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Savings and Investments thread
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/bill_stone/2025/10/19/sp-500-earnings-surge-magnificent-7-lead-as-recession-odds-plunge/Looks like another green week on the way.2
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Yep I've bottled it and decided I will take the drop when it comes having done a lot of reading based on what people on here have said.Diebythesword said:https://www.forbes.com/sites/bill_stone/2025/10/19/sp-500-earnings-surge-magnificent-7-lead-as-recession-odds-plunge/Looks like another green week on the way.
As always, I massively value this thread!4 -
Reading between the lines on golfaddicks post is the closest we’ll all get to free financial advice (that’s of course.. “not financial advice” 😜)Huskaris said:
Yep I've bottled it and decided I will take the drop when it comes having done a lot of reading based on what people on here have said.Diebythesword said:https://www.forbes.com/sites/bill_stone/2025/10/19/sp-500-earnings-surge-magnificent-7-lead-as-recession-odds-plunge/Looks like another green week on the way.
As always, I massively value this thread!1 -
If you are happy to sit got 5 years and not touch (but add) it’s likely the wise thing to do. I’m accessing mine in a little over 2 years so am trying to bank profit and sit safely!!Huskaris said:
Yep I've bottled it and decided I will take the drop when it comes having done a lot of reading based on what people on here have said.Diebythesword said:https://www.forbes.com/sites/bill_stone/2025/10/19/sp-500-earnings-surge-magnificent-7-lead-as-recession-odds-plunge/Looks like another green week on the way.
As always, I massively value this thread!2 -
I'm in for the long haul. Have a lower exposure to the US than most so planning on changing nothing. Consistent small purchases every month ride it out.3
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Exactly what I did for 35 years (with a bit more in US). I'm only talking SIPP.cantersaddick said:I'm in for the long haul. Have a lower exposure to the US than most so planning on changing nothing. Consistent small purchases every month ride it out.1 -
I'm back to where i was on Trading 212, the other apps 🤷🏻♂️ due to the Internet issues yesterday.1
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A question for our esteemed "experts" on this thread if you could take a minute to read & respond, please.
A fair bit of news/articles since Monday regarding Martin Lewis' "bombshell" on crypto currency/bitcoin investment ie " Putting it out there for the average man /woman to inform them of one way to increase their savings that the banks/government don't want them to know "
Is this "opportunity " common knowledge , reputable & certainly worth a 2nd look ?
Apologies for my naivety in such areas.0 -
Hey, I am almost certain that this will be a scam advert. People regularly try and do this with Martin Lewis. I would be absolutely shocked if he was saying anything positive about investing in crypto.Fanny Fanackapan said:A question for our esteemed "experts" on this thread if you could take a minute to read & respond, please.
A fair bit of news/articles since Monday regarding Martin Lewis' "bombshell" on crypto currency/bitcoin investment ie " Putting it out there for the average man /woman to inform them of one way to increase their savings that the banks/government don't want them to know "
Is this "opportunity " common knowledge , reputable & certainly worth a 2nd look ?
Apologies for my naivety in such areas.
My advice to 95-99% of people would be to steer well clear.8 -
Agreed. People use Martins face to advertise dodgy stuff. He is not a fan of crypto at all. Avoid unless you really know what you're doing.Huskaris said:
Hey, I am almost certain that this will be a scam advert. People regularly try and do this with Martin Lewis. I would be absolutely shocked if he was saying anything positive about investing in crypto.Fanny Fanackapan said:A question for our esteemed "experts" on this thread if you could take a minute to read & respond, please.
A fair bit of news/articles since Monday regarding Martin Lewis' "bombshell" on crypto currency/bitcoin investment ie " Putting it out there for the average man /woman to inform them of one way to increase their savings that the banks/government don't want them to know "
Is this "opportunity " common knowledge , reputable & certainly worth a 2nd look ?
Apologies for my naivety in such areas.
My advice to 95-99% of people would be to steer well clear.2 -
Sponsored links:
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100% scam - do not touch with a barge pole.This is what Martin Lewis has said in the past about these social media scams.
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Echo this.Huskaris said:
Hey, I am almost certain that this will be a scam advert. People regularly try and do this with Martin Lewis. I would be absolutely shocked if he was saying anything positive about investing in crypto.Fanny Fanackapan said:A question for our esteemed "experts" on this thread if you could take a minute to read & respond, please.
A fair bit of news/articles since Monday regarding Martin Lewis' "bombshell" on crypto currency/bitcoin investment ie " Putting it out there for the average man /woman to inform them of one way to increase their savings that the banks/government don't want them to know "
Is this "opportunity " common knowledge , reputable & certainly worth a 2nd look ?
Apologies for my naivety in such areas.
My advice to 95-99% of people would be to steer well clear.0 -
Only look at ‘his’ stuff via the MoneySavingExpert.com website or app.Warnings all over that about scam advertsBut to be simplistic if there was any way for everyone to make money on something it wouldn’t be a secret or withheld by the government. But of course more realistically if someone is making money then someone on the other side of the equation is losing money.
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A very sensible strategy IMHO. However I can never understand why people have lower exposure to US. Over many years and really dating back to 1900, the US market has continually outperformed any other market. I can understand not wanting to be overexposed to the IT 7, but that is avoidable if you wanted. Personally I feel even these are a reflection of the overall financial wellbeing of the world.cantersaddick said:I'm in for the long haul. Have a lower exposure to the US than most so planning on changing nothing. Consistent small purchases every month ride it out.1 -
Only ever get information from Martin Lewis from his website (moneysavingexpert) nowhere else. His face and ai videos of him is often used by scammers to scam people.Fanny Fanackapan said:A question for our esteemed "experts" on this thread if you could take a minute to read & respond, please.
A fair bit of news/articles since Monday regarding Martin Lewis' "bombshell" on crypto currency/bitcoin investment ie " Putting it out there for the average man /woman to inform them of one way to increase their savings that the banks/government don't want them to know "
Is this "opportunity " common knowledge , reputable & certainly worth a 2nd look ?
Apologies for my naivety in such areas.0 -
It's still a fairly large part of my portfolio. Just less than most things I read both on here and elsewhere in terms of what others do and recommended splits.redman said:
A very sensible strategy IMHO. However I can never understand why people have lower exposure to US. Over many years and really dating back to 1900, the US market has continually outperformed any other market. I can understand not wanting to be overexposed to the IT 7, but that is avoidable if you wanted. Personally I feel even these are a reflection of the overall financial wellbeing of the world.cantersaddick said:I'm in for the long haul. Have a lower exposure to the US than most so planning on changing nothing. Consistent small purchases every month ride it out.
Its personal choice. Realistically I've gotta be in the market at least another 30 years (I'll be 60 then) probsbly more. I have some doubts over how much more growth potential there is in the US over that period, and would rather spread a little more to capture emerging markets earlier. I'm not saying the US will collapse but growth always reaches a point where its hard to maintain at a level, I can't see the world economy being quite so US dominated in 15 years time.
The 250 year empire rule isn't really a thing but there is an element of truth to it and the US is 248 years old. Not a trump thing I think the tide was turning anyway though he is speeding it up.0 -
Most world tracker funds are still exposed to us equities by a considerable margin (something like 60%), quite a respectable fund to be in0
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Not disagreeing with that. I'm just saying that I'm actively trying to do something different. It may pay off in the long run based off a theory that the world will look a bit different in a few years but still have enough in the US to be safe and make gains if things continue as they have been.Diebythesword said:Most world tracker funds are still exposed to us equities by a considerable margin (something like 60%), quite a respectable fund to be in0 -
66% I believe.Diebythesword said:Most world tracker funds are still exposed to us equities by a considerable margin (something like 60%), quite a respectable fund to be in0 -
Your probably best with a world tracker fund/ETF for the large part (say 75%) and then balance with where else you want to be heavier (i.e. emerging markets for instance) with the remaindercantersaddick said:
It's still a fairly large part of my portfolio. Just less than most things I read both on here and elsewhere in terms of what others do and recommended splits.redman said:
A very sensible strategy IMHO. However I can never understand why people have lower exposure to US. Over many years and really dating back to 1900, the US market has continually outperformed any other market. I can understand not wanting to be overexposed to the IT 7, but that is avoidable if you wanted. Personally I feel even these are a reflection of the overall financial wellbeing of the world.cantersaddick said:I'm in for the long haul. Have a lower exposure to the US than most so planning on changing nothing. Consistent small purchases every month ride it out.
Its personal choice. Realistically I've gotta be in the market at least another 30 years (I'll be 60 then) probsbly more. I have some doubts over how much more growth potential there is in the US over that period, and would rather spread a little more to capture emerging markets earlier. I'm not saying the US will collapse but growth always reaches a point where its hard to maintain at a level, I can't see the world economy being quite so US dominated in 15 years time.
The 250 year empire rule isn't really a thing but there is an element of truth to it and the US is 248 years old. Not a trump thing I think the tide was turning anyway though he is speeding it up.3 -
Sponsored links:
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FTSE100 closes at an all time high......almost.
Actually closed 0.5 points below it's all time high. Well that was the figure at 4.35pm. At 4.30pm (official close) it was a few points higher but some after closing jiggery pokery and it's not quite there.
But here the rub. Why does it matter if its higher than its ever been ? Why does that spook people ? Why do people want to cash out fearing a crash ? As the days & weeks go on Companies make money & their share price goes up. The opposite happens and the share price goes down. Inflation alone should mean that things are "higher" now than they were last month or last year. Do you not buy a new car or new sofa because the price has gone up from last year. Obviously shares are priced differently, but my gist is that a market going up shouldn't be feared.
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I think it depends where you are in life and your history. 15 or even 10 years ago, price up, price down, never bothered me really as I was putting away not inconsiderable sums each and every month and in some respects the lower the price the better in the earlier days.golfaddick said:FTSE100 closes at an all time high......almost.
Actually closed 0.5 points below it's all time high. Well that was the figure at 4.35pm. At 4.30pm (official close) it was a few points higher but some after closing jiggery pokery and it's not quite there.
But here the rub. Why does it matter if its higher than its ever been ? Why does that spook people ? Why do people want to cash out fearing a crash ? As the days & weeks go on Companies make money & their share price goes up. The opposite happens and the share price goes down. Inflation alone should mean that things are "higher" now than they were last month or last year. Do you not buy a new car or new sofa because the price has gone up from last year. Obviously shares are priced differently, but my gist is that a market going up shouldn't be feared.
However as I head towards retirement and after over 35 years of investing, small swings in the market can make some pretty large differences to my balance. 2 years ago, if you excluded my own home value I had probably 75%+ of my investments in the markets. I'm probably at 35% now.
As an example since just about the turn of the tax year my SIPP is up nearly £100k, my wife's £15k and our ISA's probably £40k. With me likely accessing the pension in a little over 2 years, it feels mad not to bank some of that. But as I say, if I was 40-45 again I'd be letting it ride, but I don't have the time left in the markets so easily to recover any movements down...... and for all those thinking it wouldn't be down for long...........
I can remember when I really started getting into stock markets more heavily, around 1996, the FTSE was around 3,700. By the end of the century it was high 6,000's so getting towards double in 3-4 years and I thought this investing lark was easy. Roll on 3-4 years later it was below 3,700 again, where it was 7 years prior, so I was sitting on a paper loss. It took to 2015 for it to get back to that high 6,000's again and stay there (ignoring COVID when it dropped back to just over 5,000). So recap:
1996 3,600
1999/2000 - 6,900
2003 - 3,700
2015 - 7,000
2020 - 5,100
That's why at my time of life I'm happy to bank decent profit, even if it means missing out on a little bit extra (which I'd be sharing some of it with the tax man anyway!).
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Not sure I’m following your numbers but are you saying on the cusp of retirement the majority of your SIPP is now in cash / near cash ?Rob7Lee said:
I think it depends where you are in life and your history. 15 or even 10 years ago, price up, price down, never bothered me really as I was putting away not inconsiderable sums each and every month and in some respects the lower the price the better in the earlier days.golfaddick said:FTSE100 closes at an all time high......almost.
Actually closed 0.5 points below it's all time high. Well that was the figure at 4.35pm. At 4.30pm (official close) it was a few points higher but some after closing jiggery pokery and it's not quite there.
But here the rub. Why does it matter if its higher than its ever been ? Why does that spook people ? Why do people want to cash out fearing a crash ? As the days & weeks go on Companies make money & their share price goes up. The opposite happens and the share price goes down. Inflation alone should mean that things are "higher" now than they were last month or last year. Do you not buy a new car or new sofa because the price has gone up from last year. Obviously shares are priced differently, but my gist is that a market going up shouldn't be feared.
However as I head towards retirement and after over 35 years of investing, small swings in the market can make some pretty large differences to my balance. 2 years ago, if you excluded my own home value I had probably 75%+ of my investments in the markets. I'm probably at 35% now.
As an example since just about the turn of the tax year my SIPP is up nearly £100k, my wife's £15k and our ISA's probably £40k. With me likely accessing the pension in a little over 2 years, it feels mad not to bank some of that. But as I say, if I was 40-45 again I'd be letting it ride, but I don't have the time left in the markets so easily to recover any movements down...... and for all those thinking it wouldn't be down for long...........
I can remember when I really started getting into stock markets more heavily, around 1996, the FTSE was around 3,700. By the end of the century it was high 6,000's so getting towards double in 3-4 years and I thought this investing lark was easy. Roll on 3-4 years later it was below 3,700 again, where it was 7 years prior, so I was sitting on a paper loss. It took to 2015 for it to get back to that high 6,000's again and stay there (ignoring COVID when it dropped back to just over 5,000). So recap:
1996 3,600
1999/2000 - 6,900
2003 - 3,700
2015 - 7,000
2020 - 5,100
That's why at my time of life I'm happy to bank decent profit, even if it means missing out on a little bit extra (which I'd be sharing some of it with the tax man anyway!).
On that basis are you suggesting perhaps an annuity is now more favoured to align to your lower risk profile upon retirement ratter than staying ‘in the market’ and drawing down gradually?0 -
Only reason to go into cash nearing retirement is if you are contemplating buying an annuity. If not then best to stay fully invested. Maybe de-risk a bit if you are looking to take max TFC but if you are going into drawdown then you could be in the market for another 30+ years.
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As of yesterday (as sold out a further one of my funds) about 70% of my SIPP is in cash (cash is earning 2.5% tax free). But to put in perspective:valleynick66 said:
Not sure I’m following your numbers but are you saying on the cusp of retirement the majority of your SIPP is now in cash / near cash ?Rob7Lee said:
I think it depends where you are in life and your history. 15 or even 10 years ago, price up, price down, never bothered me really as I was putting away not inconsiderable sums each and every month and in some respects the lower the price the better in the earlier days.golfaddick said:FTSE100 closes at an all time high......almost.
Actually closed 0.5 points below it's all time high. Well that was the figure at 4.35pm. At 4.30pm (official close) it was a few points higher but some after closing jiggery pokery and it's not quite there.
But here the rub. Why does it matter if its higher than its ever been ? Why does that spook people ? Why do people want to cash out fearing a crash ? As the days & weeks go on Companies make money & their share price goes up. The opposite happens and the share price goes down. Inflation alone should mean that things are "higher" now than they were last month or last year. Do you not buy a new car or new sofa because the price has gone up from last year. Obviously shares are priced differently, but my gist is that a market going up shouldn't be feared.
However as I head towards retirement and after over 35 years of investing, small swings in the market can make some pretty large differences to my balance. 2 years ago, if you excluded my own home value I had probably 75%+ of my investments in the markets. I'm probably at 35% now.
As an example since just about the turn of the tax year my SIPP is up nearly £100k, my wife's £15k and our ISA's probably £40k. With me likely accessing the pension in a little over 2 years, it feels mad not to bank some of that. But as I say, if I was 40-45 again I'd be letting it ride, but I don't have the time left in the markets so easily to recover any movements down...... and for all those thinking it wouldn't be down for long...........
I can remember when I really started getting into stock markets more heavily, around 1996, the FTSE was around 3,700. By the end of the century it was high 6,000's so getting towards double in 3-4 years and I thought this investing lark was easy. Roll on 3-4 years later it was below 3,700 again, where it was 7 years prior, so I was sitting on a paper loss. It took to 2015 for it to get back to that high 6,000's again and stay there (ignoring COVID when it dropped back to just over 5,000). So recap:
1996 3,600
1999/2000 - 6,900
2003 - 3,700
2015 - 7,000
2020 - 5,100
That's why at my time of life I'm happy to bank decent profit, even if it means missing out on a little bit extra (which I'd be sharing some of it with the tax man anyway!).
On that basis are you suggesting perhaps an annuity is now more favoured to align to your lower risk profile upon retirement ratter than staying ‘in the market’ and drawing down gradually?
1. My SIPP is about 80% of my overall pension pot, the other pot (existing work) is fully invested and has a fair amount going in a month, into the markets. That may make up 40% of my overall pension pots in 4 years time (meaning roughly half my pension will remain invested).
2. I still have some ISA's invested (as does my wife) and she also has 2x final/average salary pensions and a SIPP (her SIPP is still fully invested, I also invest in that each month so that in effect 100% of her salary is going into pension).
3. I have a fair amount of stock in my employer.
So it's a balance, if I left my SIPP and all ISA's fully invested (and my wife's) that's a very large part of our 'wealth' aside from our home in stocks and shares in one form or another.
I won't be buying an annuity, my wife has 2x final salaries and then state pension to come and what we have now will give us a very very comfortable retirement. I will also be taking out the full tax free lump sum in just over 2 years.
There is still the debate to be had as to where we spend our retirement years, in this country and if so where, or abroad (and if so where). Some places I'd move my pension and likely cash it out which is another consideration.
EDIT: I should probably add that part of this is revised IHT planning. Until Rachael from Accounts changed the rules from 2027 my intention was to leave around 75% of my pension invested and mostly unspent (I'd have drawn a small amount a year) for my children. That has obviously changed now so I'm likely to give a lot of it away much earlier, assuming she doesn't move the goal posts again!!1 -
People watched the big short and how these guys were portrayed as misunderstood geniuses, now everyone wants to be the genius that called it. When it was a once in a lifetime deep recession.golfaddick said:FTSE100 closes at an all time high......almost.
Actually closed 0.5 points below it's all time high. Well that was the figure at 4.35pm. At 4.30pm (official close) it was a few points higher but some after closing jiggery pokery and it's not quite there.
But here the rub. Why does it matter if it’s higher than it’s ever been ? Why does that spook people ? Why do people want to cash out fearing a crash ? As the days & weeks go on Companies make money & their share price goes up. The opposite happens and the share price goes down. Inflation alone should mean that things are "higher" now than they were last month or last year. Do you not buy a new car or new sofa because the price has gone up from last year. Obviously shares are priced differently, but my gist is that a market going up shouldn't be feared.1 -
Excellent. Something I 100% agree with but have not actually heard many IFA's actually say. The Lifestyle plans, which were certainly around up until a few years ago transferred all equity to cash over the last 5 years of your working life. I never understood the logic, unless annuity was the likely option.golfaddick said:Only reason to go into cash nearing retirement is if you are contemplating buying an annuity. If not then best to stay fully invested. Maybe de-risk a bit if you are looking to take max TFC but if you are going into drawdown then you could be in the market for another 30+ years.
While talking of annuities, these have been out of fashion, but an IFA interestingly told me he thought these are likely to become more common place again. An example maybe after I have passed, this could be a good option for my wife if she is still in good health. Each year she would then have "excess income" which she could gift and this would be IHT free.0 -
Annuity rates are still quite poor in my view. Under £5,500 for joint life with 3% per £100k. Even without the 3% it's only around £7,500. Of course it's all guess work as to how long we'll all live!redman said:
Excellent. Something I 100% agree with but have not actually heard many IFA's actually say. The Lifestyle plans, which were certainly around up until a few years ago transferred all equity to cash over the last 5 years of your working life. I never understood the logic, unless annuity was the likely option.golfaddick said:Only reason to go into cash nearing retirement is if you are contemplating buying an annuity. If not then best to stay fully invested. Maybe de-risk a bit if you are looking to take max TFC but if you are going into drawdown then you could be in the market for another 30+ years.
While talking of annuities, these have been out of fashion, but an IFA interestingly told me he thought these are likely to become more common place again. An example maybe after I have passed, this could be a good option for my wife if she is still in good health. Each year she would then have "excess income" which she could gift and this would be IHT free.0 -
Us inflation figures came out lower than expected. All but guaranteed rate cuts next week. Markets look like they’re going to open at ATH.0
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In the case of the S&P 500 that would hardly be difficult since it closed at pretty much an ATH yesterday.Diebythesword said:Us inflation figures came out lower than expected. All but guaranteed rate cuts next week. Markets look like they’re going to open at ATH.0
