easy access savings account

JeffMason

Hi All,
I'm taking money out of an investment bond. I want to have 100k available to use within in the next year or two maximum and am wondering what the best options are?
I have a Marcus account already so could put up to 85k in there. Any advice on where else should I use?
Thanks,

RG2015

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/savings-accounts-best-interest/

https://moneyfacts.co.uk/savings-accounts/

Stubod

..NSI?.......nb NSI (currently) pays more interest than Marcus...

JeffMason

Thanks both. I saw what is listed but wondered if there were other angles I should perhaps be looking at?
Is something like NSI a good bet? I've never heard of any of the others except Marcus...

Stubod

Not sure what you mean by a "good bet", but NSI is gov. backed so about as secure as you can get. (NB Any other bank you use will be fine as long as it has got the "FSCS" protection limit at £85k).

NSI is instant access, but as per some previous threads the interface for getting money in can be a bit "clunky", (and you need a linked account for getting money out).

Currently it is paying as good / better rate than most other banks, and for me it would be (and is) a no brainer.....

The other option for you is good old Premium bonds, but only if you "invest" the max amount of £50k, (or £100k if there are 2 of you). These also return (on average) about 1.2% and you can withdraw the money whenever you want. (Note you have to wait a month before being eligible for a draw). With the max holding you would expect a "prize" every month, (it will average out over the year), and who knows, you may get lucky?

melanikoko

RG2015 said:

thanks for share. are very complete

JeffMason

Stubod said:

Not sure what you mean by a "good bet", but NSI is gov. backed so about as secure as you can get. (NB Any other bank you use will be fine as long as it has got the "FSCS" protection limit at £85k).

NSI is instant access, but as per some previous threads the interface for getting money in can be a bit "clunky", (and you need a linked account for getting money out).

Currently it is paying as good / better rate than most other banks, and for me it would be (and is) a no brainer.....

The other option for you is good old Premium bonds, but only if you "invest" the max amount of £50k, (or £100k if there are 2 of you). These also return (on average) about 1.2% and you can withdraw the money whenever you want. (Note you have to wait a month before being eligible for a draw). With the max holding you would expect a "prize" every month, (it will average out over the year), and who knows, you may get lucky?

I supposee I meant 'good bet' in the sense of a company I had heard of or I could be sure was legitimate. Goverment backed is about as legitmate as you can get though I suppose. I'll have a google about who the company are and how/why they are backed in this way, but sounds like a smart idea. Marcus needs a linked account also - is NSI any more clunky than that?

I don't really understand premium bonds. I assumed they were similar to investment bonds and what I don't want is the risk that my money could go down. I need to know that I will be able to take out at least the amount I put in. Is there any risk with premium bonds and can they be cashed quickly and easily?

 

eskbanker

JeffMason said:

I don't really understand premium bonds. I assumed they were similar to investment bonds and what I don't want is the risk that my money could go down. I need to know that I will be able to take out at least the amount I put in. Is there any risk with premium bonds and can they be cashed quickly and easily?

They're not similar to investment bonds, in that your capital is protected.  The return is variable though, and is based on the luck of a random draw, but a large holding for a decent amount of time should, with average luck, return about 1.25% (tax-free), although the capital itself doesn't grow as such, which can be seen as a risk if holding for a long time without reinvesting.  Cashing in is straightforward when needed, further details at https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/premium-bonds/

Archi_Bald

JeffMason said:

I supposee I meant 'good bet' in the sense of a company I had heard of or I could be sure was legitimate. Goverment backed is about as legitmate as you can get though I suppose. I'll have a google about who the company are and how/why they are backed in this way, but sounds like a smart idea. Marcus needs a linked account also - is NSI any more clunky than that?

 

All you should be making sure is that the account you put your money into has FSCS protection (except if it's NS&I, which is government backed and safe). You don't need to research the company - the FCA and the PRA will have done this for you before the company could join the FSCS scheme. More on this: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/safe-savings/

JeffMason said:

I don't really understand premium bonds. I assumed they were similar to investment bonds and what I don't want is the risk that my money could go down. I need to know that I will be able to take out at least the amount I put in. Is there any risk with premium bonds and can they be cashed quickly and easily?

 

All about Premium Bonds: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/premium-bonds/

Stubod

..as above, Premium bond are "safe", in that whatever you put in you can always get the same amount out. However in the meantime you are entered into a "prize draw" every month that statistically means you should win about 1.25% of your "investment". With the full amount invested (£50k per person) you should get something most months and this will average out over the year. However you may get lucky and win a lot more! Either way you can close the account and cash in part or all of your bonds at anytime, and you will get all of your original sum returned.

If it was me and I had £100k to save for a year or two it would be £50k in PB's and £50k in the NSI Income bond, although you may find a 1yr / 2yr fixed account that pays a little bit more for a fixed term and NSI may reduce their interest rates at anytime.

lhsecons

Stubod said:

..as above, Premium bond are "safe", in that whatever you put in you can always get the same amount out. However in the meantime you are entered into a "prize draw" every month that statistically means you should win about 1.25% of your "investment". With the full amount invested (£50k per person) you should get something most months and this will average out over the year. However you may get lucky and win a lot more! Either way you can close the account and cash in part or all of your bonds at anytime, and you will get all of your original sum returned.

If it was me and I had £100k to save for a year or two it would be £50k in PB's and £50k in the NSI Income bond, although you may find a 1yr / 2yr fixed account that pays a little bit more for a fixed term and NSI may reduce their interest rates at anytime.

Another advantage of premium bonds is that the prizes are tax free. If you put £100k in NS&I the interest will be (a little) above the £1k tax free limit even if you have no other savings interest at all so your after tax return on some of the money would be less. This is especially important if you are a higher rate taxpayer as your tax free limit is only £500.