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Whats your private pension fund worth?

BrokenArrows

I started my pension early, but then didn't contribute for about 5 years after moving to the UK which was a big mistake i think, basically threw away free money that my company would have given me.

I'm 31 and my current private pension fund is worth about 35% of my annual salary.

Whats your pension worth as a % of your annual salary and what age are you?

Just trying to get an idea about how far behind the curve i am.

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The Backwards Man

Rory Victorious Sandalwood wrote: »

I paid in for 30+ years, as did my employer. Retired in my early 50s with a six figure lump sum. Currently on a pension of 50k+ per year. Best investment I ever made.

You can't burn ks on a cold winter's night though.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

The Backwards Man wrote: »

You can't burn ks on a cold winter's night though.

No, but my coal and turf supplier accepts them as barter.

ongarboy

I've heard more than one recent retiree who had 6 figure pension funds accumulated now finding that they only receive a paltry 90 or 100 euro a month from it and they're disgusted. Not sure how it all works out but that seems like a raw deal.

Others I know had defined benefit schemes which went bust and their so called gauranteed retirement funds were wiped out.

I have 12 years of a DB scheme accumulated that looks good on paper now but god knows what it will be worth when I retire in the 2040s if it hasn't already been cleaned out. It seems that only public sector employees have truly gold plated non contributory pensions that will not be affected by market influences (compliments of us...the taxpayer).

Galwayguy35

Rory Victorious Sandalwood wrote: »

I paid in for 30+ years, as did my employer. Retired in my early 50s with a six figure lump sum. Currently on a pension of 50k+ per year. Best investment I ever made.

This is how it should be done, retire early and have enough money to enjoy life.

Unfortunately for me it's looking like I will have to work until 68.

I'm paying 100 a month into a pension but only started it when I turned 40.

Sam Kade

CFlat wrote: »

If you started a thread on Boards about 'what are your favourite sweets' someone would say they can't afford sweets because of the USC or some other such drivel. Sad really.

Anyway I'm similar to a few here. Paid a fair bit in during the CT but when everything went up in smoke that all ended. Only really getting back on my feet now and badly need to start contributing again. I think there's about 20K in mine which is very worrying for a middle aged man.

Ill probably also end up working till I'm 70(if I can and I'm allowed).

But can you still afford sweets? :rolleyes:

ThinkProgress

They should call pensions what they actually are: "the waiting for death fund..."

Or better yet, perhaps: "The green mile fund"

I wonder how many people actually retire and have the time of their life?

I don't see any of them around. Maybe they live on sandy beaches far away? :P

I just see a lot of worn out people, who spent their lives being stressed, overworked and unhappy. Now they seem to remain stuck that way... I think the idea of a great retirement is more fantasy than reality for the majority.

Once you uncoil that spring, I think a lot of things start to unravel. In prison they call it being "institutionalized"...

In most professions, in order to play the game well, you must become institutionalized. The system chews you up... and by the time it spits you out, you're a busted flush! An empty vessel. Sounds very harsh, but that's mostly what I see!

But maybe I'm just missing all these happy retirees!

freedominacup

BrokenArrows wrote: »

Totally agree.

My employer matches me to 6%. Almost worst case scenario im making around 100% interest per year, worse case scenario im making 90% interest. Even if the government were to go mad and decide to dip into private pension funds you are still making a **** lot more than depositing that money into a normal savings fund.

And since they money you contribute is before tax every 100 you put into the pension in reality is around 160 (if you are in the 40% bracket).

What are the charges? What rate of return are you getting? I constantly hear figures of up to two years contributions disappearing in fees and charges when people take out pensions first. They're not behind the door about charging after this either.

Imo in order to describe a product as a pension the company supplying it should be in a position to underwrite the capital being invested in the product. Customers should have the option to capitalise any gains once every five years. And finally fees and charges should only be charged on profits which would be defined as a return greater than the rate of inflation in the year the return was made. The pension companies would scream blue murder though I don't see why as they all spend fortunes claiming to be the mutts nuts when it comes to delivering returns to their customers. There should be plenty of profit to levy charges against. The returns on funds that had to provide this level of security would obviously be very low but then again thousands of people in their late sixties and early seventieswho diligently put money into pension funds would have been far better off putting the money under a matress. They were completely wiped out from 2008-2010.

If companies want to offer funds with more dynamic management and higher potential returns (and losses) they can describe them as something else. Subject to the same rules and tax reliefs but at least people with limited knowledge of investment markets won't be working on the assumption that their pension is necessarily secure investing in such funds.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

ThinkProgress wrote: »

They should call pensions what they actually are: "the waiting for death fund..."

Or better yet, perhaps: "The green mile fund"

I wonder how many people actually retire and have the time of their life?

I don't see any of them around. Maybe they live on sandy beaches far away? :P

I just see a lot of worn out people, who spent their lives being stressed, overworked and unhappy. Now they seem to remain stuck that way... I think the idea of a great retirement is more fantasy than reality for the majority.

Once you uncoil that spring, I think a lot of things start to unravel. In prison they call it being "institutionalized"...

In most professions, in order to play the game well, you must become institutionalized. The system chews you up... and by the time it spits you out, you're a busted flush! An empty vessel. Sounds very harsh, but that's mostly what I see!

But maybe I'm just missing all these happy retirees!

That's utter tosh. There are many many happily, gainfully retired people. A decent pension allows is have a few holidays a year, change the car every couple of years, eat out often, enjoy hobbies and family, and life life to the full. It's far from waiting for death, it's having a ball.

endacl

My training is my pension. I can do it sitting in a comfy chair and by the time I'm at 'retirement age' (daft notion), I'll be in a position due to longevity and experience to charge a very hefty fee per hour. I can do an hour a week, or 40 hours. Or anything in between. I like what I do. It's never felt like work. So, barring dementia, in which case I won't give a damn anyway, my work is my pension.

Also, I will have a teaching pension from the best paid part time job in the world. I'm aiming to up contributions and max this out well before retirement age, leaving the option to retire early from my 'job', and focus on my 'work'.

The Rape of Lucretia

RedXIV wrote: »

25% is definitely better than average. I'm in IT and I thought I was doing well with 7%

25% ?

I thought the only employer that pays that sort of pension contribution to his employees is the private sector tax payer.

PaddyWilliams

The Rape of Lucretia wrote: »

25% ?

I thought the only employer that pays that sort of pension contribution to his employees is the private sector tax payer.

You'd have to imagine that it's 25% of his contributions? 11% is the highest I've ever heard of. Or maybe he works for the Rothschilds or the Illiuminati?! :pac::pac:

Sugar Free

PaddyWilliams wrote: »

You'd have to imagine that it's 25% of his contributions? 11% is the highest I've ever heard of. Or maybe he works for the Rothschilds or the Illiuminati?! :pac::pac:

I'm pretty the sure the poster who mentioned this 25% lives in Germany, in case that changes things. Nice deal if it's 25% of his annual salary rather than 25% of his own contributions.

Grayson

I'm currently investing in the euromillions......

The Rape of Lucretia

PaddyWilliams wrote: »

You'd have to imagine that it's 25% of his contributions? 11% is the highest I've ever heard of. Or maybe he works for the Rothschilds or the Illiuminati?! :pac::pac:

Or the Irish civil service ?

tomwaterford

Zero..

Couldn't imagine ever having enough money to afford one either tbh

lawred2

I'm 35

I have 20k from a job earlier in life - which isn't worth shoite

Just opened a Davy Select PRSA with the aim of banging in about 12k a year (between wife and I)

Net cost to us of about 7k per annum so it makes sense

Wasn't contributing to anything for the last 7 years so it's time to get back on the horse

mel.b

I (will) have a public sector pension...or whats left of it in another 30yrs. Have been working for the HSE for almost 9yrs now.

I also have a super account in Australia that currently has $65,000 aud in it, invested in high growth, returning 7.7% pa over the past 10yrs. If that growth continues (i know, i know) that will be a nice amount. My only problem is i don't know where my future will take me and the potential of exchange rate issues. Plus i don't know what residency rules i might need to satisfy to get that without paying huge amounts of tax.

helimachoptor

not sure what it's worth tbh, I pay in 5%, company pays in 8%. One company I worked for didnt pay anything in, didnt stay there long.

Have a rental property with a council contract which will pay the mortgage off, so once that's done, can take the rental income or sell.

Wife's pension is in slightly better shape.

One thing to note, as people change jobs you should either make sure you document your pension. When you get a new one you can transfer the old company pension into the new one.

fwiw, a friend is quite senior in the pension industry, he reckons that on average people will "lose" one pension in their life. i.e. will have paid in at some point but then lost all the documentation/forgot who it was with and not be able to access the money

Right2Write

PRSA pension here with Zurich, who currently have a media campaign as to how great their pensions are. Mine fell €5000 in value last year which is about what I put into it over the year

In fairness, it has mostly risen over previous years and of course the government has been slipping it's hand into my pension also and stealing some as well

The J Stands for Jay

Sam Kade wrote: »

Minus the tax when you start drawing it out.

With 32 years service and such a small fund, they'll probably get the whole thing tax free.

The J Stands for Jay

highgiant1985 wrote: »

yeah anything over 5% is pretty good tbh from what I've seen.

I get 18.9%, don't have to pay in anything myself.

[Deleted User]

My Irish pension has hardly anything in it.

I very briefly contributed to a French pension. They have amazing (and mandatory) pensions schemes. If I kept paying into that, it would have paid 50% of my peak annual income, as well as 30% of my average total income... and those are just the State pension schemes.

You can top that up with a private/ employer's pension scheme.

I didn't contribute long enough to have much in those schemes, but I really wish we developed something similar here.

It might help prevent so many people from relying on investment properties to fund their retirements.

The J Stands for Jay

mel.b wrote: »

I (will) have a public sector pension...or whats left of it in another 30yrs. Have been working for the HSE for almost 9yrs now.

I also have a super account in Australia that currently has $65,000 aud in it, invested in high growth, returning 7.7% pa over the past 10yrs. If that growth continues (i know, i know) that will be a nice amount. My only problem is i don't know where my future will take me and the potential of exchange rate issues. Plus i don't know what residency rules i might need to satisfy to get that without paying huge amounts of tax.

Fair play for not following the Irish tradition of cashing in the Super when leaving Oz.

Inspector Coptoor

I paid into a public sector pension for 5 years.
Then had 2 years of no contributions

Paying into a private pension now.
5% from me and employer puts in 7%.
Twice a year I through in an extra 2.5% so 17% going in per annum.

mahoganygas

freedominacup wrote:

Imo in order to describe a product as a pension the company supplying it should be in a position to underwrite the capital being invested in the product.

freedominacup wrote:

And finally fees and charges should only be charged on profits which would be defined as a return greater than the rate of inflation in the year the return was made.

Some novel ideas here but I can't see these 2 working.

Asking pension providers to underwrite their customer's investments would limit how many customers they could take on. This would increase admin costs, reduce diversification and would necessitate the need for more pension schemes. We already have too many in Ireland.

Paying fund managers their fees only when they beat inflation incentives them to cook the books. It's very easy to push out liabilities to a future year, possibly when the manager no longer works for the pension provider.

Pulsating Star

I never understood the mechanics of pensions, still don't .

Spent many years in construction where it wasn't possible to have company pensions and not steady enough to make a private one feasible. Did look into it once without taking it up, afterwards the pension company went burst so it would have been a waste.
I decided that if one (not having a profession or specific valuable skillset) was to be flexible and have some leeway in deciding future, given that income was only ever moderate, then having funds tied up wasn't the best.
So when I moved into other areas of work I only joined pension schemes when I was compelled to do so and then only the minimum. I made my own investments and won't be comming round with a begging bowl when I am past working age. It has ment a very modest life and likely future.
Not everyone is going to have the stability to be constantly putting money aside and those who can should have a bit more understanding.

highgiant1985

Grayson wrote: »

I'm currently investing in the euromillions......

Its good to diversify your portfolio though

.

I also invest in the euro-millions and while its money down the drain that few hours of fantasy I get when I hear there's a winner in Ireland and I haven't yet checked my ticket make it worth while...

ThinkProgress

endacl wrote: »

My training is my pension. I can do it sitting in a comfy chair and by the time I'm at 'retirement age' (daft notion), I'll be in a position due to longevity and experience to charge a very hefty fee per hour. I can do an hour a week, or 40 hours. Or anything in between. I like what I do. It's never felt like work. So, barring dementia, in which case I won't give a damn anyway, my work is my pension.

Also, I will have a teaching pension from the best paid part time job in the world. I'm aiming to up contributions and max this out well before retirement age, leaving the option to retire early from my 'job', and focus on my 'work'.

+1

Acquiring skills you can use for your whole life, in something you enjoy doing... and a profession that is not too mentally or physically stressful. That's far better than any pension plan imho!

Also staying engaged with the world around you, as you age, by continuing to be a useful contributor... that's invaluable. Too many older people end up on the fringes of society.

Utah

I've been putting my max amount in for 6 years. Employer matches plus 3%.
I've been doing 5% AVC's too.

It's free money!

[Deleted User]

I pay in as much as possible and get it matched, it's on track