Should I open a LISA?

[whoknows1230]

I turn 40 next month and have been meaning to open a LISA before it's too late. I've been reading about them today though and i don't know if it's worth my while opening one.
I have a mortgage already and I pay into a pension. Am I missing something?

You can open one with just £1 but it has to be before your 40th birthday, so why not just open one so you can decide later. I have one, I save the maximum amount per year £4k and get £1k bonus. We have nearly paid off the mortgage and I pay into a good public sector pension too. The LISA money isn't locked away, if I needed some I could withdraw it, I'd obviously be penalised the 25% bonus off anything I dud choose to withdraw. It'll be available when I'm 60, so the kids will be nearing 30, I see it as a potentially a gift to them for a house deposit as should be worth at least 75k by the end of 15 years saving, 60k saved by me and 15k bonus from gov.

I have a mortgage and a pension too. For me my lisa is going to be “to hell with it” cash at 60 which keeps my sensible head for my pension in check!

Thank you - you've both just persuaded me!

Any recommendations who to open it with?

It’s worth weighing up your options - if you don’t plan on touching the money for 15-20 years then you might get much better returns from low-medium risk investing using a platform like Vanguard.

I'm with Moneybox, they have an incentive for new customers I think. Previously was with Skipton but I try to switch for better underlying interest rates, not that there are many of them at the moment! The moneybox app interface is good, really user friendly, I can easily shift money into it straight from my current account . Its nice to watch it mount up. Have a look at money saving expert for current best interest rate. Bear in mind some banks won't allow you to transfer existing LISAs into them, so switching can be limited.

I also have my LISA with Moneybox. I love the app so much that I also now have a stocks & shares ISA, 90 day savings account and old pensions with them

I’d suggest reading MSE’s advice.

“ WARNING! For most, using a pension to save for retirement is likely to be far better than a LISA”

www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/lifetime-isas/