We are financial experts and this is what we would invest in right now: stocks versus cash, gold and real estate

Knowing where to put your money right now isn’t easy.

Everything looks risky. The stock market is erratic, real estate prices are shaky and inflation has been outpacing all savings rates for nearly two and a half years.

According to Nationwide’s latest index, house prices have fallen by 3.8 percent annually, the largest decline in fourteen years.

The FTSE 100 index is down 3.5 percent over the past twelve months.

In any case, savers benefit from a decent interest rate. The best easy-to-access deals pay close to 5 percent, while the best fixed-rate savings deals pay just over 6 percent.

But with inflation reaching 6.8 percent in the 12 months to July, the purchasing power of savings is still losing value in real terms.

Read our guide to the best inflation-fighting savings rates here.

The idea of ​​investing in gold often comes up at times like these – with its proponents claiming it is a safe haven, a long-term store of value and can help fight inflation.

However, there is no guarantee that the gold price will rise. For example, between the 1980s and the early 2000s, gold prices remained fairly flat.

In fact, anyone buying and selling gold at that time would have had a good chance of seeing the value of their investment fall in nominal and real terms.

Those who have a long-term view may at least be more confident that investing in the stock market or buying real estate will eventually pay off, but whether it’s a good idea depends on how long they have a time horizon.

We spoke to a number of experts from the savings, investment and real estate industries and asked them where they would put their money over the next five years if they could only choose one thing.

The options were a fixed-interest savings account that paid between 5 and 6 percent, the stock market, gold, or real estate.

Alternatively, they were told that they could also take a wait-and-see approach and opt for an easily accessible savings account.

Where would you put your money in the next five years?

David Henry, investment manager at Quilter Cheviot, says: This is easy. I would choose stocks.

Going back to 1985, over a rolling five-year period, stocks have outperformed cash returns 74 percent of the time—those are compelling numbers.

I think most people would be surprised if stocks have historically outperformed real estate, but they have.

First, the mortgage debt taken out on real estate reinforces the returns that people have seen on real estate, and second, people tend not to value real estate very often and so it is likely that if they do, the value has increased.

With interest rates over the next five years very likely to be higher than we have become accustomed to in the post-financial crisis world, there are also some more headwinds for real estate as an asset class.

Gold is a great diversifying asset within a portfolio. It tends to dance to its own drum, but is not a serious asset for accumulating wealth in my opinion.

Once again global stocks have destroyed gold in performance terms throughout history. Gold also often thrives in times of fear and desperation, when people cry out for safety.

I prefer to invest in human progress, and the long-term performance of global stocks is testament to the human ability to solve problems – and create wealth in the process.

Rob Bence, co-founder of property advisory website Property Hub and investment platform Portfolio, says: I would choose investing in real estate, and I’ve been actively investing in that this year.

While property prices have fallen slightly over the last 12 months, rents have increased and I could use a mortgage to improve my returns.

Moreover, inflation is currently eroding that debt at a rapid pace.

James Blower, founder of the savings website The Savings Guru, says: Fixed-rate bonds are the best option in my opinion right now – they’re too expensive, and 6 percent for a risk-free rate of return is an excellent rate of return by historical standards.

People need to keep enough money in easily accessible savings to survive in an emergency, but I expect that money that can be put away will perform best as fixed savings in the coming years, because it will be difficult years for many people .

Andrew Hagger, personal finance expert and founder of MoneyComms says: If I had to choose where to invest my money for the next five years, I think I’d choose a fixed-rate bond that pays out between 5 and 6 percent.

It’s a safe bet, and since inflation is expected to fall back in the coming months, they could even deliver real net returns next year.

Sarah Coles, head of personal finance at Hargreaves Lansdown says: Personally, I have a strong cash position to cover emergencies and planned expenses over the next five years, so I would invest in a diverse portfolio using funds.

If I didn’t have an emergency fund, I would have chosen to save in an easily accessible account; if I need a certain amount in exactly five years and no other resources, I could opt for a savings account with a fixed interest rate.

The one thing I wouldn’t do is hang on to an asset that doesn’t suit me, just in case something else got better in the meantime.

Charlie Lamdin, founder of real estate website BestAgent, says: I would choose gold or silver to put my money in.

The savings rate of six percent will be canceled out by inflation. I expect a major correction in equity markets within the next three to five years as growing corporate debt spirals out of control.

The ‘property investment party’ of the past 40 years is over. Unless you are in the real estate remodeling business, or are a professional landlord buying cash, which is a business and not an investment, I don’t see attractive returns in the real estate market anymore.