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Savings & investments

Archives for March 2015

Newly bought fund shows a 1.39% loss straight away?
I placed a buy order last night for £1000 each of two Legal & General tracker funds. Now they are showing in my portfolio but one of them is immediately showing a loss of 1.39% (£13.90). The fund is Legal & General International Index Trust Class C - Accumulation (GBP) Core Tracker fund Can anyone explain to me why this…
nsandi Online and Phone Service
Has anybody else had difficulty using the new online service to register with National Savings and Investment? I have tried to register my wife and myself and have wasted hours trying to get past the page where you enter 2 phone numbers after filling in a slightly complicated form. Each time on clicking "next" nothing…
M&G Optimal Income - Alternative
I looking for an alternative fund to M&G Optimal Income which I already hold. Looking for something that is of a similar stature and quality, and if necessary the same or similar holdings. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Reason, just looking to spread my risk across different fund managers.
ISA 2014/15 deadline question?
Hi guys, I have a S&S ISA and have not used up my full £15k ISA limit for this year so have funded my broker account by £1k to use up most of the rest. I have bought IPO shares for Neil Woodford's new Patient Capital Trust yesterday but struck me this morning that although I have put in a bid for 1000 shares and disposed…
Tax free investing via DMA spread betting?
Spread betting is usually for short term investments, but I was considering using it for very long term (>10 years) and with amounts in the five-figure range. In particular DMA spread betting apparently uses the market behind the scenes, but has the advantage it's tax free. I like the idea of spread betting not just to…
Vanguard Life Strategy
Hello. I am thinking of starting an S/S ISA with one of the Vanguard Life Strategy funds, 20, 40, 60, 100. I am not too sure what the difference is between Acc & Inc is though? Being a first timer at this, i was hoping to hear real life views on the different Vanguard Life Strategy funds, how they are working out for you…
Instant Access - Passbook Account - Who offers....
I would like to open a passbook account so I can put away some savings that I cant access when out and about at night with my card etc I also prefer not to be able to transfer funds online from passbook account to current account etc. Any thoughts?
Corporate Bonds
HI all, I would appreciate your advice on the following.Having parted company with my IFA,I am endeavouring to 'Bed and ISA' as many of my investment holdings to passive index funds as possible.This will obviously take some time to complete. One of the funds I currently hold from my time with my IFA is the M&G Strategic…
Child Savings
Hi, I have 3 children, two of whom got child trust funds, having been born between 2001 and 2011. They have junior savings accounts, but are all reaching, or have reached, the £10K threshold, after which as I understand it interest falls to basically 0%. So I now need to switch accounts. I think for the older one (born…
Lindsell Train on iWeb
iWeb do not show the fund Lindsell Train UK Equity Acc (ISIN GB00B18B9X76). When I queried, they said that it was "because it did not conform to U6 European recommendation", so they have chosen not to trade it (or words to that effect). Does anybody know what this means? Seems to be traded OK elsewhere. I can only see (of…
Interest paid tax-free
For the last year I've been having interest paid from my bank free of tax, as I took early retirement in 2013 and will not be drawing an income from my pension until late in the 2015-16 tax year (so in a week's time I will start to become liable for tax on the interest if, as expected, my pension income exceeds my personal…
The new tax free savings allowance
Hi, I'm considering getting a regular saver account with First Direct. 6% before tax, all paid on maturity at the end of the year. If I start this in the tax year 2015/16, this interest will fall due in 2016/17 tax year (one year after opening). Will this then be tax free (assuming no rule changes in the mean time)?…
Interactive Investor International plc shares
I've found an old share certificate from iii's IPO in 2000 for 145 shares- the default amount for most investors. I have a vague memory of there being a share split or something several years ago but can't seem to find a definitive answer, nor how to establish if the shares are still worth anything. Can anyone help? Thanks…
Additional Premium Bonds - how long?
Hi I currently hold some bonds and am registered online with NS&I. If I wish to purchase more bonds online, how long does it usually take to process the application and issue bonds? Would I be in time for them to be included in the calendar month of April - for the draw taking place in May? Thanks
Selling fractional shares?
I'm rebalancing my S&S portfolio and I have a newb question, since I've never tried to sell anything before! I have a fund with 1486.84332 units that I want to close down. When I try to sell this fractional number of units I get a very unhelpful message to the effect of "Unfortunately there is an error, please try again…
Saving accounts or Cash ISA
Hi everyone Need some advice on this matter now and will really appreciate that if someone can provide some guidance. I am in the process work out what to do with some of the saving I have at the moment. The options that I am aware of are as follow: -Regular Saving account -Cash ISA I have around 5k in saving I have…
Closing an ISA
Hi guys, I just wanted some advice for a relative of mine. She has an ISA with Nationwide and is currently bed bound due to a nasty fall. She wants to withdraw some money from her ISA, with immediate affect because she has bills to pay but obviously cannot call in the branch. They won't do it over the phone. Would it be…
Am I going into trading too soon?
I've managed to deposit the maximum of £15k into my S&S ISA for the year but I'm not really the passive income type. I wondered if £15k is a reasonable amount to start day trading with? The biggest issue I'm facing is the trading fees which for my particular broker is £12 per trade and is certainly going to add up. Sure I…
Share Accounts
Hi I have received a letter from a law firm acting on behalf of a company that went into liquidation saying that I have been paid twice for an amount of shares which we cashed in. I have trawled my accounts and can't find anything to say that I have been paid twice and honestly know that I haven't. This would have been in…
existing save to buy isa and/or new help to buy isa
Official MSE Insert: You may also find our fully researched Help to Buy ISA guide helpful. Back to the original post... my daughter already has a 'save to buy isa' with nationwide bs. She also wants to take advantage of the new h'elp to buy isa' where the gov gives a 25% bonus to savers. But she is unsure if she can…

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Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland to cut overdraft rates for millions but hike them for others – here's what's happening and full help
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