I am 53 and want to start SIPP

[JuJulemon]

I am looking for a SIPP with regular contributions of £25-£50 per month and low maintenance fees. On top of the regular contributions, I am also going to put as much money as I manage to save up every year.

My research has brought me to AJ Bell Youinvest, so I am about to sign up. Or should I look around more...??

My brief background:
I pay a state pension in the UK and in my home country (so two state pensions). I have £20k savings (ISA). My husband and I own a flat in London (still paying for the mortgage). He has his own private pension pot and investments. I have been a housewife for a long time, so I have nothing other than state pensions, hence panicking now.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

How many years do you have in the UK state pension? The most effective investment is maximising that first.

For a SIPP you want the lowest possible fees - which varies according to what you invest in and the size of your pot.

You can't pay in (including the tax rebate) more than you earn each year. Or if you're not earning there's a max of approx £2800 a year (then you get the tax rebate added).

I started working as a freelancer a few years ago, and finally, I feel I can start putting some money aside for the future. I know my contributions aren't great, but I believe it would be better than nothing...

ProfessorBinturong
Thank you for your response. I have another 10 years to maximise it and am intending to do so. I think AJ Bell offers a low-maintenance fee for a small funded-based portfolio. But I am not 100% sure. Perhaps need to keep shopping before signing up.

I tried to sort out my SIPP a few years ago, then stopped as I couldn't make up my mind. Now part of me thinks, stop trying to look for a better choice and just do it...

You can always move it later if you find somewhere with better rates.

Have a look at rich retiree started by a freelancer in similar situation

If you're unsure about managing your own investments and like AJ Bell, take a look at Dodl. It's owned by AJ Bell but the fees are cheaper and the range of investments is more limited but easier to navigate. They are accessed via an app.
They offer five AJ Bell managed funds ranging from the 'Cautious' Fund, 'Moderately Cautious', 'Balanced', 'Moderately Adventurous', 'Adventurous', and 'Global Growth'. It's very easy to use as a beginner, and they'll guide you through the funds with a series of questions to see which one is right for you.

If you're planning to invest more than £32K, you might also take a look at Vanguard which is a low cost platform with a range of their own investments - both managed and DIY funds. (The fees below the £32K investment threshold make it more expensive than other low cost platforms).

If you feel more confident at choosing your own investments, or you're just wanting a low-cost Global Index Tracker, I would choose InvestEngine. It offers Exchange Traded Funds with no platform fees. All of the ETFs are denominated in Sterling so there are no additional FX fees.

Correction - Dodl actually have seven managed funds from AJ Bell - including the 'Balanced' Fund... They also have a specific 'Pension Builder' Fund

https://dodl.co.uk/investments/funds

This is good advice. I did exactly this and started with Dodl for a ISA but moved to the main AJBell account as my confidence grew.

if you want to self manage interactive investor is also good, has a low fixed fee and gives you access to a very knowledgeable community. Like Mumsnet but for investors.

I didn't like Investengine's software or Vanguard's.
I do like Interactive Investor - just moved my Sipp to them from Vanguard. Their fees are changing in Feb whether that works in your favour will depend on how much money you invest.

I was leaning towards InvestEngine because it seems to be the most cost-effective option for small pots. May I ask why you didn't like them?

My concern about InvestEngine is that it is fairly new, so looking less secured compare with other places such as AJ Bell and Vanguard...

I’ve just started a SIPP with Vanguard, whose fees are low if you choose your own funds

From a personal account perspective-They only fo trades once a day - I found their software confusing, I couldn’t see immediately whether I’d got it right and bought something. Quite often I thought I’d bought stocks and I hadn’t - my cash was sitting in there not earning interest - because their policy is not to pay interest. I just found it quite frustrating. I did find their search function to be very useful.
i also had a business account with them and their anti money laundering screening was unworkable- I fully support the need to comply with the law but they were requiring fully audited accounts for a small business - that is something HMRC don’t require, there were no humans to discuss this with - I tried but they had no clue, so I walked away from both the personal side and the business side. I’m sure they will get better, they’ll figure it out and their software will improve but I don’t have enough time or emotional energy to deal with companies and software that don’t click with me.
I find this is often the case with fee free - you have to be willing to deal with a completely no frills service and I needed just a little bit more from them.

remotefly
Thank you for the detailed explanation.InvestEngine is still looking great for the right people, but like you, I probably prefer more support with a bit of cost.

I looked into Dodl as some posters suggested it, and it might be the one... It ticks a lot of boxes. While they aren't free like InvestEngine, they only charge 0.15% - cheaper than most places.

Am I able to put more in a pot on top of my monthly contribution, such as when I get a bonus? Or once I set up how much to contribute monthly, can't I add more later? Sorry if I sound silly....

Yes, provided you don't exceed the annual allowance.

Thank you @ProfessorBinturong. I will set up a SIPP tonight!!

I haven't done it yet, as DH suggested holding until the Greenland thing passes. But... should I or shouldn't I? Part of me feels like starting it now anyway, because I am already 53 and very late to start...

There will always be some sort of world event causing uncertainty.

There will always be a reason to hold off.

Investments are a risk and not a guaranteed return. So if you're not comfortable with that, best pick a different vehicle for your money.

Time in the market is better than timing the market. So don’t delay!

What investments are you choosing?

Surely it’s the perfect time as share prices are low so once the Greenland ‘thing’ has passed they’ll go up again? There’ll always be something though - particularly for the next three years.

That's what I thought when he suggested. I was going to go for Dodl SIPP fund 100%.

I guess your husband is concerned over market volatility due to Greenland currently. However given a SIPP is a long term investment I would crack on…. Provided you’ve made your choice. There is always something happening in the world that impacts the markets. Good luck

Thank you for putting my thoughts into words. I agree with you all. Time is ticking...