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getting into investments

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I'm looking to get into investments. The current ISA rates are not worth much with 2.x % at barclays (my bank). I have some spare cash spread across 2 accounts (not isas) where I get just over £1 a month on interest. I could put it all in one of the ISAs but I think (& hope) I can probably get a better return on an investment ISA. As I said I'm currently with Barclays, I know they offer investment ISAs but I also came across Barclays stock brokers & they also offer investment ISAs. Is this the same company just trading under a different name? Any good tips/guides you guys can give me? Barclays say that you can open an investment account from £3k, does this also apply to the investment ISAs? Do I have to invest the full £3k into 1 company or can I invest in multiple companies?
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  • dunstonh
    dunstonh Posts: 119,731 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    As I said I'm currently with Barclays, I know they offer investment ISAs

    Barclays pulled at of investment advice just before the Retail distribution review. They have some execution only or products via IFAs available but there isnt much they offer that you would consider (sometimes their SCARPS may fit a niche but thats about it).
    I am an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA). The comments I make are just my opinion and are for discussion purposes only. They are not financial advice and you should not treat them as such. If you feel an area discussed may be relevant to you, then please seek advice from an Independent Financial Adviser local to you.
  • Vortigern
    Vortigern Posts: 3,302 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    cinek wrote: »
    I'm currently with Barclays, I know they offer investment ISAs but I also came across Barclays stock brokers & they also offer investment ISAs

    Banks are generally considered to be the worst places to go for investment ISAs. Read a few more threads on this board and the ISAs board. Look at the websites of Hargreaves Lansdown and Fidelity. Google for Monevator. Take your time, don't rush in.
  • Gromitt
    Gromitt Posts: 5,063 Forumite
    edited 13 April 2013 at 8:44PM
    If you go with Fidelity via Quidco, they are still offering £100 cash back once you've had an investment of £500 or more with them for at least 3 months. So even if your investment drops by 20%, you've still not lost anything, but if it rises, your onto a winner.
  • gadgetmind
    gadgetmind Posts: 11,130 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    cinek wrote: »
    I'm looking to get into investments.

    This could be the best thing you have ever done or the worst. Which it will be is down to you. You need to either decide you don't know enough about this and use an advisor or make the same decision but decide to learn how to DIY.

    I suggest your first step is to buy a copy of "Smarter Investing" by Tim Hale and read it cover to cover. If your eyes glaze over and you come out none the wiser, then use an IFA.
    Do I have to invest the full £3k into 1 company or can I invest in multiple companies?

    Both options are available to you. You can even invest in a single low cost tracker that holds a tiny sliver of every major company on every global stock exchange, and that also holds some bonds to balance things out.

    This site is also good.

    http://monevator.com/

    The top two articles at the moment are *not* representative of the usual content, but it's his site so his rules!
    I am not a financial adviser and neither do I play one on television. I might occasionally give bad advice but at least it's free.

    Like all religions, the Faith of the Invisible Pink Unicorns is based upon both logic and faith. We have faith that they are pink; we logically know that they are invisible because we can't see them.
  • Vortigern
    Vortigern Posts: 3,302 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    Gromitt wrote: »
    If you go with Fidelity, they are still offering £100 cash back once you've had an investment of £500 or more with them for at least 3 months. So even if your investment drops by 20%, you've still not lost anything, but if it rises, your onto a winner.

    There's a key word or two missing from the above. It should say:
    If you go with Fidelity via Quidco.....
  • Gromitt
    Gromitt Posts: 5,063 Forumite
    Thanks, added :)
  • BLB53
    BLB53 Posts: 1,583 Forumite
    Any good tips/guides you guys can give me? Barclays say that you can open an investment account from £3k, does this also apply to the investment ISAs? Do I have to invest the full £3k into 1 company or can I invest in multiple companies?
    It will probable pay to do a little research into online execution only brokers. Barclays does not feature so often - the common names are Hargreaves Lansdown, Sippdeal, TD Direct, iweb.

    You can invest as much or as little as you wish - there should be no lower limit of £3,000. Much will depend on what you want to hold in your account - shares, trackers, ETFs - and whether you want to invest a lump sum or drip feed monthly amounts into the market.

    Here's a link to a recent article which may provide a few pointers http://www.diyinvestoruk.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/choosing-your-online-broker.html
  • grizzly1911
    grizzly1911 Posts: 9,965 Forumite
    gadgetmind wrote: »

    I suggest your first step is to buy a copy of "Smarter Investing" by Tim Hale and read it cover to cover. If your eyes glaze over and you come out none the wiser, then use an IFA.



    After you have read Tim Hale, or if it is too much to conquer, then "Slow & Steady Steps from Debt to Wealth" by John E Hulton provides a succinct summary encapsulating the key points.

    Cavendish Online is currently "free" at point of sale for fundsThey don't do clean funds yet, but do rebate part of the AMC. Maybe cheaper for small holdings.

    Trustnet and Morning Star are also good for research and analysis.

    Barclays do offer an execution only service, on the internet by a stockbroker link. I am sure the more popular names will offer abroader selection. Take care if you decide to transfer your cash ISAs from them. Out of eight transfers (cash to cash & cash to S&S) I have done they were the only one to be painful.

    "If you act like an illiterate man, your learning will never stop... Being uneducated, you have no fear of the future.".....

    "big business is parasitic, like a mosquito, whereas I prefer the lighter touch, like that of a butterfly. "A butterfly can suck honey from the flower without damaging it," "Arunachalam Muruganantham
  • cinek
    cinek Posts: 87 Forumite
    Seventh Anniversary Combo Breaker
    thanks guys. I just ordered the book
  • IronWolf
    IronWolf Posts: 6,445 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Looking into investing is a great move. In addition to Tim Hale I would read The Intelligent Investor by Ben Graham. It looks more at active investing vs Tim Hales passive but then you should be able to decide which route suits you best.

    There's a brief review of it here
    Faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
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