Interest rates

[j.sabourn]

Once more into the breach dear friends , here in Oz after a short static time the Reserve Bank has once again thought it necessary to increase , which I have no issue with, they are the people who know what to do. What gets up my nose is once again our sublime media out put , the only info. They seem to know is how much extra the struggling mortgage payer is suffering. Never more importantly how much the struggling pensioner can expect to get from his small savings. Anyone daft enough to try and live above their means in todays world and puts himself in debt of huge loans , then any fallout he suffers is self inflicted , but there are others who are not mortgage payers and would like a little less sympathy on the big spenders and a little more info. To their plight. Cheers JS

[Des Taff Jenkins]

John.
My knowledge of the Reserve Bank is about nil, But such statements as We have to raise interest rates as wages are rising? causing prices to rises sets my teeth on edge. Being on the pension every time we go shopping something has risen in price, no sign of a wage increase , in fact the big Companies like Woolworth's ,Cole's and now Aldis are ripping off $Millions in wages from their staff. Maybe that fact that they are being forced to repay $millions gives them the opportunity to lift prices , some on the shelves from the week before and not subject to any wage rise.
IT;s time the reserve bank woke up to itself.
Des

[j.sabourn]

We live on very small pensions from uk and here also, can cope ,but if I go first
My pensions will be halved and wife will have to survive on the residue plus what savings in the bank , so bank interest is the top of my wish list . It’s the banks themselves that set the interest rates , the Reserve Bank just sets the official rate that should keep the country out of recession. The banks themselves are the greedy ones and always slow to raise the savers interest rates and only because they want the massive profits they make year after year. The interest rates for savers has been about 0.4% the last few years depending on what bank, and suppose many old people have just taken out of bank and used as not worth keeping in. JS

[happy daze john in oz]

The problem is the manner in which the reserve bank measures the rate of inflation.

They have a basket of goods, but many are not every day items.

Gas and Electric are not in it but fuel is.
Then they use the cost of international travel as one of the markers, why?
That is discretionary, not all use that.

The rise in itself adds to inflation, small business with an overdraft passes on the cost of that.
Increases in fuel effect just about every thing in the shops.

I have worked in supermarkets, Safeways back in the 80's, it is not all plain sailing for them, power costs are one of the biggest costs they have.
It goes up so the cost gets passed on.

[James Curry]

We have a product here in the UK run bay the bank? NSandI.com Various savings products. I have what are called Premium Bonds you can hold up to £50,000. There is no gauranteed interest with these bonds. There is a monthly draw with the top prize of £1million. I think there are two top prizes each month now. So you are in with a chance of winning a million to the last prize £25.00
The chances of winning currently are rated at 4.65% Paying out reasonably well for my wife and I. I am on just over £1500 for the year to 1st Nov and my other half is doing better she has just hit £2k.
I have just had a fixed term ISA matured 4th Nov that was paying a monthly interest rate @ 4.57% I moved that to another easy access product paying 4.75%. Big banks and saving products I avoid them they seem to lag behind other financial operatives
Do they have FSCS Financial Services Compensation Scheme , means your savings are protected for holding up to £85k

[Rodney Mills]

JSW #3

I am similar in financial effects as you, except I am already there. When my wife and I were planning our retirement, all my part of the planning was geared to benefit of my wife as I was ten years older than she and her being a woman had an additional three years because she was female and would live longer. So combined she was going to be thirteen years a widow. She had a teacher's pension if she kept it on a single basis she would received as a pension 70% of her pay, if she added me to her benefit it was reduced to 50%.

Thank goodness she talked me into accepting coverage for me if she died first. Because sadly she did.

My income then is 50% of her full pension benefits.

My social security. monthly benefit. (Hers ended the day she died, the government didn't even give a bereaving me time to bury her, barstewards).>

And interest from my savings.

Last financial year our bank interest was 0.01%, and I was taking a fair amount of money out of the bank to make up the difference between my wife's pension, social security, and what I needed.

Currently the bank is paying 4 point 5 (4.5%) interest on a one-year certificates of deposit. I am actually saving a surplus per year.

This interest rate actually should benefit most retirees who have savings. They own their own home, I owned my home for 25 years (95% of it anyway). It had tripled and some in value, so I sold it and added to my savings and as I said live of the interest.

I can't spend the surplus on travel and restaurants because I've "been there and done that", and I spent my working life in the food industry, so I have no interest in dining out.

I have a nice two bedroom apartment, so I'm very comfortable and able to take care of myself. I exercise daily and walk two miles a day and watch my weight.

Next year I am thinking of moving into a home for the elderly, I've looked at a couple and they are really nice, with an on-site doctor and full recreation programs and not at all like I imagined (a sort of elephant's graveyard).

Still I'm 86 and have a plan, That's the important thing, always have a plan, just keep them flexible and modify as needed.

Cheers, Rodney

[Tony Taylor]

JSW #3

I am similar in financial effects as you, except I am already there. When my wife and I were planning our retirement, all my part of the planning was geared to benefit of my wife as I was ten years older than she and her being a woman had an additional three years because she was female and would live longer. So combined she was going to be thirteen years a widow. She had a teacher's pension if she kept it on a single basis she would received as a pension 70% of her pay, if she added me to her benefit it was reduced to 50%.

Thank goodness she talked me into accepting coverage for me if she died first. Because sadly she did.

My income then is 50% of her full pension benefits.

My social security. monthly benefit. (Hers ended the day she died, the government didn't even give a bereaving me time to bury her, barstewards).>

And interest from my savings.

Last financial year our bank interest was 0.01%, and I was taking a fair amount of money out of the bank to make up the difference between my wife's pension, social security, and what I needed.

Currently the bank is paying 4 point 5 (4.5%) interest on a one-year certificates of deposit. I am actually saving a surplus per year.

This interest rate actually should benefit most retirees who have savings. They own their own home, I owned my home for 25 years (95% of it anyway). It had tripled and some in value, so I sold it and added to my savings and as I said live of the interest.

I can't spend the surplus on travel and restaurants because I've "been there and done that", and I spent my working life in the food industry, so I have no interest in dining out.

I have a nice two bedroom apartment, so I'm very comfortable and able to take care of myself. I exercise daily and walk two miles a day and watch my weight.

Next year I am thinking of moving into a home for the elderly, I've looked at a couple and they are really nice, with an on-site doctor and full recreation programs and not at all like I imagined (a sort of elephant's graveyard).

Still I'm 86 and have a plan, That's the important thing, always have a plan, just keep them flexible and modify as needed.

Cheers, Rodney

Food for thought Rod

[happy daze john in oz]

Here in Oz we have compulsory Superannuation.
Your employer has to put a sum of12% of your wage into the scheme each month.
There are many such schemes going, some run by the unions for their members.

We were lucky working in a Uni.
The Uni had to pay in 14% and as employees we had to pay 7% then there was also the Gov one at 3%.
So in all 24% equivalent of salary going in.

Then we took a package when the Uni was amalgamating with another and needed to down size numbers.
The amount was unbelievable at the time.
We ended up with about $400,000 in the fund.

Cannot use it as a pension before the age of 60, but we also get a part UK one and about 95% of the state one as well.
Only downside, all the funds are liaked to the stock market so amount in can vary from time to time.

[Doc Vernon]

Well for us two old Fogies here, as Irene has fully retired now, we have just withdram all of her Super from the Fund, Zero Balance.
All our resources now in Term Deposits in Both names, and getting a staedy Interest from the Bank. We put it in for a 12Month Period as that attracts the best Intest rate.
So at present with absolutely no debt at all, House, Car etc etc all fully paid, and with getting the Full Pension now we are quite comfortably off, no rash spending or going out to many places.
This way we worked it out that the Manoey we have should easily last us till we Kaak it!

So as long as we care comfortable and Happy (which we both are now) all should be well.

The Kids will of course inherit the Hiuse, and whatever is over. Of course i also have Gold Bullion stashed at a Secure Trust Company!
Cheers

[Les Woodard]

Well before giving up work I had this mantra. If I could manage to end up with a nice nest egg on my own. Then why the feck did I suddenly need some one I had never met before have to manage it now. Pulled the plug at 57 so that I could do eight years apprenticeship as a pensioner. As soon as I turned 65 I withdrew all my superannuation so that I could manage our finances myself. The plan as before giving up work was that? This money has now got to work a lot harder than I did to keep us going. I purchased shares in 2009 after living through the GFC (which I learnt a bloody lot about shares then). We have not ever regretted doing this as the Dividends have been enough along with part UK pension and Oz pension. Yes the dividend have fluctuated over the years but we still prefer to stay on plan. What I like about this is? Unlike super where if the share price drops then that affect the unit price of the super and when making withdrawals you have to sell more units. With shares if for some reason you have to sell a few, unlike super you can always purchase them back or switch to reinvestment plan instead of dividend. We have been like this now for 14 years and can safely say that the capital has increased over the years. Mind you if shares scare you because they are volatile then keep away from them. If the stock market was to crash then mate think about purchasing more shares as they will come back. As an example it is nothing for our principle to deplete over $100,000 or more over a period of time but seems to come back after a while too. If for some reason it never does then I can say that we will not be the only ones deep in the crap pot lol. Boy when I gave up work I never knew how many people where trying to help me manage my modest nest egg. One question I asked each and every one of them was this? If I sign over $100,000 to you now and I do not make any deductions over the next year, how much will be in my account after all and every deduction. Not one fecker ever answered that or would not as it would have shown how much their greedy mits where going to take of it.