Savings!? What do I do with my money??

richmoore4071

Dear All,

I am a freelancer and after a year or two of work I have a couple of thousand pounds. It's currently sitting in my current account earning a very small amount of interest.

I'd like to know what I should do with it. I want to open some kind of savings account, but have no idea where to start researching: ISAs, Savings Accounts, Help to Buy ISAs...it's all a bit baffling.

Any advice?

R

grimsalve

Have a look at the TSB and Santander current accounts - both have conditions so might not be suitable.

xylophone

A TSB plus current account will give you 5% on balances up to £2000 - you need to go paperless and pay in £500 a month but if necessary,this can be managed by drawing out £500 and paying it back in again.

Or you might consider a Tesco current account - no regular pay in or DDs required - the interest rate is 3%.

If you have £2000, then open both TSB and Tesco and pay the monthly interest accruing in TSB into the Tesco?

badger09

richmoore4071 wrote: »

Dear All,

I am a freelancer and after a year or two of work I have a couple of thousand pounds. It's currently sitting in my current account earning a very small amount of interest.

I'd like to know what I should do with it. I want to open some kind of savings account, but have no idea where to start researching: ISAs, Savings Accounts, Help to Buy ISAs...it's all a bit baffling.

Any advice?

R

if you qualify, then a HTB ISA is a good idea, because of the government bonus.

That aside, forget normal cash ISAs. The best rates are on current accounts and on 'a couple of thousand' are likely to be TSB Classic Plus & Nationwide Flexdirect and its linked regular saver.

Other regular savers can pay slightly better rates, but need a linked current account, so I would start with the above 2.

richmoore4071

Thanks Badger09,

Is there a quick answer to whether or not I qualify for the HTB ISA? Or do i just need to read up?

Rx

Eco_Miser

If you've ever owned any property in whole or part, you don't qualify.
There are long threads about HTB in the ISA sub-board.

eskbanker

richmoore4071 wrote: »

I want to open some kind of savings account, but have no idea where to start researching: ISAs, Savings Accounts, Help to Buy ISAs...it's all a bit baffling.

Any advice?

A good place to start would be the 'How to Start Saving' article linked further up the page in the quick links section.