Grant is an experienced mortgage adviser and will be responsible for all mortgage advice to both existing and new clients.

If you haven’t reviewed your mortgage recently, there are some very competitive deals available so do call Grant for a no obligation review . . . → Read More: Sovereign appoints new mortgage adviser]]> Sovereign is pleased to announce the recent appointment of Grant Edgerton to our team.

Grant is an experienced mortgage adviser and will be responsible for all mortgage advice to both existing and new clients.

If you haven’t reviewed your mortgage recently, there are some very competitive deals available so do call Grant for a no obligation review of your situation on 01454 416653

There is a possible . . . → Read More: Sovereign Blog – How to become the banker to your own business]]> A number of our clients are small business owners and one of the things they regularly tell us is how difficult it is to obtain finance from their bank, and in the event that they can get a bank to agree to lend, the fees and interest rate payable is off the scale!

There is a possible solution to this problem and that is to look at the pension arrangements of the company directors and how these could be used in conjunction with a Small Self Administered Pension Scheme (SSAS).

A key benefit to a SSAS arrangement over the better known Self Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) is that a SSAS can lend to the business connected with the scheme members (directors of the company).

In very simple terms, the directors could establish a new SSAS arrangement and transfer their combined pension pots into the scheme. A loan could then be arranged to the business to assist with their business activities, the maximum amount being 50% of the net assets of the SSAS.

Of course there are conditions attached to any loan. First of all it must be secured as a first legal charge on an asset, and needs to be re-paid in equal installments of capital and interest over a period of not more than 5 years. The interest rate must be no less than 1% above the average base lending rate of six leading high street banks, but it is up to the trustees of the scheme (the directors) to agree a commercial rate of interest to be paid by their business to their own pension scheme.

There are, of course, penalties for not complying with these conditions, so a SSAS is not some sort of get out of jail free card for ailing firms, indeed, why would the directors of an ailing firm want to risk their pension fund assets in such a manner?

However, in the right circumstances, and with the appropriate professional advice, the ability to effectively become the banker to your own business is one of many reasons why small businesses should consider a SSAS.

This document is for general information only and is not intended to be personal advice. There are additional complexities and administrational duties for Trustees of a SSAS and you are recommended to seek professional advice before taking or refraining from taking any action on the basis of the contents of this publication.