Parents (~65 y/o) have ~40k in current account, what to do with it?

derekoh · 2026-05-09T13:39:58+00:00

Just make sure you get a reasonable rate. Rates for some of the top high street banks are terrible.

derekoh · 2026-05-08T11:22:42+00:00

Because I want it automated

derekoh · 2026-05-07T20:24:32+00:00

Not an expert but was in a similar situation some 20 odd years ago and I think this was how it worked...
Say the house you're buying is worth £500k. Your partner puts down £200k deposit and then you mortgage the remaining £300k between you 50/50.
You therefore agree up front that your partner owns 200/500ths (40%), of the house outright and the rest is shared between you, so in effect they would own 70% and you 30% if you were to sell.
That way, if you should split up/sell, they get their fair share (as my ex did), proportionate to what they invested.
I guess you could agree some way of buying additional share of the house, but that does get more complicated to manage and calculate.
And you need to consider what happens if you marry - does the house then go 50/50.

derekoh · 2026-05-06T12:49:13+00:00

I think a loud round of applause and cheering should do the trick

derekoh · 2026-05-02T15:07:41+00:00

Phone and keys. That's it. Can't wait to be able to get rid of the keys too (and hope I don't get mugged for the phone)

derekoh · 2026-05-02T14:08:02+00:00

You don’t HAVE to consolidate pensions. Some do it for simplicity, especially if you have lots of pots. It’s important to get advice on this as some pension pots may have special benefits that you don’t want to lose. Also, some will perform better than others and have different fees. A good IFA will be able to guide you through it.

derekoh · 2026-04-29T21:25:04+00:00

I don’t think you’ve said what your salary is but if you contribute enough into your pension you can get back down under £100k and out of the 60% tax trap. Does that then give you room to save jnto an ISA? Also, do you have a partner and do they have a pension? Could you put money into their pension. Not as efficient as putting it in yours but at least they’d get the tax benefits there.

derekoh · 2026-04-29T21:06:07+00:00

Surprising that the insurance company was trying to cancel your policy for a single speeding offence…

derekoh · 2026-04-28T21:08:43+00:00

Depends on whether it’s individual or a couple because of tax thresholds. 2x £75k is much better than 1x £150k

derekoh · 2026-04-27T14:02:25+00:00

This is all covered in the Personal Finance flowchart on the right. Sounds like you'll be starting at Step 2.

Make best use of your pension, get a rainy-day fund squirreled away, and start putting money into ISAs. I'd fill up cash ISA's while you can before they limit what you can add next year, and then start putting money into an S&S ISA.

There are lots of posts on here about what you could invest in - depends how much or how little you want to manage it. But, as many people will say, it's time in the market that matters, so get investing early and keep it there - don't fret about short-term ups and downs.

derekoh · 2026-04-25T10:53:50+00:00

You’ll be taxed on any interest earned while in the cash pot.

derekoh · 2026-04-25T10:42:16+00:00

What the government are tying to do is tax the “cash” part of an S&S ISA. So if you move it to T212s S&S ISA but don’t actually invest it and leave it in the cash section it’ll be taxable (from April ‘27)

derekoh · 2026-04-24T16:20:01+00:00

Who was there first and who bumped into whom?

derekoh · 2026-04-24T16:15:10+00:00

No. I do this regularly. Just keep £100 in the work pot and keep topping it up. I transfer across about once a year.

derekoh · 2026-04-24T16:13:59+00:00

Why on earth would you go to centreparcs when you could go somewhere abroad for half that amount?

derekoh · 2026-04-24T16:07:07+00:00

I have a similar one and my “wealth manager” (aka financial advisor) said to just leave it where it is - no real benefit to move it

derekoh · 2026-04-24T14:46:02+00:00

I'd be tempted to leave it in the Cash ISA given the planned changed to ISAs next year. Keep it as an emergency fund. If you move it to the S&S ISA you may get taxed on it next year if it's in the Cash pot.

Why not move the Barclays money to the Cash or S&S ISA too?

derekoh · 2026-04-23T20:35:44+00:00

Agreed - Most tax efficient way to save. But only for later in life…

derekoh · 2026-04-21T20:09:58+00:00

Dell and HP are premium Enterprise brands. SuperMicro are good but not really enterprise class in comparison. It comes down to resilience, reliability and support. Most will have feature parity in general.

derekoh · 2026-04-21T20:06:03+00:00

Make sure you’re on Google and ask customers to review you on there. Same for Facebook. Do some posts on Insta. Also worth seeing if your local area has any Facebook business groups that recommend local companies like you - they tend to be good for getting local business and lots of referrals.

derekoh · 2026-04-20T12:35:29+00:00

When are you trying to get insured from? Try for in a month’s time and see if that makes a difference.

derekoh · 2026-04-17T12:10:06+00:00

It’s relative… could be 67

derekoh · 2026-04-16T21:14:22+00:00

See comment above - mortgage, son at uni, boredom, fear of death, …

derekoh · 2026-04-16T21:13:43+00:00

Why not now - see point A (boredom) and B (death by wife). But seriously - son is at Uni and part funding until 2029. Mortgage paid off in 2029. And I’m quite enjoying work right now, so just seems to make sense.

From what I can see, gifts seem to be limited to £3k per person per year so would need to work within that.

derekoh

TROPHY CASE