Capital from House sale

DoreenMay

I’m in the process of selling a house it’s sold subject to contract. As I am moving away from the area I live in I will be staying with a relative while I find a new property. Where would be the best place to put the capital for a short period that will give interest and easy access when I want the money transferred to pay for the new property? I would appreciate any advice.

bowlhead99

Without any indication of the amounts involved; a decent answer is always National Savings (NSANDI.com), currently paying 1.26% AER on monthly income bonds. Government backed so your money is insured whether you have £50k, £150k, £1m.

Alternatively you might like to split across various banks in a mix of current accounts and savings accounts to get the absolute best possible average interest rate but don't put more than £85k with any one institution or you may lose money or have a huge headache if a bank goes bust.

jacko74

I'm in exactly the same position as you and I've also come to the conclusion that NS&I is the best option for now.

You can get higher interest on portions of your money if you're prepared to split it all up in different current and saving accounts (Santander 123, Club Lloyds etc) but I really cant be bothered!

ColdIron

Do remember that the interest is paid gross of tax so you may need to declare it to HMRC

kingrulzuk

ColdIron wrote: »

Do remember that the interest is paid gross of tax so you may need to declare it to HMRC

What if we dont?

Archi_Bald

You have a legal obligation to declare your taxable income.

Like all other savings account providers, NS&I makes account data available to HMRC as well as - indirectly - to other EU tax authorities. HMRC, or if applicable the other tax authorities, will track you down, and may be even fine you, for tax evasion.

To quote from the NS & I site:

Which of my details will you pass to HMRC (the UK tax authority)?

Along with the usual reporting information such as name and address, we will be reporting the amount of savings income (ie interest payments, including any Premium Bond prizes) you receive during the tax year. Your Tax Identification Number, if you have one, will also be reported or details of your date and place of birth.

...........
..........
..........

NS&I, as a UK paying agent (paying agents are any institutions/individuals who pay out savings income) is required to make an annual report to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). HMRC will exchange this information with the tax authority of the country concerned.

ColdIron

kingrulzuk wrote: »

What if we dont?

Then Her Majesty's Revenue officers will hunt you down and feel your collar Don't forget that NS&I is an executive arm of the Treasury so the data is not exactly hard for them to find

lejog2003

Archi_Bald wrote: »

You have a legal obligation to declare your taxable income.

Like all other savings account providers, NS&I makes account data available to HMRC as well as - indirectly - to other EU tax authorities. HMRC, or if applicable the other tax authorities, will track you down, and may be even fine you, for tax evasion.

In my experience, they aren't quite so heavy at first, they do tend to first send a letter politely asking you to fill in a tax return to give you the chance to declare the income.