S&S ISA or not?

anoncol

Hi,

I've just been looking into S&S ISA and i'm probably looking at starting getting into at least this after the election.

AXA seems preferable according to martin, but as i look into it more it seems just like actually holding S&S. So do i have the same control in an ISA compared to just going entirely into investment through a broker?

As an example i naively didn't even think about dividends getting paid.

I guess what i'm really asking is, is an S&S ISA just a tax free way of dealing shares?

Archi_Bald

anoncol wrote: »

I guess what i'm really asking is, is an S&S ISA just a tax free way of dealing shares?

It's shares and funds and bonds - but essentially yes, an S&S ISA is merely a tax wrapper for investments. A very valuable tax wrapper, too.

As a newbie to investing, you should be looking at investing in funds, not at individual shares. And you should be looking into the cheapest funds, and into the most economical provider.

You should not under any circumstances let yourself be drawn into any given provider before you have chosen your investment - for the simple reason that not all firms offer all investments.

An analogy: someone tells you that travelling by train is the best way to travel. However, you later determine you want to travel to the US, and clearly taking a train isn't terribly suitable.

Here's a lot better guidance:
http://monevator.com/category/investing/passive-investing-investing/

http://monevator.com/compare-uk-cheapest-online-brokers/

masonic

Yes, in essence it is just a wrapper with a sharedealing account and/or funds platform underneath. Your investments will not be subject to any capital gains tax and dividends will not be liable to further income tax. Also, you won't have to keep any records of your profits or declare them to HMRC.

You don't have to hold shares directly - you could instead buy a selection of funds, or even a single multi-asset fund depending on your preferences.

Herbalus

If a cash ISA is just "a savings account you don't pay tax on", as Martin keeps creepily breathing down the radio, then a S&S ISA is simply S&S investments with it's own preferential tax treatment. One such example is no capital gains tax.

You can buy shares to put into your S&S ISA, or funds, or bonds, or investment trusts for example. It is an investment vehicle.

anoncol

Thank you both, very very useful advice. I will look at your links Archi with much interest.

Now i already have standard life shares from when they did something (i cant remember, privatised?), but i had a pension with them. Can i move these into my S&S isa?

dunstonh

AXA seems preferable according to martin

Martin has generally avoided investments. I don't recall seeing anything from Martin making such a recommendation. Have you got a link as it would be interesting to see if he has returned to making regulated investment recommendations (despite not being qualified to do so).

Was the recommendation for AXA as the platform or as the fund house and which fund was it?

So do i have the same control in an ISA compared to just going entirely into investment through a broker?

Depends on where you buy the ISA. If you go direct to a product provider then you will be limited to their range. However, if you use a whole of market platform then you will have access to anything quoted on the LSE and most unit trust/OEIC options.

I guess what i'm really asking is, is an S&S ISA just a tax free way of dealing shares?

Shares, ITS, ETFS, Unit Trusts, OEICs, structured products etc.

An ISA is a tax wrapper. Within that wrapper you can hold a multitude of investment options tax free.

masonic

anoncol wrote: »

Now i already have standard life shares from when they did something (i cant remember, privatised?), but i had a pension with them. Can i move these into my S&S isa?

Yes, if they are available to trade on your chosen ISA platform then you should be able to transfer into the platform (often at no cost) and 'bed & ISA' the holding. That will involve realising a capital gain at the point you move them into the ISA.

Herbalus

dunstonh wrote: »

Martin has generally avoided investments. I don't recall seeing anything from Martin making such a recommendation. Have you got a link as it would be interesting to see if he has returned to making regulated investment recommendations (despite not being qualified to do so).

Was the recommendation for AXA as the platform or as the fund house and which fund was it?

Axa appears top of the best buy tables on MSE's S&S guide because they have no fees until 1 May 2016 if you sign up before 30 April.

anoncol

Thanks for further replies. I certainly have lots more reading to do.

dunstonh wrote: »

Martin has generally avoided investments. I don't recall seeing anything from Martin making such a recommendation. Have you got a link as it would be interesting to see if he has returned to making regulated investment recommendations (despite not being qualified to do so).

Was the recommendation for AXA as the platform or as the fund house and which fund was it?

Here you go.
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/stocks-shares-isas#axa

colsten

Herbalus wrote: »

Axa appears top of the best buy tables on MSE's S&S guide because they have no fees until 1 May 2016 if you sign up before 30 April.

AXA also have an asterisk next to their name.......we all know what that means.

MorganaLF

colsten wrote: »

AXA also have an asterisk next to their name.......we all know what that means.

I don't! Can anyone elaborate?