Mortgages, Silver Marriages and Warren Buffett

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Hello. In today's podcast, the number of older people marrying is at a record high. So is this a story of love conquering all or good financial planning? Maybe both. It was virtually the their financial advisor proposed to Shirley on my behalf.'Cause he said the best way round this is for you two to get married. More of that epic romance to come.

Stadiums, cheering crowds, and legions of fans. No, not a rock star, but a rock star investor. As Warren Buffett retires, we'll ask what we can all learn from his legacy. And it's almost Christmas, so we will look back at some of the money box wins that have made the team here feel especially merry over the last 12 months.

But first, snow might not be falling, but the Bank of England's base rate has. It's now 3.75%, a whole percentage point lower than this time last year, having been frozen at 4% since August. That news might leave savers feeling cold, but it could also mean cheaper mortgage rates. And with two million people expected to come to the end of their fixes in 2026,

Many are hoping for deals that ease the chill on their finances. Kaylee's one of them. She told the BBC she was hoping it would take the heat out of their budget. Yeah, we're kind of just in limbo a bit at the moment and just waiting to see what happens. Because of the circumstances we had to lock in for just a year, so then we were forced to remortgage and it was at the worst time and we were penalised with really high interest rates that did make us change our lifestyle.

because our overnight our mortgage went Rydyn ni'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd we prioritise her expenses over ours obviously. Um we look at doing things that are cheap or free.

So what could twenty twenty six have in store for households like Kaylee's? Well here to gaze into her crystal ball is Sally Mitchell, a mortgage broker from Versed Financial, which specializes in financial planning for women. Sally, before I ask you about the year to come, let's just wrap up this year. Start with this week's rate cut. Kayleigh was hoping for a drop, she got one. Have the two year and five year fixes actually changed since Thursday?

Uh no, not really. The current average uh two year fix is four point eight two percent and five year is four point nine. That's an an average overall of four point eight eight. The cheapest at the moment, two-year fixed, is actually three point five one. So if you're lucky enough to fit the re criterion requirements for that sort of rate, you know, you are looking at quite a nice uh small rate at the moment. Five year um short sorry, five year cheapest is three point seven.

What's happened is that these reductions have been sort of drip fed over the last couple of weeks. So lenders have already adjusted their rates in anticipation of this reduction. Okay. Lending rules were relaxed in the spring, and the property agency Savals says first-time buyer spending on homes rose to the highest proportion since at least two thousand seven as a result. What are you seeing?

Yeah, definitely. That that seems to be the profile of my clients at the moment. Lots of people are sitting and waiting for, you know, the budget. They were sitting and waiting for that. Um, waiting to see if a base rate cut came. It did. First time buyers have not really been affected. They are the ones who are carrying the market at the moment.

And the Financial Conduct Authority has also just announced it's going to consult on more changes for not just first time buyers, but also self employed workers and later life borrowers. What might that mean? Well, it does need a review. It really does. I'm I'm very excited about this, this public consultation. Um there are a lot of underserved customers and they need to simplify the rules to allow more flexible product.

More people are self employed and have much more complex incomes than in previous years. Later life lending, I think, has had a bad rap. Um, people are scared of it. And actually, there's there's no real need. There is um an awful lot of legislation around it, there's a lot of protection. And I think housing wealth is going to play an increasingly important role in later life financial well being.

Okay. There have all been concerns raised, haven't there? There always are that relaxing the rules could cause problems further down the line and put people at risk of falling into negative equity, for example. Is that something that worries you? Um no, it doesn't. I mean it did. I lived through the negative equity problem, you know, earlier in this century and it was not fun at all. Um there are so many regulations and safety nets in place.

Uh there is a promise with later life lending that there is there will never be negative equity. That is not a risk. So people don't have to worry about that. Um, but yeah, for for buyers, home buyers, it it is always something that looms in in their imagination. Okay, crystal ball time then. Will we see more first time buyers in twenty twenty six?

Yes, I think we will. Um, the relaxation of stress testing, the opening up of more um a variety of of products from lenders, and it's it's really becoming quite innovative. Uh, which is exciting and I I think we will definitely,'cause people still have that desire to own their home own home. And what about interest rates? Have we passed the peak? I think so. Yeah, I'm going to be really, really positive for 2026. I think the new normal will settle at 3.5%. One bank that I spoke to this week.

Predicted that by the end of 2026 the bank base rate will be three percent. So you know, falling down to three and a half. For the average buyer I think is totally possible. Maybe we'll get you back this time next year. See if you were right. Oh God. Sally Mitchell from Verst Financial. Thank you very much indeed.

Pleasure. Now we get thousands of emails from you every year. We read them all and they really do shape this programme. And we've had some huge successes in twenty twenty five. We thought we would just celebrate a few of those today, and our very own elf, Dan Whitworth,

Sorry, Dan. It's here to unwrap the first of our money box winners from last year. Dan. I feel as though I need some jingle bell fearfulness. Uh well listeners might remember a story I covered about something called backbilling earlier this year. It's when energy suppliers send out new bills for energy used more than twelve months before, something they're not allowed to do. Well lots of you got in touch about it, including Haley.

I'm Hailey from Bromsgrove and I'm a regular Moneybox listener. Moneybox covered my story in February. My energy supplier issued me a bill in January 2025. for five thousand seven hundred pounds covering a period back in twenty twenty one. This went against backbilling rules which state that an energy supplier cannot issue you a new bill for energy used over twelve months ago.

Rydyn ni'n gweithwyr sy'n gweithwyr sy'n gweithwyr sy'n gweithwyr sy'n gweithwyr sy'n gweithwyr sy'n gweithwyr sy'n gweithwyr sy'n gweithwyr. From big energy suppliers, if they aren't following the rules. Happy Christmas Moneybugs, and thank you for all your help this year. Ah, happy Christmas, Haley. And Dan, that story even ended up being investigated by Parliament. It did. It did.

Now, the number of older people getting married or having a civil partnership has risen to a record high. And financial advisors have told Moneybox it's getting even higher thanks to changes that are due to come in for pensions and inheritance tax. So the question is, is romance simply blossoming in later life, or is it something a bit more practical? Is it Cupid or considerations about cats? So when Steve put the phone down, he said, Uh, will you marry me? So I said, I suppose so if I have to.

They were the exact words. We will hear more from Shirley in a moment. But Dan, you're not just doing your best Christmas elf impression this week. You've been looking into this for us. What have you found? Yeah, I'll put the jingle bells away. So big changes basically, FLIS, to the way inheritance tax works were announced.

in Chancellor Rachel Reeves's first budget last year, and it means that as from April twenty twenty seven, unspent pension pots will be subject to inheritance tax for the first time. Now the Personal Finance Society, which represents tens of thousands of financial planning professionals right across the UK says that change is the reason behind a rise in the number of over sixty fives getting married or having a civil partnership. Why?

Well, married couples or people in a civil partnership get something called spousal exemption. Now that means no inheritance tax is paid when one partner dies and their estate passes to their husband or wife or civil partner. Now couples who just live together don't get that same exemption, which is what led to Steve and Shirley Shirley finally tying the knot after nearly thirty years as a couple. We thought that everything was in place. We both had uh separate wills.

uh looking after our particular children a and each other as as single people. But we had a a meeting with a f our financial advisor. They suddenly announced uh Steve, you you've got a big inheritance tax problem looming. Rachel Reeves uh has changed the inheritance tax rules regarding pension funds. And as from April twenty twenty seven, you will have a big problem. At which point, uh it was uh virtually the their financial advisor proposed to Shirley on my behalf.

Because he said the best way round this is for you two to get married. So when Steve put the phone down, he said, uh will you marry me? So I said, I suppose so if I have to. They were the exact words. So so maybe not the most romantic proposal ever, but it will make a huge difference to planning for their future. True. uh having my own business, I have a private pension plan in place.

And I haven't started drawing down on that despite the fact I'm sixty nine. Uh as a result of that, the the the the pot is consider considerable in excess of six hundred thousand pounds. And that's what made the the decision quite simple, really. They suggested the best way of protecting that that fund and not paying forty percent inheritance tax on it.

Rydyn ni'n ymwneud â'r effaith, ond rydyn ni'n ymwneud â'r effaith ymwneud â'r effaith ymwneud â'r effaith ymwneud â'r effaith ymwneud â'r effaith ymwneud â'r effaith ymwneud â'r effaith. Well Carla Brown is the president of the Personal Finance Society and told me it's not just over sixty fives who are thinking about this kind of financial planning.

Certainly the couples that I'm talking to and not just older sort of over sixties. I am having these conversations with people in their forties and fifties as well who are, you know, accumulating wealth. I think it's at a time in people's lives when they feel they have more money.

And they're starting to think about the next phase in the life, what happens next. That's probably why we're seeing the older generation now looking again. But you know, maybe it's also to do with, you know, uh you have a number of marriages that start to fail later in life as well. Dan, talk us through some more of the numbers. Exactly how many older couples are now getting married, and also I know a lot of people worry about inheritance taxes.

How many actually pay it? Right. So the most up to date figures are for twenty twenty two, twenty three. show f slightly fewer than one in twenty estates paid around seven billion in inheritance tax. So obviously affecting a really small group of people. That's forecast to rise to around one in ten estates. paying nearly fourteen billion pounds by the end of this parliament.

As after those changes taking pension pots into account have come in, Now, as for older people getting married, well data from the Office for National Statistics show a record nineteen thousand over sixty-five got married or had a civil partnership in England and Wales in twenty twenty three. as I say a record high up by nearly a third from two years before. Now obviously that official data is from before Rachel Reeves made her inheritance tax changes.

But Elliot Lewis, a partner at Thackray Williams Solicitors who specializes in wills and inheritance tax, he says those changes will likely supercharge the number of unmarried older couples looking to tie the knot. It's an option for most clients. I mean it has been for a while, but if you think about it, adding potentially hundreds of thousands of pounds of pension assets.

into a taxable estate clearly is going to cause more people a bigger tax problem. It often brings people who didn't have a tax problem into the inheritance tax net. That's key. And quite often, people who have an inheritance tax problem already, it causes them clearly a bigger problem. Dan, has the Treasury had anything to say about that?

Well it told me it continues to incentivize pension savings for their intended purpose of funding retirement instead of being openly used as a vehicle to transfer wealth to And it says actually more than ninety percent of estates each year will continue to pay no inheritance tax after these and other changes.

Well I actually think that good financial planning with your partner is always romantic. Always always Uh here at Moneybox we'll be answering your questions on inheritance tax and pensions in the new year. So If there's something you want to ask an expert, just email. It's moneybox at bbc.co.uk or you can send us a voice note on WhatsApp 03306 783 183.

Du, jag skulle ju köpa några nya palpstält i lagret, det kanske blev lite mer grejer. De hade ju allt, man hade skribord, jag köpte en sån här, och kontorstolar, och så hade de en skitsnygg typcontainer. Vi har inredning för hela arbetsplatsen. Välkommen till AIPred. Amazon presenterar Simon och Hans dejingner. Under miljontals år har djur utvecklat sofistikerade paningsritualer. Fåglar dansar, varje rylar och pinger fria med stenen. Och Simon, han ska låga middag och han flippar ut.

Men Simon shoppade på Amazon och köpte ljusstakar vinglaser eftersom han är optimist. En extra tandborste. Ja Simon, det vore alltid ett djur i dig, din rackare. Få dejten att hända. Now it's time to unwrap another of our Christmas money box winners, Q the Festive Music. Hi, my name's Christine Porter. I was helped by the BBC earlier this year.

Rydyn ni'n gwneud 4,500,000 mewn gwirionedd yn cael ei wneud. Rydyn ni'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd. Merry Christmas. Ah Merry Christmas, Christine.

The Beatles, The Bible, and Warren Buffett. That is the best selling artist of all time, the best selling book of all time. And arguably the most successful investor of all time. But now Warren Buffett will retire at the end of this month, after 60 years as the CEO of the American company Berkshire Hathaway. So if you don't know much about him, you will after this.

Warren Buffett. He's sometimes named as the sage of Omaha, sometimes the Oracle of Omaha, but probably the most successful investor of all time. I stick with what I know. If somebody owns 50 stocks. Can they really like the one they rank as number 50 as well as the w the one they rank as number one? Can they know it as well? I don't think so. From here, Buffett makes investments and buys companies, working his financial magic.

Christer Buffett, who is 94 years old, has built up the company over the past six decades into a financial juggernaut, which is now worth well over a trillion dollars. Despite the immense wealth he's accumulated, he actually doesn't seem to enjoy spending money like many of our billionaires. Like his favorite. FOOD IS Ice cream Sundays he drinks cherry coconut.

Warren Buffett really is different to the other super wealthy, the kind of people that you read about and perhaps even envy. I'm sorry that Mr. Buffett can't tell you how to make money like they do, but I suppose at least you can pick up some tips on how to lead a rich life like he does. Well, Warren Buffett has had a longer career than most people. He earned his first money as a six year old.

bought his first shares aged eleven, and filed his first tax return at just thirteen. He's now one of the richest people in the world, and he's also known for his philanthropy. Tens of thousands of people attend the company's shareholder meetings, which are actually held in stadiums in the US.

And one of those people is Buffett super fan Charlie Newsom, who's divisional director at the wealth manager Wrathbones. Charlie, you are a self-described disciple of Warren Buffett. So just explain the appeal. Um, I've always taken the view that uh in life that you should follow successful people um and understand how they approach life and good because they leave tips.

ac yn ymwneud â nhw'n ymwneud â nhw'n ymwneud â nhw'n ymwneud â nhw'n ymwneud â nhw'n ymwneud â nhw'n ymwneud â nhw'n ymwneud â nhw'n ymwneud â nhw'n ymwneud â nhw. Yn 2016 rydyn ni'n gwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud.

listen to him i in one of the i in in Omaha. It's a enormous stadium and uh it more than fills and then they have overflow rooms as well. I think something like forty five thousand people attended when I went there. I g I got in the queue at four o'clock in the morning to make sure I got got a really good seat and I still didn't get in the front row. So there we go. This doesn't sound like a shareholder meeting. It sounds uh like a music concert, like Taylor Swift.

Well, it is a little bit. He h him and I listened to uh Warren and Charlie Munger, who sadly died a couple of years ago. Um a and the two of them basically sit there all day and answer questions. Mae'n rhywbeth iawn, mae'n rhywbeth iawn, mae'n rhywbeth iawn, mae'n rhywbeth iawn, mae'n rhywbeth iawn, mae'n rhywbeth iawn, mae'n rhywbeth iawn, mae'n rhywbeth iawn, mae'n rhywbeth iawn, mae'n rhywbeth iawn.

Um that is also the AGM of the company which is uh a it's sort of a bit of a you know it just goes through because Warren owns most of the shares. Rydyn ni'n gwneud rhywbeth, rydych chi'n gwneud rhywbeth, rydych chi'n gwneud rhywbeth, rydych chi'n gwneud rhywbeth, rydych chi'n gwneud rhywbeth, rydych chi'n gwneud rhywbeth, rydych chi'n gwneud rhywbeth, rydych chi'n gwneud rhywbeth.

where you can go and buy all sorts of um things from seas candies, all of which are are owned by Berkshire Hathaway. So it's it's a lovely experience. You meet some amazing people and you get to listen to um t arguably two of the best investors in the world of in our lifetime. Now a lot of people want his advice, don't they? They analyse his investing style and he's famous for sending out his annual shareholder letter each year explaining his current thinking about the financial climate. So

How does he invest? Why is it so successful? Um first of all he only invests within what he describes as his circle of competence, which is you know, he's a very intelligent man. So he only invests in things he really understands. So he s hasn't really invested so much in technology which although he has invested in Apple.

Ond mae'n gweithio yn gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio. So, you know, they're gonna be difficult to compete away. And thirdly, i i in businesses which aren't particularly expensive.

you know, sometimes they are are are you know, they th the the what they the valuation's quite high, but he can see many years, many decades of growth going forward. And and th this this was a lesson that he didn't bring himself. This was something something that Charlie Munger um, taught him um that if you want to really compound your wealth you've gotta be very patient and buy things that which can um compound over many, many years.

Okay, now here in the UK our government is pushing to get more people investing. But last week on this programme we talked about how we're quite a risk averse country. Warren Buffett doesn't actually advocate taking huge risks, does he? Um he doesn't and I'm not sure if you're not going Make a few investments and be patient with them. Only invest in things you understand as I've already said.

But um just quietly let them compound over many years. He says that if you're not sure what you should be doing, you should be investing in an exchange traded fund like an ETF. Like the S the S P five hundred. Um, and that will that that will do a very good job and you'll get a very good return over many, many, many, many years. And trying to be buy individual stocks is is much harder.

Um and he also he also warns against people investing if they if they can't afford to. Um we're we're almost out of time, so just tell me the one piece of Warren Buffett wisdom that you'll be taking through your whole career. I I think it's I think I've already said it is follow successful people um and uh r study them. Don't try and copy them but um but try and study their their practices, them their morals, um because they leave leave tip.

It's advice for life. Charlie Newsom from Rathbones, thank you very much indeed.

We've had an email from Michael uh talking about interest rates, who says it always seems to be forgotten that there are just as many savers as borrowers, and many of us rely on savings income to supplement our pensions or other income. For people like us, falling interest rates are anything but positive. Michael, thank you very much for sharing your thoughts on that.

Let's finish though on a high with one of our most incredible money box wins of twenty twenty five. Dan, you do the honors. Yeah, this last one is a particularly great story, Fliss, and one of the biggest wins in terms of the amount of money People have ended up with millions of pounds for retired on call firefighters. This is Tristan Ashby, Chief Executive of the Fire and Rescue Services Association.

Back in the summer, Moneybox raised awareness with regards to retired uncle firefighters who were eligible for a pension. This resulted in over five hundred former firefighters contacting the union. and are now due to receive an not just an annual pension But also a lump sum that in some cases is over£100,000. This has been genuinely life-changing amounts of money that wouldn't have been possible without the involvement of Moneybox. We are so grateful.

So a very happy Christmas to everybody at Moneybox.

Ah Tristan, thank you very much. And Dan, that is hundreds of people having a very different Christmas thanks to Moneybok. Great news. Dan's looking quite quite proud there. Well that is just a few of the Money Box winners from twenty twenty five. We can't wait to help our podcast listeners even more next year. So if you have a money mix up.

A savings snag or a financial frustration of any sort, then do get in touch. You can email moneybox at bbc.co.uk. You can also send a voice note or comment to us on WhatsApp. The number is O three oh six. 783-183. We really do read and listen to every message. Next Saturday, you can catch me with a special Money Box podcast on creative jobs featuring the King of Panto himself, Christopher Biggins. When I was first asked to do pantomime, which is fifty years ago.

And I said, No, I don't I'm an actor, I don't do pantomime and eventually one day they mentioned the money. And the salary fifty years ago for me to play Mother Goose in Darlington Civic Theatre was one thousand pounds a week. Do not miss Christopher Biggins. In this podcast, the reporter and chief elf was Dan Whitworth, Rodolphian researchers Ema Devlin and Joe Krasner, the studio manager was sparkling Simeon Ricketts, our editor is Jolly Jess Quail.

I am a very festive Felicity Hannah, and this was a BBC News Money and Work production for BBC Sounds. This is Dr. Chris. And Doctors aren't here, and we are dropping in to let you know about our new BBC Radio 4 podcast. In What's Up Docs we are going to be diving into the most

Confusing, can't it, Zant? That's right, Chris. The mass of information out there can be contradictory, it can be overwhelming, and Chris and I get confused too. That's right, we get seduced by the marketing, the hype, the training. we want to be your guides through it. And I think it's fair to say, Zond, we are gonna be getting personal. We're absolutely going to be getting personal, Chris. What I want to do is bring in my own health dilemmas in the hope

with yours. Listen and subscribe to What's Up Docs on BBC Sounds. If there was a big red button that would just demolish the internet, I would smash that button with my forehead. From the BBC, this is The Interface, the show that explores how tech is rewiring your week and your world. This isn't about quarterly earnings or about tech reviews. It's about what technology is actually doing to your work, your politics, your everyday life, and all the bizarre ways people are using the internet.

Listen on BBC dot com or wherever you get your podcast. Amazon presenterar Oskars lägg dig. Oskar har inte skottat på över tre år. Om man kan välja mellan trappor och rulltrappan så tar han hissen. Hans ben får inga svåra uppdrag nu för tiden. Men sen hoppade Oscar på Amazon och köp en skivstång fem skörd. Proteinpulver och en rejäl massagepistol. Nu kan oskar mossa meloner med sina lår och anskar råd full med super fixor. Bra jobbat, Öskar! Få lägg det att hända hoppar på scherm.se.