Stocks & Shares ISA’s for beginners

[ChilledProsecco]

I have a cash ISA already (which I use for my emergency fund) but would like to start investing.

I have never invested before - a complete novice.

I’ve got 20k to put in a Stocks & Shares ISA.

Thinking of opening a trading 212 account- is that the best way?

Just to check, have you paid into the cash isa this year?

I like my Vangard all cap global fund and I manage it directly through vanguard. I do use trading 212 for other things though (cash isa and individual stocks) and find it good.

Look up Rebel Finance School on YouTube - game changer!

Wrapper - Is ISA appropriate? Can you pay in all £20k or have you already used some allowance this tax year such as by paying into a cash ISA or Lifetime ISA.

Platform - cost, ease of use, can you automate (useful for when you don’t have a lump sum to pay in but can pay in monthly).

I haven’t paid any cash into my ISA this year, and I’d like to pay as much as I can into it.

I have a stocks and shares ISA with trading 212. There are no fees. I have invested into Standard Life, Legal and General, Nvidea, Samsung, Microsoft, Apple and Chevron. I put in £20k in April it now stands as of this moment at £22,287. It moves up and down. The insurance companies and Chevron pay good dividends.

Can do £20k then.
Consider what you will invest in. There are some very low cost global equity ETFs, there are most costly multi-asset funds (for example Vanguard Lifestrategy range).

Note that some platforms charge for debit card payments but not for bank transfers.

Thanks for all the advice so far (and the video link, which I have watched).

Are there any ISA’s where they will pick the funds for you? I don’t feel confident to pick myself.

On Trading212 (and similar apps I imagine), you can set it to invest in things like Vanguard S&P 500, which tracks 500 of the top performing US companies, and /or the UK 100. Because it covers so many companies the risk and reward is spread more easily.

In Trading 212 I have some in the S&P 500, and I also made my own ‘pie’ of a few companies, which is riskier, but I quite enjoy it (when it’s going up!)

Not sure what posters would advise about putting all 20K in at once; a lot of advice is to drip money in gradually.

Hargreaves Landsdown have funds which are a mix of things for investors who just want to say how cautious they are about the risk of values going down. They are higher fees than choosing your own funds though.

The key is cost and how much risk you are willing to take. Most companies will offer a range of funds and also ready made portfolios such as Vanguard Life strategy 40,60,80 designed to match the level of risk you want to take.

Thanks again.

i’m keen to put in as much as possible as I’m expecting money from an inheritance so will use a bit to pay off my car loan, perhaps some in a SIPP.

There’s already an investment bond left to me in Trust which is performing well so the missing bit is the S&S ISA.

I received an unexpected inheritance a couple of years ago from a single uncle of mine and put the money into a Vanguard account which picks the funds for you. I’m actually astonished how much money it’s made so far - although I am aware that this could just as easily go down.

Another vote for Rebel Finance School! Simple and easy to follow advice free of charge.

https://rebeldonegans.com/finance/rfs/

Vanguard Investor has a managed service. Wealthify is another. Managed services where they choose fund(s) for you based on a risk questionnaire cost more.
You can learn yourself, there are books, podcasts, videos.

Read:
The Simple Path To Wealth, JL Collins
The Meaningful Money Handbook, Pete Matthew
Watch:
Rebel Finance School
Meaningful Money
Toby Newbatt
Damien Talks Money

Listen (podcasts)
Making Money
Meaningful Money - start with the Financial Operating System season.
Money To The Masses

I'm new to investing in a&s ISA after having cash ISAs for years. I've picked dodl by AJ bell. I like the app and find it easy to use and see how my investment is changing. It has ready made funds or you can choose your own. I picked my own after doing a bit of research and watching some videos. I started in June and'm pleased with how it is doing so far, although it's not as well as the person who said there's has increased by 2k since April!

Take a look at the UK Finance Wiki (it's an offshoot of the Reddit subreddit). It has a useful investing 101 page and from there they link to a page with some suggested low-cost global trackers to consider. Their finance flowchart is also very good generally.

Basically, for most people, the best option is to pick a low fee, global tracker, as this automatically spreads the risk across industry and across countries.

"Set and forget" - put your money in and then ignore it! There will be times when your money goes down (eg: COVID and first lockdown!) but overall, over several years, the trajectory should be up, and you'll be in a much better position than leaving the money in cash savings.

Completely agree

I think I’m leaning towards a managed fund as I don’t have the headspace at the moment for much learning!

I’m using part of the inheritance to move house so am in the middle of selling my place & have an offer in for another property.

I do have a 6 month emergency fund, am in the NHS pension scheme (the 1995 defined benefit one) & pay an extra £100pcm in (although that only tops up the newer scheme).

So once I’ve done a S&S ISA, I’ve got a choice between perhaps a SIPP (to take at 60 to top up my NHS pension between ages 60-67).

Also have a BTL but will likely sell that over next year or two.

Watch out for fund fees, they will eat into your returns. You want to set and forget, and not touch it for several years.

the ukpersonalfinance subreddit is great.

Honestly, you don't need a managed fund. The fees will significantly reduce how much you earn, and over time managed funds often underperform against trackers.

Set aside a couple of hours, read the wiki I linked to above and just pick one of the recommended low fee trackers.

Personally, I think it takes more time and investment knowledge to research and pick a managed fund than a global tracker. Because you need to understand the managed fund's strategy, which industries, sectors and regions they're focused on, who's involved, past performance etc.

I'm a mum of two and not an adviser, just another person who did not have headspace for a 40-tab research spiral 😂

A few things I'd want someone to say to you before you open anything:

1. House first. You're mid sale and have an offer on the next place. I would not put the £20k into a S&S ISA until you are sure that cash is not needed for the move (deposit, stamp, chain wobble, solicitor's "please send £x by Thursday"). Markets can drop in the same month a purchase goes through. Your 6-month emergency pot is a different pot.
2. Car loan next, if the rate is ugly. Paying off expensive borrowing is the one "return" you actually know. Investing the same £20k is not a promise.
3. Trading 212 is a platform, not a plan. It can be fine for a S&S ISA. It is not "the best way." The thread already has people naming individual shares. That's a terrible first step when you've said you don't want to pick. One cheap global tracker, or a Vanguard LifeStrategy-style ready-made (40/60/80), is the "please choose something for me" option without paying HL-level fees for the privilege.
4. You can use the full £20k this tax year if you truly haven't paid into any ISA yet (cash, S&S, or LISA all share one allowance). Your existing cash ISA as the emergency fund is fine - that's a previous year's wrapper, not this year's payment.
5. You're not starting from zero. NHS 1995 DB plus a bit extra, emergency fund, Trust bond, BTL you may sell. The S&S ISA is the flexible pot. A SIPP for the 60-67 gap is a later question, and pension money is harder to get at if the house or the car needs it.

I should say I work on a free UK site, AltPath, so skip the link if that's too much 😊. not advice. The beginner ISA vs regular investing account note and a side-by-side of platforms are here if you want the boring version in one place: https://altpath.uk/guides/isa-vs-gia-for-beginners and https://altpath.uk/compare-brokers
You don't have to pick a broker this week. Get the house over the line, then one simple fund you can leave alone to build on itself.

I’m adding another vote for rebel finance school. Someone above has already put the link.

@MoneySavvyMum- thanks for the detailed response - that is already my plan.

The car loan is going to be paid off, it’s about 5% but the monthly payment is quite a lot for me (£325ish) so I want rid of that.

There should still be money left over after the property sale before I think about ISA & depending on how much I get for my flat, I may pay some off my mortgage as I’m about to come off a 1% rate so the monthly payments will go up a bit.

Then I’ll max out ISA & see what I have left for pension.

The BTL mortgage is due up next spring so I’ll do some number-crunching & decide about selling.