Financial Tips for Parents

When you have children, you get lots of advice and tips from everyone but one area that tends to be overlooked is the financial aspect.

In the excitement of impending parenthood, or the crazy first few months – and years – you may never get around to taking some important financial steps. It’s too easy to forget this essential topic so this article is designed to be a useful guide to some of the issues you need to consider.

Multiple surveys have put the cost of raising a child at eye-watering levels over their first 18 years and expats working in the UAE have the added cost of education and medical bills to contend with.

Factor in university or college costs and the fact that many young adults may not be fully financially independent until closer to age 25, and you can see just how important it is to plan sensibly.

Let’s look at some of the financial steps you need to consider.

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New Year, new financial you? 10 tips for getting on track in 2024

Whether or not you make formal resolutions at the start of a year, I am willing to bet that you have certain hopes when it comes to your financial situation.

You may dream of retiring at age 55. Perhaps you want to buy a holiday home or an investment property? Do you want to take a year off to travel the world? Maybe you know you need to put a few things in place to get properly organised?

You need to take action to turn these hopes into reality.

Invariably we could all do a little better and a little focus rarely goes amiss. With that in mind here’s a list of 10 steps you can take to get yourself financially fitter in 2024.

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Currency transfers – how to get the best rates with full security

Most expats have a need to move money between currencies and it makes sense to find a way to do this securely, easily and where you can save money.

You can do this easily, from your desk or sofa. Importantly, this is fully secure, properly regulated and in view of recent issues with some UAE companies, I only work with a currency broker with a good track record.

The online services offered by retail banks are rarely competitive and even if they do not charge a fee they make their profit on the poor rates of exchange offered.

There is a better way.  Everyone wants to make savings so this is how you can make easy savings and get value for your hard-earned money.

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Investments in 2023. Where are we now?

When it comes to investment we are still living in interesting times. With so many unexpected global events in recent years and those that are ongoing, investing has not been a great deal of fun of late, and I fully appreciate the frustration of clients, of all investors.

This article is designed to provide some context and comfort. So read on…

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Financial Wellness. What is it and can you improve yours?

Wellness is a term that has become very popular in the past few years. We tend to think of it in terms of mental or physical health but it is time we looked at financial wellness.

Simply put, financial wellness is a relative measure of how well a person manages their financial life. We all want to be financially well and this article is about what it means and how you can improve your financial wellness.

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Sitting tight – the importance of remaining invested

There is no question that we are in interesting times for investment markets and we have all seen falls in the value of our portfolios This article is designed to explain why you really should not worry and why you need to remain invested.

The key thing to remember is that to make money over the long-term it is not about timing the market, but about time in the market.

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Stock markets and investments – what not to do in volatile times

On 24th February, we woke to the news that Russia had invaded Ukraine. The situation had been deteriorating for a while but now we have the terrible reality of military conflict.

The article is about financial matters, not politics, but they are closely aligned and I want to tell you why you shouldn’t panic about falls and fluctuations in stock markets – and what you must not do.

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The future of investing is… flexible

We all know that we need to invest our money to make it grow but the options for expats in the UAE have been a little limited, until recently.  Following changes in legislation, I am now delighted to offer fully flexible investment options, with negligible penalties, and a very wide range of fund options.

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New Year, new financial you? 10 tips for getting on track in 2021

Many of us make New Year resolutions, but how many of those are about our finances? 2020 was a tough year for large numbers of people, and we aren’t out of the woods yet, but knowing you have taken all the right steps will give you some peace of mind.

Invariably we could all spend less and save more and a little focus rarely goes amiss.

With that in mind here’s a list of 10 steps you can take to get yourself financially fitter in 2020.

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Where there’s a will, there’s a way to protect your family

I have published articles on this topic before but in light of the changes to the personal status laws in the UAE in 2020, this has been updated to cover the new rules. This also includes the minor amendments for 2022 and a change for Muslim expats in 2023.

If you have assets, and more importantly, if you have children, then you need a Will. This is a subject that many people are reluctant to address but there are many misconceptions and an all too common reluctance to talk about the relevant issues. In this article I want to set out a few facts and answer the most common questions.

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