Where to start with investments

[MrsDeadlock]

What's the deal with investing money? What do people invest in and how? What sort of return should I be looking for over 5-10+ years??

I'm not from the type of family that has shares or anything like that. I've never heard anyone speak of it in real life really. That said, we're comfortable financially with decent savings and excellent pensions.

I've heard it said that wealthy people have a third each in property/savings/investments. Is that really a thing?

I wouldn't even know how to buy shares!

Can someone give me an idiots guide please?

Investing: Stocks and share ISA purely for long term saving minimum 10 years or no point and still risk of losing money. It can be better to pay off your mortgage/ debt first if you have a significant lump sum though. Basic money know how make sure you have a pension, low debts, 6 month salary for emergencies before saving long term

Best thing is speak to an IFA (a good one, some can biased in terms of their own investment choices).

First thing is to figure out your life goals (i.e. retire at 55, go on 3 skiing holidays a year, etc), then figure out if you need / want to invest.

People usually invest as stock market returns typically outstrip bank interest rates over long term.

As suggested by the other poster, investing in the stock market is typically thought of over a minimum 5 year horizon for the novice investor, and it's better to use tracker funds. Buts that's not 'always' necessary - take for example the recent fall in stock market due to C-19. Stocks plummeted across globe, 100s of thousands of new investors poured in stocks and they have recovered (e.g. Asos £12 Mar, now £50) .

My personal take is that I like to see my money grow over longer term, but I also have prefer higher risk / return investments.

If you don’t want to go to an IFA there are loads of resources online where you can learn the basics.

The website This is money launched this beginners’ guide to investing a couple of weeks ago:
www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/markets/article-8982355/Time-learn-art-investing-Savings-rates-record-low.html
www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/diyinvesting/article-9006101/How-build-nest-egg-ultimate-guide-growing-money.html

Meaningful Money is a great series of podcasts which covers investing as well as all other kinds of financial planning. It is very accessible and definitely suitable for beginners.

There are loads more good sites but those two should give you plenty to get started.

As an absolute beginner I started investing a lump sum each month into a stocks and shares ISA with Nutmeg.... I liked nutmeg as it was ridiculously easy to set up, app based and I could choose what level of risk I wanted and they had s portfolio to match. It was the best way for me as s total novice to get started.

I second meaningful money and also money to the masses is really helpful, both the podcast and the website.

What I would say is that I only looked at regularly saving into an S&S ISA after I'd paid debts (other than mortgage and student loan) and had an emergency fund in an easy access savings account in case disaster struck and I lost my job or the car blew up or something.

I've only recently got into investing too. I found it really easy with the Freetrade app to research shares and buy them in my stocks and shares ISA.

I find the graphs and stats easy to read on Freetrade so it feels like a good starting point for me. I literally look at a company and there's a 'buy' button if I choose to proceed. I can then track them on my dashboard.

I've only invested £500 but already seeing better gains than I expected and I expect to hold some of the shares for 5 years plus.

I've also bought some fun individual company shares where the price was very low with potential to increase.

I would say that actually getting started has made it easier to read articles (eg, ones on M&S share price) and watch podcasts as it actually seems relevant to me now I own shares so i am learning on the job but not risked too much money.

I only started investing this year in august and I was a complete beginner. I started off with moneybox, as they let you start off with £1 but have transferred my ISA to Vanguard

I would really recommend the youtube channel the humble penny (UK based) and our rich journey.

I started a year ago with a stocks and shares ISA at Vanguard. It's extremely easy to set up and I just have a monthly direct debit that goes into one of their life strategy funds www.vanguardinvestor.co.uk/what-we-offer/life-strategy-products . That works very well for me because you can pick the risk you are happy with, get a very diversified blend of investments and the fees are extremely low. You can see what the funds have returned each year in the info for each fund. I have made about 25% this year (on a small amount sadly) mainly because I put some extra in in March and April.
The downside of Vanguard is that you are limited to their funds and I do wonder about moving to somewhere like Hargreaves Lansdown to have a wider choice of more exiciting things but at the moment it seems sensible to build up a steady amount in a cheap and fairly reliable fund before branching out.

Wow, thanks everyone you've been so helpful! The links/podcasts are really appreciated. Will definitely check them out.

It sounds daft but I didn't realise i could invest a small amount. My pension is good, I have about 6mo salary saved, but I am paying off a car for a bit longer. I've overpaid it quite a lot but I wanted to keep my savings separate for the moment in case...life really.

You've given me lots to consider, thank you!

I'm using the Moneybox Stocks and Shares ISA. I can only afford to deposit a small amount each month as I am focusing on building an emergency fund.

Its super user friendly and I'm a total beginner so it may be useful to you too!