When I was a small child, I was once given a £50 note for Christmas by my paternal Grandfather and it was more money than I’d ever seen in one place. He wasn’t (and still isn’t) a wealthy man, but he’d saved up for a few months so that all his Grandchildren could each have […]
For nearly two years, I’ve been writing about personal finance. Admittedly, I’ve taken the odd break here or there, but who doesn’t get busy? One of my latest projects had me so busy in May and June that I barely had time to eat and sleep. As I started to feel the usual symptoms of
Over the weekend, I was fortunate to be invited to Ascot to watch the races with my company. It was an absolutely fantastic experience – made all the sweeter for being the first time I’d been to the races and being able to take my partner Verity along with me. As my company sponsors the
Once we get past the age of about ten, most of us start to see the importance of knowledge. Without it, we don’t see risks, understand how to get what we want or really understand the world around us. Most people that describe themselves as businessmen follow the stock markets, monitor local real estate develops,
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When making an investment in a business, it’s essential to understand that you’re becoming a part-owner of that business. Whenever you make an investment, you weigh up the chances of the business in question returning a greater sum of capital than you originally invested. I was recently asked how I go about weight up this
Several years ago, I was approached with a ‘niche’ investment opportunity promising great returns. The sales pitch was assembled and presented well, but something didn’t sit right with me – I wasn’t sure how I’d be able to get my money back if I needed it. At the time, a friend of mine was examining
Several years ago, I came to the conclusion that anyone with serious money was unlikely to have the majority of it tied up in bonds and savings accounts available on the high-street. After all, those with above average wealth are unlikely to be handling their wealth in the same manner as the average investor –
Having a background in business and marketing, I’m occasionally approached by friends and colleagues looking to get my input on new ventures they’re thinking of pursuing. Sometimes, these ventures are well-thought out, original and are simply in need of a sounding board and someone willing to spend the time to make them work. Sadly, others
Reading a lot of personal finance and investing material, I get the distinct impression that there are a class of investors out there who are looking for the ‘secret’ to investing success. These are the people who might not be earning a fortune. The ones who might save £100 a month. The ones who watch
When I first started renting, I was asked to provide a ‘guarantor’ of security before my landlord would take me on as a tenant. Being young and lacking experience, I called a relative, got their agreement to use them and then thought no more about it. Essentially, I was offering a ‘guarantee’ that if I
I’m a big advocate of investing in entrepreneurs. I’ve written time and time again that when done well, private investments can produce returns which far outperform regular market instruments. In my mind; it’s a no brainer. Banks, advisers, accountants, financiers; they all want their cut – but dealing directly with an entrepreneur removes these added
I’ve often had friends tell me that their approach to buying is to find something they like and then find the cheapest place that sells it. Whilst this might initially seem quite sensible, I believe it represents a false economy. Cheaper might save you money initially, but you’ll usually find that what you’re buying is
When I graduated from Oxford Brookes University in 2013, I was enthusiastic about gaining experience and building my financial assets, but like many my age had more debt on my credit cards than in in my bank account. I wasn’t struggling to pay the bills or feed myself; I certainly never went on debt-fuelled spending
Anyone that’s been reading this blog for a while will have noticed that a significant proportion of my articles are about investments; the ones I love, the ones I hate and how my readers can help to improve their finances through strategies like building a passive income. Consequently, when I talk about investments, most
When the financial services sector (and most global economies) fell off a cliff in 2007/08, savings rates fell with them. Several years (and many interest cuts) later, I decided to take the plunge and invest some money with Zopa Loans. At the time, I wasn’t sure whether the company would survive or if I’d ever
