I have £150 per month which I can afford to put aside for my future. I am very concerned about investing in a pension. What other options do I have with this amount of money and which option would people advise that I take?
2006-11-06 09:31:55 · 7 answers · asked by Patrick Londong 1 in Business & Finance ➔ Personal Finance
Provided that you have already paid off your debts (always pay the most expensive ones off first in terms of interest rates) then a pension is the best place to start - if your company offers a final salary pension scheme, go for it - but they are very rare now - if not, go for the company money purchase scheme - and if there is no formal company plan see an independent advisor (ifa) on setting up a personal or stakeholder pension. You can invest in a pension which suits your risk appetite and time of life - (the younger you are, the more risk you can afford to take and the more of your portfolio can be invested in equities - ie shares). Good luck with it all!
2006-11-06 09:36:27 · answer #1 · answered by Miss Behavin 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Don't listen to idiots, get the advice of a financial adviser. An IFA is not necessarily the only place to go as multi-tied advisers can be as well if not better qualified.
I don't know enough about your circumstances so can't give you concrete advice. However the usual rule is to pay off debts first as the interest rates tend to be higher than you can get from investments. Some people use this spare cash to help repay their mortgage earlier by paying more each month. However you couldn't get your hands on the money once you do that.
Make sure you have sufficient money in say cash ISA to cover three months bills then consider what you may need to save for in the future ie new car, childrens education etc.
Generally the best idea is to invest according to your attitude to risk ie low - high risk and all stops in between. If you don't want to put money into a pension, you could put it into an investment ISA and make a decision re putting this into a pension sometime in the future.
You are allowed to put your total annual earned income into a pension nowadays up to a maximum of £215,000 and this will increase over the years. This means you could have the ISA monies in total (or proportion) placed into a pension at some point in the future, and get income tax relief at 22% immediately with a further 18% from IR if you are a Higher Rate payer.This is an option and not necessarily the best way to invest for an income in the future.
2006-11-07 04:32:09 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You have to make your own mind up dependent on the risk you are prepared to take. Shares are a good investment so perhaps invest in a good blue chip share like one of the banks such as Lloyds TSB or Barclays though it's your call.
2006-11-06 17:37:16 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Talk to an IFA, but for short term, you could get a regular saver, most highstreet banks are doing them with very attractive rates of interest
2006-11-07 14:21:47 · answer #4 · answered by Vicky M 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
High Risk equals High Reward. If you are young I would go with more risk (be aggressive). If you are older than I would stick with mutual funds that earn great annual returns.
2006-11-06 19:30:11 · answer #5 · answered by EAA Duro 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Go to the casino every month and play Roulette with this money as in 100 years time it will not matter to you anyway.
2006-11-06 17:34:26 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋