Stocks and shares ISA.

[flapjackfairy]

Hi everyone.
I have a cash ISA that is doing nothing in terms of interest so I am thinking of trying a stocks and shares ISA instead. So I am looking for recommendations please. I have about 11000 at present and I put 300 a month in on top of that as well. So I am wondering if I can transfer that directly in or not ? Can you convert a cash ISA to a stocks one in other words . I am.happy to take a medium risk or even slightly more than that but nothing ridiculous .So has anyone got a good ISA to recommend ? Thanks .

I use Hargreaves's landsdown stocks and shares ISA. Really easy to use app. I spread my savings across several investment funds and index trackers to minimise the risks.

@ ProudDada See you have made me nervous already by talking about index trackers and making decisions. Is it easy to work out what to invest in ? I have zero experience of investing !

I use Nutmeg for my pension and will soon use them for a stocks & shares isa. You tell them your risk level (think there is a quiz) and they choose the investments.

I use Vanguard Investor. Low cost 0.15% platform fee, then you have fund fees which vary. Lifestrategy funds are good if you are looking for something to invest in which is fairly global and simple to use.

Yes, you can transfer in from a Cash ISA to a Stocks & Shares ISA. To do that you ask the new provider to organise the transfer, it is typically a short form you complete as part of the account opening procedure.

Vanguard is very good value. Management fees will erode the performance.

If you are not interested in stockpicking, index trackers will have lowest charges and, long term, pretty sure to do well.

You can have a UK one, a European one, an International one, or others, in any combination.

I usually choose the Income version, but have income reinvested. If necessary, I can change to income paid out for a while. If you choose Accumulation, you would have to sell some to get any money out.

ISA income is tax free.

I use Fidelity, I started it in Feb with a 20k deposit and then put in 20k in April. It’s gone up £2650, I’m going to change some of my lower performing funds.

There is a "Which" report on Investment Platforms
www.which.co.uk/money/investing/investment-platforms/investment-platforms-reviewed/best-and-worst-investment-platforms-anyxw2k9cdz8

I don't know if you have to be a member to read it.

If you are starting out with a small portfolio, a scheme that charges a low percentage fee will be best value. For example Vanguard.

When you are lucky enough to have a large portfolio, a low flat-fee scheme will be best value. For example Interactive Investor.

@flapjackfairy I have a cash ISA that is doing nothing in terms of interest so I am thinking of trying a stocks and shares ISA instead.

In my opinion, that's a sensible move. UK Inflation is expected to reach 5%, so a cash account that pays a fraction of a percent interest is guaranteed to lose value.

Thanks all
Will have a good look at those suggestions . I am.keen to make my money work a bit harder and look at other options . As a novice it is a bit bewildering though

Podcasts, YouTube videos and books are your friend. There are financial planners out there who provide information for free, or low cost (in the case of a book).

Some to look up:
Meaningful Money
Maven Money
In Her Financial Shoes
The Humble Penny
MamaFurFur

@nannynick
Thanks for that. V interesting .

I was in the same position and after lots of research transferred mine to one of the Vanguard Lifestrategy funds. It was very easy to do.

Sorry if you've already said this but is this for long term investment ? Will you need this money at all? Do you have other investments / savings elsewhere? Your age and heath will also need to be considered in terms of retirement etc.

Hargreaves Lansdown has lots of good info on its website, and I've just started using evestor to invest small amounts in high risk investments as I can afford to risk £50 a month and over the long term ride out fluctuations.

I wouldn't put all of my savings into index funds right now because markets are quite high and many think a correction is coming (of course always impossible to time this, so if you are leaving the money invested for 10+ years it shouldn't matter).

Personally I prefer to do my research rather than buy packaged options but it's totally up to you. The safest bet is diversifying the investments (so include different countries , sectors, include bonds , cash, properties) and long term.

I've just set up a cash ISA which pays 0.55% which is pitiful but I need the money in 6 months so wouldn't risk investing that. Rest of my (tiny) investment pot is in stocks and shares index mainly. I hope to increase it in the coming years.

Btw like many others I'm sure I taught myself, read a few basic investment and money management books, started investing slowly, made a few mistakes (bought several grand worth of gold at a high, panicked and sold at a low) etc. Over about a decade I've learnt a bit but still much to learn. Human error seems to be the biggest thing that loses money so automate as much as you can is my tip, try not to fiddle with the investments but review on a regular basis eg every 1-3 months.

On YouTube, I liked the videos by "Damien talks money" talking about stocks and shares ISA and how to use the vanguard website...

I use both Nutmeg and Vanguard. I really like Vanguard Lifestrategy funds. They get good reviews. I use them for my ISA. They also launched a SIPP so I've also started one of those off with them. I've got DH onto them too, his ISA has done well and he's pleased he's got his money there instead of a shitty little cash ISA that was earning him nothing and being eroded by inflation.

I knew nothing about investing before I started a couple of years ago. I just read these boards and people were advising to start with trackers if you want a hands off approach, which I did. It was good advice. Lots of the platforms if you have a look have their own "financial education" section and will teach you the basics, plus update you on what's currently happening.

The main thing is not to panic and pull everything out if the market takes a dip. It will recover. Even with COVID when it dropped by loads, it has recovered loads and I'm very happy.

if you need to hold cash, Premium Bonds currently have a 1% prize fund, tax free, which AFAIK beats any cash ISA. Rock solid, they will not go bust and lose your money.

Max holding is £50k per person

You can operate online.

When you need to withdraw, to your nominated bank account, IIRC it's three days, starting from the working day after you ordered the withdrawal.

But inflation is above the return on cash holdings and savings accounts, so you are guaranteed to lose value over time.

Although I keep reading about interest rates rising, and once that happens, returns on savings should be better than what they are now.

@ PigletJohn
@ TiddleTaddleTat
We already have a good chunk of savings in premium bonds though yet to win anything ! So this is money we can afford to tie up for a few years so looked at bonds but not sure if that would be a better option than stocks and shares isa ?

I like my fidelity stocks and shares money, I regularly withdraw money, it takes about 5 days to arrive in my current account. I spend the amount it goes up.

Stocks and shares Isa

@ CurlyhairedAssasin
Yes I hope to learn as I go along. I love this board and have learnt lots already. I think it is an age thing. When my dad used to scan the financial pages when I was a kid I used to roll my eyes but now I am fascinated by all things financial. There is something so rewarding about saving money and managing your money well .

Moneysavingexpert.com is a good place to start as it gives a useful overview of S&S Isas, investing, etc. There is also a forum with knowledgeable individuals of you have specific questions.

You can open a stocks and shares isa without financial advice, yes. You can probably even do it through your bank. Personally I wouldn’t, especially if you’re a first time investor.

Banks like natwest and hsbc (probably the others too) have robo advice meaning you don’t need to sit down with an advisor and pay the larger fee, but you still get allocated funds based on your on risk tolerance questionnaire. They tend to be managed funds too, meaning less risky. Bank investments are held in trust too so they aren’t included in the 85k covered by the fscs. They have their own protection

Reason I say I’d have some form of advice is i used to be an adviser and I’d seen lots of people who thought they had low/ medium risk investments because they took them without advice and obviously never read any of the paper work and it turns out they’d invested in the ftse 100