Maxi isa:

sbs2lc1

Hi All,

I was after a little bit of guidance - I have around £4,000 and would like to invest it for the medium term 3-5 years as its currently just sat in my cash isa earning hardly any interest. Am happy to take on some risk or put it all in the stock market at present

What are the best Maxi Isa out there at present? And how does the stock aspct of the isa work - do you pick like a fund? Market etc.

I was looking into aviva as have my pension there and is performing well.

Any advise would be great.

thanks

dunstonh

I have around £4,000 and would like to invest it for the medium term 3-5 years as its currently just sat in my cash isa earning hardly any interest.

Medium term is typically considered 10-15 years. 3-5 years is very short term and typically lower than you would consider appropriate for investing or at least the very minimum.

Am happy to take on some risk or put it all in the stock market at present

Define some risk. i.e. what sort of loss would you tolerate in a given 12 month period?

What are the best Maxi Isa out there at present?

MAXI ISAs were abolished in 2008 IIRC. Its just ISA now.

And how does the stock aspct of the isa work - do you pick like a fund? Market etc.

There are about 50,000 investments you can put inside an ISA and an infinite combination of these. These can be single company shares, OEICs/Unit Trust funds, investment trusts, ETFs etc.

I was looking into aviva as have my pension there and is performing well.

I dont think Aviva do S&S ISAs apart from some structured products which are not very good. Your pension is not performing. Pensions do not perform. The investments you hold inside of your pension perform. How are the investments doing relative to their benchmark? i.e. you think they are doing well. That is compared to what?

I have purposely worded my response to get you thinking and ask more questions yourself. I dont expect you to know the answers but it may help you look them up or ask more questions in those areas.

Loughton_Monkey

sbs2lc1 wrote: »

What are the best Maxi Isa out there at present? And how does the stock aspct of the isa work - do you pick like a fund? Market etc.

I cannot do other than extend a little caution here. Firstly, to invest in equities for only 5 years is somewhat 'brave'. Secondly, although the above question is legitimate, it screams at suggesting you should do a lot more research before homing in on any specific questions like best providers etc.

You might be trying to find 'Maxi ISA' providers and I'm afraid this is so outdated you won't find that term used these days.

My strong advice would be not to go to a High Street Bank for information, since their products tend to be expensive, poor value, and sometimes not sold very legitimately.

You could do a lot worse, initially, than simply google a few 'household names' like Legal & General or Standard Life whose web sites will probably give you an inkling as to how they work. But I name those companies simply at random, and have no knowledge whatsoever as to whether either of them have 'best of breed' ISA products.

sbs2lc1

Both -

Thanks for the message. Where would I find out about investing in ISA and ISA products (I have googled) but would like some direction if possible. In terms of providers etc..

I feel comfortable investing in equities etc for 5 years minimum. In terms of risk am happy to take a 25% drawdown in 12 month period.


Quote: My strong advice would be not to go to a High Street Bank for information, since their products tend to be expensive, poor value, and sometimes not sold very legitimately.

Where could i go to look at providers?

Quote: There are about 50,000 investments you can put inside an ISA and an infinite combination of these. These can be single company shares, OEICs/Unit Trust funds, investment trusts, ETFs etc.

Where can I find out about there investments you put inside an ISA?

Jegersmart

I use them but have no affiliation other than being a satisfied client - you can try www.fidelity.co.uk and have a read. They are execution-only so do not give advice but explain fairly clearly what is what. Educating yourself sufficiently to make fund selections is your next project potentially (if you need it ofc )

Loughton_Monkey

For companies, try here:

http://www.moneysupermarket.com/investments/stocks-shares-isas/popular/

For Funds, try here:

http://www.trustnet.com/Investments/Perf.aspx?univ=U

The latter will show 2,861 Unit Trusts/OEIC's, 2,065 Equities, and 389 Investment Trusts just to get you started. But if you zoom in on a specific provider, they might have their own more limited range of funds.

dunstonh

I feel comfortable investing in equities etc for 5 years minimum. In terms of risk am happy to take a 25% drawdown in 12 month period.

25% is really lower risk than having 100% equities. 100% equity is more 40-50% loss potential. So, you should be looking to include less volatile investments in the ISA as well as equities to bring the potential volatility down.

sbs2lc1

Thanks will take a look - would prefer a fund rather than investing and stock picking per se.

sbs2lc1

Sorry if this is stupid question say i pick Aberdeen asset manager asia fund. How would i go about incorporating that into my ISA - would my ISA need to be with aberdeen asset management?

gadgetmind

There are loads of good online ISA providers. Look at Hargreaves Lansdown, iii, Aliance Trust, Best Invest etc. - I use HL who are OK for funds but not great for trackers and individual shares. There is a MSE article on fund supermarkets if you look on the main site.

If you transfer to (say) Hargreaves Lansdown (HL will handle this for you) then you can invest in a huge range of funds, including what looks to be over 30 Aberdeen ones.

Personally, with a smallish sum such as this, I'd stick to more boring funds such a Troy Trojan, Ruffer Total Return and the ilk, but it's your money so DYOR.