5 Most Read Blogs of 2016

A lot has happened this year.

We’ve had Brexit, Trump and England getting kicked out the Euros by Iceland.

There has been a lot to write about so we thought that we would put together our 5 most read blog posts of 2016.

Understanding the new Personal Savings Allowance

When the new Personal Savings Allowance started in April, it meant that 95% of taxpayers would no longer pay income tax on their savings interest.

Our blog post from 7th January explained the ins and outs of the new Personal Savings Allowance and was the most read article on our website this year.

HMRC tax changes & the residential property investment market

Another popular article this year was a guest post from January, written by Jonathan Daines about tax changes for buy-to-let property investors.

Buy-to-let investors have been targeted a couple of times recently by HM Treasury, with a stamp duty increase and reductions in what they can offset against income tax bills.

Topping up your State Pension when you retire early

In October we wrote about the half a million workers retiring before state pension age who have the chance to top-up their State Pension at bargain rates during the next five years.

This was based on a handy guide from insurer Royal London which described the options for people wanting to take advantage and top-up their State Pension income.

Avoiding inheritance tax through Business Property Relief

Shelley’s article about family businesses avoiding inheritance tax was one of our most read in 2016.

It followed news of an estimated 4.6 million family businesses in the UK, making up 87% of all private sector firms.

State Pension no longer fit for purpose

Last month Nick wrote about a shortfall in National Insurance contributions to pay for State Pension income, raising questions about the future sustainability of this important retirement benefit.

The State Pension has been under attack on several occasions this year, with the ‘triple-lock’ now expected to end in 2020 and future reforms to ages and incomes very likely.

I hope you have enjoyed reading our blogs over the past year and we are very excited about what 2017 has in store.