Transfer Cash ISAs Discussion Area

Baldur

I would throw the Halifax Direct ISA Reward into the mix as well - 3% fixed for 12 months, allows 4 penalty-free withdrawals, accepts transfers & additional deposits.

KTF

I did consider that one as well. Although it offers the advantage of being able to move the money should the rates on other accounts head upwards, the rate is the same as the Lloyds one and there is the disadvantage of the transfer time.

Baldur

KTF wrote: »

I did consider that one as well. Although it offers the advantage of being able to move the money should the rates on other accounts head upwards, the rate is the same as the Lloyds one and there is the disadvantage of the transfer time.

I was fortunate (at least at current interest rate levels) enough to grab the LTSB 'early bird' continuation offer at 3.75% in February, which should be starting today, so haven't had to look at all of the permutations.

KTF

Yeah, I am a bit miffed that I wasnt one of the 'chosen few' that got offer that otherwise it would have made life a lot easier!

vigman

I'm really confused about the timings of ISA transfers.

Like many folk I suspect I thought setting up ISAs for myself and my wife in NS&I would be a permanent situation.

I see there are better "transfer in" ISAs around so

1.) When should the transfer process be started (eg now or after April 5th?)
2.) After transferring in, when can you add this year's 3,600 allowance to the new account?
3.) Does the Nat-West ISA seem the best bet (for a 13K and a 10K transfer)?
4.) Are there longer term normal savings accounts which actually pay better interest net than ISAs?

Thanks for any advice

Vigman

rb10

vigman wrote: »

I'm really confused about the timings of ISA transfers.

Like many folk I suspect I thought setting up ISAs for myself and my wife in NS&I would be a permanent situation.

I see there are better "transfer in" ISAs around so

1.) When should the transfer process be started (eg now or after April 5th?)
2.) After transferring in, when can you add this year's 3,600 allowance to the new account?
3.) Does the Nat-West ISA seem the best bet (for a 13K and a 10K transfer)?
4.) Are there longer term normal savings accounts which actually pay better interest net than ISAs?

Thanks for any advice

Vigman

1) It doesn't make any difference. Transferring your ISA doesn't count as part of your annual allowance, so can be done at any time of year. There are good rates around now (Natwest and Halifax being two of the best), so I'd go for it now.

2) It depends on the T&Cs of the account you are transferring in to. Most fixed rate accounts will only allow the one credit to the account, so you'd then have to open a separate one for the 2009/10 year.

3) If you can restrict to 4 withdrawals per year, you might want to consider the Halifax Direct Reward ISA. Although at the moment this has a slightly lower rate than Natwest, remember that the BOE rate has dropped a lot recently, and the Natwest ISA rate hasn't yet changed to reflect this, so I suspect the rate will drop very soon. The Halifax one allows you to add in next year's allowance (and get the same fixed rate on that too), something that most fixed rate accounts won't let you do.

4) Yes, there are at the moment. However, assuming you are likely to stay as a taxpayer for several years to come, and want to keep the money in savings, remember that if you take it out of the ISA, the tax-free benefit is lost for ever. You and your wife have clearly built this up over many years, and it is likely that at some stage interest rates will return to where ISA rates are higher than normal rates, when you will be pleased that you've got so much in the ISA!

jamesd

vigman wrote: »

1.) When should the transfer process be started (eg now or after April 5th?)
2.) After transferring in, when can you add this year's 3,600 allowance to the new account?

Don't wait for the transfer before putting in the money for this tax year, 2008/9. The transfer is almost certain to take more time than remains until the fifth of April. Make the initial deposit as soon as possible and then start the transfer process once the account opening with the initial deposit is complete.

For the NatWest account that takes transfers you can pay in the initial deposit of this year's money and also enclose a completed transfer form, except for the new account number, and they will take care of both parts of the job for you.

vigman

jamesd wrote: »

For the NatWest account that takes transfers you can pay in the initial deposit of this year's money and also enclose a completed transfer form, except for the new account number, and they will take care of both parts of the job for you.

Out of interest, will any/all/most of these transfers need the hassle of birth certificates, passports, utility bills, blood samples, DNA swabs etc etc;)

Vigman

PS Just to clarify my first mail, both my wife's acc and mine have had this year's allowance added.

jamesd

I don't know about the checks since I could apply as an existing customer, with the checks already completed.

spike87

I transferred my ISA to A&L just a couple of months back when they were paying 3.5% interest. The easyISA has now dropped to 2.5% and I'm thinking of transferring again to Natwest, who I already have a savings account with. Am I ok to transfer the ISA again even though I've only been with A&L for 2 months?