BEWARE CASHING IN YOUR PENSION TO CLEAR YOUR DEBT

South Africans are some of the most indebted people on earth, with many having to use the bulk of their take-home pay to meet debt obligations. People in this spiral will resort to desperate measures to dig themselves out of the hole, and many will be tempted to cash in their pension funds, says David Crossley, a Certified Financial Planner and business manager at BDO Wealth Advisers. A survey revealed that 74% of people would approve of a law change to allow pension savings to be liquidated for this purpose. “It’s important to have a rational look at the scenario and examine the merits and demerits of such an idea.”