Proceeds of Property Sale

melpomene

Hi all

I am kind of lost.

I sold a house in Rep of Ireland recently & the proceeds are sitting in the account of my solicitor in Dublin. I live in London & am from Belfast.

Originally it was fine for the funds to be there pending CGT returns etc but now I need to open an account to transfer to, the nett proceeds being £83,000.

All my accounts [current & 2xsavings] are with Halifax, my total with them is about £15,000 I think [I started a £500/month saver as I have very low pension provision].

What should I do?

I was going to open an account with Bank of Ireland with the full amount [for interim safety] while I find out what to do next. It's proving quite a performance to arrange though, so I thought I'd write to you guys today & see if you can recommend a good way forward. I'm not seeing things too clearly due to lack of experience & freaking out in case I make a mistake with what is likely my only ever lump sum.

I am also thinking of sharing with my sisters. Does anyone know how much I can gift each before they have to pay tax? [side issue].

Any help with immediate or longer term solutions most welcome.

Thanks,

Mel

melpomene

UPdate : I fileld in the forms for a Bank of Ireland Flexsave account [5.5% variable interst rate], took it along to the Head Office & had it stamped, now i have to send it off to Belfast with a cheque for a minimum of £3,000.

So basically I have to open the account from existing Halifax account & transfer the proceeds of the house sale later once it is open.

I don't know if this is normal practice or not, & I'm a bit worried about their Customer Verification form. I am asked to tell them how often I will pay in or withdraw funds, average amounts etc. These are questions I don't know the answer to, or whether they might even refuse me.

Is this the best thing I could be doing with £83,000 to keep safe & invest?

Mel