Finding an investment which is safe, secure, affordable and also gives good returns is difficult, yet there are plenty of options to choose from, with the cheapest and the first option being the savings account or a child education trust. Long Term Investment Options There are several options which are good enough to choose from. The only thing that you need to do, while availing the investment scheme, is to take into consideration the authenticity and legality of the organization with which you will be dealing. This can be easily done by checking the annual reports and registrations of the organization. Such a precaution ensures that the establishment is not a scam or fraud. 1. Insurance In blunt words, a life insurance policy safeguards the interest and future of your family, especially kids in case, if you pass away. The policy prevents any financial risks that might jeopardize the future of your child. Also you and your spouse should have a life insurance policy. It must be noted that a majority of life insurance plans give out certain returns upon maturity. Furthermore, a medical insurance or health insurance is also recommended. The disadvantage, is that you have to keep on paying the insurance company for a decade or more. 2. Securities The term securities is very broad, and includes high return on investment corporate stock, collective investments, debentures, corporate and government securities and bonds and lastly preference shares. It must be noted that half of these options are confuted through stock exchanges. There are two options that you can take up while taking up such securities, the first option that you can opt for is purchase and hold the stock, and just keep on enjoying the dividend. The second option is purchasing the stock, retaining it for a small time period and then selling it off when it shows very high market price. These shares and stock can be purchased directly through a broker from a stock exchange or can be applied for during a new issue. Same is the case with debentures, but the per unit cost (purchase price) tends to be a bit higher. There are some other corporate and government securities which do not operate like stocks and debentures, but are merely instruments which can be purchased and retained till maturity, problem is they cannot be sold off, one has to wait till maturity. Preference shares are a part of the stock and their merit is that their dividend is assured. Some United States treasury bills also tend to have very good maturity cost, and there is a lot of scope for the time period of the maturity. Some bills are as short as 1 year, but there are also some which can extend up to 10 years. 3. Annuity The concept of annuity is a good option in cases where you are planning to finance the higher education. An annuity is principally an investment account with an investment company, and as an annuitant you can go on putting is a certain pre-decided amount on a monthly or annual basis into the account. The amount in most of the cases remains uniform throughout the time period of the annuity. Upon maturity, the company starts a series of repayments. In some cases the repayment and returns period overlaps. There are some features that annuities share with the insurance policies. For example, the variable annuity guarantees, is something that can be incorporated into an annuity. Such a grantee entrusts the proceeds to your child in case of demise. Another safe but really expensive investment is the real estate. These three long term investments for children are the safest ones and have an assured rate of return and are also very safe. The best way to invest is to plan your income, and then divert it consistently into multiple channels of investments.