Autumn 2025: Take Stock and Strengthen Your Finances

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Forget New Year’s resolutions – autumn is the perfect time to reset your finances. The changing season is a natural moment to pause, take stock and make sure your money is working for the life you want now and in the future.

Recent research shows that the cost of essentials like food and energy is still putting pressure on many households in 2025, even though around a quarter of people have seen a slight easing in their housing costs. Encouragingly, more than half of UK adults now feel their retirement plans are back on track, compared with a much higher level of disruption in 2024.

Even so, there are some big gaps – and autumn is a great moment to tackle them.

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1. Check your financial resilience

A key question to ask yourself is: how resilient are my finances if something unexpected happens?

The latest data suggests many people still lack short-term savings, even if they’re coping better with day-to-day bills. A cash buffer – typically three to six months’ essential expenditure – can stop a boiler breakdown, car repair or short period of illness from derailing your longer-term plans.

Protection is part of resilience too. Life cover, income protection and critical illness policies can easily be forgotten once set up, but the amount of cover you need will change over time – for example after moving home, having children, or divorce. A regular review ensures your safety net actually matches your life.

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2. Reconnect with your pension

The report highlights a striking knowledge gap: around seven in ten people don’t know the value of their pension pot, and just over half haven’t really thought about how much they’ll need in retirement.

Autumn is a smart time to:

• Track down old workplace pensions
• Check how your current pension is invested
• Review whether contributions are on track for the lifestyle you want

Many people have built up a “patchwork” of pots from different jobs, which can mean higher charges and a muddled investment picture. Consolidating some pensions can simplify things and potentially improve investment choice – but it needs careful thought, as older schemes sometimes include valuable guarantees or features you’d lose if you transfer.

You should also be aware of rule changes on the horizon. The normal minimum pension access age is due to rise from 55 to 57 in 2028, affecting anyone born on or after 6 April 1973. And from 2027, unspent defined contribution pensions are expected to fall within the Inheritance Tax (IHT) net, meaning pensions will play a bigger role in estate planning than they do today.

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3. Get ready for Budget and tax changes

With the 26 November Budget approaching and forecasts of a sizeable deficit later this decade, it’s widely expected that future tax rises or frozen thresholds may do more of the heavy lifting. Headline rates like Income Tax and National Insurance may stay unchanged, but allowances, reliefs and IHT rules are firmly in the spotlight.

Now is a good time to:

• Make full use of ISAs and pension allowances
• Review capital gains and consider taking profits where appropriate
• Revisit your estate and gifting plans in light of potential IHT changes

Research shows one in three people expecting to inherit at least £300,000 don’t fully understand how IHT works, and many families are missing opportunities to use exemptions and allowances effectively. At the same time, more than one in ten retirees are cutting back on financial support to children and grandchildren – the so-called “Bank of Mum and Dad” – just as younger generations are facing rising costs.

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4. Invest through global change – without losing your head

2025 has been anything but calm: shifting interest-rate expectations, geopolitical tensions, trade realignments, AI, the energy transition… the list goes on. Global growth is still positive but uneven, and markets are reacting quickly to every new data release.

In this environment, discipline beats prediction. Staying diversified across regions and asset classes, and aligning your investments with long-term goals and risk tolerance, is usually more effective than trying to jump in and out of markets based on headlines.

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5. Start the money conversations you’ve been putting off

Talk Money Week in November is a reminder that talking about money matters. Surveys show Brits are more likely to discuss politics at the dinner table than their finances, and many younger investors still rely on social media or friends for guidance instead of seeking professional advice.

This autumn, consider:

• A structured review with a financial planner
• A family conversation about wills, gifting and future support
• Checking in on your own goals: what’s changed since you last looked?

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Taking stock now – of your pensions, savings, protection, investments and estate plans – can help you face whatever 2026 brings with greater confidence.

Important: This article is for information only and does not constitute personal advice. The value of investments and pensions can fall as well as rise and you may get back less than you invest. Tax rules and reliefs depend on your personal circumstances and can change in future. If you’re unsure about the right approach for you, seek regulated financial advice.