Premium bonds vs. Halifax web saver

opinions4u

johnandkymberley wrote: »

Can you explain what a postal account is please?? Thanks

The term is quite loose and definition can vary from provider to provider.

But typically it means opening it by filling in a form and posting it. Depositing by posting a cheque. Withdrawing by posting a form off. Closing by posting a form off.

There may be certain levels of telephone support and electronic deposits and withdrawals may be possible. Usually not online and no branch involvement.

andy.m_2

Hey I found this great website it may really help you...

---> click me

In all seriousness, there is a raft of information out there and all you get here is opinion, albeit educated and based on fact but nonetheless opinion.

How would you fee if I told you to put the lot on US Gas and Oil? or Falkland Gas and Oil?
What then happens if your stock reached zero?

You cannot ask people to tell you what to do unless you are paying for the advice.

Read the link it will really help, I dont mean to be flippent

johnandkymberley

andy.m wrote: »

Hey I found this great website it may really help you...

---> click me

In all seriousness, there is a raft of information out there and all you get here is opinion, albeit educated and based on fact but nonetheless opinion.

How would you fee if I told you to put the lot on US Gas and Oil? or Falkland Gas and Oil?
What then happens if your stock reached zero?

You cannot ask people to tell you what to do unless you are paying for the advice.

Read the link it will really help, I dont mean to be flippent

Okay, I didn't say "tell me" I said "what would you do in my situation"

I also said ill look forward to opinions and suggestions

When I posted I didn't expect to be told what to do?? My post doesn't say that at all!?

andy.m_2

johnandkymberley wrote: »

Hi, can anyone be specific on what they would do if they were me?

I wasn't trying to be funny but this came across as my post.
Apologies if it was misinterpreted although somebody else above took it the same way

Read the website, it will give you lots of tips for what to consider, the risks and possible returns.
There is no magic bullet though, sorry

JimmyTheWig

johnandkymberley wrote: »

We are saving for a big family holiday next year
...
So we are selling on eBay and saving every month out of our wages
...
offer for a bonus of £1200
...
We have £200 saved so far from selling things on eBay.

The answer will depend, to some extent, on how much you are saving. For this post I will assume you will save £200 a month from eBay and wages plus a lump sum of £1200 pretty much straight away. I'll assume you need the money this time next year.

johnandkymberley wrote: »

can anyone be specific on what they would do if they were me?

opinions4u wrote: »

Premium Bond prize pot 1.50% tax free.

Online Saver account 2.80% before tax. 2.24% after basic rate tax.

2.24% is bigger than 1.50%.

Well, there's a specific opinion for you (sorry!), but I disagree with it to some extent.

Ok, with the figures I'm assuming the average balance over the year will be £2400.
Net interest from Halifax on this will be £53.76.
Mean average prize money from Premium Bonds will be £36 (but remember the chances are you won't win anything like this much).
Yes, you get more interest from Halifax, but is there really much of a difference between £3654 and £3636, which is what your final totals will be?

All other things being equal I would agree with going for the Halifax account, but all other things aren't equal. The amount of money you will be saving (and withdrawing) is variable. The amount of money you put in and take out will heve a much bigger impact than the interest rate that you receive.

We are thinking about a Halifax web saver, we are with Halifax already and the interest is good for the first year. You can transfer money online and it's flexible. Good points are: good interest rate, bad points: if we need money we will end up dipping into it as its so accessible.
And then
Premium bonds, we have never owned any so we are unsure of buying any. We like the idea of them and the money is less accessible so we are unlikely to dip into it. But do we put in £100 at a time or save and put £500 in one bond? Which is better for trying to win a cash prize? The bad point about premium bonds is the no interest part.

With Premium Bonds you can put in £100 or more whenever you like.
With Halifax you can put in whatever you like whenever you like.
Are you likely to want to pay in less than £100 in one go?
If so, Premium Bonds might not be the answer. You may find that you start spending from the pot whilst trying to build up to £100 to deposit.
Alternatively you may feel that the easy access of the Halifax account may mean that you dip into it too often.

Do both of you have (need?) online access to your Halifax account? Might be worth opening the savings account in the name of the person who can't / doesn't log on. Then you can transfer money in to the savings account from your internet banking but getting it out again would be more of a hassle.

johnandkymberley wrote: »

can anyone be specific on what they would do if they were me?

What I would do is put the money in Halifax because, while we're not very good at being strict with ourselves with money (especially where takeaways are concerned!), once money is in a savings pot for something specific we pretty much leave it alone.
What you should do, I'm afraid, is up to you.

johnandkymberley

Thanks, I ave found a solution I think!!!

I've got a liquid gold account, I can transfer money in but not out and I can set it up with PayPal so that all my eBay money goes straight in without passing out current account and the risk of us spending it! And to get it out I have to go in branch, which is a long way from us so would only do that for the big money amounts, for our holiday

I know liquid gold is shiiiiit interest but I think it will work for us, I love the PayPal idea, that's really swayed us

I think we are happy now!!

JimmyTheWig

johnandkymberley wrote: »

I know liquid gold is shiiiiit interest but I think it will work for us

I agree that an account that works for you is much more relevant than the amount of interest you get for something like this.

dunstonh

Premium bonds vs. Halifax web saver

Think of it another way....

Would you put the money into the Halifax web saver than then each month draw the interest paid and spend it all on lottery scratch cards? If yes, then consider premium bonds. If no (or even if you are aghast at the idea of doing that) then don't use premium bonds.

With Premium bonds, you are giving up interest in return for being entered into a lottery.

fiesta04

I have held £12,500 in Premium Bonds for 11 years and had won/got a return of £2700 which I considered a fair return. I then won £5000 last month taking my wins/interest to £7700, which to me is a fantastic return on my investment.

I do of course consider myself as being very lucky and I do think if you can afford an amount of money to get NO RETURN go for Premium Bonds.

Be lucky

F4

johnandkymberley

Just to ask f4, do you have £12,500 in one bond or have you split it into £100s?