What should I do with £30,000?

jay.r_4

Hi

This is my first post on here so hello to all. I'm 27 and would like peoples advice on what to do with around £30,000.

The money has been very kindly been given to me by my Father who is a top bloke. The money was originally left from by my Grandparents after they passed away a few years ago and was invested by my Dad and has now been released and passed to me.

My Dad is very keen for me to use this money as a deposit for a house which I'm reluctant to do right now as it doesn't suit my current situation. I'm currently paying rent with friends on a property in London which is my Dad's reason for pushing me to buy a house as he sees the rent money as dead money, which is very true to a curtain extent but it suits my current situation (very long story about a beautiful girl that had to move back to New Zealand).

I fully intend to use this money to buy a home but just not right now, maybe in a year or two. I have to get NZ girl back on the scene (possibly marriage?) which is going to take time, effort and resources which I'll be stretching without added stress of taking on a house.

I kind of just want some impartial advise from people on what to do with this money. Am I being stupid and should I be buying a house? Should I be trying to buy a house and rent it out? Should I wait to see what house prices do? If I were to squirrel the money away where do I put it? Do I put it in one place?

I'm in a bit of turmoil over what to do. Sorry about the life-story, I just though the situation needed a bit of a background to it for people to advise.

Many thanks

James

Orlando_Virgin

What's the situation with the girl in New Zealand? Does she live there at the moment? Do you have intentions of bringing her back over here or you going over there.

To be honest I would keep the situations seperate for the minute and resolve the one with the girl first. Your feelings could cloud the issue and what you do with the 30k. Are you struggling to pay the bills where you currently live?
If the money and life change can wait I would decide what you are doing with the girl first before deciding how to invest the money in property (which is a no-brainer by the way, you should definitely do that, just when the time's right)

ozzage

You are the only one who can decide whether now is the right time to buy, but many people would tell you that right now is not the best time to buy as prices may well keep dropping. If you wait then you'll possibly pay less for the house and in the meantime can save more for your deposit which could potentially get your a better mortgage when you do decide to buy.

If you expect to need the money in a year or two, then you're probably best just putting it in the highest-rate savings account you can find.

Consider a fixed-term account for slightly better interest if you're sure that you definitely won't need it within one year, for example. Otherwise just find a good instant-access account.

CHR15

1. Clear Debts
2. Max out an ISA
3. Lock the rest up for a year (check moneysupermarket for best saving rate)
4. Don't waste it on a woman (this should be 1,2,3 AND 4)

97trophy

Give it back to your Dad to look after for a few more years.

Robert_Sterling_3

Put in Coventry B S

4.1%

Available at 90 days notice without penalty
Available instantly with 90 days loss of interest.
Fixed rate.

I have almost talked myself into opening an account today.

Sun-Is-Fun

CHR15 wrote: »

4. Don't waste it on a woman

Made me laugh that !

Dan29

Robert_Sterling wrote: »

Put in Coventry B S

4.1%

Available at 90 days notice without penalty
Available instantly with 90 days loss of interest.
Fixed rate.

I have almost talked myself into opening an account today.

EXCLUSIVELY available to existing Coventry customers who will have been members with the Society continuously for five years at the end of the current tax year.

Lottebear

Put it in the highest interest account possible with the longest withdrawal time.

jay3_2

I can't add much to what the other respondents have said. Given that you're clearly unsure as to how things are going to pan out in the future (good luck with Ms NZ by the way!), I'd advise you to stash this windfall away in a decent notice account - use up your ISA allowance for both 2008/09 and 2009/10 as a priority. That way, you won't be tempted to do anything rash. See how things develop - try to forget about the money until you are certain you want to settle down.

I've never been as bullish as some others on property as an investment, but you can't argue that over the long term you don't tend to lose out with bricks and mortar. When you do want to buy your first place, don't get blinded by the investment angle - buy somewhere you are happy to live for a few years. And don't overstretch yourself financially - learn from some of the horror stories on this forum!

G_M

As suggested, put it in savings accounts. £3600 in an ISA (unless you don't pay tax in which case you can get ALL your interest paid tax-free) and the rest somewhere which allows access within, say, 3 months (so you can buy a house if/when you're ready). Investec is an option as the rate follows the 5 best paying accounts each week. They'll also pay you and a referror £50 when you open it. PM me for details.