AND SO WE welcome a new year, and with that, hopefully, new opportunities for your finances.
Traditionally, this is the time of year when we take a deep breath, shake off the excesses of Christmas and try to better ourselves for the next phase of our lives.
As 2025 kicks off, there is a sense of confidence and growth in the air in Ireland. Budget 2025 didn’t offend in any great way and brought some welcome relief for workers and inflation has been headed off at the pass.
So, let’s examine how things are looking and how you can take advantage of this buoyancy and make sure you have something to show for it come this time next year:
If you haven’t seen the winter sun for a fortnight, it mightn’t feel this way, but the country is in good shape. Compared to many developed countries, people in Ireland are not deeply divided in political terms while unemployment is lower than a year ago, and nudging the 4% mark, not far from the lowest ever rate.
And while Ireland, along with Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain were once derided as the PIIGS of Europe – now the PIIGS are flying. The latest figures show that Ireland recorded the Eurozone’s highest growth rate while France struggled to meet its budget and Germany struggled to rekindle export-led growth.
It took a lot of pain to get here, and the side effects — like clapped-out infrastructure and nosebleed housing costs — are still painful. But if you are looking to build your career, enjoy your money, or generally get on with things, Ireland is a better place to be than many right now. That’s a tailwind for your finances.
One of Ireland’s quieter successes over the last two years has been damping down inflation. From a peak of 9.2% in October 2022, inflation is now at 1.0%. Wow, what a difference.
The root cause here is external to Ireland: the fall in energy costs, and the knock-on effect on sectors like retail, leisure and manufactured items like shoes and clothes.
However, one cost that has failed to budge is the cost of housing. House prices rose around 10% in 2024, and there are forecasts for further increases this year, driven by population growth, slow housing completions and falling interest costs. It’s no better in the rental sector, where a dearth of accommodation options harms our ability to attract skilled workers and pushes rental costs to the limits of affordability. For all the talk, don’t expect an improvement here anytime soon.
Most people will also enjoy a bump in net salary as tax bands adjust from January. If you’re single and paid €44,000 or more, a further €2,000 of your pay falls into standard rate tax (20%). That’s an extra €400 a year in your pocket.
Changes in much-hated Universal Social Charge will deliver an extra €231 annually for a worker on €44,000. Tax credit tweaks will also help your bottom line.
Because inflation is falling, these tax cuts will deliver a real increase in your wealth. Make sure you do something with it. Think about saving or investing the increase or paying down your mortgage more aggressively.
Falling inflation is less good news for your headline salary. Low unemployment does offer some bargaining power and scope to move jobs. But for most of us, the time to negotiate decent inflationary increases in salary has slipped past.
In certain sectors, such as IT and professional services, demand has clearly reduced from a couple of years ago and pay rises are minimal or non-existent. Intel in Leixlip cut around 15% of its workforce in October. That’s linked to Intel’s global problems – but it’s a reminder of how things can change very quickly.
The exception is the minimum wage. That rose from €12.50 to €13.50 per hour, on 1 January. Clearly, this will help many low-paid people. But an 8% increase is far above inflation and is barely sustainable for many businesses and charities. We need an economy that can create entry-level jobs for people at an affordable cost for employers.
We can take a lesson here from Northern Ireland. There, the minimum wage rose to around €13.73 in April 2024, and employer national insurance (the equivalent of PRSI) will rise 1.2% from April this year. As a result, service businesses are cutting back opening hours and slowing down hiring because labour costs have simply become too expensive.
That affects all of us — watch out for similar problems in the south this year in retail, accommodation, food and caring sectors.
The new year is a good time to critically review your pension provision. Is it going to pay you a reasonable income when you stop working? If not, what’s the plan to fix it?
2024 was a strong year in investment markets – and there are reasons to be positive on prospects in 2025. Global stock markets rose over 20%. With luck, investment returns will have done some heavy lifting for you over the last twelve months. Make sure you’re getting in on the action. And if you’re not, look to change your funds, your plan, or your advisor – or maybe all three.
The European Central Bank reduced interest rates four times last year, to the current 3%. Further cuts are near-certain.
That’s good news for your mortgage and other debts, where the worst of the spike in monthly payments is likely over.
It’s not positive for your cash deposits, though, where banks pay little or no interest. In June 2024, €140,368,000,000 of Irish households’ money was sitting on deposits in banks, receiving paltry interest. The number is 46% over the last five years. That’s a measure of our rising wealth – and a missed opportunity.
As interest rates continue to fall, if you want to achieve meaningful growth in 2025 and beyond, you’ll need to take some investment risk with your money. If it’s cash you don’t need for three years or more, it’s easier than you think to put a plan in place to invest regularly.
No doubt this year will bring its share of ups and downs. Holding cash savings is an important way to protect against the unexpected. But if your circumstances are improving in 2025, consider ways to broaden your resilience and build your wealth through your pension, investments, and paying down debt.
Happy New Year to all.
Ralph Benson is co-founder and head of financial advice of online investments and pensions advisor Moneycube.ie.
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