Personal details
Your age: 64
Your spouse's age: 68
Partner's age if not married:
Number and age of children: 2 children in 30s who are self sufficient i.e. employed with own homes etc.
Income and expenditure
Annual gross income from employment or profession: took early retirement - receiving JB : €12,688
Annual gross income of spouse/partner: state Pension €15k
Monthly take-home pay: €2,100 ( this is short term as @ 65yo I will avail of DB Pension)
Type of employment - e.g. I was an employee
Employer type: e.g. public servant, private company. Private company
In general are you:
(a) spending more than you earn. At the moment yes as I am unemployed.
(b) saving - saving period has ended since I took early retirement
Summary of Assets and Liabilities
Family home value: €850,000
Mortgage on family home: N/A
Holiday Apartment Abroad: €250,000
Holiday Apartment Mortgage: N/A
Net equity: €1,100,000
Cash:
Equities: €250,000
Total net assets: €1.35 million
Family home mortgage information
N/A
Other borrowings – car loans/personal loans etc
N/A
Do you pay off your full credit card balance each month? Yes, no other borrowings
Pension information
DB Pension €58,500 p.a.
Spouse receives €29,250 p.a. on my death in retirement
AVCs €420k
Notes about the DB Pension scheme
Fully funded: Yes
Annual increase if inflation is greater than 2%: i.e. 3% gives a 1% increase & 4% gives a 2% increase - max increase pa is 2%.
So it will not keep pace with inflation.
Buy to let properties
N/A
Other savings and investments:
None
Other information which might be relevant
Life insurance: None
What specific question do you have or what issues are of concern to you?
I will be 65 shortly and I need to make a number of decisions regarding my pension and my AVCs.
I took early retirement some months ago and we have been living off job seekers benefit, my wife state pension and our savings.
I have been given a number of options regarding my pension payment and lump sums based on a combination of a reduced pension and a lump sum or the full pension and a lump sum from my AVC pot.
I believe I also have the option to transfer out of the scheme under DC rules and combine the transfer value with my AVCs to avail of a 25% lump sum and using the remainder to invest in an ARF.
My first question is, should I consider this at all?
I am conscious of having to pay the higher tax rate if my DB pension + my wife’s state pension + my interim payment (65 to 66) + income from ARF exceed the annual threshold for a married couple.
So my second question is, how do I proceed in the most tax efficient manner?
I am open to suggestions, thank you in advance.