Following from a recent thread.
ISA allowance is ~5.3K cash based + 5.3K stock based. OR 10.6K stock based.
WHY are the governments preventing us from putting 10.6K into secure, cash based?
If we invest cash via banks, BSs, then it filters into mortgages and equities anyway - an investment in the country.
Now I'm a conspiracy theorist and believe the govts want us to lose money on our investments - as they are in cahoots with the big banks, pension cos, etc. Hence their love for annuities. Governments hate to create wealthy 30 and 40 and 50 year olds (via inheritance) who don't need to work. They would rather it went to the banks, etc.
Let's say Joe Public invests his stocks ISA allowance in a fund at Hargreaves-L. Then before he makes any money:
- The companies needs to make money
- The fund managers need to make money.
- Hargreaves need a cut So not much left for Joe Public.
In the US, the Individual Retirement Account (similar to ISA) can be invested totally cash based.
Further to the pension + annuity scam, for Joe Public with only a 20% SIPP addition from government, his inheritors get taxed at 55%. Further he is not allowed to empty his SIPP (unless 20K per year of guaranteed income).
So my feeling is that unless paying high rate tax, SIPPs are a bad deal. I now only use stocks ISA for BED & ISA deals, especially if I have a capital gains winner and I can offset a loser, and put it in. Also note the "discontinued" NS&I RPI+1% tax free.