17/M What can I do to get the best financial start in life

enthusiasticsaver

Dan83 wrote: »

P2P £25k invested in saving stream would give you £250 a month interest. More then you earn.

I am not sure I would recommend putting all the savings in P2P which carries risks.

bigadaj

enthusiasticsaver wrote: »

I am not sure I would recommend putting all the savings in P2P which carries risks.

Probably agree, and certainly not on one platform.

Flobberchops

Don't put all your eggs in one basket. You might like consider a mix of:

- Cash held in interest-paying current accounts and being cycled through regular savings accounts to maximise interest
- Cash held in ISAs, particularly Help to Buy ISA or Lifetime ISA (when it becomes available and if the rates are favourable) with a view to holding for medium to long term and using the bonus to get onto the housing ladder
- A few funds held in a Stocks and Shares ISA - funds tend to attract lower dealing fees than picking individual stocks
- Some P2P - yes there's an element of risk but the rewards are high, and wouldn't you want to get a slice of that!? Just remember to diversify and never invest more than you could afford to lose in an unlikely doomsday scenario.
- Premium Bonds are a bit naff these days but the minimum buy-in is just £100 and that gives you a monthly chance at winning a million.

In general though, people don't get rich from investing - they get rich from earning money, minimising their outgoings, and making a regular habit of saving the majority of the difference.

Best of luck in your apprenticeship, I hear the pay is pretty crummy but crucially you *are* getting paid, compared to university where you pay an awful lot to sleep through lectures and mess around on a three-month summer holiday every year. Perhaps I'm jaded from my own experience but I'd heartily recommend doing exactly what you are: get vocational experience first and you always have the option of going to university in your 20s when you've got an idea of what you want to do.