£950,000 what shall I do?

Magic_B

Hi all I'm soon to receive £950k maybe slightly more from the sale of 2 properties but I'm not sure what to do with it. I'm not a spend thrift so not planning to go out on a buying spree. I'm more interested to know where to put it to get a good return.

Some people are advising to split it up to keep it safe by not keeping all eggs in one basket. Others are say the bigger the bulk the more bargaining power you will have so keep it all together. I'm a confused mess. All / any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Mrs_Money

Well, it may make things complicated - but remember each bank only guarantees up to £50k (I think it's still that amount) so it depends how secure you want this money to be.
I would (if it was my money) find a great ISA and max it out every year for a start. Decide how much you need instant access to and then find the best instant access savings accounts -( probably quite a few!) . Make sure you are not investing in the same bank twice e,g, Abbey, Aliance & Leicester and Bradford & Bingly are all the same bank - Santander - so only one guarantee of £50k.
Property - I know you're selling it - but if you have cash - now is a good time to buy and let out - low prices and all that, perhaps some brand new small houses? Plus (and there are probably people with better knowledge of buy-to-let than me, but I think it may still beat any return you can get from any other investments (safe ones anyway).
Good luck - wish I was in your position - last thought - it's quite a sum - would it be worth seeing and Independent Financial Advisor?

DiggerUK

MagicB,
OK, your first post and you are a millionaire.
30K in Premium Bonds may just double your current problem of what to do with your first million. Maybe you won't bother with PB's on the grounds that there is nothing you can do in your life with 2 million, that you can't do with 1 million.

Now you are a gentleman of leisure, spend some time here, and just concentrate on keeping the value of your million intact in the first instance.

If you listen to the wiser posters, you will preserve a good chunk of what you have in gold.

Best of fortune.

ses6jwg

All capital held in NS&I accounts/ certs is 100% government guaranteed is it not?

Mrs_Money

yes, I'd forgotten NS & I - but I think they are the only ones to do that...

ses6jwg

300k in the NS&I income bonds gives you £500 a month according to their calc.

Though with that amount of cash, you'd be better off diversifying into income paying equities IMO, deffo worth seeing an IFA.

pconstable

this has to be a wind up , surely, coming on here with that sort of money, if it is genuine, what a cheapstake, go professional !

Arthurian

pconstable wrote: »

this has to be a wind up , surely, coming on here with that sort of money, if it is genuine, what a cheapstake, go professional !

It's sensible to come on here, read up on various threads, get the opinion of people who are diligent with their money, before seeing an IFA. Otherwise, how do you know if your IFA is good or clueless?

liam8282

Why not buy 950,000 lottery tickets?

charterman

Without doubt you need to see an IFA. I have clients with that sort of money who retire, pay no tax and have ample to live on. An IFA can do that for you. Go fee based, get a recommendation if you can from someone in a similar position, try to check out two or three to see if you like them! Ask what they do for you on an ongoing basis and what it costs, what information do they provide.

It may cost a few thousand to set up but you could save that easily by avoiding a mistake.

ChiefGrasscutter

Capital gains tax liability????????????