Sold 50% of portfolio at the bottom, want to reinvest but how?

Type_45

A lady I know told me at the time that she sold her investments at the bottom in Spring 2020.  I think she said she was down 75%, from memory.  She's in her late-60s.

At the time I had my money in VLS60, and I didn't even think there had been a crash as I'd only lost about 10%.

eskbanker

Type_45 said:

A lady I know told me at the time that she sold her investments at the bottom in Spring 2020.  I think she said she was down 75%, from memory.  She's in her late-60s.

At the time I had my money in VLS60, and I didn't even think there had been a crash as I'd only lost about 10%.

VLS60 (Acc) peaked at about £205 in February 2020 before bottoming out at about £168 in March, so a drop of just over 18% from peak to trough - if someone managed to lose 75% at the same time she must have been invested in something pretty racy....

HarryGray

Stick it in a World index equity tracker (Fidelity are good) and just leave it alone. It isnt hard! 

Type_45

eskbanker said:

Type_45 said:

A lady I know told me at the time that she sold her investments at the bottom in Spring 2020.  I think she said she was down 75%, from memory.  She's in her late-60s.

At the time I had my money in VLS60, and I didn't even think there had been a crash as I'd only lost about 10%.

VLS60 (Acc) peaked at about £205 in February 2020 before bottoming out at about £168 in March, so a drop of just over 18% from peak to trough - if someone managed to lose 75% at the same time she must have been invested in something pretty racy....

She had an FA of some kind managing it all for her.  He advised her not to sell but she demanded it.  She shouldn't have been involved with whatever it was given her evident risk tolerance (and particularly her age).  I was absolutely gob smacked when she told me.

eskbanker

Type_45 said:

eskbanker said:

Type_45 said:

A lady I know told me at the time that she sold her investments at the bottom in Spring 2020.  I think she said she was down 75%, from memory.  She's in her late-60s.

At the time I had my money in VLS60, and I didn't even think there had been a crash as I'd only lost about 10%.

VLS60 (Acc) peaked at about £205 in February 2020 before bottoming out at about £168 in March, so a drop of just over 18% from peak to trough - if someone managed to lose 75% at the same time she must have been invested in something pretty racy....

She had an FA of some kind managing it all for her.  He advised her not to sell but she demanded it.  She shouldn't have been involved with whatever it was given her evident risk tolerance (and particularly her age).  I was absolutely gob smacked when she told me.

Even the posters on here who see all advisers as corrupt criminals would probably struggle to accept an advised portfolio dropping by 75% last spring - if it's true as stated then questions should be asked about the quality of the advice but unless you have any meaningful detail of the investments (and the fact-finding process) then nobody can really comment....

Thrugelmir

Down 75k perhaps, 75% fall in value somewhat unlikely. 

barnstar2077

Thrugelmir said:

Down 75k perhaps, 75% fall in value somewhat unlikely. 

Bitcoin? :  )

Type_45

I've asked her what it was invested in but she didn't say.  She said she's still with the same Advisers, her pension has recovered but her ISA is still down.

grumiofoundation

Type_45 said:

I've asked her what it was invested in but she didn't say.  She said she's still with the same Advisers, her pension has recovered but her ISA is still down.

Presumably she is down because she sold her investments "at the bottom". If she hadn't sold one would expect (although not guaranteed since we don't know what these investments were that dropped 75% - although as posters above have said this figure may not be fully correct) she would be in profit. 

The performance of her pension and her ISA aren't related to the aforementioned wrappers but the choice of investments within. 

Notepad_Phil

Type_45 said:

eskbanker said:

Type_45 said:

A lady I know told me at the time that she sold her investments at the bottom in Spring 2020.  I think she said she was down 75%, from memory.  She's in her late-60s.

At the time I had my money in VLS60, and I didn't even think there had been a crash as I'd only lost about 10%.

VLS60 (Acc) peaked at about £205 in February 2020 before bottoming out at about £168 in March, so a drop of just over 18% from peak to trough - if someone managed to lose 75% at the same time she must have been invested in something pretty racy....

She had an FA of some kind managing it all for her.  He advised her not to sell but she demanded it.  She shouldn't have been involved with whatever it was given her evident risk tolerance (and particularly her age).  I was absolutely gob smacked when she told me.

Her risk tolerance is one thing but being in her late sixties is by no means any reaon in itself to not be involved in investments. Given that she felt the need to ditch her investments then It sounds as if she'd be in the wrong investments even if she'd been in her early twenties.

Mrs Notepads's mother is in her late nineties and has a decent slug of investments to go along with her cash, but she's invested in funds that match her risk appetite.. She'd be in deep trouble if she'd kept away from investments for the last 30 years.