Savings & investments

Hi I've been using regular savers the last couple of years (along with ISAs), but now I've crossed the tax threshold and I'm a higher tax rate payer I'm wondering if this is still the best approach. What I'm not sure about is if pension contributions can be used to reduce tax on savings interest in the same way as with…

We are having trouble sorting out what to do with money inherited from a grandparent by a 16 year old. The money is purely cash as willed to be shared by grandkids, no other stipulations. The executor has the money with a solicitor as there was a house sale etc. We don't know exactly how much it it, which doesn't help. It…

Hello, wonder if someone can help me with my understanding. There is a Halifax corporate bond with a coupon of 13.6% https://www.hl.co.uk/shares/shares-search-results/h/halifax-13.625-perp-subord-bds-regd-gbp I have a mortgage with Halifax of £170k at 4.1 Two ISAs (HL and II) with a combined value of £150k. Would it be a…

Hello Everybody, I'm currently a second year uni student graduating 2029 and just wanted to get some advice from other people. I'm living at home and will be able to for the remainder of uni and only paying a small amount of dig money. I have a part time job that covers this just fine. The Plan: I was planning on taking…

MSE states you must keep the account open for one year to get the bonus, what it doesn’t say is that you must also apply for a mortgage within that year to get the bonus.

Received this just now: We are writing to inform you that there was an error identified in your recent account statement from Oxbury (labelled as End of Term Statement/Annual Statement). That statement will be removed from Oxbury Online Banking and your Oxbury App whilst we correct this issue. That statement incorrectly…

This may have been asked before but cannot find what I need. I am trying to transfer a Vanquis ISA to Vida bank and it asks for an account number and reference number. The only number I can find in my Vanquis account is much longer than 8 digits and therefore doesn't fit in online application form box. I have transferred…

I applied for the First Active 4.55% savings account on 2/9/26. It was recommended here at MSE. Two weeks later and the application has yet to go through. I have had occasional emails apologising for the delay and telling me that there is no point contacting customer services. The information that has not been shared is…

Is it worth getting a maintenance loan you don't need to invest it?

My wife lives with me in the UK on a Spouse Visa. She wants to send around 12k to a UK bank account. Apparently Wise is the cheapest for sending money internationally but caps the payments at around 3-4k a month which is infuriating I imagine credit cards or normal bank transfers will give worse rates and I don't trust…

Hi all, if anyone is using Ineractive Investor I have a question about the merits of choosing one plan over another. I opened a SIPP earlier in the year and by default it created a 'Core' Account (I wasn't offered the choice at the time of opening).There is also the Premium account at £39.99 per month, but disregarding…

Just a warning that if you need access to your savings with Oxbury when abroad it may not be possible. I tried to access the app to transfer funds and got this

I understand that quaterly "dividends" are taxed as interests, but what about income before? If I buy just after dividends pay out, keep for a month would that be CGT only?

What is the best way to maximise salary you earn during a placement year. The money cant be locked away because it will be needed the year after when you rejoin university.

Has anyone else experienced issues with receiving the verification text sent out by Interactive Investor to login to their account, they send a 6 digit number as an extra layer of security for login. I am not receiving the texts, Interactive Investor are claiming they are sending them and there is not an issue at their…

Hello, I am currently considering renewing a maturing holding into the NS&I 5-Year Fixed Guaranteed Growth Bond to lock in the 4.85% interest rate. However, because NS&I compounds all the interest and pays it out as one big lump sum strictly in the maturity tax year (2031), it creates a major tax trap. Even though they add…

I have tried to check online but could not get an idea on how it works. Hope it is the right place to ask. I am only on PAYE. FY26/27 tax code has been recently reduced after HMRC try to collect the untaxed interest from FY25/26. The total taxable income including the saving interest in FY25/26 were under £50,270 (20%…

I've found a £1 premium bond in a box, i think it belonged to my father in law, he died 15 yers ago, no will , it was issued in 1964. what can i do with it, i know its only a £1 but still, its better in our pocket then the post office

I'm a long term saver/investor but I've never bought any Gilts until this week. As a bit of a punt I've bought some TG61 (matures Oct 2061, coupon 0.5%). Not in an ISA/Pension. This was first issued in May 2020 at a price of £96.87 but is now priced at about £22. Clearly a disaster for the initial investors but seems like…

I've been reading and watching many pundits who are warning about the levels if debt, particularly in AI, that have cause the markets to grow in the last couple of years. I normally ignore such Cassandras, but this time I find myself agreeing with many of their arguments. It seems like a pretty big bubble and anyone in a…