Cash ISAs: The Best Currently Available List

steveksullivan

refluxer said:

2010 said:

Undecided, wary about fixing anything at the moment
Marcus easy access ISA 1.5%
Virgin one year fix ISA 2.4%

Any opinions appreciated.

........but at least with an ISA you have the option to transfer out within a fixed rate period (if you're willing to take the penalty) so you can potentially do something about it in the future if fixing today ends up being a bad move.

If you want to have a play with your own figures and scenarios, then this is the interest rate calculator I use.

Thanks for the calculator! 

I guess there are loads of us in this situation at the moment ..... I have all of my recently matured funds in instant access at the moment, waiting for the huge jump in rates (.....?!?!!??) after the recent  BoE rise ..... doesnt seem to be happening at the moment ......

masonic

steveksullivan said:

I guess there are loads of us in this situation at the moment ..... I have all of my recently matured funds in instant access at the moment, waiting for the huge jump in rates (.....?!?!!??) after the recent  BoE rise ..... doesnt seem to be happening at the moment ......

Fixed term accounts are priced according to anticipated future interest rates and competition in the market. Competition has been high, and rates are broadly following the expected course so far this year, so it is quite likely rates were close to where they needed to be already, and any rises are now being driven by banks wishing to top the tables.

The question now is what will happen for the rest of 2022 and early 2023. In the US, a pause in rate hikes is expected in September, so will the UK follow suit? There are signs that the supply shock inflation has peaked, so much now depends on how aggressively central banks feel they need to discourage a wage-price spiral. By pausing, they will be able to see whether or not what they have done already will be enough, or if they need to push harder at the risk of deepening the predicted (or actual in the USA) recession.

caveman38

Am I right that the Nationwide don't have fixed rate Cash ISA's anymore. I have a relation with a large amount with them on a paltry rate , who wanted to surrender and transfer into a higher rate one.
If they now don't offer any, what provider is reliable to offer trouble free transfers from NW. I can see for her the rates available but not the feedback of any problems she may encounter. 

2010

With three more BoE meetings still to come this year, I think I'll go with Marcus ISA 1.5% variable until things look a bit more clearer at the end of the year. I can always open a new one and transfer then.

6022tivo

My 5 year Virgin ISA is ending this month. 
They are offering the below. 
Appears like a good deal,?? Only a year lock in which in the current climate is good? 

1 Year Fixed Rate Cash E‑ISA

Issue 507

2.40

AER1 2.40% Tax-free3

Expotter

You could consider Leeds Building Society, they have a 16 month fixed rate ISA at 2.65%, min £1k, transfers allowed.

refluxer

caveman38 said:

Am I right that the Nationwide don't have fixed rate Cash ISA's anymore. I have a relation with a large amount with them on a paltry rate , who wanted to surrender and transfer into a higher rate one.
If they now don't offer any, what provider is reliable to offer trouble free transfers from NW. I can see for her the rates available but not the feedback of any problems she may encounter. 

Yes, it looks like the Nationwide only have the Triple Access and Inheritance ISAs available at the moment. If that forces people to look beyond the high-street, then that's probably no bad thing at the moment as rates are rising and Nationwide haven't been competitive with any of their fixed rate products for quite a while now.

I've carried out a fair few ISA transfers in the last few years and not had any major problems with any of them. Of the providers currently in the top ISA tables, Paragon have been one of my favourites for a while now, both for ISA and non-ISA accounts. Their rates are normally fairly competitive (they have the best easy access ISA rate @1.55% at the moment, albeit with limited access) and online banking with them works well, at least in my experience. They also seem to pass on interest rate rises to previous Easy Access ISA issues which not all providers do (this isn't relevant if she's wanting to fix though). 

I just checked my records and I transferred two Principality Cash ISAs into a Paragon Triple Access Cash ISA a few months ago without any issues. The process did take around 2 weeks but this was down to the fact that the Principality aren't part of the BACs Cash ISA Transfer Service. If both banks are part of the scheme, then transfers should be (in theory, at least) quicker. In general, ISA transfers can take anything from a few days (if carried out electronically) to a few weeks (if paper forms need signing and/or cheques are involved).

If she's not carried out ISA transfers before, it's definitely worth making sure she knows the right way to go about it - ie. open the new ISA, request the transfer at the time of application and don't close the Nationwide ISA herself (in fact, there's no need to contact Nationwide at all, which is something many don't realise).

This is all presuming she's free to transfer without any penalty (which normally means being out of any previous fixed rate period), otherwise those charges would have to be taken into account when making the decision on whether to transfer.

refluxer

2010 said:

With three more BoE meetings still to come this year, I think I'll go with Marcus ISA 1.5% variable until things look a bit more clearer at the end of the year. I can always open a new one and transfer then.

If you don't need to make regular withdrawals, then I would choose the Paragon Triple Access over Marcus Easy Access - the rate is higher, it's flexible, you can transfer in and (as I mentioned above) Paragon have previously passed on interest rates rises to previous issues of this particular ISA. I took out Issue 7 of the Triple Access ISA back when it was 0.80% and it's now 1.55%, just like the current issue.

Marcus, on the whole, are a lot slower to respond to rate rises, if at all.

2010

@refluxer

Thanks for that but I already have a Marcus account which makes it more convenient.

I don`t really want to open anymore accounts with other providers.

Thanks for the link to the calculator.

gwapenut

I don't know if I'm just doing something stupid, but I can't find any sensible public information for the Yorkshire Loyalty Six Access e-ISA.

My online banking shows that I am getting 1.25% on a small balance. My memory is that it would be 1.40% for a large balance.

However, it is not in the list of current ISAs, either on the product page or the interest rate page. The only interest rate showing is under "withdrawn" accounts, where it states 1.15% effective from early July -0 which clearly contradicts my online banking rate, and which would also be a step back in time.

Or have I missed something?