Thursday 9 November 2017

Ask an expert: 'I've inherited my late husband's £325,000 Isa, but I need to make it simpler' awwertop[

A widower has inherited her late husband's large
Isa portfolio - Joe Giddens/PA Wire
My late husband was an enthusiastic investor. Following his death I’ve inherited his large Isa portfolio which is invested in the shares of about 25 companies, most of which I know nothing about.

I would like to switch to investments which are simpler to manage. I am in my late sixties and in good health. I do not need to draw an income from this money, and would like it to form part of my estate which will go to my two adult children. Can you suggest any appropriate investments with which to replace the shares?

LP, Surrey
It sounds as though you aren’t particularly interested in managing the Isa portfolio yourself, in which case it’s probably wise to switch to a more diversified investment strategy where the management of the underlying holdings is undertaken professionally on your behalf.

A risk-rated, multi-asset fund may be the simplest way of achieving this, and your Isa provider should offer access to such funds.

For a given level of risk, the fund manager will diversify your holdings across the different asset classes available and manage this on a daily basis, making changes as needed within the fund. Given you don’t need to draw an income from this money, opting for low-risk holdings might be the best choice.

Claire Walsh, a chartered financial planner at Aspect 8, suggests you establish what the charges are for switching, what ongoing charges apply and what underlying investments and funds are available.

Depending on these answers it may be preferable to transfer your Isa to another provider to achieve your objectives, which may include ethical criteria or a passive rather than actively managed investment approach.

Such a transfer does not use up any Isa allowance for the year in question and will not, therefore, impact any ongoing Isa contributions you are making. But if your objective is to pass as much money to your children as possible, then keeping it in an Isa may not be the best approach.




By Sophie Christie.

Full story at Yahoo News.

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