If you’ve got a bit of extra cash lying around that you’re interested in investing, you’ve made the right choice. No use in letting it just sit there. These days, however, with lower interest rates and a difficult economic climate, it can be slightly harder to find the right investment for you. In this article, we’re going to look at five different ways to invest your money. Some of them might be more secure, while others offer a bigger upside balanced against a greater risk.
It depends how much risk you want to take with your investment. It normally goes without saying that a secure investment will have smaller returns than a risky one. The tradeoff is that it’s also less likely to go wrong. If you’re willing to take a few risks, you might be able to make a bit more.
1. Property Investment
One of the most secure and established types of investments that still has consistently good yields is property. While other types of investments have seen a hit in recent years, property can still give you a good return on your investment while being relatively secure.
The good thing about property investment is that you can make a good return by renting it out to tenants each month. The principle should also go up over time, making the property worth more when you end up selling it. When you look at leaving the money in the bank, you’ll get some interest but the principle will only go up if you leave the interest to help it grow. Not only that, but these days rental yields can be much higher than bank interest rates.
While you will have to do a bit of administration to set your property up, if you choose an area that has a big demand from renters and a healthy property market, making good returns shouldn’t be too difficult. There are normally a number of different property investment strategies you can make the most of.
2. Blue-Chip Stocks
If you don’t want to go through the trouble of setting up your own investment property, you could still invest in stocks. While these have been more unpredictable in recent years, you can still make good returns if you stick to established companies with regular dividend payments. If you want to take a bit more of a risk and go for a smaller, less established firm, you could see a bigger upside. Here’s a tip on how to buy stocks.
3. Investment Funds
Instead of picking your own stocks, you could leave it to an expert and invest in a portfolio of funds. The more risk you’re willing to take, the more you could get from your investment. If you pick the right fund to work with, you could get upwards of 10% a year—although this will be slightly higher risk.
4. Peer-to-Peer Lending
Lending clubs have revolutionized how small businesses get money and act as a third party between individuals who want to lend money and people who need it. You can think of it as a peer-to-peer lending system that’s normally backed up and insured. You could get around 7% with one of these investments.
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