Where to put £30k for a few months?

CurlySue2017

I have recently come into a sum of money that I plan to use as a deposit for my own place which is something I never thought I would be able to do, but here we are!

This will take a little while and I have a lot going on just now, so I plan to only start looking into this in the new year when I have a little more time and breathing space.  My question for now is where do I put this money until then?  I want to try and get the best rate I can of course, but will also want access to the money in less than a year so locking it away for a higher rate isn't really going to work.  Also I won't be adding to this sum with any regularity, so I don't think a regular saver is for me either.  It's basically this lump sum that is going to sit there until I need it. 
Would an easy access saver be the way to go?  Or maybe even a current account with a decent rate? 

I'm so nervous about doing the wrong thing with what is to me - a huge amount of money
(I appreciate in the scheme of things this is small fry!!)

TIA

wmb194

CurlySue2017 said:

I have recently come into a sum of money that I plan to use as a deposit for my own place which is something I never thought I would be able to do, but here we are!

This will take a little while and I have a lot going on just now, so I plan to only start looking into this in the new year when I have a little more time and breathing space.  My question for now is where do I put this money until then?  I want to try and get the best rate I can of course, but will also want access to the money in less than a year so locking it away for a higher rate isn't really going to work.  Also I won't be adding to this sum with any regularity, so I don't think a regular saver is for me either.  It's basically this lump sum that is going to sit there until I need it. 
Would an easy access saver be the way to go?  Or maybe even a current account with a decent rate? 

I'm so nervous about doing the wrong thing with what is to me - a huge amount of money
(I appreciate in the scheme of things this is small fry!!)

TIA

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

eskbanker

CurlySue2017 said:

Would an easy access saver be the way to go?

Yes:

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

Newbie_John

£30k could possibly make you pay tax on it* - at 5% it's £1500 interests but, as we already half way through tax year you can just make it 

*You would still get interest, just little bit less 😊

Bigwheels1111

Did you open an ISA this year, if not Trading 212 is giving 5.17% this can go up and down, Plus its easy access.

Withdrawals say up to 3 working day, but so far all mine have been in seconds.

But is tax free, a bit of a pain to set up but I love it.

I use the account for emergency saving and to fund my regular savers.

If you use easy access, Chip is good, instant transfers via open banking.

I have a sidekick account, I'm buggered if I can figure out how to fund it.

Their loss.

80% interest after tax is better than 0%.

goodread

Premium bonds are another possibility, £30K gives you a decent chance of regular prizes and you just cash them in again when needed. 

BuyCurious

goodread said:

Premium bonds are another possibility, £30K gives you a decent chance of regular prizes and you just cash them in again when needed. 

With the caveat that you typically miss out on a few weeks of opportunity to gain.  If you buy today for example then January is the first draw you're in.

penners324

Triple Acces saver by Coventry Building Society paying 4.83%.

Exodi

BuyCurious said:

goodread said:

Premium bonds are another possibility, £30K gives you a decent chance of regular prizes and you just cash them in again when needed. 

With the caveat that you typically miss out on a few weeks of opportunity to gain.  If you buy today for example then January is the first draw you're in.

And from December they'll have a reduced prize rate of 4.15%. They've traditionally been recommended on this forum to people who have exhausted all other avenues (e.g. they already have good pension savings, have already maxed their ISA allowances for the year, they are already expecting to receive interest in other savings accounts up to their personal savings allowance, etc) and would otherwise pay tax on the interest, potentially at the higher rate or above.

Though this commonly morphs into people saving money in them regardless of circumstance, solely to scratch an itch or get their fix (the joy provided by knowing that there is an infinitesimally small chance they can win a million pounds).

In reality, I'd suggest premium bonds make very little financial sense for the vast, vast, vast majority of people.

The decision between premium bonds at 4.15% while an easy access ISA account exists at 5.17% is a no brainer (assuming you haven't maxed your ISA allowance).

eskbanker

Exodi said:
The decision between premium bonds at 4.15% while an easy access ISA account exists at 5.17% is a no brainer (assuming you haven't maxed your ISA allowance).

Realistically the return on premium bonds, based on the median 'average luck' winnings, is less than the headline rate anyway, due to the distorting nature of the small number of very large prizes, so the most likely outcome with £30K for a year is about 3.5%, and would be lower (even on an annualised basis) for shorter periods.

Exodi

eskbanker said:

Exodi said:
The decision between premium bonds at 4.15% while an easy access ISA account exists at 5.17% is a no brainer (assuming you haven't maxed your ISA allowance).

Realistically the return on premium bonds, based on the median 'average luck' winnings, is less than the headline rate anyway, due to the distorting nature of the small number of very large prizes, so the most likely outcome with £30K for a year is about 3.5%, and would be lower (even on an annualised basis) for shorter periods.

Yes indeed and I noticed MSE has very recently updated their article on Premium Bonds to be more pessimistic (realistic) than before:

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/premium-bonds/

Are Premium Bonds a good investment?

Look at Premium Bonds with a clinical financial eye and they're only a good bet as a serious place to put savings if you're lucky, or if you're a higher- or top-rate taxpayer who has used up their personal savings allowance, cash ISA allocation, and put the maximum in today's top 5% savings account.

But Premium Bonds are all about your mentality. They do protect your cash, so even if the returns don't look a good bet, it's fine to put a non-significant portion of your money in them, provided you're aware it's more for fun than returns.