Money suggestions

[preparedsurrey]

Just an additional point as inheritance has been brought up, if you do end up with any wealth to pass on the government want 40% currently of anything above £350(ish)k when you die, obviously if you have lots and lots of money this tax becomes optional but for regular folks it is worth thinking about. Metals and similar small high value items etc can be passed on untraceably to your descendants (who should obviously declare them as a gift and pay tax on them).

[PreparedKent]

UK markets and the value of sterling has gone UP since the Brexit vote.

We are already in (on the way out of) a banker created recession that happened while in the dreaded EUSSR.... Our new PM says she is against austerity unlike "were all in it together" Dave Cameron.

I've made 30k on my house since buying it 2 years ago, things are in the up not the down.

Our main threats at the moment are being dragged into a war with Russia to support Turkish/American aggression, chance of fuel running out/blackouts, global warming and civil unrest caused by immigration.

[Deeps]

Just an additional point as inheritance has been brought up, if you do end up with any wealth to pass on the government want 40% currently of anything above £350(ish)k when you die, obviously if you have lots and lots of money this tax becomes optional but for regular folks it is worth thinking about. Metals and similar small high value items etc can be passed on untraceably to your descendants (who should obviously declare them as a gift and pay tax on them).

I'd like to see more of this approach but with caveats, we need to pay tax and I've got no problem with being able to offset current tax against your estate. Least ways have the option to do so, while I don't have a particular axe to grind a lot of people might struggle to pay for things in the short term but be sat on a fortune, rather than make them sell up let them defer, there could even be a small interest charge. Our society seems determined to hand things down to our kids, while things might change my elderly and obsessed parents are hoarding their cash to pass down to 2 sons who don't really need it and are exasperated with the hoarding parents. Legally you might want to write a child out of your will because they're a complete ne'er do well but you can't, as one of your offspring they're 'entitled' to a cut of your hard work. Again, no axe to grind, speaking very generically, I'm immensely proud of the Deeplet who's cutting her own path in the world but if I wanted to leave it all to the cat and dog home she could challenge it if she wanted to (no plans yet but it depends on what home she puts me in ).

I'm sure they have/did have a system like this in NSW Australia for council tax and the like, I remember my mum's cousin dying and the council taking a chunk of his estate.

UK markets and the value of sterling has gone UP since the Brexit vote.

We are already in (on the way out of) a banker created recession that happened while in the dreaded EUSSR.... Our new PM says she is against austerity unlike "were all in it together" Dave Cameron.

I've made 30k on my house since buying it 2 years ago, things are in the up not the down.

Our main threats at the moment are being dragged into a war with Russia to support Turkish/American aggression, chance of fuel running out/blackouts, global warming and civil unrest caused by immigration.

Its a great feeling knowing your house/investment is going up in value, you know you can always borrow against it if you need to.

Just before the crash a flat I bought years before (bachelor pad) for about 33K (including legal fees and all expenses) would have sold for just shy of 130K, the same flat now is worth about 110K, maybe, and it had dropped to about 85K at one point. Depending on how you look at it, if my crystal ball was in good working order I could have sold it for the 130K but its a long term investment (and remortgaged twice, now got a mortgage to pay of just under 50K), these numbers only mean something if you plan on selling. Our house has been remortgaged once as well (to buy another rental property) and if we sold it we'd clear about 90K give or take but still need somewhere to live and Her Maj ain't in the mood to downsize. While property is an asset and can be used to raise cash for stuff you still need somewhere to lay your hat. Any loan will need to be repaid, whether its for a car or a house or gold or shares in BP but if you start off with feck all then you need to take that gamble, how big a gamble will depend on the individual.

[grenfell]

This is how I did things when I first started work. I was paid weekly but drew money monthly so in effect four weeks wages. Firstly I paid mother my board and then put aside a bit less than one weeks money to act as a float for everyday expenses. Thus there was always two weeks money put aside in a high interest account every month , although best of luck finding one of those now. I would live out of my float and not buy anything that I couldn't afford and got pretty good ( or is that just tight?) at it and was able to save from the float as well which normally paid for my car tax and insurance. How you apply such a principal now is to simply limit your "wages" you give yourself

[ForgeCorvus]

Frugal is a Prep

[Deep Thinker]

Hi
Suppose there are a couple of principles in the discussion -

There is always a risk with investments and I always think if I cannot afford to lose it then I cannot afford to take it. Is all about assessing and controlling the risk for your own position.

I go with the principle before spending any money do I really need this and if no then don't buy .(Frugal)

The common prepper comment I stick to is " Fail to prepare then prepare to fail " and I agree with others about spreading the risks to reduce them. Me I paid my mortgage off as soon as possible and it was hard .So any money left to me went on it and I saved and paid off as I could which meant I did without other things.

My cars may not be the newest but are paid for and no one is repossessing them so giving me a buffer if things get tougher.

One thing I have done over the years is spend money on things like my garden planting fruit trees and bushes so save money on food outlays this in turn is increasing my self reliance.

Speaking about food and saving money I now shop at Lidl and save about 30% on my shopping.

My next plan is to buy land without a loan which I can grow more on and all the benefits that will bring.


So we all need cash but this is about building in diferent safety nets in this uncertain world .

Hope it all works out for you

[filsgreen]

Hi Deep thinker.

Why don't you get an allotment? At under £100 a year, it's much cheaper than buying the land.

[dangerman]

Hey y'all. Thought I'd resurrect this thread because this has been my main time investment after earning bread and spending time with family. I've read a few books, got a load more to work through, and now I'm slightly closer to my goals.

But I wanted to ask about land - has anyone ever bought land as an investment? I need advice. It doesn't seem to go up in value all that much, but I've got things that I could use it for so is still desirable. Bung a few trees and wild berry bushes on there. Yielding plants that require minimal maintenance. And I'd like somewhere to stick my caravan. There is land on eBay, but I'm not really sure what I'm looking for. I know I want it to be high up and near to a water source if possible. I've seen nice looking lots around north Wales for around the £5000 mark, and there are auctions with guide prices of about that much too but I have no idea how much they're really worth. I'm deadly serious about buying though. If I can figure out the right thing to do. Woodland would be ok as long as I could access it and fit and get permission for the caravan. And security seems reasonable too of course.

Meantime I've been stashing a small amount into my isa. I've learned a lot about isas lately, and I've decided to move my benefit free cash isa into a stocks and shares isa. I've put a small amount into a managed high risk fund to start, and I'm trying to learn how to become a more sophisticated investor so that I can manage it myself soon. The threshold is going up to 20k soon so I doubt I'll ever save more than that in a year, so this is a tax free way of growing money.

I've been looking for other investments too, and I stuck a few quid into a block of flats on Property Partner. This has mixed reviews, but the idea is sound. The problem is that you can't invest through your isa and so your earnings are taxed. Also, the money you put in is eliquid, so what you put in you won't see for a while like it or not. Still better than a cash isa no matter - it at least pays something.

I've read, in the last few months a load of American money books - Tony Robbins, Money: Master the Game; Tim Ferriss, The 4 Hour Work Week; Dave Ramsey, Total Money Makeover; Robert Kyosaki, Rich Dad Poor Dad (I've read a few of these actually and the second best one is the Cashflow Quadrant); Chris Guillebeau, The $100 Dollar Start Up and I've just started reading George Samuel Clason, Richest Man in Babylon. I have one called Secrets of The Millionaire Mind to read next.

I'm not necessarily trying to become a millionaire, but the more I read about this stuff the more I realise how much of a dumbass I've been. I've changed everything about my spending habits and about how I think about future investments. I've also realised, because of the 4 Hour Work Week, that I don't want a job anymore. Who'd want a job, eh?

I'd recommend all of these books for different reasons, some less than others, and I'd DEFINITELY recommend that you at least watch the book reviews on youtube.

I've achieved quite a lot recently, I've got some money saved now, I've got less debt now (which will be paid of quicker than I thought), and I've decided to change my original plan regarding paying my house off asap. In reality there are better ways to be investing that money. Since reading that my house is actually a liability rather than the asset I'd originally thought it to be, I think I'm better off putting my time and effort into finding investments that will just pay my monthly mortgage payment each month, regardless of how long it might take to pay off the total debt.

The most influential books on this list for me were The 4 Hour Work Week and Rich Dad Poor Dad. They open up a new way of thinking. Or they have done for me anyway.

[jansman]

I hope you do well ,truly.I must say though that the idea of an owned house as a liability rather than an asset is somewhat adrift.

We can all fall on hard times.Even very rich folks.

Ten years ago I was minting it.I saw the clouds on the horizon though,and made sure our property was free and clear of all debt.The Great Day.

Now, through circumstances and choice, I make less.A lot less.However,I have zero housing costs,apart from upkeep.That is why we spent 6 months in Spain last year and basically said" screw you" to our jobs.Your house is not an investment, it's your home,and when it is paid for NOBODY can take it from you.

[Deeps]

I hope you do well ,truly.I must say though that the idea of an owned house as a liability rather than an asset is somewhat adrift.

We can all fall on hard times.Even very rich folks.

Ten years ago I was minting it.I saw the clouds on the horizon though,and made sure our property was free and clear of all debt.The Great Day.

Now, through circumstances and choice, I make less.A lot less.However,I have zero housing costs,apart from upkeep.That is why we spent 6 months in Spain last year and basically said" screw you" to our jobs.Your house is not an investment, it's your home,and when it is paid for NOBODY can take it from you.

This is how I look at it, I get the logic of not paying off your mortgage because its cheap debt but its not for me, I'm like you, we're looking at paying off our mortgage as soon as we can. For my rentals I've spread it, 1 repayment and 2 interest only, fortunately with the interest rates being so low I'm making more than I expected in the short term but I don't think there's one 'right' way to do it whatever works, although more info is always a good thing.