Beat pension crisis with property investment, says author

A former missionary says ministers need not be crippled by poverty in their own age.

Pension consultant John Doherty says thousands of ministers are facing a retirement of poverty because of insufficient funds or pensions.

He has published Defuse Your Pension Time-bomb to help middle-aged church leaders prepare financially for their older years.

The book is inspired by his own experience being hit by the pension crisis and going on to create a £1million pension pot through property investment.

He shares simple advice about how people can create a good income and pay off their mortgage early through investing in property.

Mr Doherty, 50, said: "People don't realise how bad the pension market has become. It will force more and more people into an old age of poverty. But the book is about a practical solution for people.

"At 45 I realised that it was too late for me to build up an adequate pension. So that's why I chose to avoid the high charges and poor performance of a traditional pension and use property as a pension. This solution would suit most people and especially Ministers who are often stuck in churches into old age with no way out.

"In the church there is often a negative attitude to money. The love of money is bad, but we are also taught to be good stewards of the talents we have received.

"The world of property investment seems scary and difficult at first, but when you learn how to approach it, things become easier. That's why I wrote this book."