Help with Inherited Investments please

justme8786

My mum died recently, leaving me investments to manage. I am 20 and starting uni soon, so trying to sort all my finances, new and old, to the best of my abilities before I go and start a new chapter in my life. 

Hopefully what I decide now will be good enough to keep the same system long term whilst I focus on education and my career. I would like some help with this if possible please.

The investments are as follows:

From my mum,

1. A SIPP with the funds 
Wisdomtree issuer enh comdty uct etf usd acc
Ishares physical m | shs physical gold etc usd
HSBC openfunds gbl strat dynm ptf c acc
Vanguard inv fds ftse gbl all cap index gbp
Jpmorgan emer mkts ord gbp
Baillie giff oseas bg global discovery b acc

2. A S&S ISA with 
abrdn emerging markets equity fund acc
HSBC american index fund acc
HSBC ftse all share index fund acc
hsbc global strategy dynamic portfolio acc
hsbc japan index fund acc
hsbc pacific index fund acc

What I already had (also from my mum technically),

3. A S&S ISA with
F&C investment trust
ICG enterprise trust
CT private equity trust
CT global managed portfolio trust
The global smaller companies trust
European assets trust

My current thoughts are to (1) leave SIPP as it is untouched. (2) sell all the investments in the other accounts and close them, open a new s&s isa with another provider, and invest into a single HSBC All World Index tracker fund (and potentially some GILTS on the side, although I don't know if this is necessary given my age).

I would really appreciate any comments and constructive criticism. Thank you

LHW99

So sorry you are having to cope with this.

My understanding is that ISA's have to be closed unless passed to a spouse. That is likely to mean that the ISA platform would sell the investments, and pay the amounts to the estate.

Are you executor for your mum, or is that someone else?

Either way, it may be best to put the funds, when the estate is settles, into a suitable savings account for the time being until you have been able to get things going along more stably. The FSCS "£85,000" limit for compensation does not count for temporary balances (I believe up to £1m) due to specific life events if this is relevant.

Give yourself time to work out what for and when you need access to the money, and if it is a significant sum, getting some independent financial advice ould be worth considering in due course.

justme8786

LHW99 said:

So sorry you are having to cope with this.

My understanding is that ISA's have to be closed unless passed to a spouse. That is likely to mean that the ISA platform would sell the investments, and pay the amounts to the estate.

Are you executor for your mum, or is that someone else?

Either way, it may be best to put the funds, when the estate is settles, into a suitable savings account for the time being until you have been able to get things going along more stably. The FSCS "£85,000" limit for compensation does not count for temporary balances (I believe up to £1m) due to specific life events if this is relevant.

Give yourself time to work out what for and when you need access to the money, and if it is a significant sum, getting some independent financial advice ould be worth considering in due course.

Thank you.

Understood, the second ISA is mine already so only the first would close. 

Yes I am the sole executor.

I don't want to rush but at the same time don't have much time and would rather put it straight from investments to investments if poss.

I looked into IFAs but it would be £500 for a 'planning' session and then much more I am guessing for actually choosing funds, and I think I am already happy with the knowledge I have. Or at least happy enough to save over £1k.

Thank you for the FSCS info, I will look into that.

Eco_Miser

So sorry for your loss.

You don't say which provider your existing S&S Isa is with. Is there a particular reason why you want to change providers?

Remember don't take your money out and close the Isa yourself, get your new ISA provider to transfer it, thus keeping the very valuable tax-free status. As mentioned above, your mother's ISA will stop being one, so you'll have to use a General Investment Account (GIA) until you can feed it into your own ISA at no more than £20,000 per year. (I'm assuming there's more than £20,000 in there.)

Eyeful

You may like to bookmark these two for future reference:

1. FSCS Protection checkers for Pensions, Savings, Investments, :  https://www.fscs.org.uk/check/

2. FCA register for checking out financial service companies: https://register.fca.org.uk/s/

These may be of interest to you:
https://monevator.com/investor-compensation-scheme/
https://monevator.com/maximising-fscs-protection-for-your-investment-portfolio/

Voyager2002

I think you need to consider when you are likely to want to spend (some of) this money. Funds that you expect to spend within the next five years or so should not be invested in equities.

Therefore, make rough budgets for:
1. how much (if any) of your inheritance is to cover day-to-day living expenses while you are at university?
2. do you want to keep money for a holiday to celebrate graduation?
3. how much you will need to spend on the transition from study to work (things like a suit and transport for interview, a deposit to rent a place near to your new job; surviving for the first month until pay-day)?

These are all expenses within the next five years, so your budget for this kind of thing should be kept in high-interest savings or possibly in bonds.

justme8786

Voyager2002 said:

I think you need to consider when you are likely to want to spend (some of) this money. Funds that you expect to spend within the next five years or so should not be invested in equities.

Therefore, make rough budgets for:
1. how much (if any) of your inheritance is to cover day-to-day living expenses while you are at university?
2. do you want to keep money for a holiday to celebrate graduation?
3. how much you will need to spend on the transition from study to work (things like a suit and transport for interview, a deposit to rent a place near to your new job; surviving for the first month until pay-day)?

These are all expenses within the next five years, so your budget for this kind of thing should be kept in high-interest savings or possibly in bonds.

1. The intention is 0 - I have some of my own savings, although ideally these wouldn't be touched either. I intend to survive on the maintenance loan and a job.
2. Again all with own earned money
3. Yes this is something to think about, I am planning to go straight to masters but there are costs awaiting me there there definitely.

Yes I understand the point, I will think about these. I guess savings would be preferable to cash ISA so I don't end up wasting my £20k allowance and faffing with putting in and then withdrawing?

justme8786

Eco_Miser said:

So sorry for your loss.

You don't say which provider your existing S&S Isa is with. Is there a particular reason why you want to change providers?

Remember don't take your money out and close the Isa yourself, get your new ISA provider to transfer it, thus keeping the very valuable tax-free status. As mentioned above, your mother's ISA will stop being one, so you'll have to use a General Investment Account (GIA) until you can feed it into your own ISA at no more than £20,000 per year. (I'm assuming there's more than £20,000 in there.)

Thank you.
Yes, because it is with CT who only offer a very limited range of actively managed funds.
Will do the transfer yes.

Section62

justme8786 said:

LHW99 said:

So sorry you are having to cope with this.

My understanding is that ISA's have to be closed unless passed to a spouse. That is likely to mean that the ISA platform would sell the investments, and pay the amounts to the estate.

Are you executor for your mum, or is that someone else?

Either way, it may be best to put the funds, when the estate is settles, into a suitable savings account for the time being until you have been able to get things going along more stably. The FSCS "£85,000" limit for compensation does not count for temporary balances (I believe up to £1m) due to specific life events if this is relevant.

Give yourself time to work out what for and when you need access to the money, and if it is a significant sum, getting some independent financial advice ould be worth considering in due course.

Thank you.

Understood, the second ISA is mine already so only the first would close. 

Yes I am the sole executor.

I don't want to rush but at the same time don't have much time and would rather put it straight from investments to investments if poss.

I looked into IFAs but it would be £500 for a 'planning' session and then much more I am guessing for actually choosing funds, and I think I am already happy with the knowledge I have. Or at least happy enough to save over £1k.

Thank you for the FSCS info, I will look into that.

I think you should look on paying some money for advice from an IFA as part of the 'investment'.  I'm not in a wildly different position to you with an inheritance and thought I had a reasonable grasp on what to do, but speaking to an IFA has uncovered some details I hadn't thought about.

With the SIPP, check what the provider does when notified of the death.  For example, abrdn automatically sold everything in a SIPP to cash on notification of death. So you won't necessarily be able to leave it as it is, depending on the provider's procedures.  I would have preferred to keep this money invested, and this was one of the details the IFA helped me get my head around (it made sense in the end!)

The SIPP may be the thing you need to make some decisions about first.  What you can do with the other assets is probably limited until probate, but depending on the circumstances, the SIPP is likely to be transferred to you much quicker, and you'll need to consider the different options you may have.  In my situation the bereavement team at abrdn were good, but being able to tell them I'd spoken to an IFA before making a decision helped move things along smoothly.  Again, the details will depend on your mum's SIPP provider and circumstances though.

I feel for you as dealing with this stuff isn't good whilst coming to terms with loss.  The folk on this forum are great, but there are limitations on what advice you can get, and without us knowing stuff that you shouldn't share on a forum like this then what we can say is limited.  This is why investing in some help from an IFA or other suitable professional is likely to be a good investment.

The other thing, and sorry to bring it up, but one of the key things the IFA impressed on me was the importance of having an (updated) Will myself, which takes into account the change of circumstances with the inheritance.  If you don't have one, or what you have doesn't reflect your circumstances now, then now would be a sensible time to think about what you would want.

justme8786

Section62 said:

justme8786 said:

LHW99 said:

So sorry you are having to cope with this.

My understanding is that ISA's have to be closed unless passed to a spouse. That is likely to mean that the ISA platform would sell the investments, and pay the amounts to the estate.

Are you executor for your mum, or is that someone else?

Either way, it may be best to put the funds, when the estate is settles, into a suitable savings account for the time being until you have been able to get things going along more stably. The FSCS "£85,000" limit for compensation does not count for temporary balances (I believe up to £1m) due to specific life events if this is relevant.

Give yourself time to work out what for and when you need access to the money, and if it is a significant sum, getting some independent financial advice ould be worth considering in due course.

Thank you.

Understood, the second ISA is mine already so only the first would close. 

Yes I am the sole executor.

I don't want to rush but at the same time don't have much time and would rather put it straight from investments to investments if poss.

I looked into IFAs but it would be £500 for a 'planning' session and then much more I am guessing for actually choosing funds, and I think I am already happy with the knowledge I have. Or at least happy enough to save over £1k.

Thank you for the FSCS info, I will look into that.

I think you should look on paying some money for advice from an IFA as part of the 'investment'.  I'm not in a wildly different position to you with an inheritance and thought I had a reasonable grasp on what to do, but speaking to an IFA has uncovered some details I hadn't thought about.

With the SIPP, check what the provider does when notified of the death.  For example, abrdn automatically sold everything in a SIPP to cash on notification of death. So you won't necessarily be able to leave it as it is, depending on the provider's procedures.  I would have preferred to keep this money invested, and this was one of the details the IFA helped me get my head around (it made sense in the end!)

The SIPP may be the thing you need to make some decisions about first.  What you can do with the other assets is probably limited until probate, but depending on the circumstances, the SIPP is likely to be transferred to you much quicker, and you'll need to consider the different options you may have.  In my situation the bereavement team at abrdn were good, but being able to tell them I'd spoken to an IFA before making a decision helped move things along smoothly.  Again, the details will depend on your mum's SIPP provider and circumstances though.

I feel for you as dealing with this stuff isn't good whilst coming to terms with loss.  The folk on this forum are great, but there are limitations on what advice you can get, and without us knowing stuff that you shouldn't share on a forum like this then what we can say is limited.  This is why investing in some help from an IFA or other suitable professional is likely to be a good investment.

The other thing, and sorry to bring it up, but one of the key things the IFA impressed on me was the importance of having an (updated) Will myself, which takes into account the change of circumstances with the inheritance.  If you don't have one, or what you have doesn't reflect your circumstances now, then now would be a sensible time to think about what you would want.

I am sorry for your loss too.

The SIPP have already offered me my options, the one which I have chosen being a drawdown pension fund. So I leave it where it is basically. I assume this means the investments stay too, but now that you mention the selling of the funds as a possibility I will check this.

Re. the IFA: I suppose, and I do see the benefit, but the whole thing just seems very strange: how I'd have to pay the £500 just for 'planning' which under no circumstance means any actual funds can be mentioned because then that would make it 'implementation'. What would that time even go to then?? I understand they have to do this because it is quite difficult to quantify advice, but it seems strange to me. If I had absolutely not a clue then fair enough but I am in that in-between space..

One thing I probably should have done is hired a Probate solicitor. I wasn't aware that I'd be needing to fill out the big forms even though there is no IHT to be paid, and those are overwhelming me a bit haha. The IHT400, IHT421 etc.

badger09

justme8786 said:

Section62 said:

justme8786 said:

LHW99 said:

So sorry you are having to cope with this.

My understanding is that ISA's have to be closed unless passed to a spouse. That is likely to mean that the ISA platform would sell the investments, and pay the amounts to the estate.

Are you executor for your mum, or is that someone else?

Either way, it may be best to put the funds, when the estate is settles, into a suitable savings account for the time being until you have been able to get things going along more stably. The FSCS "£85,000" limit for compensation does not count for temporary balances (I believe up to £1m) due to specific life events if this is relevant.

Give yourself time to work out what for and when you need access to the money, and if it is a significant sum, getting some independent financial advice ould be worth considering in due course.

Thank you.

Understood, the second ISA is mine already so only the first would close. 

Yes I am the sole executor.

I don't want to rush but at the same time don't have much time and would rather put it straight from investments to investments if poss.

I looked into IFAs but it would be £500 for a 'planning' session and then much more I am guessing for actually choosing funds, and I think I am already happy with the knowledge I have. Or at least happy enough to save over £1k.

Thank you for the FSCS info, I will look into that.

I think you should look on paying some money for advice from an IFA as part of the 'investment'.  I'm not in a wildly different position to you with an inheritance and thought I had a reasonable grasp on what to do, but speaking to an IFA has uncovered some details I hadn't thought about.

With the SIPP, check what the provider does when notified of the death.  For example, abrdn automatically sold everything in a SIPP to cash on notification of death. So you won't necessarily be able to leave it as it is, depending on the provider's procedures.  I would have preferred to keep this money invested, and this was one of the details the IFA helped me get my head around (it made sense in the end!)

The SIPP may be the thing you need to make some decisions about first.  What you can do with the other assets is probably limited until probate, but depending on the circumstances, the SIPP is likely to be transferred to you much quicker, and you'll need to consider the different options you may have.  In my situation the bereavement team at abrdn were good, but being able to tell them I'd spoken to an IFA before making a decision helped move things along smoothly.  Again, the details will depend on your mum's SIPP provider and circumstances though.

I feel for you as dealing with this stuff isn't good whilst coming to terms with loss.  The folk on this forum are great, but there are limitations on what advice you can get, and without us knowing stuff that you shouldn't share on a forum like this then what we can say is limited.  This is why investing in some help from an IFA or other suitable professional is likely to be a good investment.

The other thing, and sorry to bring it up, but one of the key things the IFA impressed on me was the importance of having an (updated) Will myself, which takes into account the change of circumstances with the inheritance.  If you don't have one, or what you have doesn't reflect your circumstances now, then now would be a sensible time to think about what you would want.

……….

One thing I probably should have done is hired a Probate solicitor. I wasn't aware that I'd be needing to fill out the big forms even though there is no IHT to be paid, and those are overwhelming me a bit haha. The IHT400, IHT421 etc.

Head over to the Life & Family section of the forum. There’s a board there on Death & Probate where people who’ve been through the process can help with any questions you might have. 

Many of us have acted as Executors and are happy to pass on what we’ve learned.