Hargreaves Landsdown ISA Review 2021

As is to be expected from a company that specializes in investments, the hallmark ISA available at Hargreaves Lansdown is its Stocks and Shares ISA. For those unaware, a Stocks and Shares ISA is simply a shopping basket that allows you to store your stock market investments. The key selling point is that this so-called shopping basket will protect you from paying a certain amount of tax on your profits (known as capital gains tax) – up to a certain point.

As per the 2019/20 tax year, your Stocks and Shares ISA can contain up to £20,000 worth of stock market investments. Any gains that you make on this £20,000 annual allowance will not be liable for tax. With that being said, regardless of which platform you decide to take a Stocks and Shares ISA from, they all operate in much the same way.

However, Hargreaves Lansdown is potentially an industry leader in this respect, not least because it has one of the most comprehensive stocks and shares platforms in the space. As such, if you are thinking about using the investment firm for your stocks and shares needs anyway, then it makes total sense to set-up a Stocks and Shares ISA concurrently.  The only slight drawback is that you will need to pay an annual charge of 0.45%.

Putting some money away for your children at the earliest possible opportunity will allow you to achieve a considerable pot for when they eventually turn 18. In fact, if you keep your investments consistent, the impact of compounding interest can amplify your savings very quickly. With that being said, a Junior ISA can help you avoid tax on the money you put away for your child.

In the vast majority of cases, parents will stick with a conventional Junior Cash ISA, meaning that they are guaranteed to make money in a 100% risk-free environment. However, if you have a keen interest in the financial markets and want to make more than the average 2%-3% that Junior Cash ISAs pay, it might be worth considering a Junior Stocks and Shares ISA with Hargreaves Lansdown.

Unlike an adult Stocks and Shares ISA, the Junior equivalent only permits an annual allowance of £4,368. This amounts to a monthly contribution of about £386. As is the case with the adult Stocks and Shares ISA at Hargreaves Lansdown, you can get started with a lump sum of just £100, or £25 per month – and the account opening process takes minutes. Finally, you will also need to pay an annual fee of 0.45% on your investments, so do bear this in mind.

The third ISA available at Hargreaves Lansdown is that of its Lifetime ISA. For those unaware, this is an ISA that is targeted to people aged between 18 and 36 years old. The main concept is that by putting money away each month, you stand the chance of saving towards your first home, or for your Golden Years. Either way, your investments will benefit from a government contribution of 25%.

This is capped at £1,000 per year, meaning that your £4,000 annual investment will be worth £5,000. Although you need to be aged between 18 and 39 to actually open the Lifetime ISA at Hargreaves Lansdown, you can continue paying-in until you are 50. In terms of getting your money out of Hargreaves Lansdown, you can do this 12 months after your first investment – as long as it is to purchase an eligible UK property.

If you do not purchase a property, then you’ll need to wait until you are 60 before you can access your cash. If you meet certain conditions you might be able to get your cash-out earlier – but you can all-but guarantee that you’ll lose all of your government top-ups. Once again, the Lifetime ISA at Hargreaves Lansdown will be accustomed to an annual charge of 0.45%.