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March 29 2024 1.42pm

Financial Guidance Thread

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View Goal Machine's Profile Goal Machine Flag The Cronx 27 Apr 20 2.46pm Send a Private Message to Goal Machine Add Goal Machine as a friend

Hi all. Those who know me personally from the HOL community will know that I am a qualified Independent Financial Adviser by profession and am regulated by the FCA.

During this pandemic, the world has changed dramatically and understandably there are many who will have new concerns about their financial position. This could be a number of things, such as having insufficient income/lump sum protection to look after loved ones in the event of ill health or death, worries around recent stock market performance, changes to planned retirement dates, a sudden loss of income, or forced into thinking more seriously about your estate planning.

Sadly, we have also seen an in increase in scammers, using coronavirus as an opportunity to con individuals whilst at their most vulnerable. Be wary of these and check the company is regulated by the FCA. It is illegal for a financial product to be promoted via a cold call. If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is.

I wanted to share some of my knowledge and experience on here and offer some financial guidance, suggestions, and ways to improve your financial behaviour. I will also provide some basic product explanations and benefits, which I hope in turn will provide you with new ideas to improve your financial position and give some peace of mind.

Each week, I will write a short and current, jargon free article and I welcome any suggested topics.

As ever, discussion is encouraged. If you have any questions about your personal finances which you would rather not disclose on an open forum, please feel free to PM me.

Naturally, I would like to keep my anonymity on HOL, but I would be happy to provide personal information via PM.

 

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View Goal Machine's Profile Goal Machine Flag The Cronx 27 Apr 20 2.48pm Send a Private Message to Goal Machine Add Goal Machine as a friend

Investing during Covid-19

In the industry, we refer to all the media investment hype as ‘noise’. It is easy to get distracted with constant negative headlines and often forget that stock market investing is a long-term roller coaster. It’s important to stick to your long-term plan and block out the short-term fluctuations (the ‘noise’). Buying into a fund or portfolio is not designed to make you instantly rich, but the effects of long-term compounded investment growth will help you considerably.

For those not familiar with the concept of ‘compounding’, its best explained with an example: You invest £1,000 which gets 5% growth per year. After 1 year, the value is £1,050. Year two, you get 5% growth on £1,050 which totals £1,102.50. By the end of year 10, the initial £1,000 would be worth £1,628. This is an increase of 62.8%.

It’s important to note that investment returns are not guaranteed. The above example is not realistic in the sense that there are no investments which offer a guaranteed 5% return, however it is realistic that an average of 5% per year, over a long period, could be achieved by a ‘moderate’ risk investment.

There is no shying away that Covid-19 has hammered the stock markets recently. Between the 21st February and 23rd March, the FTSE 100 dropped an eyewatering 32.5% from 7,403 points to 4,993. However, what mainstream media fails to report, as good news investment stories don’t sell, is that the following month, up until the 23rd of April, it increased by an impressive 14.2% back up to 5,821 points. This pattern is typical of all major global markets recently.

The truth is that no one can predict which way the markets will go next, but a quick look at history will tell you that markets are resilient and tend to bounce back pretty quickly, as they did following the 2008 global financial crisis. This of course cannot be guaranteed.

My message here is not to panic. Ignore the ‘noise’ and stick to your original long-term plan. If you are already invested, the worst thing you can do now is to sell, as all you would be doing is confirming your loss. If you are new to investing, the current climate combined with all-time low interest rates might represent an opportune moment to dip your toe in for the first time.

I’ll finish with a passage from Robert Kiyosaki’s best-selling ‘Rich Dad Poor Dad’:

Overcoming cynicism

‘Whether it’s our own self-doubt or the doubts of other people in our lives, often we allow that doubt to keep us from acting. We play it safe, and let opportunities pass us by.

It often takes great courage to not let rumours and talk of doom and gloom affect your doubts and fears. But a savvy investor knows that the seemingly worst of times is actually the best of times to make money. When everyone else is too afraid to act, they pull the trigger and are rewarded.’

 

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View ASCPFC's Profile ASCPFC Flag Pro-Cathedral/caravan park 27 Apr 20 4.42pm Send a Private Message to ASCPFC Add ASCPFC as a friend

I was toying with the idea of buying oil company shares but my couple of hundred just won't make me much - particularly with the fees involved. I reckon I could double my money, but don't have much to start with.
If I had a few hundred grand, I can't think of a better current investment.
Disclaimer: Please, no-one take this as advice as I have no idea whatsoever.

 


Red and Blue Army!

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View Goal Machine's Profile Goal Machine Flag The Cronx 27 Apr 20 4.56pm Send a Private Message to Goal Machine Add Goal Machine as a friend

Originally posted by ASCPFC

I was toying with the idea of buying oil company shares but my couple of hundred just won't make me much - particularly with the fees involved. I reckon I could double my money, but don't have much to start with.
If I had a few hundred grand, I can't think of a better current investment.
Disclaimer: Please, no-one take this as advice as I have no idea whatsoever.

I appreciate your honesty! So you are aware, Financial Advisers are not regulated to recommend buying/selling direct shares.

Oil stocks nosedived last week making front page news. It goes back to the idea of buying cheap at the seemingly worst of times.

There are several direct to consumer trading platforms out there to facilitate it yourself. To name a few; Hargreaves Lansdown, Charles Stanley, Saxo Markets. A typical trading charge will vary from around £8-£15 per trade.

Providing you have remaining ISA allowance, it would be worth doing via a stocks and shares ISA so that any growth is free of capital gains tax upon sale.

 

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View cryrst's Profile cryrst Flag The garden of England 27 Apr 20 5.21pm Send a Private Message to cryrst Add cryrst as a friend

I'm with a company called IWEB.
Charge £5 a trade and very simple to join. Seems very secure with 3 levels of password etc to access your accounts.
Using annual isa allowance up to 20k is allowed. Deals with all stocks including aim markets (penny shares). You can add money at any time and split across different companies, at a fiver a deal.
Ok if you want a talking point about being an investor. Just check it out as it has a simple web site.
Goal machine might know of them and if I've been duped but there are tons out there on line.
Havent drawn out yet so time will tell.

 

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View Goal Machine's Profile Goal Machine Flag The Cronx 27 Apr 20 5.35pm Send a Private Message to Goal Machine Add Goal Machine as a friend

Originally posted by cryrst

I'm with a company called IWEB.
Charge £5 a trade and very simple to join. Seems very secure with 3 levels of password etc to access your accounts.
Using annual isa allowance up to 20k is allowed. Deals with all stocks including aim markets (penny shares). You can add money at any time and split across different companies, at a fiver a deal.
Ok if you want a talking point about being an investor. Just check it out as it has a simple web site.
Goal machine might know of them and if I've been duped but there are tons out there on line.
Havent drawn out yet so time will tell.

Hi Cryst, I heard of IWEB but never used. It is part of Halifax. Personally I use Hargreaves Lansdown as I like their research tools and they have excellent customer service. However, trading is more expensive starting at £11.95 per trade.

As I'm sure you are aware, buying direct shares is considered high risk as it lacks diversity. For a new investor, buying into a collective fund would be a safer starting point as it can be spread across various sectors, regions and asset classes.

 

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Tom-the-eagle Flag Croydon 27 Apr 20 8.24pm

Always found the stock market a mugs game.

A wise man once told me how to invest money. He told me to ‘buy Litecoin, bud’.

 


"It feels much better than it ever did, much more sensitive." John Wayne Bobbit

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View cryrst's Profile cryrst Flag The garden of England 27 Apr 20 10.00pm Send a Private Message to cryrst Add cryrst as a friend

Originally posted by Goal Machine

Hi Cryst, I heard of IWEB but never used. It is part of Halifax. Personally I use Hargreaves Lansdown as I like their research tools and they have excellent customer service. However, trading is more expensive starting at £11.95 per trade.

As I'm sure you are aware, buying direct shares is considered high risk as it lacks diversity. For a new investor, buying into a collective fund would be a safer starting point as it can be spread across various sectors, regions and asset classes.

Which I agree would be sensible but I was more considering the fact ascpfc had a couple hundred quid. Getting involved at a level like IWEB might just be a bit of fun at first. All shares can be monitored for him to move into a higher quality market in time. Also I'm aware that by law you cannot give bad advice and this would be bad advice. Sort of like the doctors oath. Had to reword a question to a FA about cashing in an endowment years ago to make it a statement. Then he could proceed. Honourable in reality tbh.

 

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View cryrst's Profile cryrst Flag The garden of England 27 Apr 20 10.01pm Send a Private Message to cryrst Add cryrst as a friend

Originally posted by Tom-the-eagle

Always found the stock market a mugs game.

A wise man once told me how to invest money. He told me to ‘buy Litecoin, bud’.

And now hes drinking bud on his own.

 

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View PalazioVecchio's Profile PalazioVecchio Flag south pole 28 Apr 20 2.08am Send a Private Message to PalazioVecchio Add PalazioVecchio as a friend

financial guidance :

never marry a lunatic just cos she has a nice @rse

never buy a new car

overseas sun property investments are for mugs

Gym membership is daylight robbery

beer with an obscure brand-name is cheaper, and often better, than the p1ss with all the adverts on the telly

never buy anything from anybody who sells door to door

you cannot beat the Casinos (nor the bookies)

a drunken evening out in the West End is probably not worth it.

Scumbags with no class will throw money about like lunatics (reference my first bullet point). Often on posh products of conspicuous consumption. True aristocrats will pick up five-pence from the ground, as they walk past it.

before investing money for gain, you should pay off all your debts.

To purchase anything on the never-never is folly.

On big purchases, Always offer less than the asking price, as a matter of habit. Walk away and let them phone you a week later to accept your offer.

many insist on doing business with a 'professional' but do not underestimate the benefits you can get from an incompetent idiot.

Edited by PalazioVecchio (28 Apr 2020 11.52am)

 


the 'Net-We-had' at the Etihad....again

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View the.universal's Profile the.universal 28 Apr 20 7.31am Send a Private Message to the.universal Add the.universal as a friend

Originally posted by PalazioVecchio

financial guidance :

never marry a lunatic just cos she has a nice @rse

never buy a new car

overseas sun property investments are for mugs

Gym membership is daylight robbery

beer with an obscure brand-name is cheaper and often better than the p1ss with all the adverts on the telly

never buy anything from anybody who sells door to door

you cannot beat the Casinos

a drunken evening out in the West End is probably not worth it.

Solid advice, agree with all of these

 


Vive le Roy!

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Tom-the-eagle Flag Croydon 28 Apr 20 8.36am

Originally posted by PalazioVecchio

financial guidance :

never marry a lunatic just cos she has a nice @rse

never buy a new car

overseas sun property investments are for mugs

Gym membership is daylight robbery

beer with an obscure brand-name is cheaper and often better than the p1ss with all the adverts on the telly

never buy anything from anybody who sells door to door

you cannot beat the Casinos

a drunken evening out in the West End is probably not worth it.


This is actually excellent advice

 


"It feels much better than it ever did, much more sensitive." John Wayne Bobbit

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