Property investment glossary

Final Pensionable Salary

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The amount on which an individual’s final benefits are calculated in a Defined Benefit scheme, subject to the conditions of the scheme.

Finance Act 2004

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The Act of Parliament in 2004 which proposes changes to Excise Duties, VAT, Income Tax, Corporation Tax and Capital Gains Tax.

First Time Buyer (FTB)

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​First time buyers are individuals or joint applicants who purchase a property for the first time. Often mortgage lenders seek to attract their business with increasing competitiveness. First time buyers are often referred to as FTB’s.

Fixed Fee

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A conveyancer’s fee that is pre-agreed at the start of the exchange process.

Flexible Drawdown

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Flexible Drawdown is a form of withdrawing income from your pension pot without a limit to the amount that you can take from your scheme each year. However, not everyone can access flexible drawdown, as you must be able to secure a minimum amount of secure pension income every year to qualify. From March 2014 the minimum annual income required was reduced to £12,000 and from April 2015 the minimum income requirement was completely removed. With a flexi-access drawdown, you can take out 25% of your pension pot out completely tax-free, whilst the remaining 75% of your pension fund are taxable at your marginal income tax rate.

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)

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An investment by a person from one country into another country.

Formal State Pension Forecast

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An educated prediction of the amount of State Pension an individual is likely to receive based on their National Insurance contributions, as well as the basic State Pension earned to date.

Freehold

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The freeholder owns both the property and the land it is built on outright.

Free-Standing Additional Voluntary Contributions

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FSAVCs, unlike AVCs, are offered by insurance companies instead of an employer’s pension scheme and are generally money-purchase arrangements.