Mar 2025
Objective
Kirsten and Alice want to maximise their money.
It’s important they can continue their lifestyle: enjoying restaurant meals, buying sustainable clothing, going away for the odd weekend and a big trip every two years to make memories.
In the longer term, they want to reduce their working hours. 45+ hour weeks are common and they both worry about burnout and the implications to their lifestyle.
Kirsten and Alice had invested in multiple stocks and shares ISA platforms with no clear direction.
Recommendations
To start building wealth and give Kirsten and Alice more options in future, we recommended the following steps:
Take workplace pensions seriously
Kirsten and Anna’s pensions both receive over £1,000 each month and are valued at over £100,000, yet they remain in the default investment strategy.
We recommended an increase to contributions (saving £5,640 in tax each year), plus a change to the investment strategy to increase the allocation to growth assets. This could increase investment returns by 1% a year.
Organise stocks and shares ISAs
Having multiple stocks and shares ISAs does not necessarily improve investment diversification. This is achieved by the investments you select within the ISA.
We combined stocks and shares ISAs to ease administration and reduce costs, and set up regular monthly contributions to maximise tax efficient ISA allowances.
Income protection for Alice
Alice receives no sick pay through her employer. We agreed to implement a protection policy that pays out a monthly income if she was unable to work through ill health or injury.
This covers any illness that would make Alice unable to do her current job working in the film industry as a producer.
A plan to reduce work hours
It’s easy to get caught up in work and avoid difficult conversations.
By creating a plan showing when reduced earnings is affordable and checking in regularly, Kirsten and Alice have promised to actively encourage each other to slow down when they can afford to.
Summary
Kirsten and Alice were making scattergun financial decisions and no clear thought and planned outcome.
MUVADO’s 100 day plan put them on track by implementing the basics of a solid financial plan and as MUVADO members they’ll stay on track with regular progress updates.
To create a plan to get your finances on track, book a call to get started.
Risk warnings
Please note, a pension is a long-term investment not normally accessible until 55 (57 from April 2028). Lower salary may impact the amount you can borrow, such as mortgages. Past performance is not an indicator for future performance.
Investments carry risks. the value of your investment (and any income from them) can go down as well as up and you may not get back the full amount you invested.
Tax planning is not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
Your home maybe repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on you mortgage.