The questions to ask before you invest

Before the question of what to buy comes a shorter list that is much easier to answer, and much more likely to determine the outcome.

When do you need it back?

Timescale does more work than any other input. Money needed within a few years and money not needed for decades belong in different places, whatever the market is doing this month.

What would you do after a bad year?

The honest answer decides how much volatility belongs in the plan. A portfolio you abandon at the bottom is worse than a duller one you keep.

What is this costing, in total?

Add every layer: the fund, the platform, the advice. Cost is one of the very few variables anybody controls, and it applies every year regardless of what markets do.