Manchester is the hottest city for first time buyers

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What to read right now…

With everything that’s going on in the Middle East, did you miss the government’s spring statement? Well Rachel Reeves reckons “people will be over £1,000 a year better off” by the next election, which seems optimistic.

Meanwhile, and rather unsurprisingly, people stop paying into their pension when a major life event happens, like buying a home, having children or being made redundant.

On a different note, people are turning to AI for retirement planning, which might not necessarily be accurate or indeed tailored to anyone’s situation.

What people are not preparing for is death – one in three adults have no wills, final wishes or any other plans.

Finally, Manchester is currently the hottest city for first time buyers.

The deal that’s a steal…

I don’t know why but M&S has a sale on at the moment with up to 50% off* everything from clothing to homeware.

It’s a real mish mash of stuff.

I’m plumping for homewares personally because their stuff is usually good quality and good value (and I don’t need anymore clothes).

But be prepared to spend some time browsing as their website is a bit clunky.

These M&S embossed floral wine glasses* caught my eye – they’re £7.50 for a pair instead of the usual £15.

If you only do one thing…

It is the penultimate newsletter before my first quarterly hiatus of 2026 so it’s a good time to remind you that the end of the tax year is coming up.

If you do nothing else, at least top up your ISA.

And if you think you might be pushed into a higher tax bracket, it’s also a good time to pay into your pension to reduce your tax burden.