Genuine alternative to HL?

planteria

thanks ggs, i thought i had read that both youinvest and iWeb do not allow access to US shares..

planteria

i am sorting this this week.

it seems as though III is the best deal, overall, to go with.

i have been unsure about whether to move Fund & Share Account, ISA and SIPP, or whether to move the SIPP into another pension i have. however, by moving the SIPP to III aswell it would remove the £20/q ISA charge...which is nice.

what are folks generally doing with their holdings prior to the transfer? transferring in cash? transferring all holdings in specie? somewhere in between?

i currently have:

Fund & Share Account: 3 Share holdings
ISA Account: 4 Fund holdings and 8 Share holdings
SIPP: 8 Fund holdings

masonic

planteria wrote: »

what are folks generally doing with their holdings prior to the transfer? transferring in cash? transferring all holdings in specie? somewhere in between?

i currently have:

Fund & Share Account: 3 Share holdings
ISA Account: 4 Fund holdings and 8 Share holdings
SIPP: 8 Fund holdings

Given that HL is offering free in specie transfers to those who are prepared to complain, the only reason to transfer in cash is if you don't want to wait 8+ weeks for the transfer to go through and don't mind selling and repurchasing (possibly at a loss). It makes even more sense to transfer in specie with III, since they'll pay you £10 cash plus £10 trading credit for each unique holding (up to a total of £240). That offer's now been extended until the end of April.

planteria

masonic wrote: »

Given that HL is offering free in specie transfers to those who are prepared to complain, the only reason to transfer in cash is if you don't want to wait 8+ weeks for the transfer to go through and don't mind selling and repurchasing (possibly at a loss). It makes even more sense to transfer in specie with III, since they'll pay you £10 cash plus £10 trading credit for each unique holding (up to a total of £240). That offer's now been extended until the end of April.

thank you masonic....so, with the mixture i have above (23 holdings:)), i can move all 3 accounts from HL to III...not get charged by HL and bag £230 from III in the process?

the only other things i am wondering about are:

1. At what point do you complain? When you have requested the transfer, via your new platform, and they give you a 'Leaving Statement'?

and 2. What about Clean Funds? I guess sifting through and ensuring all fund classes are as competitive as possible.

planteria

and just thought, sorry...Trading Credit is only good for use that quarter, isn't it? so i'd have to trade 23 times to 'use' it?

masonic

planteria wrote: »

and just thought, sorry...Trading Credit is only good for use that quarter, isn't it? so i'd have to trade 23 times to 'use' it?

You'll only get a maximum of 12 free trades from the offer, which if you have individual shares, might be doable in a quarter. The other £120 is free cash that doesn't expire.

For your other questions, it makes sense to ask them to waive the transfer fees before complaining if they don't (some people have not even had to complain recently). You can do that before or during the transfer (I did it during and had to pay the fee temporarily while my complaint was being processed).

The clean funds for my holdings all looked fine, but yes, you should check what is available over at III before taking the plunge. It seems III will be automatically converting people in the coming months (except where the overall cost of clean class is higher than what they are currently paying less the rebate).

planteria

masonic wrote: »

The other £120 is free cash that doesn't expire.

:T i like the sound of that.

planteria

if III convert funds over will the investor be charged at that point?

in my ISA i have:
Cazenove UK Smaller Companies
Old Mutual UK Smaller Companies
CF Eclectica Agriculture
Smith & Williamson Global Gold & Resources

maybe best to just leave alone, remain invested, and wait for the funds to 'clean up' as & when..

masonic

planteria wrote: »

if III convert funds over will the investor be charged at that point?

There won't be a charge for converting them - http://www.iii.co.uk/funds/product/clean-funds

grey_gym_sock

planteria wrote: »

masonic wrote: »

The other £120 is free cash that doesn't expire.

:T i like the sound of that.

doesn't expire, but of course it might be converted into scottish pounds, if you signify your agreement by wearing tartan or sipping laphroaig ...