I need serious help with investing please!

dunstonh

be careful with some providers as they charge for the ISA usage, so it may then not end up being worthwhile. But if it's free, you may as well take it.

Although trying to work out the capital gains tax you may or may not have to pay on a regular contribution built up over a decade or so can be a nightmare. Its not just tax that the ISA saves. Its administration.

jonj123

OK based on the comments so I've decided to open a ISA account. Just before I do that could I have some feedback on as to whether Hargreaves Lansdown is the best discount broker to go with in terms of their charges or are they any others with better fees?

Reaper

I think they are the best for funds. Not so good for other forms of investment.

The best few can be found in the article I linked to earlier - Discount Brokers.

jonj123

Would they charge me anything for signing up to the ISA account? Would there be a monthly fee or something?

Reaper

Not wanting to sound harsh but if you are planning to research and manage your own investments then reading the terms on HL's website is the first step.

jonj123

Reaper wrote: »

Not wanting to sound harsh but if you are planning to research and manage your own investments then reading the terms on HL's website is the first step.

I appreciate your feedback. The reason for my question was to get advice from somebody who has already gone through the process of opening an ISA account who could tell me about any charges that I should be aware of which may not be clearly mentioned on the website.

jonj123

Can anyone please recommend me a comprehensive guide on how to find the best funds to invest in. Reaper has already linked to a post by Munk which is a very basic guide but having learnt the basics I wonder if anyone is aware of any books or any good websites that teach how to find the best funds to invest in. Thanks

lvader

I'd hold off a little while, there is a very good chance share prices will drop 10% or more over the next couple of months. There will be plenty of bargains to be had after that.

jonj123

lvader wrote: »

I'd hold off a little while, there is a very good chance share prices will drop 10% or more over the next couple of months. There will be plenty of bargains to be had after that.

Thanks for the advice. Yes I do want to do some reading and research on fund investment before I start buying any funds so I will wait for a couple of months before I start. I am just struggling to find any websites/books that give a comprehensive guide on fund investment and I would appreciate if someone could recommend something please.

cloud_dog

Jon, I'm not sure what you are really looking for.

Any website / book on funds would (should) only document the structures and charges against the different vehicles (UTs, OIECs, ITs, ETFs),or how to trade (styles, timescales etc), anything more is going to have to get in to the realm of advice whether that is sector, area, etc, and that is going to be rare (and illegal in some circumstances).

What are you really after? Recommendations on which funds to invest in?

There are numerous websites where you can research and qualify funds performances etc:

https://www.trustnet.com (my favoured one for performance analysis)
https://www.morningstar.co.uk

HL I find very useful for reviewing the specific fund's focus and holdings etc.

The first thing you need to do is forget about chosing a specific vehicle (UT, IT, OIEC, ETF) and focus on finding where/what you want to invest in - no one can tell you this. Once you are comfortable with your own investment focus then research the different investment vehicles which will give you the focus you want.

If you cannot, or are unable to identify your own personal investment focus then I suggest you go with a diversified or general investment fund. All of this can be found by using the websites above.