advice needed please

fulhamoriginal

Hello lads and lady's. I've just started uni. I live at home and work part time. I have a yearly maintenance loan of around £2700, but have decided I won't really need it, so instead of wasting it i'm looking to invest it in something that will hopefully give me a good return at the end of my degree! I was just looking for some tips or advice of where best to put the money, taking into consideration that I will be getting the money in installments (3 a year).

Look forward to your responses,

Cheers

Rob

Lokolo

Put it in an ISA. However:

1) Put the money in an instant access account until end of the tax year.
2) Fix the ISA
3) Open a new ISA for the next year.

Repeat.

atypical

When you say invest I'm assuming you mean save. Investing puts your capital (i.e. the original amount you put in) at risk and you probably won't want to do that with borrowed money...but I might be wrong.

If you do mean save then use sites like Money Facts to compare the best rates available. The main choice to make is whether you want an instant access or fixed rate deposit account. With the latter your money is inaccessible for the duration of the term, with the former it isn't - good if you might be tempted to spend it.

Lokolo, I don't see much benefit of an ISA so early as the OP is unlikely to be paying tax and thus is more likely to get a better rate with standard accounts. Then the year the OP graduates he can shift it into an ISA. Especially with the allowance increasing, he'll get the lion's share (if not all) of his loans ISA-fied in one swoop.

Lokolo

atypical wrote: »

Lokolo, I don't see much benefit of an ISA so early as the OP is unlikely to be paying tax and thus is more likely to get a better rate with standard accounts. Then the year the OP graduates he can shift it into an ISA. Especially with the allowance increasing, he'll get the lionshare (if not all) of his loans ISA-fied in one swoop.

I did think this but I thought that the OP would be a taxpayer. I don't see how other he would be able to afford to save all of his maintenance loan.

atypical

Ah, I never considered that possibility. I'm sure he'll tell us I'd have thought you could easily live on earnings of ~£6k a year (if not less), especially living at home.

Lokolo

atypical wrote: »

Ah, I never considered that possibility. I'm sure he'll tell us I'd have thought you could easily live on earnings of ~£6k a year (if not less), especially living at home.

Indeed! But look at the student debt thread urrrrrgh rar rar rar spend so much each year rar rar rar

fulhamoriginal

Cheers for the replys chaps, much appreciated!

I shouldn't need to use much of the loan. As I say, i'm living at home so all my food/living will be paid for, it will only be going out/petrol/clothes etc that I have to pay for so my part time job should cover that. I have decided it's going to have to be instant access, just incase the worst comes to worst and I have to dip into the loan! I will look into the things you have suggested, cheers again for that.