Informed Decisions Independent Financial Planning & Money Podcast

It's Showtime! If you swim too close to a shark it'll bite ya! If you have decent savings, investments and pensions you could be in danger of getting bitten too! We're here to help you understand if you are in danger of getting bitten, it's up to you as to whether to stay in that water or not! We are realists here at Informed Decisions and so no matter what you get done; a tap fixed, a wall painted, a tooth pulled, a will administered, a house bought or indeed an investment invested you will pay a price for those services! This episode it aimed squarely at ensuring you know the impact of any fees you are paying on your financial products, wealth management or indeed retail investment products here in Ireland. We'll also share some insights on what you might be able to do to help yourself avoid a nibbling......because ultimately controlling your costs is a smart thing to do! Firstly, and as always, we are chuffed that you have checked out our website & podcast, and we ask for your help to spread the word, share the article with the little icons at the bottom, check out the podcast, and in general just be a huge fan of our little site! Be delighted if you checked out our why. Click here to access the full show notes version. Thanks for listening & sharing! Paddy Delaney. QFA | RPA | APA | Qualified Coach

Thanks for tuning in to this weeks' Episode, our 52nd, and Informed Decisions' 1 year anniversary!! We bring you something pretty special, interviewing one of Ireland's brightest talents in regards Investment Management, Will Sparks. Will tells it like it is, so it was a pleasure to have him on the show, and in addition to that he knows how to manage investments....who better to help identify some insights for our listeners! By all means please do visit our small website, and check out all our podcasts and blogs, and if you like what you see we'd be delighted to have you join our mailing group! Thanks all. Paddy Delaney Creator & Dogsbody @ Informed Decisions! QFA | RPA | APA | Qualified Coach

Hey! In a recent blog we took a look at the big 6 risks which exist when it comes to managing ourselves and our money. We had everything from ostrich risk (sticking our head in the sand!) to longevity risk (living too long!). This time around we are going to focus on practical tools we can apply to our money and savings, in order to ultimately have a more pleasant investment journey, the growth we expect, and the appropriate outcomes......please keep reading! As we try do things slightly differently here at Informed Decisions we are going to attempt to explain all this using the metaphor of a plane journey to New York.....chocks away! Before we fly off into the blue yonder, if you enjoy this blog, all we ask in return is to help us spread the word, share the article with the little icons at the bottom, check out the podcast, and in general just be a huge fan of our little site! We are on a mission to make Investing and Financial Planning here in Ireland a doddle! Be delighted if you checked out our why. What is Investment Risk? Some say (indeed the 'Economic Times') that it is the probability or likelihood of occurrence of losses relative to the expected return on any particular investment. In plain english therefore we can take it as the risk of your investments not doing what you expected or indeed hoped. Comparing it to a flight it's like (I would use the work akin but it sounds horrid pretentious no!?) getting on a flight from Dublin heading for New York to do a huge shopping spree but ending up in Mexico! You expect one thing but get another, and you may not be that happy about it!

Hey all, in this 50th episode of the Informed Decisions Financial Planning Podcast we will aim to share insights on the very best mortgage that you can get here in Ireland; whether you are aiming for your first mortgage or have a collection of them we hope to share ideas which will save you a small fortune over your life-time. We also have a short guest appearance from Seamus & Conn (future Informed Decisioners!!).... All we ask in return is to help us spread the word, share the article with the little icons at the bottom, check out the podcast, and in general just be a huge fan of our little site! Be delighted if you checked out our why. We shared insights a number of months ago in what still remains one of our most popular blogs in the area of over-paying one's mortgage and the impact that has on the number of years you will be lumbered with it and also the lump of interest you would have paid. Speaking of which, if I was to offer you €38,000 of a saving over the next 20 years, and all you had to do to earn it was about 8 hours of work, and an initial outlay of €1,000 to €1,500 for solicitor fees......what would you do? Many of us might fall into the most irrational behavioural finance phenomenon and not be able to see past the cost of €1,500, but on the face of it there surely is no doubt that we know it makes financial sense, right?? Take a listen to find out what we are talking about this week! Thanks a mill. Paddy Delaney QFA | RPA | APA | Qualified Coach

We are joined by Professional Coach Niall English, to uncover exactly what coaching is, how it can be of benefit to us in achieving the things we want to achieve. We also take a look at how it might be useful if you find yourself in need of making some changes to your finances. Here at the home of unbiased financial planning in Ireland we like to bring some fresh ideas.....this is our latest! Plus, Niall shares some practical tools we can all use in order to make some real improvements in regards to our finances. Hopefully you enjoy! If you do then please share, join our community and spread the word! Thanks a mill. Paddy Delaney QFA | RPA | APA | Qualified Coach

Hey, welcome to the latest Episode......This week we follow-up on our promise to share with you guys how ETFs are taxed here in Ireland. Like a lot of stuff these days there is a lot of info floating around about this topic, and if any of you have gone looking to get definitive answers it can prove quite tricky. We aim to bring several years of research to you in this episode, to answer most of the common questions that arise (and accept that we will naturally miss some of the less common stuff - who doesn't!). Now this may help some of you, and it may not help, but understanding how you are taxed on your investment, pensions, savings or nest egg in Ireland is fairly vital in making informed money decisions...speaking of which please do pop over here to find out why we exist, what our purpose is and why we are Ireland's first Financial Planning & Wealth Management Blog & Podcast. Also, if you have any questions or comments we'd love to hear from you, just drop a message to us here. In Blog 39 we took a fairly deep look at ETFs, how they work, how to buy them and what to look out for. We also raised a rather large flag to warn potential investors of the way in which 'the revenue' here in Ireland tax any income or gains you make on profits from these investment types. We are gonna address that now. We are not encouraging people to invest based on the tax treatment of something, that's never an informed decision, but we do believe it an important factor. First lets summarise the benefits & limitations of ETFs for Irish Investors: Perceived Benefits (see blog 39): Offers a transparent means to invest in a broad range of companies with 1 'share' Potentially lower fees in comparison to shares and other retail investments Typically 'sellable' on the day you want to sell and get your cash back (liquid) Access to invest in large geographical areas (e.g US/Europe/Asia/Global) Easy means of diversifying your investment within shares/stocks Perceived Limitations (see blog 39) Typically only investing in equities and not other asset classes Generally no volatility control in place - if it falls it falls - if it rises it rises Confusion over how they are taxed here in Ireland No physical proof of ownership - no share cert - all electronic/online Some ETFs are 'synthetic' - opening them up partially to potential default (counter-party risk) Lack of understanding of what they are and how easy they can be to own Other Investments: We have covered it before but if you were to buy shares directly in a company, such as Bank of Ireland or any other stock listed on the Irish Stock Exchange (ISEQ) then it is all fairly straightforward: Buy the shares through share dealer/broker (e.g Davy/GoodBody/IG etc etc) Pay Stamp Duty (1%) & all other expenses of dealer (dealer collects these) Get Share Certificate - you now own the shares Pay Annual Mgt Charge (typically 1-3% per annum) & 'other fees' If you get dividends you declare this and pay your margin rate of tax on that income When the time comes you sell the shares & pay your Capital Gains Tax of 33% on any growth you achieved (above €1,270 per annum) Bit Messy! If you were instead to go and invest your money into a retail investment product, which a lot of the banks/brokers/agents sell, you are buying what is officially an 'Irish Insured Investment Fund'. These products offer you the option to easily invest into a variety of assets, depending on the fund it could be equities/ property/ commodities/ cash/ bonds or a combination of these. In this instance: Invest the money with advisor/broker/agent Pay 1% (Government Levy) upfront on the way in (same as with shares) Pay an annual management charge (typically 1.2%-2%) Do not receive dividends (if apply will usually be absorbed by fund manager) When you cash your policy in (sell) the growth is subject to a tax called 'Exit Tax' at 41% which is collected by the insurance company, you have no other returns to make It's simple! How about combining the very best of both of these investments; it might look a little like this: Invest the money Pay zero upfront Tax/Levy Get paid Dividends and pay marginal rate of tax on them Pay a one transparent & low annual management fee When you sell your units you pay the lower tax rate of 33% Capital gains Tax The great news is that this can sometimes be achieved with ETFs....check out full details on Blog 42

When It Comes To Pension Planning We Will Get Our Just Deserts: Deserts is apparently the plural of 'desert' which is 'that which one deserves'....honestly I always assumed it was to do with the jelly & ice-cream type of desserts.....but had never given it much thought in fairness! The same is most certainly true of Pensions. It would be hard to put it any more simply than I am about to now; You will only get a lot out if you put a lot in. If you are haphazard about your approach to funding for retirement then it is quite likely that the benefits you get from yours may be haphazard too. Coming at you 'live' (and sideways) from Kenmare! Blame Your Advisor: It may seem a bit pomp of us but your advisor (assuming you have one!) is absolutely at the coal-face of ensuring you know exactly where your level of income in retirement is headed. As we like to harp on about here 'begin with the end in mind' , otherwise what's the point in beginning! If you find out upon retiring that your income is a million miles (or euros!) off what you were expecting, then much of that blame falls on your advisor. Now, if your advisor had been trying and trying to get through to you that you need to x,y & z in preparation for retirement yet you were only willing to do a,b & c then it's on you unfortunately! So I Have A Pension, What Could Possibly Go Wrong!? Imagine for a second that you are all of a sudden telegraphed onto a perfectly good aircraft. You are sitting beside an open door of the aircraft at 12,000 feet with a parachute strapped to your back. Yer man is shouting at you to jump out the door and to pull the parachute chord in 15 seconds. What is your first thought right now......................? While I have yet to test it in clinical studies I guess a lot of us think about that life-saving piece of equipment strapped to our back......will it open, will it work right, was it packed right, how fast will I descend......a whole host of concerns might enter our minds..... Learn more about trivial pensions, and how to avoid some key mistakes when it comes to pension planning & financial planning in Ireland. Thanks for checking it out. Paddy Delaney QFA | RPA | APA | Qualified Coach

The noun Faff has been defined by the Oxford Dictionary as 'A great deal of ineffectual activity'.......most financial plans are absolute faff! So there, I said it! I said it, and the fact of the matter is that it is pretty true. Any plan worth it's salt with regards to pretty much anything will be mostly faff, in hindsight. Bear with me and we'll explain! (You can read the full blog here) We really want to thank Carl Richards for writing the book 'Behavior Gap' which I have re-read (again!) recently. This book looks at how to help people stop doing silly things with their money. It also inspired my thinking for this episode, about Financial Plans, and how seldom they see the light of day! in this episode you will get an insight into: How Do I Create A Financial Plan? What is A Financial Plan? Why Do I Need A Financial Plan? Why DO Financial Plans Go Off Course? Among others! Thanks for listening... Paddy Delaney QFA | RPA | APA | Qualified Coach

Hey, and welcome to another episode of Informed Decisions Financial Planning podcast here in Ireland. If you have ever asked yourself: What are ETFs?...... How Do I invest in ETFs?....... How Do ETFs actually work?..... Are ETFs Risky?..................Then this episode will hopefully give you some useful information. This time around we are taking a look under the bonnet of Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) in Ireland and determining how they may or may not be something you want to get behind the wheel of as part of your portfolio. ETFs are well documented at this stage, having grown in popularity for investors over recent years. They now estimate that ETFs account for 25% of all stock market transactions (in the US anyway - Ireland is a little behind those guys!). Whether you do or don't know about them there is no doubt they are popular and more and more of us regular folk are asking about them here in Ireland! Thanks for listening. Full written version here. Paddy Delaney QFA | RPA | APA | Qualified Coach

If you are a new visitor, welcome! Please do pop over here to find out why we exist, what our purpose is and why we are Ireland's first Financial Planning & Money Podcast. Also, if you have any questions or comments we'd love to hear from you, just drop a message to us here. Apparently Noah's Ark was made of 'cypress wood' and was in the region of 500 feet long. It was said to have been quite a boat, large enough to hold 125,000 sheep if those were his orders! Anyone familiar with the story will know however that he was instructed to bring on only 1 mated pair of every animal that walked along the ground, and his own family. Poor Noah was given only 7 days in which to build this behemoth, and to ultimately save the animal kingdom, before the great flood arrived, no pressure! If we were to relate this to our own financial lives it's fair to say that, unless you yourself are on the cusp of retiring, you have more than 7 days to build your own ark and save yourself from the flood when you stop working!! Let's discover a little more about Approved Retirement Funds (ARFs), and how they might be your ark when your own great retirement flood comes! There is no doubt it can be a really useful tool in your retirement and pension planning here in Ireland. Indeed anyone I have met with Pensions here in Meath has been a big fan of the ARF! If you are a new visitor, welcome! Please do pop over here to find out why we exist, what our purpose is and why we are Ireland's first Financial Planning & Money Podcast. Also, if you have any questions or comments we'd love to hear from you, just drop a message to us here. What is an ARF (Approved Retirement Fund)? Other than sounding similar to an ARK, it too can be a real saviour when you do stop working and your income from employer/business stops! Ultimately an Approved Retirement Fund is a vehicle in which you can park some or all of your pension fund into when you decide to retire. How Do I Get Into An ARF? We outlined in blog 15 & blog 16 exactly how you can get access to an Approved Retirement Fund when you decide to retire. Broadly speaking if you are in a pension which you have set up and contribute to yourself (Personal Pension or PRSA) or are part of a pension through your employer (Occupational Pension Scheme) then you typically will have access to a glorious and lifesaving ARF. Check out blog 15 & 16 for the low-down! How Much Do I Need To Get Into An ARF? Providing you meet the basic income requirement as outlined in Blog 15&16 you can invest funds in an ARF. Imagine you are 35 years of age, with no pension put in place up to this point, you have always felt that pensions were for old people, they are a crock, the charges are outrageous or that you will never retire! Whatever the reason you haven't done one previously. Having listened to the Informed Decisions Financial Planning Podcast you decide that the time is nigh, you don't want to be left out in the flood! For illustration if you were to manage to invest €400 per month into a pension plan for yourself. We will assume you increase this by 3% per year in line with headline inflation rate. So in year 1 you pay €400 per month, in year 2 you will pay €412 per month and so on and so forth! If you were to achieve a net return of 7% per year average growth (you will need to find a pension with low charges and go heavy on equities- staying invested when things get rocky- which they will- see here!). If you were to do that, and to achieve that long term plan, you would have €796,681.27 of a fund when you get to 68! The bones of €800k! Under current rules you could take €200,000 of that tax free for yourself and go nuts! You would have an option to put essentially the remaining 600k into an ARF and access it as you need it. How bad!? You could then take funds from this 600k as you wished! Imagine you took the minimum 4% of this per year, equating to €24,000 per year, which in addition to the State pension would bring your total income to the €36,000 territory. This would mean you pay essentially minuscule tax on your total income....all totally above board and legitimately done.....so if anyone is telling you that pensions are a crock just tell them this! Please check out our full blog here if you would like the show notes! Thanks for listening...You're a Legend! Paddy Delaney QFA | RPA | APA | Qualified Coach