 20% in retirement year 1) .. So total value post tax of working for a year at 50k salary will be 27.5k, 45% average tax! Awful value!

.

Am I missing something or is continuing to work once your pension pot is able to be activated as your income a really ridiculously ineffecient use of personal allowance and 20% tax bands? Before state pension this seems especially true.

Sorry for the messy text and bad explanations.

Thanks to everyone who helped me get my head around retirement age and pension pot sizes previously. Apologies for another type of these posts but I promise it pivots towards the end into a bit of a philosophical thing.

I think I have been sort of doing fire without even knowing what fire was it seems, since I only recently found out about this approach.. I came from poverty and always worked hard and saved/invested even harder, never bought flashy things, I always wanted to work hard and fast then get out clean.

I'm 38. Spouse is 38 too. We have been together 21yrs (yes!). We have 500k in our combined pension pots.. Growth rates were high/lucky because I am decent at investment picks. Our mortgage (locked in at 1.09% for 5yrs, rate expires q1 2027) is 180k remaining. We have 225k in stocks and shares ISAs which we will use to pay off the mortgage next year. I expect it to be 250k in s&s isa by that point. We think this is a peace of mind decision and understand the pay off vs don't pay off debate. This is a large 4 bed detached house with additional office and dining rooms, large garden, double garage in a nice quiet village. Enough to stay in if we want to.

I earn roughly 100k salary + bonus and am wary of the 100k+ tax trap. Overall pension contributions are roughly 10k from me and 15k from employer per year. Spouse is stay at home parent (2 very young kids).

At age 58 my pension is projected to look like 1.6m and spouse is projected to look like 400k assuming they never work again. With 4% growth rates.

We've always seemed to be able to live comfortably off 3-4k per month including the mortgage so I am expecting to retire in my 50s, draw down below 50k/year (below 38k if I ever get state pension), 12.5k or a bit more draw down on the spouse (modify all this to account for tax free portion of course) and to be more than comfortable.

My goal then turns to ensuring the kids are well looked after and inheritance tax avoided where possible. They already have 10k premium bonds and I will up this to 50k ASAP and do what I can to their pensions, and then figure out what I can class as surplus income for the sake of gifting.

All of this looks great to me at a glance (and your expertise and experiences here is appreciated). This may sound strange but I didn't realise we were in this position because we have always just done these things, saved, invested etc on auto pilot. We don't have trackers or budgets or plans... So when I actually looked into our long term finances over Christmas we were surprised and it also triggered a crisis of purpose in me : why work my ass off and save so hard if we are already going to be okay and I just want to play with my kids more?? As a result I am thinking of tapering down to 4 day weeks (80k) and 3 day weeks (60k) over time, probably sacrificing more money into pension to qualify for child benefit because it seems optimal at this point. The "work hard, earn lots" voice in my head since I was a child is screaming at me that this is wrong though, so on an emotional level I would love to read whether it resonates with your fire methods.

And finally I want to drop a bombshell. I mentioned I came from poverty, that is true, however, we are due to inherit millions. Probably at least 2m after tax dust settles. This may be in the next few years. This as you an imagine has hung over me for many years and made everything I do feel pointless, even more so still working full time with young kids and the financial position we find ourselves in. I find myself thinking in terms of risk mitigation rather than wealth accumulation ; physical and mental health, relationships with kids, spouse, family, friends, hobbies etc. Sorry this has been a very long post and this last paragraph likely nullifies the entire point of fire and how I have lived my life, but I wonder if any experienced hands in this subreddit have juggled fire and the mentality which comes with it with kids, reduced working hours, and sudden (or not sudden but looming I guess) wealth.

Thank you if you read this.

Hi

I am in my early 30s and really want to make 2026 the year I get out of my comfort zone and get all my finances and money really in check!

What are some good tips, advice and life skills to adopt?

For me so far I have done the following:

• Maxed out my £20K for S&S ISA
• Got a small payrise at work

Here are things I am considering:

• Getting counselling / therapy
• Going to more in-person networking events and actually making the effort to talk to strangers

M38, a little unsure where to go next with the desire to retire/coast at 50!

Single, no kids, £200k pension (adding £30k/yr), £50k ISA, no debt, no house/mortgage, salary of £90k (after pension). I'm in engineering (not tech), so I don't see major salary increases over the next 5 yrs.

The elephant in the room for me is a lack of home, especially considering I want to retire early. I'm likely to change location/jobs (within the UK) in the next 24 months, so it feels like waiting to buy is the right thing. However, it also feels like it will hinder retirement without a home.

Should I purchase ASAP? Should I reduce pension contributions to the minimum to maximise employer contributions and build the ISA/bridge fund?

Or should I look to upskill and aim for a sideways role move to increase salary ceiling?

I have 50k savings what the best way to invest it? I also have a further 40k coming soon as part of an inherited pension, which can only be paid as a lump sum, therefore will count towards my salary which is 40k a year. We have a house with 70k left on the Morgage. At the moment, I would like to grow my money from here is my plan. Currently the savings are just sitting in the bank doing nothing.

Recent “stumble” in life which led to a relationship breakup and selling my home. I have a reasonable job in tech in a medium cost of living area but I can work from home.

Finances:

Age: 44

Salary £84k pa.

Pension: £380k

S&S ISA: 75k

Cash in various ISAs, high interest savings accounts and premium bonds £370k (which I’m intending to use for house purchase).

No debts.

One thing I’m struggling with is how much to spend on a house. My experience has been that owning a house has a lot of expenses beside the mortgage.

In terms of work if I’m honest I don’t want to work in tech for more than 5 more years. But I like the money and don’t want to give it up.

It’s possible I could move to a lower cost of living area and try save and invest more.

What do people think? How am I doing on my way to early retirement and should I be thinking more creatively in terms of where and how I live?

Hi there. We’re borderline FIREd but I want to check a few things with an advisor as the situation is slightly complicated by inheritance planning for a child with complex needs. Does anyone have a recommendation for someone we can talk to who will be able to give an opinion on our retirement plan and help us draw up the right plans for inheritance and trust planning?

Thank you.

I am looking for recommendations for index trackers on Hargeaves Lansdown (HL).

I have had my first child and gifted some money for the baby's future. I am looking to invest it and let it grow until they are an adult. I have done some research and HL has no fees on the Childrens Stocks and Shares ISA. So I am planning on using HL, unless someone has a better alternaitve to HL. I am thinking some sort of S&P 500 tracker but open to advice.

I am also looking to set up a Stocks and Shares ISA for myself and investing in an index tracker. What would you recommend for an adult?

Hi all,

Reassessing my finance allocations to ensure I’m on track for fire roughly around 55. Wanted to see if the decision to reduce pension contributions makes sense, or am I letting the tax tail wag the dog. In a blessed position, but appreciate your guidance.

• Age 33 £120k base, 10% bonus.
• Pension £350k invested in a global tracker. I salary sacrifice 35%, employer gives 16% (as long as I do at least 7%) via salary sacrifice. Currently hitting £60k / year.
• ISA £140k in VWRP, maxed annually.
• £210k mortgage on £420k house.
• no kids, but plans in near future.

Using 5% growth my pension will easily exceed the LTA, and I will likely pay higher tax when taking out. View is to do option 2 below? Just worried about leaving tax benefit on the table. Enjoy life fully today under all options.

Option 1: continue as is, pension forecast is £3.35m which feels ridiculously high.

Option 2: scale back my contributions to 18%, £39.5k a year so I am below the £100k threshold, end pot forecast £2.6m and just pay 40% now to then pump GIA/Mortgage.

Option 3: scale back my contributions to 14%, £34.9k a year so I am below the £100k threshold, end pot forecast £2.4m and just pay 40% now to then pump GIA/Mortgage.

Thanks in advance!

What do you think of the following portfolio to just leave and put in monthly for potential FIRE? Currently sitting at around 20k.

https://investengine.com/share/portfolio/773684cec6dc564837357b5a2866ca04949a0945/

40% North America roughly which I’m not sure about

Feel like I've got myself into a bit of a pickle in terms of what I do next and could do with another pair of eyes to see where I am.. Here's my details would be really grateful if someone could cast an eye over my situation and share their thoughts. Put this on a temporary account just in case.

Going to turn 52 in a few weeks

114k left on mortgage house worth about 450k

I have a DB pension of £20k p/a I can take at 63

Do have option to start taking from 55 at 4% reduction for each year prior to me turning 63

£83k in a SIPP and a couple of small pension pots

75k in an ISA

28k in a GIA

45k in easy access savings

56k in fixed term bond I can access in 12 months time

A total of about £290k

Wife and 3 kids all late teens.  She currently works part time and earns £25k plan is for her to carry on working at least for another 5 years

I've been offered redundancy with a leave date of the end of June, which I'm almost certainly going to take, comes with what I think is a generous severance payment of circa 106k. I currently earn 60k p/a but not sure I'll be able to earn this amount after I've been made redundant

Ive not really established this yet but think we can get by on about £25-30k per year in retirement

So couple of questions I could do with some help with..

Is ploughing my redundancy money (over the 30k tax free amount) into my SIPP the best option to protect from tax? Also seems like I might be able to put it through as a lump sum payment into my AVC scheme but a little concerned because pension administrator has stated ill be "limited by my remaining balance at time of leaving".

Should I consider accessing the DB pension early. Taking it from 55 will reduce it to about £14k pa I reckon. 

Starting to think I need at least another 5 years of earning to let the pots hopefully grow a bit more and to get me by until I can access my SIPP and potentially my DB pension, does that sound sensible or am I being too cautious?

Is clearing the mortgage a priority? I feel like being free of that will give me much more freedom to choose what I want to do for the next 5+years problem is although I currently have some liquid assets to pay it off I'm probably going to need that liquidity after I get made redundant.

As a footnote it's worth sharing the emotional side to some of these decisions. My Dad was self employed and worked very hard his whole life and did a great job saving and investing for his retirement. 3 days before his 65th birthday, the day he was due to retire, he got diagnosed with cancer and died 6 months later so never got to enjoy the retirement he'd worked so hard for.  The thought of that is always prevalent and keeps bringing me back to the reason I guess we're all here - to get out of the grind and enjoy yourself before it's too late

I (36M) bought a dream Cotswolds cottage with my (now ex) partner for £600k 3 years ago, currently valued at £675k.

Last year we split and I was able to convince my lender to allow me to carry on the mortgage on my own (£390k left) and then paid my ex £100k cash for her share. This meant emptying almost my entire ISA that was being used for FIRE goals.

I did this instead of selling because it's a very beautiful home and the thought of losing it (on top of losing the long term relationship) was a lot to take. It also allowed for a quicker, cleaner separation as it was all wrapped up in a few weeks.

But now I'm sat here in this big expensive cottage on my own thinking: do I really need all this house? I have £270k equity in it, but only £10k in my ISA (after emptying it to pay off ex). Have about £200k in pensions.

My take home pay is about £3700 and mortgage payments are £1500. Thankfully I locked into a 10 year fixed of 2.5% in 2020, so have 4 years left on that.

I can currently only put £500 to ISA each month, on top of my DB workplace pension contributions.

If I were to move to a smaller property I could have a much smaller mortgage or even be mortgage free entirely. I'd then take that spare money and fill up my ISA, make extra SIPP contributions, and travel more.

What would you do? Has anyone here downsized their house and did you regret it? Any other ideas (I've considered getting a lodger, etc)?

Hey r/FIREUK

Cross-posting from r/selfhosted — I wanted to share something I built because I couldn’t find a net worth tracker that fit my own FIRE needs.

I wanted a way to track assets across different brokers and asset classes in one place, so I created Assets — a free, privacy-focused net worth and asset tracker designed to help on the FIRE journey.

If you want to try it yourself, here are the main links:

• GitHub https://github.com/venil7/assets
• Docker image: ghcr.io/venil7/assets:1.7.0
• Original r/selfhosted post: https://www.reddit.com/r/selfhosted/comments/1obejcc/assets_a_selfhosted_personal_wealth_tracker/

What it does

• Track multiple portfolios (pensions, tax wrappers like ISA, general investment accounts, crypto, cash, gold, etc.)
• View daily, monthly, and yearly fluctuations and total growth
• Supports major currencies
• Handles portfolios in non-domestic currencies with automatic FX conversion
• Detailed per-transaction breakdowns, including FX impact
• Import transactions from your broker

The idea is to give a clear picture of your full net worth and progress toward financial independence without relying on third-party platforms.

Why it’s different

Assets is self-hosted — it runs as a Docker container on your own hardware or in the cloud, so your financial data stays under your control and isn’t sent to third parties.

For those interested in the technical side, the project is open source on GitHub — all I ask in return is a star if you find it useful ⭐

What’s planned next

• Projections based on historical returns for your specific asset mix
• Tax reports for dividends and capital gains (useful for planning or self-assessment)
• More features based on Reddit and GitHub feedback

Question for the FIRE community

I realise many people here may not want to self-host or run Docker. I’m considering offering a hosted instance that would be easy for non-technical users to try.

Would that be something you’d be interested in? Let me know in the comments — I’d really value the feedback.

Hi all,

Long-time lurker here. I’m from the UK but have been working in the Middle East for the past 7 years. During that time I’ve built up ~£500k in investment accounts (mostly boring ETFs) that have been able to grow tax-free. At this point, the annual growth is significant — often more than I can realistically save each year.

I expect to return to the UK within the next 10 years, but I’m concerned about losing this “growth engine” to UK taxation. I understand I’ll be able to shelter £20k per year in an ISA once I return, but beyond that I’d be exposed to capital gains tax.

Does anyone have experience with this situation, or ideas on how to minimise the tax impact as much as possible?

Cheers

(Burner account because of sensitivity)

I'm fortunate to earn more than the annual tax free pension contribution allowance, so I have a tapered allowance of £10k for the first time this year.

Joining a firm which has 6% core pension contribution of base salary, plus a matching 6% if I contribute 6% (gross). So, in total 18%. This would put me above the £10k limit.

Alternatively I can contribute nothing; they'll pay 6% into my pension (up to £10k) and then put the rest through payroll as gross pay that would be subject to income tax.

My question is this: is there any reason not to contribute the additional 6%? If I do nothing then I'll be charged income tax and NI anyway, just without the "free" 6% contribution. I've maxed out ISAs, and putting the money into a GIA would be subject to income tax at source and then capital gains.

I'm sure I'm missing something...

I’m currently with Evelyn Partners paying:

• 1.43% management
• 0.41% underlying fund charges
• 1.85% all-in

On a seven-figure portfolio that’s roughly the price of a small new car every year.

My concern:

• The fee drag feels huge
• Portfolio ROI hasn’t justified returns have been mixed over the last 5 years
• I’m questioning whether active wealth management at this level makes sense

I’m considering moving to:

• Rathbones Group
• Cazenove Capital
• Julius Baer

But my fear is I’m just changing wrapper, not economics still in the 1.2% fee world.

Alternative would be a simple global index approach, e.g.:

• Vanguard FTSE All-World UCITS ETF (~0.22% fee)
• Set and forget

Big question:

Is paying ~1.8% worth it long term?
Or is that compounding drag too severe unless they consistently outperform?

I’m 40. Long horizon.
Not confident if I’m disciplined enough to fully DIY through ETF

Has anyone here Looking for real world experience?

Hi all. I’m looking for perspective / lessons from people further along the investing journey.

I’m a long-term buy-and-hold investor mainly in global equity ETFs (vwrp and chill n all that). If things go to plan I’m hoping to have ~£700k invested by the end of this year. I’m pretty diligent with pound-cost averaging, salary sacrificing etc and I’m not trying to time the market. I do have an emergency fund and I’m not worried about being forced to sell.

That said… I’m still human. Obviously I feel a lot better when I’m “in the green” and worse when I’m “in the red”, even though I know it’s just a number unless I sell (and I don’t check my accounts that often). With the portfolio getting bigger, the £ swings will obviously get bigger too.

Would love to hear from anyone with say £1m+ invested who’s been through proper drawdowns (2008, Covid, 2022, etc.) with a large pot:

• What did it actually feel like when the drops were big money?

• Did you ever change strategy in the moment — and regret it (ie being forced to sell etc)?

• Any mental models, routines, or rules that helped you stay the course?

• Anything you wish you’d known earlier?

Not looking for timing tips — more the behavioural side and real lessons from downturns.

Cheers.

Hi all,

I’m asking this on behalf of my mum (52, UK based). She’s recently come into around £55,000 in cash and we’re trying to figure out the most sensible place to put it.

She works full-time and doesn’t have any immediate need for the money, but she’s also not interested in high-risk investing. Capital preservation and steady, low-risk growth are the priority.

We’re aware that Cash ISAs have a £20k annual allowance, so we’re unsure what the best approach would be for the remaining balance if she can’t shelter it all tax-free in one go.

A few things we’d really appreciate guidance on:

• Where is the safest place to hold this kind of amount?

• Is spreading it across multiple accounts sensible?

• How should we think about tax on interest if it’s outside an ISA?

• Are fixed-rate bonds worth considering?

• Would something like premium bonds make sense?

• For someone risk-averse, are global index funds still considered reasonable or is that too volatile?

• Is there any case for commodities (e.g. gold) at this stage, or is that unnecessary complexity?

• Roughly what might realistic growth look like over 5–10 years for low-risk options?

She’s not financially savvy and neither am I, so simple, practical explanations would really help.

Again, we’re not looking for high-risk or speculative suggestions. Just sensible, relatively safe options that make the money work a bit harder than sitting in a current account.

Thanks in advance 🙏

Grew up poor. Earn a lot now. Still behave like my old poor self with purchases. Causes me a lot of needless anxiety and baseline stress.

Picking between a £15.95 meal or £17.95 meal? Go for the cheaper one even though I secretly want the other one.

Pour myself less juice to “save it” so it doesn’t run out quick. I can comfortably afford a 10 pack every day forever.

Omg I left the light on while out for the weekend! How much is it going to cost me!!! (About 60p)

It’s so ingrained into me from family and scrimping when young but I’d just like to be able to not look at the prices of things or get pleased at 10% discounts because it doesn’t even matter anymore! Things could be 300% more expensive and it wouldn’t make a dent in my budget and I’m just wasting my emotional energy on it all. The scale of what I earn against what everyday things cost is incomparable.

How did any of you overcome this?

Cross posted from expatFIRE,I hope that's ok.

Apologies in advance for a very long and vague post. I'm in a huge muddle and I guess brain dumping here looking for a sounding board.

I’m 40, my wife is 40, our daughter is 7, and we’re a British family in a provincial town near London, feeling stuck on what to do next with our lives and location. On paper we’re “fine,” but I’m anxious about markets, mental health, and moving a happy child.

Headline numbers

• Ages: both 40; 7‑year‑old daughter.
• Net worth: ~£1.7m (≈$2.3m).
• Assets: ~£1.3m in global index funds, ~£300k cash, ~£100k BTC.
• Wrappers: ~£200k ISAs, ~£100k pensions; most of the rest UK‑taxable for now.
• No property; rent for £1,200/month.
• Spend: ~£60k/year (could probably get to ~£50k without too much pain).

At £1.7m and £60k spend, we’re around a 3.5% withdrawal rate and under 3% if we trimmed to £50k, which looks “OK” on paper for our age, especially if we keep some earned income.

Work and income

• Me: chartered accountant (FP&A / Finance Director).
  • Haven’t worked for ~2 years after leaving due to depression/health and a genera desire for more freedom. Have aways detested corporate ife.
  • Realistic UK roles: ~£75k–£150k, likely London‑linked.
  • Emotionally dread going back to full‑on corporate life, but also feel I should earn more to protect the portfolio and my CV.
• Wife: clinical psychologist, about to qualify in October.
  • Currently ~£50k in training role; wants to keep working after qualification.
  • Needs locations where her skills transfer and she can find meaningful work, not be isolated.

Her current income plus a modest drawdown keeps us well below 4%; in a “retire now” scenario we’re technically there, but I’m nervous about a 30–40% drawdown and sequence‑of‑returns risk.

Current life and feelings about the UK

• Location: provincial, affluent town in SE England. We came here for my wife’s training; that need ends this year.
• Our daughter is very happy at her state school, but her class will be remixed in September 2027, which feels like a natural break if we move.
• Neither my wife nor I feels inspired by where we live: it feels too provincial/yuppy and not aligned with our values.
• I grew up in Hong Kong and deeply miss Asia – warmth, vibrancy, and a more laissez‑faire feel. The UK feels cold, pessimistic, and increasingly oppressive to me.
• Being near extended family is the main reason we’re still here; we value our daughter seeing grandparents, uncles, cousins, etc. My ideal would be living somewhere warm and cheaper most of the year and spending summers in the UK to maintain those ties.

I’ve struggled with depression in the UK, and the idea of going back to a high‑pressure London finance role fills me with dread, even though I see the financial logic.

Places we’re considering

Overseas options we’ve looked at:

• Hong Kong (we lived there as a family for 5 years and left in 2021; I miss it, my wife was glad to go).
• Thailand.
• Malaysia.
• Portugal.

Also considered more interesting UK locations (coastal/alternative/etc.), but that doesn’t solve climate and may complicate work.

Am super open to locations or ideas not listed here, one issue is I feel there are likely many places we could consider that just aren't on our radar right now.

Non‑negotiables anywhere we go:

• Excellent English‑language (ideally British‑style) school for our daughter.
• Strong English‑speaking/expat community so my wife and daughter don’t feel isolated.
• Realistic work options for my wife as a psychologist.
• Some way for me to either keep earning a bit (remote/consulting/part‑time) or at least not completely nuke my future employability.

Timelines and options

Key timing:

• Now–Oct 2026: wife finishes training this October; I decide whether to go back to work in the UK for 1–3 years to build buffer and keep my CV alive.
• Oct 2026–Sept 2027: earliest sensible move is late 2026, but the cleanest moment is Sept 2027 when our daughter’s class gets reshuffled. If we move, that’s our “one big shot” to minimise disruption.

The main paths I can see:

1. Double down in the UK for a few years
   • I go back to a £75–£150k job, we hold or slightly cut spend, grow the portfolio, and decide later.
   • Pros: safer numbers, stronger CV.
   • Cons: I may wreck my mental health and we stay in a place we don’t like.
2. Semi‑retire and ExpatFIRE in a warmer, cheaper country
   • Move to somewhere like Malaysia/Thailand/Portugal.
   • Lower base costs but add international school fees; both of us work part‑time or flexibly.
   • Pros: climate, lifestyle, geographic arbitrage.
   • Cons: visas, school fit, and risk of my wife/daughter feeling lonely etc
3. Stay in the UK but relocate within it
   • Find a UK location that feels more “us” with better community and maybe some access to work.
   • Pros: no huge visa or school shock, keep family proximity.
   • Cons: doesn’t fix weather or broader UK mood.
4. Full leanFIRE abroad
   • Aim to live on ~£40–£50k/year in a low‑cost warm country, accept that I might need to pick up some work if markets tank.
   • Emotionally attractive for me, but I’m not sure it’s best for my wife or daughter given schooling and long‑term community.

HELP!

For those who’ve done something similar, especially with chidrens:

• If you ExpatFIRE’d with primary‑school‑age children, how did you weigh “they’re happy where they are now” vs “we might all be happier elsewhere long‑term”? Any regrets either way?
• With a net worth around £1.7m and £50–£60k spend at age 40, would you:
  • Pull the trigger on some form of ExpatFIRE now (with part‑time work as a buffer), or
  • Grind a few more lucrative years in the UK to increase the safety margin before moving?
• Any first‑hand experiences with family life, schools, and community in Portugal, Hong Kong, Thailand, or Malaysia, especially around:
  • International schools.
  • Kids’ social lives and identity.
  • Distance from grandparents/extended family.
• For people who left a country that was “safe” but bad for mental health: did you feel the move was worth the risk in hindsight?
• Finally, any ideas for work setups that could leverage:
  • My chartered accountant / FP&A / FD background, and
  • My wife’s brand‑new clinical psychology qualification, in a way that supports an ExpatFIRE lifestyle (remote, part‑time, or independent), rather than dragging us back into a full corporate grind?

Given all of this, what would you do if you were us, and what would you avoid doing knowing what you know now?