Toolbox

To help you get up and running as a DIY Income Investor you will need your tools - so here is a toolbox of the most useful Internet resources and techniques that I have come across.

(Updated May 2021)

BANK ACCOUNTS

- UK 

For a current account you should check the MoneySavingExpert's recommendations on bank accounts. 

For 'Easy Access' accounts the best deals change pretty quickly, so a first stop is Moneysupermarket.com's Easy Access Account page, followed by Moneyfacts.co.uk's instant-access account page. 

For fixed rate accounts MoneySavingExpert is a good place to start checking UK Regular Saver Accounts and Fixed-Rate Savings Accounts. Another comprehensive source is MoneySupermarket.com.

- US

See the Get Rich Slow blog introduction to money market accounts and their useful tool to identify a suitable US savings account.


DIVIDEND SHARES 

Stockpedia has a great page of resources for dividend income investing.

Free from Broke  provides a useful US-based background to investing.

Canadian Couch Potato debunks some myths about dividend investing from a Canadian perspective.

Market Data

ShareCast provides summary information on the performance (including yield) of FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and Small Caps (you can use these links to show the dividend yields in descending order), giving a quick snapshot of possible candidate companies for your portfolio.


AJ Bell provide a Dividend Dashboard each quarter.


FIXED-INCOME SECURITIES
 
Includes:
  • gilts, (government bonds or government loan stock)
  • corporate bonds (loans to companies)
  • PIBS and PSBs (see below)
  • Preference shares

General Information Sources

The leading website for the UK is Fixedincomeinvestor has a comprehensive summary table of different types of fixed-income investments. Be cautious as it provides only income yields and not redemption yields. The security names link through directly to price charts. 
  
Government Bonds / Gilts

I have only held Consols 4% (which I sold at a profit) - but the price is currently too inflated, meaning that the yield is not very attractive and you would potentially suffer a capital loss by investing now.

Look at Monevator’s informative introductory guide to gilts, which explains how they work.

Fixed Income Investor provides information on UK Government bonds (Gilts) - as well as other fixed-income securities.

Corporate Bonds

An article on commercial bonds from This is Money's Midas and Trading corporate bonds from This is Money

Fixed Income Investor has a comprehensive list of corporate bond prices.

Preference Shares 

See also the Fixed Income Investments' market data on Preference Shares.  

PIBS and PSBs

PIBS from the demutualised building societies are known as perpetual sub-bonds (PSBs).

See the Fixed Income Investor's PIBs & Others page.


EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS (ETFs)

I'm pretty restrictive in what I look for - I like to reflect the overall portfolio balance: high-yield (either dividends or fixed-income) plus ETFs holding physical assets (so less likely to 'blow up'). But you can find an ETF tracking almost anything.

See my latest article on Exchange Traded Funds

A Starter Pack of ETFs
 
INTERNET STOCK BROKERS

- UK

See my latest article about UK online stock brokers and ISA/SIPP providers.

There are several possible low-cost providers in the UK: you could start your DIY research here


SIPPS (UK)

See MoneySavingExpert's current tips on SIPPs and This is Money's Guide to finding the cheapest low-cost SIPP.

 
TAXATION
 
This strategy is DIY, so have a look yourself at the UK Government's own help-site or the website of your own tax administration.
 

FREE ONLINE DATA STORAGE

Google Documents allows you to store documents in cyberspace - and you can choose whether or not to share the files (probably wise to make sure you have chosen 'don't share' in this case!). 

Another free option (for up to 2 Gb storage) is Dropbox, which has a synchronising function - making double-sure that your financial data are secure.




I am not a financial adviser and the information provided does not constitute financial advice. You should always do your own research on top of what you learn here to ensure that it's right for your specific circumstances.