Buying and selling shares

[V8Granite]

Does anyone use an easy to use app based share buying majigga ?

I want to put £500 into a pot and play with it and see what happens.

Dave!

[Broccers]

Make sure they are in a ISA shares account is my tip. Finding one with charges low enough to help you make any money or any share trading might be a struggle with a low sum. Try spread betting instead

[Swervin_Mervin]

Or just get a Vanguard S&S ISA (low charges) and then bung it all on the S&P500 and forget about it.

[Jobbo]

Or just get a Vanguard S&S ISA (low charges) and then bung it all on the S&P500 and forget about it.

Doesn't really answer Dave's question about buying and selling, though.

I use a Fidelity ISA set up through Cavendish Online. It's not an app, have to log in through my PC. Charges are about as low as I could find. I was always suspicious of Trading212 because they spam you so much with ads but they're definitely app-based and I believe their model works for investing small amounts.

[Mito Man]

You won’t make enough for it to be worthwhile with £500 on actual shares. You would realistically have to spend it all on one stock due to fees. However squirrelling away spare money in an ISA is sensible as you can keep adding to it each year. 15% increase on say £10,000 over a year isn’t much in the grand scheme of things but once you have a considerable figure after say a decade it can be a significant source of tax free income.

I’d be much more careful with spread-betting/CFD’s. These are more for short term trading which is leveraged so yes you can make more money but it goes the other way too. Due to the leverage you’ll have to set a stop loss which won’t be too far away. In short term trading this will expose you to pullbacks which will then stop you out whereas with a stock you generally leave it and ride out the storm as with time most stocks tend to increase in value.
There’s a reason they’re plastered with “80% of retail accounts lose money”

[Broccers]

I forgot to add - buy Premium Bonds with your 500 quids - no charges, all winnings tax free. I've won loads with my Bounce Back Loan so far @Simon @V8Granite

https://www.nsandi.com/prize-checker/winners search on holding - last month

Won
£10,000 137NG292610 £175 Highlands and Islands £50 Apr-08
£5,000 411GN894950 £600 Somerset £50 Sep-20
£5,000 17RZ594784 £1,010 Devon £500 Aug-78

[Swervin_Mervin]

You won’t make enough for it to be worthwhile with £500 on actual shares. You would realistically have to spend it all on one stock due to fees. However squirrelling away spare money in an ISA is sensible as you can keep adding to it each year. 15% increase on say £10,000 over a year isn’t much in the grand scheme of things but once you have a considerable figure after say a decade it can be a significant source of tax free income.

I'm on 25% so far over 2.5yrs. Happy with that. Especially given that period has included Trump's sabre-ratlling with China, and this basket case of a year

[Swervin_Mervin]

I forgot to add - buy Premium Bonds with your 500 quids - no charges, all winnings tax free. I've won loads with my Bounce Back Loan so far @Simon @V8Granite

https://www.nsandi.com/prize-checker/winners search on holding - last month

Won
£10,000 137NG292610 £175 Highlands and Islands £50 Apr-08
£5,000 411GN894950 £600 Somerset £50 Sep-20
£5,000 17RZ594784 £1,010 Devon £500 Aug-78

Had a fair amount in one for the boy for nearly 5yrs now and it's won fvck all

[Broccers]

I forgot to add - buy Premium Bonds with your 500 quids - no charges, all winnings tax free. I've won loads with my Bounce Back Loan so far @Simon @V8Granite

https://www.nsandi.com/prize-checker/winners search on holding - last month

Won
£10,000 137NG292610 £175 Highlands and Islands £50 Apr-08
£5,000 411GN894950 £600 Somerset £50 Sep-20
£5,000 17RZ594784 £1,010 Devon £500 Aug-78

Had a fair amount in one for the boy for nearly 5yrs now and it's won fvck all

I had 95 quid in there for 47 years and won zilch. Large chunks seem to increase your odds rather than smaller ones.

[Mito Man]

You won’t make enough for it to be worthwhile with £500 on actual shares. You would realistically have to spend it all on one stock due to fees. However squirrelling away spare money in an ISA is sensible as you can keep adding to it each year. 15% increase on say £10,000 over a year isn’t much in the grand scheme of things but once you have a considerable figure after say a decade it can be a significant source of tax free income.

I'm on 25% so far over 2.5yrs. Happy with that. Especially given that period has included Trump's sabre-ratlling with China, and this basket case of a year

Outperforming the Vanguard index itself

[Swervin_Mervin]

You won’t make enough for it to be worthwhile with £500 on actual shares. You would realistically have to spend it all on one stock due to fees. However squirrelling away spare money in an ISA is sensible as you can keep adding to it each year. 15% increase on say £10,000 over a year isn’t much in the grand scheme of things but once you have a considerable figure after say a decade it can be a significant source of tax free income.

I'm on 25% so far over 2.5yrs. Happy with that. Especially given that period has included Trump's sabre-ratlling with China, and this basket case of a year

Outperforming the Vanguard index itself

[Mito Man]

Vanguard have a vast range own range of mutual funds you can invest in. They have one which mimics the S&P 500 - was just saying that you're outperforming theirs (although actually looking at the chart now it's close depending on what month as it varies from 20-30%)

[duncs500]

I've got a Hargreaves Lansdown Stocks and Shares ISA. It's great for funds, but as has been said, fees on small stock investments ruin any profits unless you have some serious insider information!

[duncs500]

My China fund has been flying since Covid. Up 34%.

[duncs500]

India fund, not so much.

[Swervin_Mervin]

Vanguard have a vast range own range of mutual funds you can invest in. They have one which mimics the S&P 500 - was just saying that you're outperforming theirs (although actually looking at the chart now it's close depending on what month as it varies from 20-30%)

Ah. This is the one I use - wasn't aware they had others.

https://www.vanguardinvestor.co.uk/inve ... stributing

[V8Granite]

So really I need more cash to play with ?

I was happy to lose all the £500 but I’m a bit tight to lose 10k haha

This thread has shown me I need to read a lot more about terms and different ways of doing this.

Dave!

[Mito Man]

If you just want to gamble it then it's enough

[duncs500]

So really I need more cash to play with ?

I was happy to lose all the £500 but I’m a bit tight to lose 10k haha

This thread has shown me I need to read a lot more about terms and different ways of doing this.

Dave!

I think the thing to realise is that many describe most of the markets as 'efficient'. That is whatever you can come up with that is a dead cert winner has usually been long known of by a professional (or indeed an algorithm as you're often up against nowadays), and the price has adjusted accordingly. As such the amateur investor is unlikely to really make anything. That's not to say it doesn't happen, but it's rare.

Even a lot of professionals struggle, and statistically on average often don't outperform the index!

If you just want to have some fun with it though, just find the cheapest transaction cost and put it on whatever you fancy, never know, you might hit a hot streak! I gambled on a few things in this way that didn't come off (and later you find out that all the pros had shorted them!). After quite a bit of reading I now use my ISA as a way to spread a bit of money around the world and different sectors to insulate it a bit and make (so far) a reasonably steady but unspectacular profit. It's not exciting, but it seems worthwhile.

[Mito Man]

Spend the £500 on some nice restaurants once lockdown is over. At least then you’ll have no money but a full stomach.