Some basic beginners advice needed please

massuch

I am new to investments but wish to take the risk and put some money away for roughly 10 years, to try and accumulate as much as I can.

I would have £2500 lump sum and could part with 100/month.

looking for maybe a stocks and shares ISA or similar managed fund.

I have been trailing around investment websites to try and get some background information but am just lost plus am a very indecisive person.

Also my husband does not have a pension, he is 44 and self-employed. He has an old contracted out of SERPS policy with CIS (confused about that as well). I have an NHS pension.

Would appreciate some advice please regarding both.

Thanks in advance

atush

looking for maybe a stocks and shares ISA or similar managed fund.

yes, you are a bit lost lol. A S&S ISA is just a tax wrapper, it is not 'managed' nor is it a fund. But you can hold funds in it.

While you can choose a managed fund, i might be inclined to say you should look at a balanced portfolio of trackers, or lifestyle funds like Vanguard. As the charges are lower than for managed funds and charges make a great difference over a long term.

A Pension is another tax wrapper, and yes your OH needs one. He could open one some place like cavendishonline, and use the same funds as above, but with 2 of you, you might consider using an IFA to set up both.,

Archi_Bald

massuch wrote: »

looking for maybe a stocks and shares ISA or similar managed fund.

An S&S ISA is merely a tax wrapper for investments, such as funds. Funds are generally a good idea for investment novices but there are a huge number of them. Managed funds are often very expensive, and cost is a major consideration, particularly with small investments like your sounds to be.

You can read up about investments: https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4752194, and once you have a better understanding, create your portfolio and select a provider that suits your needs.

massuch

Thank you for the advice so far.

Just to throw in another situation, we are remortgaging and have £6000 of debt to pay off. Currently have a small endowment £47 per month with 10 years to go, one of the projections is £18,000 at 4.5% and £23,000 at 7%, this is with Prudential.

Was thinking about cashing in the endowment which is worth about £9,000 to help pay off debt and put the rest in an investment with £100/month.

Or should I add on the £6000 to the mortgage and carry on with our £47/month endowment??

Would I be making more money keeping the endowment or starting a new investment?

TCA

massuch wrote: »

Was thinking about cashing in the endowment which is worth about £9,000 to help pay off debt and put the rest in an investment

If your Prudential endowment is a with-profits policy and £9k is their surrender value, you might consider selling it on as opposed to cashing it in. I did this via http://www.apmm.org and although it took a bit longer I got several hundred pounds more.

That's not a recommendation to sell, just an option if you do. They'll provide no-obligation quotations from their members.

massuch

TCA wrote: »

If your Prudential endowment is a with-profits policy and £9k is their surrender value, you might consider selling it on as opposed to cashing it in.

Thank you for the advice but the endowment is split with-profits and unit-linked funds.

atush

What rate is your new mtg likely to be? As that would say if you should convert your debt (although in general is is a better rate than unsecured debt).

And will you stay out of debt or build up more if you put this debt on your mtg?

I'd be inclined to say, start the investment now, but w/o the 2.5K lump sum. And instead keep this as an emergency fund as you ought to have one before investing, as it keeps you out of debt?

massuch

I am looking at a 2yr fixed at 1.49% with HSBC.

The debt is a mixture from getting married 3 years ago, money owed to parents and a student overdraft. Haven't had any new debt for 3 years and don't plan to as we are comfortable with our financial incomes now.

So would you suggest surrendering endowment or adding to current mortgage.

atush

It depends on when the endowment is due to pay out, how much you invest each month, and the performance of similar ones lately ie the size of the terminal bonus. I would sell over surrender as suggested if you want rid of it.

If your mtg rate is low enough ( I asked you didn't answer) then you could add it esp if you are confident of not building up more debt.

but do keep an cash emergency fund (as everyone should have one esp homeowners) and invest the new money.