200k inheritance. What to do?

ktk

Mortgage is paid, and I have a good teachers pension. Thinking of putting it into ns bonds or premium bonds in the short term, but then what. Should I pay for independant advice, and if so how do I know who to go for. Please help!!

thebritishbloke

Do you have any money saved at the moment?

First thing would be to take advantage of all the high interest current accounts:

1 x TSB Classic Plus - £2k at 5%
1 x Nationwide Flex Direct - £2.5k at 5% for 1 year
1 x Club Lloyds - £5k at 4%
2 x Tesco Bank Current Accounts - £6k at 3%
1 x Santander 123 - £20k at 3%
3 x Bank of Scotland Vantage - £15k at 3%

I'm sure there's a few more I can't remember, but that's £50.5k safely away earning interest. After that, it's up to you whether you want to invest the money or just save it. Others will be able to advise better on what you can do than I'll be able to.

justme111

Do whatever would enhance your life. In every occupation there are chances for progress that require money - expensive courses , buying a business etc. Or may be there are some not related to work lifestyle changes you fancy - a year off work in Himalaya for example. You could invest in your health - personal trainer , the best treatment available for conditions you either have or bound to develop as you age. Children's education - the best world's graduate or postgraduate courses. Investing in funds and shares via ifa if you don't fancy DIY or give yourself a chance to develop interest in investing given that you can afford to lose some of this money. When you realise you do not have to work to bring home bacon thanks to this money you may quit your job . Loads of options. Value of money is in it helping us to spend our limited hours of life with most satisfaction , so what to do with it would be very individual.

kangoora

ktk wrote: »

Mortgage is paid, and I have a good teachers pension. Thinking of putting it into ns bonds or premium bonds in the short term, but then what. Should I pay for independant advice, and if so how do I know who to go for. Please help!!

There's a lot of knowledgeable people on these boards if you fancy going DIY but you have to be prepared to put in a decent amount of effort just to be able to ask the right questions. Reading https://www.monevator.com is a good start to DIY and will take a while just to read and digest all of his blog and articles. Of course, if you follow the DIY route, you will have no recourse for compensation if you screw it up.

With £200k to invest I think you need to seriously consider paying for an IFA for professional advice - try https://www.unbiased.co.uk for one in your area.

Good luck on whatever you decide to do

bowlhead99

I would say yes, NS bonds to keep safe short term because each bank only pays compensation on £85k if something goes wrong.

The premium bond prize pool is 1.35% rather than 1.26% for the income bonds, however the pb pool is all gambled in a lottery so the 1.35% assumes you play it long enough to win all the prizes. Each £1 bond will only win the jackpot £1million once per 24 billion months. So, with the maximum holding of 40,000 premium bonds it will be over 50,000 years before you are expected to actually win all the prizes including the jackpot. You are likely better off just investing in the normal bonds that produce monthly income without the coin toss as to whether you get any or not.

Sound advice above to open all the high interest current accounts and max them out (even more lucrative if you have a partner and can have joint accounts too). You should also max your ISA allowance. However, save setting up an ISA until you've spoken to an independent financial advisor. Likely a S&S ISA is the best use of your allowance each year as you'll have enough assets to fill 10 years' worth even after maxing out £50k of current accounts.

If you have never managed £150k of assets before (which I'm guessing from the fact you are on here and don't know how to find an adviser) then yes, spending a few thousand on an adviser would likely be invaluable. Not just for investment planning and tax planning but also perhaps longer term inheritance planning if you have a house and £200k of other assets and are already pensionable age.

As Kangoora says, you can find a list of IFAs near you at https://www.unbiased.co.uk/ . After doing a search by postcode, be sure to uncheck the box 'show sponsored ads only'. Then you can meet up with say 3 of them for a free discussion on the basics of how they could help you and what it would cost, and pick one. Feel free to try reading some investment websites first like Monevator but if your head is spinning then you can always come back to DIYing after you have had a helping hand from a pro first.

ktk

Thanks for advice so far. I am still working, but oh has no pension to speak of. Already have most of the interest accounts mentioned and cash isas.

planteria

i like the business idea.. how long you are from retirement, and your location, would also influence this.
your Current Accounts alongside S&SISA seems a good starting point.
perhaps also investing in a SIPP or other private pension, getting the uplift on the way in.

xylophone

It is not clear from your post whether you/your partner are already of pension age.

Does your partner have earned income?

Even if not, he/she can contribute to a pension.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/66850794#Comment_66850794 post 3

http://www.cavendishonline.co.uk/pensions/stakeholder-and-personal-pensions/

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/301563/Pensions_fact_sheet_v8.pdf


State pension situation? https://www.gov.uk/new-state-pension/overview

You can hold the money in NS&I income bonds while you think?
http://www.nsandi.com/savings

Note the tax treatment.

ktk

I am 53, but can retire from teaching at 60. OH is 50 and works part time as a TA.

Yes I was going to put it in NS&I bonds for the time being and maybe Premium bonds, just for fun!!

xylophone

OH is 50 and works part time as a TA.

Why isn't she in a pension scheme?

See

http://www.lgps.org.uk/lge/aio/17364789

ktk

I guess he probably is but it won't be worth much as he earns so little.