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Financial freedom is a journey
Posted on: 13th Jan 2024 by: CamOuse Financial Management Limited
What does financial freedom look like for you?
For most, it means having enough income, savings or investments to live life on their own terms, without having to worry about the consequences.
But financial freedom isn’t something that can be achieved overnight. It’s a target that you need to work towards over many years, with strategic and careful planning.
Set clear goals
The first step to achieving financial freedom is to decide exactly what it means to you.
Is it being debt-free, mortgage-free and being able to pay unexpected costs without worrying? Or is it more ambitious, with all the above plus being able to enjoy hobbies and pursuits such as regular holidays?
Deciding what financial freedom looks like to you is really important so you can devise a plan that reflects the outcomes you want to see.
Get on top of your finances
It’s crucial that you have a good oversight on how much money you have coming in, your expenses and what you’re saving.
By making sure you have a holistic understanding of your finances, you can create a budget that reflects your income, expenses and savings targets.
You could also identify areas where you could cut back, so funds can be reallocated to other priorities, such as savings, pensions and paying down debts.
Create an emergency fund
You don’t want your journey to financial freedom to be derailed by sudden and unexpected expenses, such as repairs to your home or replacing expensive household appliances.
It’s therefore well worth setting aside a pot of money exactly for when disasters and unforeseen events strike, so you have a safety net in place in case the worst happens, and don’t have to dip into your all-important savings accounts.
Pay off high interest debts first
If you have multiple debts to pay off, prioritise those with the highest interest charges, as these will ultimately be more costly in the long run.
Paying these debts off first can free up more money overall, which again can be diverted towards helping you achieve your financial goals.
Diversify your investments
You can invest your money in countless ways, from pensions and Individual Savings Accounts to stocks, shares and various asset types.
If your money is invested in different ways, you’ll be less exposed to risk, so your wider portfolio will be better placed to withstand any shocks or slumps in the economy or wider markets.
You should also make a point of regularly reviewing and adjusting your investment strategy at least once a year, as your financial goals and circumstances may evolve over time and your portfolio needs to reflect that.
Cut back on impulse buying
It’s so easy to spend a few pounds here and a few pounds there on items we don’t need without really thinking about it.
If you have a set financial objective in mind, it might be worth reviewing your bank statements and seeing how much money you’re spending on unnecessary impulse purchases.
That might then encourage you to reevaluate your spending habits, so you’re not wasting precious funds unnecessarily, when they could instead be helping you reach your goal sooner rather than later.
Seek professional financial advice
If what we’ve described seems overwhelming and time-consuming, then help is at hand, as a professional financial planner can work with you to devise a financial strategy, based around your specific needs and aspirations.
By working with a regulated specialist in this field, the pressure of getting on top of your finances is removed, and you can trust them to oversee your financial affairs while you get on with living your life.
That can make a huge difference to you when you’re making big financial decisions, and allows you to move forward with a degree of confidence, certainty and assurance that you’re doing the right thing.
If you have any questions about managing your finances and setting yourself up for the future, feel free to contact us and we’ll be happy to speak with you.
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I thought CamOuse were very helpful and dealt with my enquiries promptly.
D Mowatt
Clive Nickalls
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I have been a client of CamOuse's for many years. My advisors have provided assistance with mortgages, financial planning, investments and most importantly my future. The team remain passionate and professional and I would recommend CamOuse without question.
L Isbell
Trevor Honey & Clive Nickalls
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The staff are always happy to help.
J Pearce
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Lee has always given me excellent advice when choosing a new mortgage. I would highly recommend him.
R O'Dell
Lee Pooley
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Everyone is very friendly, approchable, helpful and professional.
G Parr
Trevor Honey
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I would like to thank Lee for all his help, he was amazing!
Silk & Schwarz
Lee Pooley
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Lee was recommended to us by 2 of his existing clients, colleagues and friends of ours and I'm glad they did so! He made the whole process much simpler then we were expecting.
Burgess & Bedford
Lee Pooley
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Lee has helped us on several occassions and we always appreciate and value his time and efforts.
I & A Murphy
Lee Pooley
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I really appreciate the prompt, friendly, efficient service.
V Hardy
Clive Nickalls
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Very pleased with the service provided and happy to recommend to my customers and friends and family.
M Chadburn
Clive Nickalls
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I would like to express my thanks for the excellent service I have received and a special thank you to Hannah for keeping me updated and dealing with my queries in a very efficient and professional manner.
T Long
Matthew Theobald
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Thank you (and Eve) so much for all your help and support towards our remortgage. We really appreciated your expertise.
Cant & Robbins
Lee Pooley
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I would just like to thank you all on behalf of myself and Jordan. You, Eve and Max have been faultless and we couldn’t be more appreciative for all your help!
C Baldwin
Lee Pooley
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Lee has provided me with mortgages and appropriate insurance for both my home and lease properties. He is professional and works to get policies in place in an extremely quick time frame. I would certainly recommend Lee and CamOuse to anyone and I personally will continue to use their service.
G Habbin
Lee Pooley
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I have been a client of CamOuse Financial Management Ltd for many years and have always found their services to be of the highest quality.
N Parker
Jo Kurz
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Amazing company, very friendly, professional, and always on hand to give sound advice. My family has been utilising their expertise for many years and have never been let down.
S Bradley
Jo Kurz
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Sound financial advice and planning. Responsive and friendly service.
B O'Connor
Jo Kurz
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The whole team at CamOuse are friendly, professional and always look after your best interests. Thanks for your help!
G Hall
Lee Pooley
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We've only been with CamOuse just over a year but would highly recommend them. We deal with Matthew who is an excellent adviser, always very responsive to questions and goes the extra mile to help.
P Carter
Matthew Theobald
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I was so pleased and relieved to find this company. Particularly pleasing is their communication - it's jargon-free, concise and clear. We've been very happy with advice given thus far, and also their responsiveness whenever we've had any queries.
A Cant
Jo Kurz
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We used Lee at Camouse to arrange our mortgage and can highly recommend him to provide an honest and professional service in this area. We will certainly return to Lee for remortgage advice in the future.
A Attewell
Lee Pooley
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Would like to extend our thanks to you and your team for a fantastic customer service as always.
E & R Mendoza
Lee Pooley
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We paid a small fee to Camouse for whole of market mortgage broker services. As first time buyers, Lee and Eve were able to guide us through the process, find us a deal and sort out the applications in a really helpful friendly and efficient way. We were very satisfied and would recommend CamOuse to others for this service.
L Humphrey
Lee Pooley
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I was extremely pleased with the quality of the service I received when arranging a mortgage as part of a house sale and purchase through CamOuse. Lee and Eve were very easy to contact and always quick to respond. I would definitely recommend their mortgage arrangement services.
G Dewdney
Lee Pooley
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Jo has been extremely helpful and very patient and I will be recommending her highly to other family and friends of mine. I do sincerely appreciate the way Jo handled my issues and also the excellent and very professional way she conducted business. She is an absolute asset to CamOuse.
C Tate
Jo Kurz
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CamOuse have been our go-to financial advisers since 2008 and have assisted with numerous mortgages, remortgages, insurances, and general financial advice. Lee Pooley and Eve Nowakowska have been invaluable during this time. We've built up an excellent relationship with both and trust them completely to do what's in our best interests. Both are an absolute pleasure to work with and I cannot recommend them, and by extension CamOuse, enough!
I Murphy
Lee Pooley
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We used the services of CamOuse to help in buying our first home and setting up our mortgage and we were extremely happy with all the advice and help we got. We spoke to Lee mostly, who was really great! Very insightful, very friendly and helpful, very patient and all-round great service. Would happily seek their help again. Many thanks Lee!
C Bolas
Lee Pooley
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We have been taking mortgage advice from CamOuse for over 20 years and are always impressed by their friendliness and professionalism.
N Amery
Lee Pooley
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Thank you to Matthew and Julie for making a huge difference in my life when I thought I was so stuck and felt there was never going to be a way to move forward.
L Smith
Matthew Theobald
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Camouse Financial Management Limited is an Appointed Representative of Quilter Financial Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
None of the information contained in this website should be considered as personal recommendation and is for information only. Should you wish to make a financial transaction we recommend that you take personal financial advice after a thorough review of your personal and financial circumstances.
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Pension arrangements must be available for all employees. There are three categories of employee:
Eligible
Aged between 22 and State Pension Age (SPA) with qualifying earnings over the Auto Enrolment earnings trigger
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Important Notes
- Eligible jobholders must be auto-enrolled
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Qualifying Earnings lower threshold |
£5,772 |
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Qualifying Earnings upper threshold |
£41,865 |
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Automatic Enrolment earnings trigger |
£10,000 |
Minimum contribution level options:
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8% of Qualifying Earnings of which |
3% is employer's (starting at 1%) |
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9% of Basic Salary of which |
4% is employer's (starting at 2%) |
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8% of Basic Salary of which |
3% is employer's (starting at 1%) |
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(Where basic salary is at least 85% of total earnings) |
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7% of gross earnings of which |
3% is employer's (starting at 1%) |
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