Live Smart Financial Planning Ltd

27/10/2026

An old post…with cost of living running hot, suddenly seems more relevant than when we first released it.

- Cash not working
- Investment property not working

What is?

How Inflation Quietly Erodes Your Savings

Many people see cash as “safe”, but few realise the hidden cost of leaving money idle.
Over the past 5 years:
-Cumulative inflation: +28.9%
-Average cash returns: +9%
-Real spending power lost: 15–20%

In other words, while your balance may look the same (or even slightly higher), what it can buy is shrinking every year.

Ask yourself: how safe is your cash if it’s quietly losing value?

Protect Your Wealth
There are strategies to preserve and grow your purchasing power—without taking unnecessary risks.
Get in touch with our team through the link in our profile to explore smarter alternatives to holding excess cash and make your money work harder for you.

08/10/2025

In our latest podcast episode, advisors Phil Reynolds and Julian Baker dive into the topic of Pensions vs ISAs exploring which option can offer greater long term benefits.

In this short clip, they discuss an interesting strategy: drawing money from a pension and transferring it into an ISA to improve accessibility and flexibility.

It’s an important conversation for anyone thinking about how to balance tax efficiency with easy access to their savings.

Watch the full episode here: https://www.youtube.com//videos

07/10/2025

Pensions vs ISAs | which is better for your future?

In this clip, our advisors Philip Reynolds and Julian Baker talk about something that’s been getting a lot of attention lately, could pensions soon be hit by Inheritance Tax?

It’s a big question that could have real implications for your retirement and estate planning.

Full episode out now. 🎙️https://www.youtube.com/

06/10/2025

“I wish I started working with a financial advisor earlier.”
It’s something we hear often in our first meetings.

We don’t see many young professionals reaching out for financial advice and that usually comes down to not fully understanding what we actually do or how we can help.

The truth is, the earlier you start working with an advisor, the more we can do together. Your money has more time to grow, your options expand, and the decisions you make today can have a far greater impact on your future.

When you start planning in your 20s or 30s, it’s not about chasing wealth or trying to “get rich.” It’s about creating structure, building good habits, and shaping a lifestyle that feels balanced and fulfilling.

Everyone’s situation is different, but we often meet people later in life who wish they’d started sooner. They’ve worked hard, earned well, but didn’t have a clear plan to make their money work as hard as they did.

Just imagine what we could do if you start now.
More time, more opportunity, and more control over your financial future.

If you’re a young professional and you’ve ever thought, “I’ll sort my finances later” this is your sign not to wait.

03/10/2025

In this short clip from our latest podcast, Phil Reynolds and Julian Baker talk about how trust isn’t built overnight it takes time, consistency, and genuine care.
As a company, we know the Financial Advising profession has faced challenges with perception, and we’re committed to playing our part in rebuilding that trust step by step.
Watch the full episode here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thnciPiAtIk&t=1s

02/10/2025

Client case study- relating to fear of running out of money when you stop working...

This is one of those cases where you don't realise your impact until somebody points it out to you. Since we review the client annually and he's a long-term client, we don't need to try as hard - he's already happy. Complacency creeps in often when the client is satisfied, rather than challenging.

But when the client offers some information, it suddenly makes you realise it's costing you. It would have been worth sharing this post with others, and the feeling of satisfaction that comes from knowing we have made an impact on someone else's life.

Here's the impact...

Client retired at age 55- pretty much 10 years ago, as most people, he was concerned he could make his £1m pension pot last. So, where are we today, after the ten to fifteen annual reviews, the occasional risk change when the climate looks shaky or growth-oriented, and the £400k that has been withdrawn and spent mainly on lifestyle?

He's back up to £1.1m in his Pension! As outcomes go, this one made me happy.

Familiar? Need help?

Free information, tips and more case studies...subscribe to our YouTube channel http://www.youtube.com/

02/10/2025

In this short clip from our latest podcast episode, our advisors Phil Reynolds and Julian Baker dive into the tax implications that come with retirement planning. They share what we often see clients miss or misunderstand, and why getting this right can make such a big difference for your financial future.
Catch the full episode here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thnciPiAtIk&t=783s

01/10/2025

In this short clip from our latest podcast, two of our advisors (Phil Reynolds and Julian Baker) talk about the negative reputation surrounding the Financial Advisor profession. They explore why this perception exists and how, as a firm, we're working to challenge it by doing things the right way and showing that ethical advice does exist.
A quick scroll through Facebook financial advice forums makes it clear that there's a lot of distrust out there, and many people are being put off seeking professional advice altogether.
This clip is taken from our full podcast episode, which you can watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thnciPiAtIk

30/09/2025

In this podcast snippet, Philip Reynolds and Julian Baker chat through how final salary pensions fit into cash flow modelling and what that means for withdrawal planning.
Final salary schemes can be tricky to factor in, but they’re a key piece of the puzzle when building a retirement plan that actually works.
The podcast is all about retirement pensions and options for withdrawal.
Worth a listen if you’re trying to get your head around the options.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thnciPiAtIk

24/09/2025

We recently met with a potentially new client, they explained that retirement was beginning to come into focus and they were unsure on how to create more wealth for retirement. We discovered they have four properties and multiple pension pots, they were unsure about the best way to use their four properties to fund their future lifestyle. Timing was one of their main concerns. Whether to sell now, hold on for a few more years, or look at alternative strategies that might give them more flexibility.

One of the properties was a commercial property, and the client had heard in some conversations with friends and online that transferring a commercial property into a Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) could be a smart move, but they weren’t clear on how it worked or why it might benefit them.

We walked them through the key advantages. By holding the property within a SIPP, the rental income received would be paid into the pension entirely tax free, helping to grow their retirement pot more efficiently. In addition, any future growth in the value of the property would also be sheltered from capital gains tax. We also explained that the rent paid by their business would still be a deductible business expense, so the arrangement could work well from both sides.

There are, of course, some important considerations such as liquidity, borrowing limits, and pension contribution allowances, but overall it can be a very tax efficient way of using an existing asset to strengthen retirement planning.

The client left the meeting with a much clearer understanding of how a SIPP works, the potential benefits it could offer them, and what the next steps might look like if they decided to explore it further.

If you are in a similar situation and unsure on what to do next, contact us to speak to one of Advisors