I have more money than I know what to do with. What would you suggest?

Arthurian

I could be wrong, but my instinct, bearing in mind your health issues, would be to invest in a stocks and shares ISA rather than a pension.  If your condition suddenly deteriorates, you can get at the ISA money quickly, be it for urgent private treatment, experimental treatment in the USA, good quality adaptations to your house, decent and reliable carers, or a bucket list trip.

curlywig73

I'm curious as to how you m,naged to buy a house with a student loan?  That's quite unusual, isn't it? It's only around 10k?  And it's given termly, not in one go each year, so where did you get your deposit from?   Are you in a very very cheap area?  Sorry for all the questions, I just find it fascinating to think that would be doable.

DemiDee

You write so eloquently and reading your post was a delight. It is also nice to see someone out there whose circumstances are so similar to my own (in terms of you living a frugal life and building up a 'just in case' pot of income). Nobody can tell you what you should do with your money. We can only advise. What is important to you might not be important to the next person. It would be easy for me to say 'travel the world, live a little' since I have done that and love travelling, but even priorities change over the years. Your priorities might be to get your house fixed, or you might want to treat someone special, or get something special you've always wanted. Just don't spend for the sake of spending, or because you feel it's the 'right' thing to do at your age. Most importantly, whatever you decide, I hope that it is the right decision for YOU.

housebuyer143

curlywig73 said:

I'm curious as to how you m,naged to buy a house with a student loan?  That's quite unusual, isn't it? It's only around 10k?  And it's given termly, not in one go each year, so where did you get your deposit from?   Are you in a very very cheap area?  Sorry for all the questions, I just find it fascinating to think that would be doable.

Student loan can be close £10k a year. When I went to uni we rented rooms in houses for £200 a month all bills included and then if you worked as well you didn't really need to touch the loan much.
My husband and I did similar and left uni with £30k in the bank between us for our deposit and bought our first house for £130k.

The student loans have no impact on mortgage affordability if you are not paying them back, so they are an excellent loan to have 

ShinyStarlight1

I understand your cautionary stance regarding money - like you, I have experienced hardship, which ended when I inherited some money. I must say, it feels like an absolute luxury not to worry about money, for the first time ever. I’m saying this because I think relaxing in security can be an adventure in itself when you’ve had nothing.

Nebulous2

francoghezzi said:

Stop for a second, watch a cloud in the sky and listen to yourself breathing. You have been missing on the true meaning of life

I never took time to enjoy my surroundings - but several things changed that.

Getting a dog helped. Out day and night in all weathers. I haven't seen much exotic, but foxes, owls, woodpeckers, red squirrels and tree creepers are some highlights - mostly in public parks in an urban setting. My wife could always identify a lot of birds. Post-dog I've become much better as well. 

Dog has also made me realise what I don't like. Cold wet, dark winter evenings have become a real drag in the last 2-3 years, in a way they never were before. 

Buying a decent camera also helped. I soon decided I wasn't as good a photographer as I hoped. I mainly do landscapes, but have tried other things such as street photography and close - ups of flowers. While photography hasn't given me the interesting hobby I hoped it would, it has triggered a better way of looking at, and much more of an interest in, the subject matter. A patch of wildflowers has become much more interesting since spending some time trying to photograph it. I get some mind-blowing sunsets on my way home from work. Even without the camera in the car I find myself stopping, getting out and just looking - which I wouldn't have done before. 

OP -there is a whole world out there for you to enjoy. Some of it not costing very much. Live a little, as well as saving.  You need to try stuff repeatedly to enjoy it, and find out if you will like it. We love camping, but that's  because we've done it a lot, and have some great memories. It's a real dividing thing. Some people love it and some hate it. I think the people who love it tend to be the ones who were taken by their parents and really like it. Giving it one go and making your mind up will often mean people dislike it and never go back. 

We love France. If we are within reach of Paris we'll spend a day there, going in by train, and revisit some old favourites. We wouldn't really stay there anymore. My only suggestion, as for any city I visit, would be don't try too much. Pick a small number of attractions, take time to explore them, go back later if you want, to see more. 

hallmark

I'm surprised that nobody has suggested repaying (or starting to repay) the student loan.  Not because it's necessarily the most beneficial move financially (although it could turn out to be) but because it surely ought to be the aim of anybody who takes a taxpayer-funded loan. Especially if you partly used it to buy a house and have more money than you know what to do with.

I disagree strongly with the MSE line on this, particularly this quote as part of the section on loans being wiped after 30 years.

"if it's unlikely you'll clear the loan in time, then you will have paid unnecessarily."

No, that money won't have been paid unnecessarily, it would have been a good-faith attempt to repay a loan.

It makes no sense to me that a website that champions consumers advocates a policy that costs consumers (taxpayers) a fortune.

BTW this isn't a dig at you personally, or at anybody else who has a student loan, just my opinion.

hallmark

IanManc said:

hallmark said:

I'm surprised that nobody has suggested repaying (or starting to repay) the student loan.  Not because it's necessarily the most beneficial move financially (although it could turn out to be) but because it surely ought to be the aim of anybody who takes a taxpayer-funded loan. Especially if you partly used it to buy a house and have more money than you know what to do with.

I disagree strongly with the MSE line on this, particularly this quote as part of the section on loans being wiped after 30 years.

"if it's unlikely you'll clear the loan in time, then you will have paid unnecessarily."

No, that money won't have been paid unnecessarily, it would have been a good-faith attempt to repay a loan.

It makes no sense to me that a website that champions consumers advocates a policy that costs consumers (taxpayers) a fortune.

BTW this isn't a dig at you personally, or at anybody else who has a student loan, just my opinion.

You seem to be asserting that there is somehow some sort of moral duty for people to pay back student loans even where the system as it stands doesn't require them to do so.

I look at it a different way: I think it was disgusting that politicians who benefited from free university tuition and student grants then pulled up the drawbridge after they'd had their fill and imposed tuition fees and loans on the generations after them. Where was their moral compass?

Maybe you could try thinking things through a bit more before attempting to take the moral high ground.

I've thought it through plenty, thanks.

I don't disagree that politicians are frequently disgusting, but they're not the ones who pay (or don't pay) for student loans, taxpayers are.

Maybe you should try reading what I actually wrote before accusing me of attempting to take the high moral ground, I'm fairly sure I said this is just my opinion.  If you have a different opinion that's fine.   It's you, not me, that's lecturing people.

hallmark

IanManc

Maybe you could try thinking things through a bit more before attempting to take the moral high ground.

...........

IanManc

I'm not lecturing anyone.

hallmark

Three replies and in all three you accuse me of something you do and I don't.

I stated an opinion. I even took pains to point out that's what it was.

You've reply was both lecturing and patronising, both things you accuse me of. Then you claim it's YOU that's not allowed an opinion.

Hilarious stuff.

You could have simply chose to disagree and pointed out why (as I did originally).