Personal Investment can essentially fall into two categories – investing financially in another business or person or simply investing in something specifically for you. The tricky part is deciding precisely what to do with either of these options, as it is easy to become overwhelmed with indecision and uncertainty because of the many different ventures on offer within these categories.
Should you find yourself in this situation, the following can offer you some clarity and shed some light on some of the more viable options for you should you be looking to make an investment that could potentially change your life.
The Housing Market
A popular investment that many people choose to make is in property; of course this is dependent on the amount of money you are planning to invest but you can find yourself making some substantial returns here.
• Downsizing – an investment in a long-term, roundabout way as you spend on improving the value of your home, to then sell it for more and downsize into a house with the bonuses of no mortgage and surplus money left over.
• Rental – if you fancy trying your hand at being a landlord then buying a second home to let in an area with high demand can be a real money-maker.
Dad’s Retirement 5-18-13 by Keith Reed, on Flickr. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic License.
Investing in Your Retirement
A great way to personally invest in yourself is by taking control of your pension and ultimately giving yourself a more secure and affluent retirement to look forward to.
You can do this with SIPPS (or Self-Invested Personal Pensions) which are personal pension plans that can give you more control over your pension money and where it is invested. While a typical pension scheme may be dictated and managed by a pension company, a SIPP means it is you who is calling the shots when it comes to how and where your pension money is invested. A reliable firm like James Hay Partnership can offer you this service and provide advice and support about the other tax and pension-consolidation benefits that come with this system.
The Right Stocks and Shares
The stock markets do come with pitfalls and a prerequisite level of confidence in your own ability to judge what makes for a good investment, so this isn’t for everyone. That being said, after you have done the right amount of market research and taken into account the potential growth, intentions and value of the business and stocks that interest you, then you will be able to make more informed decisions and could soon find yourself taking a chance and potentially making a tidy profit.
