Savings and Investments thread

Any recommendations for a reputable balanced fund? I have some money left over from annual bonus and want to invest. Not looking for exceptional return, just something slow and steady. Was looking at some Blackrock and Vanguard passive funds but so much choice. 

jamescafc said:

Any recommendations for a reputable balanced fund? I have some money left over from annual bonus and want to invest. Not looking for exceptional return, just something slow and steady. Was looking at some Blackrock and Vanguard passive funds but so much choice. 

I would look at the sustainable funds from either Liontrust or Royal London. Both do a range of multi asset funds that are in the top 10 in their relevant sectors (ABI Mixed Investment  - 40%-85% or 20%-60%). Active funds & have great long term track records. Might pay a bit extra in AMC but the long term returns will be so much higher than a passive fund.

Or  Baillie Gifford Managed. Does what it says on the tin. 

Thanks all, very helpful

Has anyone heard of, or used, True Potential Investors?  Online platform for investments including pensions.  Have been recommended to me as a pension platform and just wondering if anyone has any experience of them. 

TelMc32 said:

Has anyone heard of, or used, True Potential Investors?  Online platform for investments including pensions.  Have been recommended to me as a pension platform and just wondering if anyone has any experience of them. 

Platform charge is 0.4% if you go through an IFA (no idea what it is if you go direct). Old Mutual is the same at the lower end (below £25k) once above £25k its 0.2%. Most of my clients are with Aegon (ex Cofunds) and pay between 0.18% and 0.26% depending on how much they have invested. 

TelMc32 said:

Thanks @Rob7Lee & @golfaddick. They’ve been been recommended by an IFA as that firm have just stopped giving advice on leaving DB schemes. They do the initial investigative work, understand your reasoning and prepare a file for TP. They then have the final say on whether they believe what you are doing is correct.  I know a lot of advisors have come out of that market recently given the very obvious concerns of the regulator and the rising PI premiums. 

This deal means that the IFA take a £3k fee, which comes from TP themselves. No additional costs from TP and no fees if I then decided to move.  

My circumstances are such that I fully understand the benefit of the DB Scheme (which I have 24 years service in and DC then for the last 13 years), but taking the transfer value and investing makes more sense.  

Well that changes things massively. In that case TP aren't just acting as a platform but as the advice giver as well. Not sure with the new rules that TP can pay anyone a fee for your business, especially not with regard to a DB transfer. TP might be able to pay your IFA an "introducer" fee but you will certainly have to pay for the advice given, whoever is giving it.

The FCA stance on all DB transfer now is that the starting point should always be that its not in your best interests & the "adviser" has to go above & beyond to show that it is. Even you being an "insistent client" doesn't wash anymore. If the computer says NO then that's it, the adviser firm cant help you.

I decided not to take the DB transfer course & exams, mainly because 90% of my clients work in the NHS and can't transfer out even if they really wanted to. Our firm has 2 levels of advice on this area. The first is a triage phase where a DB adviser will have a look at the numbers for you to see what's what before going down the route of getting valuations /comparison etc etc. That costs £750. If you then want to take it further the fee is % based with a minimum of £5k (the £750 would be deducted from that). This fee has to be paid even if the advice at the end of the day is to stay put. The FCA is very clear on this. The is no "contingent charging" anymore.

I would say that £3k is pretty cheap so just be careful as to what you are actually (not) paying for. O would say that the the platform charge is the least of your worries.

TelMc32 said:

Thanks @golfaddick. I appreciate that and understand the FCA stance as well. As a single man, with no dependants, my pension would simply stop/go back to the bank when I pass. This gives me the chance to bequeath to my sister & her kids, which I couldn’t do staying in the bank scheme.

I’d lose a large chunk of the DB pension if I wait til I am 60, rather than looking to finish at 55 after 37 years.  I also get a lot more freedom on taking a lump sum, which I don’t really need at the moment, other than to potentially invest in a separate pot to the remaining pension. But I could also stagger that over several years, whereas I only get one choice/one time by staying where I am. 

I appreciate also that I may well still get turned down. 

Don't get me wrong - I agree with you & given your circumstances a flexible Drawdown pension would be very good for you. In these cases I always say to clients that what you are trading is security & certainty for flexibility. No more no less. In your situation I would do the same. 

Just read back one of my comments and, just for clarity, what I should should have said is that I would “lose a large chunk of my DB pension UNLESS I wait until I am 60...”

TelMc32 said:

Just read back one of my comments and, just for clarity, what I should should have said is that I would “lose a large chunk of my DB pension UNLESS I wait until I am 60...”

Same with most DB schemes that have a NRD of 60 or 65. The old 1995 NHS scheme you lose around 4%pa for very year you take before 60. So taking it at 55 you'd lose around 20%......and around 15% from the lump sum. 

SE9toDA2 said:

Only if you take pension from  bank, if you transfer then you can normally drawdown from 55. So a reason to transfer

Yep, sorry. I just corrected the first part of my comment. The second part was me acknowledging this as a reason to leave the scheme.  

Deliveroo took a kicking on day 1 didn't it!

Rob7Lee said:

Yup, glad I never got around to it in the end, although it's picking up a bit now.

Still think long term it's a decent business, but seems overvalued at the moment. if Freetrade or Trading 212 would let me at them at this price I would get in on them. 

More interested in when the likes of OakNorth, Starling, Revoult and Monzo float 

Deliveroo has a lot more competition I suppose. 

Uber Eats will be slowly eating away at its market share. 

Rothko said:

Rob7Lee said:

Yup, glad I never got around to it in the end, although it's picking up a bit now.

Still think long term it's a decent business, but seems overvalued at the moment. if Freetrade or Trading 212 would let me at them at this price I would get in on them. 

More interested in when the likes of OakNorth, Starling, Revoult and Monzo float 

It's on Freetrade now

SELR_addicks said:

Deliveroo has a lot more competition I suppose. 

Uber Eats will be slowly eating away at its market share. 

Itl have far more competition in a few weeks, when we are allowed out to eat again.