Financially secure seeking advice on investing €330k cash

[Luternau]

Short version

Age 56, single
No longer working, not retired.

I have €330,000 cash and looking for investment advice/suggestions.

Full information

Age: 56
Status: Single, no kids

Former Public Service, class D PRSI

Not currently working (by choice) and unlikely to do so again.

Annual Income: €48,000 gross (investment property + expected deposit interest)

Normal Retirement Age: 60

I have enough money to live comfortably upmto.and beyond retirement age.

Future Pension:
Public Service: €33,000 p.a
Tax free lump sum €93,000 (plus some from AVC)

AVC: Current value €170,000
Invested in low risk strategy. Not growing much above inflation. Plan to switch to more growth /higher risk orientated funds.

I will also have almost 800 reckonable stamps for state OAP.

No debts or loans

PPR: Value approx €450,000

Assets

Cash: €330,000

Investment Property 1:
Value Approx €400,000
Gross rent: €22,000 p.a
No plans to sell until I reach 60+ or keep for my Estate

Investment Property 2:
Value Approx €420,000-450,000
Gross rent: €20,000 p.a.
Current tenants (HAP) are overholding almost 2yrs. I am cnsidering keeping until 60 for more income generation and deferral of CGT.

Future CGT liability (at current values and rates)
Approx €170,000-180,000.


Questions

Untimately I want to simplify my life ...

What to do with the €330k cash

Put some in ETF?
I have no experience of ETF and the deemed disposal and Income tax treatment is off putting.

Would one of the investment trusts that CGT be an option ?

With my future CGT liabilities I would prefer something under CGT or direct ownership of shares. Any loss could be offset against future liabilities.

Almost 200k in tax is a lot of money and maybe worth avoiding if I can.

Is it worth buying a property overseas, become non-resident, and avoid all or most of CGT at a future date?

Under the non-reesidency thought , have thought about buying a now deceased friends property in the UK. He passed away late November. The house is perfect and I like the araa. I have not put a lot of thought into it. UK is probably not the place to go to reduce taxes.

I could just spend enough time outside Ireland each year (183 days?) to eventually become non resident for tax. I like travel and will probably put in 8 weeks or so in Austria this winter alone.

Perhaps tax residence impacts the pension. I ammaware it limits me in terms of an ARF.

Q. Should I put my AVC on high growth/risk strategy and take lower secure growth on some/most of my cash?

Thanks

 

[Zenith63]

With my future CGT liabilities I would prefer something under CGT or direct ownership of shares. Any loss could be offset against future liabilities.

When do you expect to need the cash back out, given your other income sources? Gains and losses within ETFs will be offset automatically and the chances of something like a World Index being in negative territory for an investment horizon of 10/20/30 years is virtually zero, so I would not have this as a deciding factor.

You say you want simplicity, so my view would be to put whatever cash you cannot get into your pension into a single ETF and pay an accountant €500 to do tax returns for you in 8 years time. No research required on which companies to invest in or when to rebalance, no watching the news wondering how the companies you chose are doing, no messing with dividends, true diversity etc.

Untimately I want to simplify my life ...

Is it worth buying a property overseas, become non-resident, and avoid all or most of CGT at a future date?

These goals are not compatible.

Gains disappears when assets pass to your estate and you mention holding the investment properties to be passed on. Sounds like the simple answer to CGT to me.

 

[Luternau]

Thanks @Zenith63

Unless I resume working, investing more in my pension (tax free) is not open to me. I was always told that putting money into a pension. that has already been taxed is not recommended. Is that how you see it too?

That leads me to ETF and Investment Trusts which I can access before Retirement age (3.5yrs away now) if needs be.

I do not have a time frame on when I may need to take the money out of any fund.

Unless I significantly trade up on my PPR or buy in UK, or have considerable unforeseen expense I have enough money to live very comfortably on. See last paragraph.

If non-residency tax matters got complicated that would be a reason not to buy.

I am aware I am in a great financial position. I need to start spending more. Strange as it may sound, part of me is not programmed to live the life I can now have, and it's not how I was brought up.