PREMIUM BONDS

[Blondeshavemorefun]

new thread for when other is fill

this will be for next draw for June 2022 - ans any winners from the the May draw (today)

@swifty1974 you’re conviniently ignoring the fact that stocks are volatile, even index funds.

For example my S&S ISA at the moment is down 19%, so over double what I’d have “lost” due to inflation if I’d just left it as cash. (And the less said about my crypto at the moment the better).

Of course, I’m not worried as I know in the long term it’s likely to go back up again and perform well… but the reason I’m relatively chilled out about it all is because I know I’ve got my premium bonds sitting there ready to go if I needed to access money quickly.

My premium bonds are a key part of my investment strategy because it’s having that safety net which allows me to sit tight and ride out the dips in the market.

I'm not having a bad morning actually, it's just tiresome having to explain repeatedly that we have diversified portfolios, and PBs are just part of that.
Perhaps you could start your own thread in investments, then people who want your help could choose it.

It's a bit patronising to think we haven't thought about what we are doing!

Not ignoring the fact that stocks are volatile. I wouldnt reccomend investing in stocks. Ive mentioned funds because they are lower risk i.e. they are les likely to make a fortune but also less likely to drop like a stone during bad times. If youve dropped 19% then Id suggest youre not properly diversified. If all of your stocks and shares are closely correlated to each other and they have all dropped then thats your own fault. Again, I'll repeat you need to have a diverse range of funds to protect yourself from market volatility. This means that if one part of your pot is doing badly then the others are doing better which balances things out and reduces your risk.

Its just scaremongering really from someone who appears not to have done their homework.

@swifty1974 are you a financial advisor? You’ve come onto a long existing thread and started explaining what we’re all doing wrong. Forgive us for thinking that’s rather annoying. We had the same a few pages back.

Some people here use PBs as it was a better ‘interest’ rate than most savings account, and they are holding it short term. Some have it as part of a much larger established portfolio and understand financial planning very well. Others work in the financial sector and also know exactly what they’re doing.

We know £25 is a rubbish return on £50k, but we get a little excitement each month. Playing the lottery with only your interest at stake.

My own S&S ISA has gone down around 8% since I opened it in October. That’s ok it’ll likely bounce back in the long term. Luckily my money to pay the taxman and the next 10% of my mortgage in August is sitting in PBs.

Its either one of these two scenarios:

a. You have though about what youre doing but havent spotted that PBs are losing you money i.e. youre not the sharpest knife in the drawer

b. Youve not thought about what youre doing but did it anyway i.e. youre not the sharpest knife in the drawer

Dont think theres a third scenario is there

I know its difficult when someone challenges you but please just see it for what it is.

If youre going to accuse me of being patronising then I dont really care its not my money but PBs are laughable....

@swifty1974 please start your own thread about it if you feel that strongly, and leave us to it here.
We know the risks, we know the average payouts, you're not going to get anywhere saying we're all stupid.

Ouch! Who knew I was such a blunt knife!

Where would you suggest I put my short term savings for inflation matching/ beating returns, bearing in mind I have maxxed my S&S ISA already this tax year?

Well, since (a) I need the money in 12 weeks time, and (b) the shares I sold to get the money in the first place (which I get as share options from my employer, so have no choice in having it as anything other than their shares) have fallen 28% since I sold them, I reckon I’m probably doing OK.

Why are you so worried about what we are doing with OUR money. I know exactly what I am doing so thanks for your input but it was really unnecessary.

swifty1974 I take advice from my IFA thanks.

And I am more than happy to 'throw my money away' as you see it however I like.

You seriously think all of us in this thread need educating but actually I think you need to realise that financial planning depends on the individual circumstances, risk appetite and needs.

Read the room!

hello all, just wanted to share.
The app said “sorry” at the start of the month.. but just received £25 cheque in the post! A very nice surprise, been feeling very low too.
Good Luck to all !

(£4500 holding.)

anewbook that's a nice surprise 😁

@RubbishDay yes, thanks! it really was 😀

Laugh away. I'm perfectly happy with my financial decisions and use premium bonds as part of a mix. don't think we haven't thought it through. Just because you wouldn't doesn't mean we shouldn't.

A few weeks ago, I did exactly what you're telling us all to do and moved about £20k of my PBs to some funds on the Vanguard platform in a S&S ISA.

I've just had a look, and in the last few weeks, I've lost nearly 15% of the value, or around £3k. Now, I'm not worried because that money is going to sit there for at least 10 years as part of my pension provision.

But if I needed that money today to pay for a new car, replace the roof or pay the bills if I can't work, that would cause quite a difficulty.

I've done quite well with PBs over the last few years, with returns of 2.1%, 6%, 0.6% (OK, not great but that was last year, and it matched the best available instant access savings account) and this year I've already won £200 on about £30k, so again, no worst than instant access savings.

Now I'm probably going to move more towards investments, along with mortgage overpayment as this is finally looking like it might be worth doing on our long term base rate tracker, but it won't stop me keeping a good chunk in PBs or another cash vehicle to avoid needing to access investments at the wrong time, because now is definitely the wrong time for me.

I have a few issues with this to be honest....

Firstly I wouldnt advise investing in a S&S ISA if you needed access to your money a couple of weeks later so thats a bit of a mute point. Also my advice is based upon todays situation where markets have dropped significantly (as you have found out to your detriment) prices are now much cheaper than they were a few weeks ago. Given the BoEs rate hike yesterday I think the markets will recover a bit in the near term which is why I suggested now would be a good time to switch from PBs to an ISA

In terms of overpaying mortgage, again I wouldnt advise you to do that as you're probably only paying 2-3% interest which is nothing and you could use that money to earn you a return greater than that if you invested it. This is exactly what the banks do, they put their (your) money where it will best serve them in terms of a good return....thats all I was saying....Im just trying to prompt people to think a bit more clearly about money and returns even if you could afford to let it underperform like a previous poster said, why would you do that?

I do realise that I sound a bit patronising and short sometimes but I hate to see people not making the most of their money (even if theyre well off) at a time like this....you dont know whats around the next corner and you might be glad you re-assessed your investments. Who doesnt want (or need) more money??

Is the title of the thread not self explanatory?

This is the OP on the thread, we're happy to post about any of our winnings each month.

This is not a thread for debate on the best investment vehicle for your money - well at least I don't see it as that.

I think @swifty1974 it would be an idea to set up your own thread to discuss such matters.

I do realise that I sound a bit patronising and short sometimes but I hate to see people not making the most of their money you do yes.

Worst case of mansplaining I've seen in a while!

It's moot point @swifty1974 not mute. Although speaking of mute ....

I have a few issues with this to be honest....

I have a few issues about being told what to do with my own money.

I agree. I dont see why what i do with my money causes anyone else an issue.