Inheritance

Find an Independent Financial Advisor.

Agreed, but beware the hobgoblins that jump up at this point and say 'don't'.

But if anyone is going to make any comments here they'll need to know how old you are and whether you are married, for starters.

Then they'll need to know what you mean by 'high risks'. Do you want any risk? What do you mean by 'high'?

Then they'll need to know if you have any other investments, or prospect of any.

Then they'll need to know if you're prepared to tie up the money and for how long.

Rob Graham

Don't. :-) And don't forget that such hobgoblins have no axe to grind.

For a sum as small as £110k it's debatable whether there is much point in doing all that much much active investment with any of it. Commission-based IFAs are apt to persuade the client to put all of it through their good offices (thus maximising their commission) and may fail to suggest that a good chunk (say 1/3 to 1/2) be kept in cash (i.e. high interest savings bonds/accounts). Fee-based (advice-only) IFAs might do the latter but are presumably few and far between.

Why?

Not necessarily. It's his money, and he may or may not wish to share it with his wife, if he is foolish enough to have one.

Fair enough.

Only if *they* are going to use this information to modify their understanding of what *he* has told them about his attitude to risk, i.e. if he's got another safety net, he can be more devil-may-care with *this* money.

No. They can simply tell him what options there are. Tying up the money typically gives a better return in the case of cash-based investments, and for market-based investments it helps smooth out short term booms and busts. Then he can choose to tie up some part of it for longer, and some for less.

They may well have.

All IFAs have to offer the fee option - you must have known that.

Come on. Should a 20 year old get the same advice as a 70 year old?

I think you're winding me up - fair enough.

Rob

Exceptionally, perhaps, as in "Don't see an IFA, just lend the money to me."

I didn't know that, I thought they had the choice.

Most definitely. The age of the investor is irrelevant, other than indirectly. It is up to the investor to specify the time frame over which the investment is expected to remain "active".

The bit about being foolish to have a wife was a joke, but the rest of it was serious. Any money coming to a husband does not automatically co-belong to his wife. Of course any provision he may wish to make to ensure his partner is provided for in the event of his death etc is up to him, and, except for tax implications, is independent of whether he's actually married to her (or him). It's more relevant to what he puts in his will than whether and how he decides to invest the loot.

Well, we are all entitled to our views.

But re the bit about IFAs having to offer a fee option, this has been around for a year or two. If they don't offer the fee option then they can't call themselves independent.

Rob

Read -

3/

For a good holistic view of your finances - work through -

I'd invest in one of the following, in order of personal preference -

High yield, buy and hold strategy

High yield, change each year 414020 iShares FTSE UK Dividend Plus Invesco Perpetual Income Invesco Perpetual High Income Barclays Global Investors (BGI) iShares FTSE 100 Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) (8 You should be able to get an inflation linked monthly income of £370-550 from the above.

If you're interested in buying a house, then wait until property prices have stabilised for at least a year - there's no hurry.

Don't waste you money on an IFA.

The main interest of an IFA is to maximise their income - anyone who tells you otherwise is probably an IFA.

Chose the 4 highest interest paying accounts from one of the "money saving" sites and split the total amount between them. You can probably get guaranteed rates of about 7% for a year and your money will be totally safe.

That's the option I've chosen for the short term, with a small component in a blackrock ISA stocks and shares fund (well 2 funds to be exact) which I will add to year on year if the returns seem worthwhile. Being new to the investment scene I just want to spend some time absorbing what's available and the relative merits.

If the OP is getting close to 55 then he should consider putting as much as possible into a cash SIPP. (IIUC he can effectively avoid paying any tax each year while he is doing this). Then, once he's 55 he can withdraw 25% cash free and use the rest for income drawdown.

If he's a long way from retirement or has a chance of being a higher rate taxpayer in a few years time then he should probably wait.

(I'm not sure if there are any limits on how much cash can be held in a SIPP)

Tim.

Just out of interest, would you consult, or recommend that one was consulted, if he charged a fee rather than commission?

Rob Graham