Inheritance, Savings, IFA, House, Help.

[MarillionFan]

Avoid real estate as an asset for now, it's massively overpriced. Go for a globally balanced and diversified portfolio. 60% in growth stocks, 40% in safe stuff is a good balance.

For the stocks, get global exposure, go light on the US market for now (but get some exposure), the cheapest stock markets globally are currently Russia, Vietnam, Brazil, China and Turkey. Resources also.

For the safe stuff, Government bonds (but not too much considering the rising interest rate environment, and keep them short term), investment grade corporate bonds, some high-yields, and REITs, preferreds if available. Avoid individual stocks, but opt for low cost ETFs.

Leave the BTLs for the innumerate hoi-polloi.

So speaks an idiot. Pile into stocks when they’re at an all time high. Stupid advice.

[eek]

So speaks an idiot. Pile into stocks when they’re at an all time high. Stupid advice.

+1. I have an awful lot of cash in cash, and a fair bit in Zopa simply because I can't see anywhere to sensibly invest it. There is very little upside and far too much downside everywhere at the moment...

[tarbera]

Rule no 1, don't take advice from old farts unless it's this

At 27 buy a £50K+ sports car, take a few years off and see the world (or take 6months off at very least) get a few new wardrobes of designer clothes, get your teeth, hair body fixed to the highest standards, the box at your favourite sport, get a hot new girlfriend, when you have spent £150K look for another contract

You are a long term dead

[Whorty]

Personally I'd buy a property, preferably outright. Make sure it's what YOU want to live in and plan to stay in for the medium to long term. Property may not gain a lot over the next decade but it's unlikely to lose any value due to increasing population and limited supply.

Once you have a roof over your head and no mortgage your life is your own. No more debt to the bank, no more rent, you can work when you want to. Use your income then to build up a nice nest egg and choose to invest then if you want in risky products. Don't risk today what you can't afford to lose!

[milanbenes]

ignore anyone who says buy shares

read this

Home

and this

DIY Income Investor: The 'Income Pyramid'

put the bulk into property, buy low, buy distressed property, buy at auction for case

Milan.

[BrilloPad]

No votes for Bitcoin?

[SueEllen]

No votes for Bitcoin?

Nah.

Votes are in order of popularity:
1. Buy a base you may like to live in but can rent rooms out in a nice area ensuring you have a small mortgage, or
2. Buy shares, or
3. Live it up as you only live once.

Think is if you do 1 then you can do 3 then 2 with the income you earn.

Oh and don't get married until you are well in your 30s.

And remember you don't have to be married to have kids.

Yes you will end up paying for the kids but remember there is nothing stopping you being the main parent e.g. find someone in the NHS after all you have provided somewhere for you all to live.

[WTFH]

1. Pay off your £10k debt. You might be “effectively servicing” it, but that just means you’re paying interest for something you don’t need to pay interest on. The only time not to pay off a debt is when the interest rate on it is less than 1%
2. Buy a property. Renting is wasting money, and your fear of negative equity is something that is blown out of all proportion. Negative equity only happens when you go to sell your house. As long as you are still living in it, the value of it is irrelevant (unless you read the Daily Mail).
Find a property for around £300k, spend £200k of your inheritance and get a £100k mortgage. As long as you have a small mortgage on it, then negative equity isn’t even worth thinking about.
(I could go on)

To summarise:
1. Pay off your current debts
2. Buy a property with a small mortgage
3. Spend £50k on a good holiday and a nice car.
4. AFTER you’ve done that, then maybe invest the remainder.

[BrilloPad]

And no votes for cocaine or hookers either.

[NotAllThere]

So speaks an idiot. Pile into stocks when they’re at an all time high. Stupid advice.

Says the guy who lost £10K on the election.

Unless you can time the market, now is always the best time to buy shares, if you plan to buy and hold. You can always spread the purchases over a year (or whatever). No-one knows how high prices will go, nor when the next crash will be, nor how severe it will be. If it's so severe it doesn't recover over a 20 year period, then we'll all have bigger problems than the value of our portfolio.

But if you are nervous, just put in to the stock market what you can afford to lose. If your holding is diverse enough, it's unlikely you'll be wiped out. Over a long period, you'll do well.