R-Day!!!

[parabellum]

All he said was that he bought a house in Ash Vale, didn't say he lived in it.

Very easy to let a house in the Ash Vale area and still live in MQs in Scotland or where ever.

[Lima Juliet]

Not venerable, but able to add a view on the NI debate. You only pay NI on "earnings" and as a pension is not "earnings" then you don't for your pension - simples! Tax is as Willard has explained very nicely.

The Police Pension (similar to ours) Calculator website is also helpful by stating "Pension income is taxed as earned income but there are no national insurance or company pension scheme deductions" - see here Police Benefits | Police Pension Calculators | Income When You Retire

[davejb]

In 23 years of service I spent 21 of them at Kinloss - as NCO aircrew (AEOp) on the Nimrod MPA there was almost no chance of being posted anywhere other than Kinloss unless you actively worked to get onto another platform - several escapees to 51 and the SAR world each year, but a mere drop in the ocean compared to the huge number of siggies who moved between the squadrons, OCU and Ops, with double tours on the flying squadrons quite normal.

Even when St Mawgan was flying MPA it was far from easy to get a posting to 42, I'd be amazed to hear that anyone was posted from Kinloss to St Mawgan who hadn't fought long and hard to arrange it themselves.

For a kipper fleet siggie to buy a house up here was far from a silly move - and why the **** would somebody facing an entire career on one airbase buy a house anywhere else? Buy at the other end of the country, rent it out, and live in a quarter? Quite the most stupid idea I've heard yet...buy in Moray, rent it out if you get posted away, meanwhile settle into your own home where you'll likely still be 20 years later makes rather more sense. At least that way there's some likelihood you'll get to live in the place yourself.

The comment about 'Not somewhere about as far as you can get from "real life".' is just crass frankly.

Kev's right.

[Seldomfitforpurpose]

Originally Posted by parabellum

All he said was that he bought a house in Ash Vale, didn't say he lived in it.

Very easy to let a house in the Ash Vale area and still live in MQs in Scotland or where ever.

He bought a house in Ash Vale whilst stationed at Odiham, do the street map thing

Now imagine the guy stationed at ISK who also bought a house locally and now try to imagine with all that is going on in that part of the world just how ****in easy it is to rent/sell that property and go live in the south where there is work, **** me readers but stupid is as stupid does really is appropriate here

[Lima Juliet]

But what are the chances of the house you buy as a 20 year old "Plastic Sgt" being anywhere big enough for 2+2 young children as a 26-30 years old? Come on, do you really believe that you'll be in the same house for 20 years? In any case, with a 25 year mortgage it would be all but paid off...

More likely to be in the same house in your 40s which you bought it in your 30s - and in your 40s you're past the 22 point and now in receipt of an immediate pension. Under AFPS75 a tax-free lump sum, Special Capital Payment for redundancy and a life long (index linked) pension; unless of course, you're one of those that took the gamble for OTT to AFPS05!

So I don't see why for Kinloss-ites it is any different to anyone else...

LJ

[Seldomfitforpurpose]

The more I read in here the more I realise some folk have simply lost the bloody plot when it comes to spotting the blindingly obvious

Originally Posted by Leon Jabachjabicz

But what are the chances of the house you buy as a 20 year old "Plastic Sgt" being anywhere big enough for 2+2 young children as a 26-30 years old? Come on, do you really believe that you'll be in the same house for 20 years? In any case, with a 25 year mortgage it would be all but paid off...

Said 20 year old is now 45 and redundant in a part of the world where there is no work. He/she is probably a FS on around 45k a year. What pension rate do you reckon they are on


More likely to be in the same house in your 40s which you bought it in your 30s - and in your 40s you're past the 22 point and now in receipt of an immediate pension. Under AFPS75 a tax-free lump sum, Special Capital Payment for redundancy and a life long (index linked) pension; unless of course, you're one of those that took the gamble for OTT to AFPS05!
Same question applies


So I don't see why for Kinloss-ites it is any different to anyone else...
Hence you are daft


LJ

The ISK folk are not alone in being stuck in some remote part of the country where there is minimal employment, where the current global economic situation means they are going to get stuffed in the property market when moving to find work and to get any where close to to their previous wage levels they are really going to have to luck in on the job front.

[FODPlod]

Net salary on top of pension

WW - Thanks from me too. Something was nagging me after I made my post and you identified it. However, given a pension of £25,000, additional gross earnings of £17,475 are still only £13,695 net of 20% tax (£2,550) and NIC (£1,230) before you enter the 40% tax bracket at £42,475.

If my reckoning below is correct, a salary of £40k on top of a pension of £25,000 will only gain you an additional £23.5k after paying tax and NIC.

Gross pension = £25,000
Tax on pension = £3,505
Net pension = £21,495
Gross salary = £40,000
Gross income = £65,000
Tax on gross income = £16,010
NIC on gross salary = £3,933
Total tax and NIC = £19,943
Total net income = £45,057
Total net income above net pension = £23,562 (i.e. take home pay)

I did the same sums for a salary of £50k to see if the results were consistent:

Gross pension = £25,000
Tax on pension = £3,505
Net pension = £21,495
Gross salary = £50,000
Gross income = £75,000
Tax on gross income = £20,010
NIC on gross salary = £4,381
Total tax and NIC = £24,391
Total net income = £50,609
Total net income above net pension = £29,114 (i.e. take home pay)

I'm no expert so please feel free to check my sums. Income tax calculator here. NIC calculator here.

If I'm right, even a salary of £50k will only be worth £29k in your pocket before taking into account all the usual expenses associated with working. It might allow you to maintain your lifestyle but it could be a severe comedown in terms of take-home pay for a full-time job, probably with less paid leave than you've been used to. This is why you shouldn't yield to employers who try to palm you off with less because "you're already on a pension".

[Lima Juliet]

Sffp

Your FS would get £34k tax free SCP, with a tax free gratuity of £36k - making £70k tax free lump sum PLUS a £12k per year pension (£965 per month take home).

Now according to Zoopla the average property price in IV36 is £160k, which after a 10% deposit is £144k -a mortgage for that at 5% is about £840 per month over 25 years.

So the FS could pay off £70k of the mortgage and then reduce the sum to about £430 a month leaving £435 a month to pay everything else. Or pay the mortgage and get £125 change out of the pension and then draw a further £2k per month spending money (tax free) for the next 3 years whilst trying to find a job. Oh, and they could probably use their ELCAS to pay £2,000 per year of tuition fees to retrain over the 3 years.

Come off it pal, that's a ferkin' good deal by anyone's standards who's worked in civvy street.

Daft moi? You must be mistaken...

LJ

[Lima Juliet]

FODPlod

Looking at your numbers for retirement pension then I'm guessing that's for an OF-4. So £25k is about the 23 year point and an OF-4 would be on about £70k at that point. So if one got a £50k job after redundancy, then it would still be better than staying in - £75k before tax but with reduced NI of about £100 per month. Plus you'd have £75k tax free in the bank. But the wise man commutes and that would be £110k tax free and about £70k per year. Plus an OF-4's 9 months pay would take the lump sum to a whopping £160k tax free on redundancy.

Again, I don't see your point either - or am I really that daft as Sffp would have me believe?

LJ

[cazatou]

Willard Whyte

The current situation with NI contributions for the State Pension is that Men born on or after 6 April 1945 require 30 Qualifying years of contributions for the State Old Age Pension .

Women born on or after 6 April 1950 require 30 Qualifying years.

These statements assume that the information provided by HMG is correct!!

[deltahotel]

And you only pay 40% on the portion above the high rate tax threshold

[Seldomfitforpurpose]

LJ,

So your plan is to buy a cheap property, there is a very good reason why the property is cheap in that part of the world but I guess you know that.

So buy a cheap property and then spend 3 years spending your nest egg whilst looking for a job in an area where the market is awash with unemployed folk all in a similar position due to closures and redundancies

[FODPlod]

Net salary on top of pension

Originally Posted by Leon Jabachjabicz

FODPlod

Looking at your numbers for retirement pension then I'm guessing that's for an OF-4. So £25k is about the 23 year point and an OF-4 would be on about £70k at that point. So if one got a £50k job after redundancy, then it would still be better than staying in - £75k before tax but with reduced NI of about £100 per month. Plus you'd have £75k tax free in the bank. But the wise man commutes and that would be £110k tax free and about £70k per year. Plus an OF-4's 9 months pay would take the lump sum to a whopping £160k tax free on redundancy.

Again, I don't see your point either - or am I really that daft as Sffp would have me believe?

My point is that a salary of £50k might well 'gross up' your total income to £75k but if you are still paying Class 'A' NI contributions (£365.09 pcm = £4,381 pa) towards the 30 years of contributions required for a full state pension, you will only benefit £29k on top of your net pension after tax and NIC. If you didn't have a pension, your £50k salary would net you a more respectable £35.5k after tax and NIC. The critical factor is that your pension is already putting you that much closer to the 40% tax threshold before you start earning a penny.

The 'penalty' associated with having a pension is even more apparent with lower salaries. If you lack transferable skills or are in an area with few job opportunities, you may have to settle for a salary of, say, £25k for a 46-week year but you will see little more than £16k benefit on top of your net pension after tax and NIC. If you didn't have a pension, your £25k salary would net you a more respectable £19.5k after tax and NIC. As with any job, you will probably have to pay out for commuting, extra vehicle wear and tear, unsubsidised meals, two-line whip social events, collections, suitable clothing, etc.

All I am saying is beware of settling for less because "you are on a pension." You won't see as much of your salary as you might imagine and no one likes working for peanuts unless it's a labour of love.

[Seldomfitforpurpose]

Fod,

And that presupposes in an area of recent closure and redundancies there are any 25k jobs going

[cazatou]

I suppose that there was never any realistic possibility of SFFP going quietly.

[Seldomfitforpurpose]

Originally Posted by cazatou

I suppose that there was never any realistic possibility of SFFP going quietly.

Dear oh dear Caz, you really do have it bad eh

As long as I am still in I qualify to post here, you on the other hand as a civvy..................

PS. Any comment on the Mull outcome

[A and C]

Seldom

I find your attitude to others on this forum rather interesting, you opinions have received comment from people who are both in and out of the forces.

You seem to want to find a way of getting rid of anyone who has an opinion that is not in line with yours, I got both barrels of a particularly rude, offensive and untrue rant. Now you return to the line that if you are not in the military you should not post on this forum.

I would think that the most valuable posts on this thread would have been from civilians who had recently left the military, they are the people who know the pitfalls leaving the military.

Your attitude of censorship (if you had your way) would deprive the readership of this forum from useful advice and opinion from those who have gone before and encourage a blinkered view of victimization in those who are about to be made redundant.

There is no doubt that people are moving into civilian life at a tough time but this with skills will find work, after all they leave the forces with a good redundancy deal, it is only those who fail to adapt and adopt a narrow view who will fail to make a living.

[MFC_Fly]

SFFP,

I started this thread in order to commiserate with those that didn't get what they wanted, to congratulate those that did, to express surprise at some of the decisions made and for good advice to be passed by well-wishers.

I did NOT start this thread so that people like you could turn it into a personal attack against other PPRuNe members.

Some of the points you raise are valid, but your personal comments about others that disagree with you are unwarranted - please desist!

MFC

[gijoe]

A serious question to those that volunteered and have received their notification packs:

Q. Is it stated anywhere that you are not entitled to take advantage of Resettlement Commutation if you volunteered and were selected?

If not, I smell a mistake...

G

[Seldomfitforpurpose]

Originally Posted by A and C

Now you return to the line that if you are not in the military you should not post on this forum.
Like one or two others on here you miss the elephant in the room. I am not the site owner and I am not a mod but the point I grasp fully is that the site owners and the mods are clearly happy with the status quo as am I, there is a civvy who posts in here who is well over the ten thousand so any notion that civvys are not welcome in here is palinly daft.

If you were a regular in here you would know this thorny little subject comes up every now and again and I thoroughly enjoy poking the wasps nest, so to speak as I know that several posters in here hate the fact that the forum entry rules make no mention of EX anywhere and hate even more the fact that I mention it hence the rudeness, snipes and stalking

If you think bluntness is rude then it's probably as well you never joined any of the services as calling it as you see it is a daily way of life for those in uniform and it's never done me a days harm in well over 30 years