The Money Thread: Mortgages, Savings, Debt, Investments - all that stuff

[DaveShoelace]

So many Blondes I respect on 'grown up stuff' that it would be remiss of me not to start this thread.

A generic thread to talk about managing money in the non poker sense.

I'll start the thread off by saying this is the most important website you can possibly use:

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/

He acts like a prize berk on TV but Martin Lewis should be Knighted for what he has done to help people with their finances. I reckon he has personally saved me and my family thousands every year.

[DaveShoelace]

And now my question of the day.

Just bought a house. I had a pension, not paid into it for about a year, probs worth about £12,000.

Any extra wonga I get, should it go into:

Mortgage overpayments
ISA
Pension


Personally, for me its over payments, then ISA, the Pension. Savings rates are so crappy atm and IMO in these tough times reducing your biggest expenditure (long term) seems the way to go.

I'm pretty financially literate but stocks and shares I know nothing about, so those are my generic three options. Anyone agree with the order?

[tikay]

Martin Lewis is one of THE most annoying individuals I've ever seen or heard, but jeez, he must have saved people hundreds of millions of £££'s.

Knighthood beckons. 

[neeko]

I would say

1. Emergency fund (cash) 3-6 month net salary (in an instant ISA)
2. Repay expensive credit cards
3. Pension payments (as get income tax benefit) (so +20% before your start)
4. Mortgage over payments
5. Equity ISA
6. Cash ISA

1001.  buy 1% of TK in WSOP

[neeko]

What really annoys me about him is that he causes a tax on the stupid.

Everyone who follows his advice gets a better deal so energy companies to make the same amount of profit have to charge extra to those who don't change. Thus the nimble benefit and the lazy / stupid pay for it.

[Doobs]

Pls delete thread.  Don't want to spend anymore of my life arguing the pensions/ISA debate.  Definitely credit cards before other debts.  

I personally go mortgage, ISA, Pension, but use pensions to avoid nasty tax bands.  Company pension usually beats mortgage and ISA.  

Pensions are a minefield.  If you are higher rate now it can make a big difference.

Can I block an individual thread?

[DaveShoelace]

What really annoys me about him is that he causes a tax on the stupid.

Everyone who follows his advice gets a better deal so energy companies to make the same amount of profit have to charge extra to those who don't change. Thus the nimble benefit and the lazy / stupid pay for it.

Serves them right for being lazy and stupid surely? You can't really blame him for that, he has helped millions of people.

His 5 live podcast is really good, much more straight talk and none of that 'dressing up as a credit card and hand puppets' stuff he does on TV

[claypole]

Pls delete thread.  Don't want to spend anymore of my life arguing the pensions/ISA debate.  Definitely credit cards before other debts.  

I personally go mortgage, ISA, Pension, but use pensions to avoid nasty tax bands.  Company pension usually beats mortgage and ISA.  

Pensions are a minefield.  If you are higher rate now it can make a big difference.

Can I block an individual thread?

I was just going to post the same; guess its personal but I am 100% ISA before Pension, need to consider tax impact at both ends, accesibility and perfoemance of portfolio.  I persoanlly max out ISA Equity - but I am a punter.

Also mortgague debate is not always straightforward at moment - I am on a lifetime tracker at 0.22 above base so if I can get a return of over 0.75% no point making extra payments

[OverTheBorder]

And now my question of the day.

Just bought a house. I had a pension, not paid into it for about a year, probs worth about £12,000.

Any extra wonga I get, should it go into:

Mortgage overpayments
ISA
Pension


Personally, for me its over payments, then ISA, the Pension. Savings rates are so crappy atm and IMO in these tough times reducing your biggest expenditure (long term) seems the way to go.

I'm pretty financially literate but stocks and shares I know nothing about, so those are my generic three options. Anyone agree with the order?

Strongly depends on the definition of extra wonga, is there a chance you will need access to it, age when doing it, tax brackets, mortgage rate, amount to play with.....think the order can change from person to person. All sensible options though, I usually go for option 4: which is the 23 neighbours solution to get rid of extra wonga

[Woodsey]

There is no correct answer, its all about your own circumstances and your attitude towards security in later life.

I personally try to up my pension payments when I can afford it as I simply don't want to be sweating money when I get to my later 50's, and I want to guarantee a secure non-skint retirement.

The fact they take it out of my salary tax free before I can get my filthy hands on it to do something stupid with it is also a massive plus, because I'm a dickhead with money. 

[BulldozerD]

As others have said, your personal tax situation would dictate whether pension goes further up the order. For example if you earn around £60k and get child benefit, which is now being abated for "high" earners, then pension is  a real option as it can save you tax at a marginal rate of over 60%. Possibly even more depending on how many kids you have.

[ACE2M]

I want to build my own house, land is 200k and to build is about 250k. Can i get a mortgage before i build it? or am i screwed unless i can get someone to lend me the money from somewhere else.

[horseplayer]

Martin Lewis

A smugger looking man not possible.

Had the misfortune of meeting him at a corporate event thingy in my previous job and if he was chocolate he would eat himself and not leave any.

This was before he did "tv" (if you can call it that) so i can only imagine he is even worse now.

Actually referred to himself in the third person constantly and at one stage called himself "mr moneysaver"

He is now worth at least £150 million so i suppose he has plenty to be smug about.

[DaveShoelace]

I think Matthew Wright from the Wright Stuff has a smugger and more smack able face.

[horseplayer]

a fair shout