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No, not another get-rich-quick scheme , but with careful investment choices, patience and dedication, your first million could be well within reach

Premium Bonds

Let's get this one out of the way first.

If you have a good credit rating and time to spare,a credit card can make you money-potentially a lot of money.First you have to convert a credit limit into real money sometimes called a 'Super Balance Transfer'.

The credit card limit available to you is transferred to your bank account

A number of providers allow you to do this e.g.:Egg,Abbey,Virgin,Mint and Alliance & Leicester.There is usually a fee- typically 2-3%.

You can invest £5,000 (more/or less,dependent on your credit limit) into premium bonds,with a chance of hitting the £1,000,000-but remember to repay the amount before the expiry of the 0% period-usually 6 months.

Property Investment

In the recent past it’s not the stockmarket that has been producing millionaires – but property. Much of the potential in property investing lies in the fact that most people borrow to invest in property, so any gains are multiplied. If, however, you want property to be the foundation of your fortune, there are three key considerations.

1. You will always need a home to live in, so you can’t include your own home in your million-pound portfolio;
2. Property investments involve outgoings that other kinds of investments don’t;and
3. The tide has turned on house prices, so it could be harder in future to make money from residential property.

The key to making money in today’s housing market is to buy undervalued properties. Your making a million strategy is clearly not easy, but with the right attitude, a balanced strategy, and a reasonably long time, it’s within reach for almost any investor. But to be really successful, it also means thinking about money differently and not spending every penny you make. Download: The Property Intensive for more detailed information.

The Stockmarket

Just how much money you can potentially make depends on three things:-

1. The amount of money you invest;
2. How long a period of time you invest over:and
3. The returns those investments generate.

As a rough rule of thumb, the more risk you take, the more potential there is for better returns – play it too safe and your money will grow at a snail’s pace, but take too many risks and you risk losing it all.

If you’re going to make a million you will need to skew this towards taking as much risk as you are comfortable with.

With a relatively aggressive portfolio of collective investments, you could hope for returns averaging at between 10% and 15% a year over the long term.

By investing £750 a month, this strategy could produce your first half-million in just 15 years.It is vital that you invest as tax-efficiently as possible by making the most of your £7,000 annual individual savings account allowance(ISA) and maximising pension contributions.

The second half million: Once you have built up a broadly diversified portfolio of collective funds worth around half a million, you have a few options.

1. You can continue with your strategy and amass a million in another 10 to 15 years, or you can take more risk with any new money you invest, and cut that down to five to 10 years.
2. If you have stock-picking ability, or faith in a discretionary stockbroker to pick stocks for you, you can build up a portfolio of direct-share investments. With the right decisions producing 35% a year, and £750 a month to invest, your second half-million could therefore come in just seven years.
3. If you make the wrong calls and you could be back where you started. An alternative is hedge funds. Hedge-fund managers have a wider range of strategies open to them than conventional fund managers – one of which is their ability to ‘short-sell’ stocks they think are going to fall, and profit from price falls. These however can be very risky and suitable only for the very experienced investor. If you’re happy with this level of risk, you could consider a venture capital trust (VCT): a collective investment in small, high-risk companies – usually start-ups. The big attraction is that VCTs are eligible for 40% tax relief, as long as you hold them for three years or more.
4. Even further up the risk/reward scale are enterprise investment schemes (EISs). These can be even more risky than VCTs, because instead of investing in a selection of high-risk companies, you put all your eggs in one basket and invest in just one.
5. Spread-betting has the potential to make you very rich, very fast.. It is usually done through online services such as Interactive Investor (III) and is essentially a means of betting on movements in anything from stockmarkets and currencies to house prices and the weather. It has a number of attractions; all gains are tax-free, there are no dealing charges, and it allows you to profit when stockmarkets are falling. However, because losses can be huge it’s vital that you are sensible.Download Spread Betting.

For further information download Moneywise's guide: Advanced Investor