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General => General Discussion => Topic started by: ReaperKK on August 10, 2009, 11:26:54 AM
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So who here is an active investor here in DTF? Post what you invest with, stocks, bonds, CD's.
I'm 22, and I started seriously trading stocks this past February. As of now I'm currently holding stock in:
CTIC - Cell Therapeutics - so far this stock has returned $3275 on a $500 investment, I've been holding it since February and it's my strongest performer, although I am looking to pull money out of it soon.
AMD - This stock was stagnant for a long time, I also purchased in Feb and now I have a 60% gain on my initial investment of $500, right now it's at $813
While I started trading stocks I quickly moved to currency investing, it's fast and I finally started become profitable this past month, it's hard work but there is no greater feeling then watching your account go up in real time.
Up next I'm shopping for CD's, I want to save a little more money before I invest but CD's are a great safe long term investmetn.
So DTF, what are you invested in?
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I am investing in money markets that will make me a millionaire by the time I am 50. I get to entire early. =D. I am putting around $3000 in different money markets, and adding in around 10 - 15 dollars a week. basically just watching my money grow.
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I've never understood how stocks etc. work so I've never bothered.
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So who here is an active investor here in DTF? Post what you invest with, stocks, bonds, CD's.
I'm 22, and I started seriously trading stocks this past February. As of now I'm currently holding stock in:
CTIC - Cell Therapeutics - so far this stock has returned $3275 on a $500 investment, I've been holding it since February and it's my strongest performer, although I am looking to pull money out of it soon.
AMD - This stock was stagnant for a long time, I also purchased in Feb and now I have a 60% gain on my initial investment of $500, right now it's at $813
While I started trading stocks I quickly moved to currency investing, it's fast and I finally started become profitable this past month, it's hard work but there is no greater feeling then watching your account go up in real time.
Up next I'm shopping for CD's, I want to save a little more money before I invest but CD's are a great safe long term investmetn.
So DTF, what are you invested in?
oh and congratulations on your good luck.
P.s. dont get cd's. they don't do too much for ya.
EDIT: If you are really serious about this. Get Dave Ramsey's cd's or watch his TV show. The man knows what he is talking about
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So who here is an active investor here in DTF? Post what you invest with, stocks, bonds, CD's.
I'm 22, and I started seriously trading stocks this past February. As of now I'm currently holding stock in:
CTIC - Cell Therapeutics - so far this stock has returned $3275 on a $500 investment, I've been holding it since February and it's my strongest performer, although I am looking to pull money out of it soon.
AMD - This stock was stagnant for a long time, I also purchased in Feb and now I have a 60% gain on my initial investment of $500, right now it's at $813
While I started trading stocks I quickly moved to currency investing, it's fast and I finally started become profitable this past month, it's hard work but there is no greater feeling then watching your account go up in real time.
Up next I'm shopping for CD's, I want to save a little more money before I invest but CD's are a great safe long term investmetn.
So DTF, what are you invested in?
oh and congratulations on your good luck.
P.s. dont get cd's. they don't do too much for ya.
EDIT: If you are really serious about this. Get Dave Ramsey's cd's or watch his TV show. The man knows what he is talking about
Yeah I know, I'm looking at money market as well. I'm slowly going to move out of the stocks because really it's not my thing, I do risky trading through my currency speculation and I'm going to go a safer route with a money market or a cd.
I've never understood how stocks etc. work so I've never bothered.
www.investopedia.com
or if you want to try your hand at currency trading
www.babypips.com go to the school.
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So who here is an active investor here in DTF? Post what you invest with, stocks, bonds, CD's.
I'm 22, and I started seriously trading stocks this past February. As of now I'm currently holding stock in:
CTIC - Cell Therapeutics - so far this stock has returned $3275 on a $500 investment, I've been holding it since February and it's my strongest performer, although I am looking to pull money out of it soon.
AMD - This stock was stagnant for a long time, I also purchased in Feb and now I have a 60% gain on my initial investment of $500, right now it's at $813
While I started trading stocks I quickly moved to currency investing, it's fast and I finally started become profitable this past month, it's hard work but there is no greater feeling then watching your account go up in real time.
Up next I'm shopping for CD's, I want to save a little more money before I invest but CD's are a great safe long term investmetn.
So DTF, what are you invested in?
oh and congratulations on your good luck.
P.s. dont get cd's. they don't do too much for ya.
EDIT: If you are really serious about this. Get Dave Ramsey's cd's or watch his TV show. The man knows what he is talking about
Yeah I know, I'm looking at money market as well. I'm slowly going to move out of the stocks because really it's not my thing, I do risky trading through my currency speculation and I'm going to go a safer route with a money market or a cd.
cool. yeah, I think money market is the best thing out of all the others. here is a dave ramsey quote on cd's
"Certificate of deposit.
The greatest interest returns are on CDs that mature in a year or longer. For instance, AmTrust Direct (888-228-8146) was recently promising an annual percentage yield (APY) of 5.71 on a one-year CD ($1,000 minimum). The obvious drawback: You can’t touch your money before the CD matures without being hit with a penalty that will clip much of your earnings. Best for: Those who know they won’t need their money before the CD matures."
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I suggest putting 30% in metals or commodities. That's what I plan to do when I start trading, even if I don't have any plans to do it professionally.
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Yeah, I'm thinking of doing commodities for my retirement, that will be next year's goal, right now I have a lot on my financial plate and I have school as well.
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In addition to my 401(k) and my IRA, I currently have about $2000 invested in stocks, none of which are doing particularly well; and about $5000 in mutual funds, which are doing much better. I don't know what they are offhand without looking. But I know the majority of them are in large cap and/or international stocks, some metals, emerging markets, etc.. Better options for someone younger planning for the long term.
I would advise anyone who doesn't have any investments to consider getting involved to at least a small extent. It's not like something you have to sink thousands and thousands of dollars in, or spend a lot of time monitoring or worrying about or even researching. Just make sure you keep some cash handy in case anything urgent comes up so you can leave your investments more long-term and not have to worry about dipping in to them to cover bills, expenses, etc...
I've been meaning to explore currency trading but know that requires a little more knowledge and understanding that I haven't been able to commit to yet.
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I personally don't buy individual companies' stocks. Way too volatile for my tastes. I have a good amount of money in two separate Fidelity funds, one of them a municipal fund.
And then some money in plain cash on the bank. Even though, I've been thinking about putting that to use too.
One thing I'm thinking about is to have some of the money in a German bank, for the sake of diversifying. Keep your eggs in as many baskets as possible.
rumborak
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Can someone explain how Margin interest works? Beginning to think i shouldn't use margin anymore if the fees are to high.
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EDIT: If you are really serious about this. Get Dave Ramsey's cd's or watch his TV show. The man knows what he is talking about
Dave Ramsey does know what he's talking about. He's not a fan of holding single stocks because of the risk (like Rumby said). The book "The Total Money Makeover" would be my recommendation. It's less about investing (though he does talk about it) and more about money management and behavior.
As for me, I have nothing invested atm. That's going to change soon and I'll be putting money into a 401k.
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EDIT: If you are really serious about this. Get Dave Ramsey's cd's or watch his TV show. The man knows what he is talking about
Dave Ramsey does know what he's talking about. He's not a fan of holding single stocks because of the risk (like Rumby said). The book "The Total Money Makeover" would be my recommendation. It's less about investing (though he does talk about it) and more about money management and behavior.
As for me, I have nothing invested atm. That's going to change soon and I'll be putting money into a 401k.
What about Just putting a stop order to protect yourself?
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You could, but the risk is still there. One bad earnings report and the stock slides. The next day a merger might send it up. It's better to just put the money into mutual funds and the extreme ups and downs are smoothed out. Not saying that they won't lose value, but that's the nature of the stock market.
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As someone who works in the Investment Industry for the past 25+ years I can tell you one thing about investing DON'T ..unless you can consider it disposable income..Only people who should be investing are those with excess cash to do so...The downside to investing for the average person heavily outweights any possible future gains
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As someone who works in the Investment Industry for the past 25+ years I can tell you one thing about investing DON'T ..unless you can consider it disposable income..Only people who should be investing are those with excess cash to do so...The downside to investing for the average person heavily outweights any possible future gains
I assume you are referring to investing in idividual stocks. Investing in funds through a 401k or IRA is not terribly difficult, especially with the retirement age targeted funds that most places offer these days.
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I put 10% of each paycheck into my 401k. Its nice because it gets taken out before taxes. I have about 3800 in it so far and made 18% last year. quarter 22% last quarter.I'm pretty much banking on that compounding till I retire in the event my lifegoes to shit.
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As someone who works in the Investment Industry for the past 25+ years I can tell you one thing about investing DON'T ..unless you can consider it disposable income..Only people who should be investing are those with excess cash to do so...The downside to investing for the average person heavily outweights any possible future gains
I assume you are referring to investing in idividual stocks. Investing in funds through a 401k or IRA is not terribly difficult, especially with the retirement age targeted funds that most places offer these days.
Yes
Individual stocks/ETFs/Currencies
Even Mutual Funds took a huge hit in 2008 when the housing Industry collapsed (always read the prospectus about any Fund ..some limit the number of investment re-allocations you can do within certain timeframes)
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As someone who works in the Investment Industry for the past 25+ years I can tell you one thing about investing DON'T ..unless you can consider it disposable income..Only people who should be investing are those with excess cash to do so...The downside to investing for the average person heavily outweights any possible future gains
I assume you are referring to investing in idividual stocks. Investing in funds through a 401k or IRA is not terribly difficult, especially with the retirement age targeted funds that most places offer these days.
Yes
Individual stocks/ETFs/Currencies
Even Mutual Funds took a huge hit in 2008 when the housing Industry collapsed (always read the prospectus about any Fund ..some limit the number of investment re-allocations you can do within certain timeframes)
It's not all bad, but individual (retail) investing takes a lot of work, I know, I trade currencies full time for a living.
Damn, a lot has changed since I started this thread.
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My dad started investing in the stock market when he was 34. He's plaid it slow for the most part and goes high risk whenever he sees fit. In 25 years he has gotten his total investments to about 400,000 dollars. I think if you play it smart and do it for the long term, it can be worth it. He always said his biggest regret was not starting 10 years sooner. That's why I have started Already
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The more you invest early in your life, the more time you have to compound your gains. I wish I had put in more when I first started, but I've been putting into my 401k since I was 24 and am sitting OK. I really need to bump up my contribution amount though. Life's regular expenses just keep getting in the way.
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I started myself in 2008. Bought gold stocks from some local mining companies. Quadrupled my portfolio. Feels good man!
I sold my shares and invested in a bigger company. Thinks are shaky at the moment but it's normal. One thing for sure is to have the gut to do this. At first I looked daily at the performance. That's not recommendable for low risk stocks. I let them grow and grow without touching them (sometimes the stocks dropped massively but that was just the market reorganizing itself; you need to know where you are investing). There are ways to safely invest and still get great dividends without the need of speculating.
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I guess this the official stock thread basically so i'll post here. What do you guys think about this?
(https://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b381/tjanuranus/Screenshot2011-08-20at41957AM.png)
According to this chart you have a potential double bottom and a downtrend doji. Looks like there could be a reversal there. And the stochastic lines say it's over sold. Looks like a good play for monday.
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I don't put too much value into stochs but the doji patters look good, if it's another bounce I'd enter long for a short-term long trade.
What do the other time frames show?
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As someone who works in the Investment Industry for the past 25+ years I can tell you one thing about investing DON'T ..unless you can consider it disposable income..Only people who should be investing are those with excess cash to do so...The downside to investing for the average person heavily outweights any possible future gains
Investing in individual stocks sure, but in general if you're looking at a 20+ year horizon, you stand to lose YEARS worth of savings if you don't invest in something. Not only will you miss out on a huge amount of growth, but your savings will decline to less than half their original value because of inflation.
To back up my point, see the link below. In 70+ years, the S&P 500 index has never had negative annual returns over a period of >20 years, including adjusting for inflation.
https://politicalcalculations.blogspot.com/2007/02/worst-returns-ever-for-s-500.html
Also, the worst case scenarios all span the Great Depression or recessions. They correspond to buying high right before a recession, and then selling low. If you're a more typical individual investor who's constantly putting in a bit of savings every year or every month you're going to do far better -- you'll buy at the top, but you'll also buy at the bottom (see: "dollar cost averaging").
Anyone with significant savings who doesn't plan to retire for 20+ more years would obviously be crazy not to at least buy some inflation protected securities/assets, and realistically would be crazy not to invest. I say this as a buy and hold investor whose portfolio decline in 2008 and again recently has been more than most people make in a year, but is totally okay with this knowing the markets will eventually return to their peaks, probably sooner rather than later. If you can save $5,000/year until retirement, the difference between investing and just keeping it in a low-interest savings account is literally the difference between retiring a millionaire and retiring with nothing.
The bottom line is that the economy and therefore the markets ultimately ends up reflecting the technological progress of our civilization (i.e. the economy is not a zero-sum game), and unless you believe that advancement is going to come to a complete halt, it's crazy not to invest in it.
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I don't put too much value into stochs but the doji patters look good, if it's another bounce I'd enter long for a short-term long trade.
What do the other time frames show?
Similar patterns but this one is the clearest. They all show over sold as well. I bought 1200 shares in after hours on friday hoping to catch a bounce on monday. If it goes down again i'll just sell it out quickly and move on but i am hoping i'm correct on this one. Yesterday i made 600 on a trade and this has the potential to make at least that again. I need 700 dollars to switch over to Interactive Brokers, that's my goal. If you look at the chart on Aug 8th with the first doji the next day it went up a dollar if i can get half of that it would be 600 but i'd love to get the whole thing!
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While I am currently not an investor, my brother has got his money in silver.
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Sooo.. bump.
There is a nagging question regarding which retirement vehicle to use, 401k, Roth 410k, IRA, Roth IRA, etc. I've read some articles/blogs recommending the following hirearchy:
- First, contribute to a Roth IRA
- Then, if you have more to invest, contribute just enough to a 401k to get the max company match (uaually 6% of salary)
- Then, if you have more to invest, traditional IRA
- Then, if you have more to invest, max out the rest of the 401k
I can understand some of the reasoning here, since the options in many 401k's are limited/high cost, and you would do better to choose your own low cost funds. However, you can't max out both a traditional and a Roth IRA. The combined limit for these is $5000/year. So if you want to contribute more than steps 1 & 2, you are limited to using your company's 401k.
Currently, I max my company's 401k, but I am thinking of reducing that and putting the difference into my IRA.
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- First, contribute to a Roth IRA
- Then, if you have more to invest, contribute just enough to a 401k to get the max company match (uaually 6% of salary)
- Then, if you have more to invest, traditional IRA
- Then, if you have more to invest, max out the rest of the 401k
You would want to make sure you're getting your full company match first. This is usually 50% of what you put in. That's essentially a 50% return right off the bat, plus whatever the market does. This will beat basically any other investment.
So:
401k first to get max matching from your company
Max out Roth IRA next
Than really whatever you want, probably not an issue for most people anyway.
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I just started a new job and am trying to figure out the best allocation of my benefit options. This is what they offer:
ESPP Plan: 15% discount, 4 exercise dates per year, quick sale the same day the shares are added to your account.
401k: Company stopped matching, previously contributed 3% cash (immediately vested) and plan to start matching again Q3 of this year.
I've set the ESPP plan to the maximum 15% since I'm quick selling for a guaranteed gain of 17.65%, less taxes.
I'm trying to determine what percentage I should contribute to the 401k. If I contribute 5%, that brings my take home pay to 49% of my gross income (Gross - Taxes - ESPP - 401k - Insurance Premiums). Given that I'm living at home and wanting to move out, raising that any higher would make things pretty tight.
I currently have a measly $1000 in an IRA that was rolled over from my 401k at my retail job years ago. Should I roll this into my new 401k, transfer it to a Roth IRA, or something else?
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First thing you need to do is take advantage of the 401k matching when it comes back. You should contribute just enough to get the full matching. Not doing this would be silly as it's generally a 50% return right off the bat.
Next, do the ESPP with whatever else you can afford. Make sure that when you sell the shares you put it in an IRA or Roth IRA so it's designated for retirement (if that's your goal). Keep in mind that selling ESPP shares within a year results in the gains being taxed as regular income. If you hold it for a year it'll be taxed at a lower rate. If the company is doing well, it might make sense to hold it for a while, though there's more risk involved with doing that.
I'd just leave the current IRA. You can use it as a place to dump your ESPP proceeds or roll over future 401ks as you leave companies.
As long as you're putting at least 10% of your gross income towards retirement you're in good shape.
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I understand 401k matching, but since they're not matching now, I want to put at least 3-5% into it.
I'm already maxing out the ESPP plan.
I should clarify the situation with my IRA. It's in a VERY low risk account (I didn't choose it) and they charge me $15/year which is substantially more than any gains I'm making, so I want to get it out of there.
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I'd roll over the IRA to another IRA with Fidelity or Vanguard or one of those guys. They're pretty low fee and you'd have a wide variety of investment options.
Putting a 5% or so in the 401k is a good idea.
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What about a more liquid savings option? Since it's only $1000, I'm thinking of converting it to a Roth IRA and throwing my ESPP earnings in there up to the $5000/year limit. After that limit, I'll toss the remainder of the ESPP earnings into my savings account.
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What about a more liquid savings option? Since it's only $1000, I'm thinking of converting it to a Roth IRA and throwing my ESPP earnings in there up to the $5000/year limit. After that limit, I'll toss the remainder of the ESPP earnings into my savings account.
If you've got the cash to pay the taxes to convert it to a Roth, that's probably the best way to go. Maxing out the Roth and putting the rest in savings is a good plan, especially if you're putting some into 401k as well. The ore you can put away for retirement when you're young, the less you'll need to when you get older and life get's more expensive.
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I've been reading a lot on the Boglehead's forum. Lots of great information, even if I don't understand a lot of it. I figure its a great way to turn "unknown-unknowns" into "known-unknowns", and I've learned a lot in the past few months. These guys are big Vanguard fans, but they aren't evangelists about it; it's more about an investment philosophy that can work with any plan: avoiding high cost, actively managed funds, generally sticking with low-cost index funds, and not trying to time the market.
I've just rolled my old company's Fidelity 401k into an IRA with them (about 2 years after leaving), and have consolidated to about 4 or 5 funds, where before I had my money in all 13 of the funds offered. I noticed a lot of those other funds had higher expense ratios. Didn't even know what an expense ratio was before a few months ago. I was just vaguely aware that there were some expenses that my account accrued.
Contribute as much as you can stand. Its more important early on that you invest than what you invest in. You can continue to educate yourself to understand what to invest in.
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Proper asset allocation is more important than fund expenses. In that, I mean this:
If you are choosing your funds from a low cost fund group like Vanguard, that is fine. But you shouldn't be choosing the specific funds within Vanguard with expenses as the main, or even close to, the main reason.
Proper asset allocation will drive returns more than any other factor. The problem is that *true* proper asset allocation (and re-balancing for that matter) is difficult, if not impossible, for the average person. Asset allocation is most certainly not just doing something like 60/40 stock and bonds...it is WAY more copmplicated. Youi need exposure to most all asset classes, in proportions that fit your needs/time horizon/risk tolerance, but they must fit together properly. You need to analyze the funds together to make sure they are on the efficient frontier, they have little overlap in their holdings, etc, etc.
A study was done that showed 91.5% of a portfolios long term performance was due to asset allocation, with 8.5% due to market timing, fees, and other factors.
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Yeah, I'm getting a headache looking at all the options I have available. I can adjust percentages to each of these, and I have NO IDEA where to start.
Aggressive Allocation
Pax World Balanced Fund
Foreign Large Blend
American Funds EuroPacific Growth A
Foreign Small/Mid Growth
Columbia Acorn International Z
Intermediate-Term Bond
Westcore Plus Bond Fund
PIMCO Total Return Admin
Investment Product
Managed Allocation - Aggressive Model
Managed Allocation - Balanced Model
Managed Allocation - Conservative Model
Managed Allocation - Growth Model
Managed Allocation - Moderate Model
Large Blend
Parnassus Income Trust- Equity Income Fd
Fidelity Spartan 500 Index Fund
Large Growth
T. Rowe Price New America Gr
Large Value
BlackRock Equity Dividend
Mid-Cap Blend
Fidelity Low-Price Stock
Mid-Cap Growth
Prudential Jennison Mid Cap Growth Z
Mid-Cap Value
Goldman Sachs Mid Cap Value Fund
Multisector Bond
Loomis Sayles Bond Fund
Small Blend
RS Partners
Small Growth
Wasatch Small Cap Growth Fund
Small Value
Allianz NFJ Small Cap Value
Stable Value
WTRFSC CIT III FOR METLIFE GROUP
World Stock
Oppenheimer Global Fund
Within the managed allocation, they put varying percentages into the following funds:
PIMCO Commodity Real Return Fund
American Funds EuroPacific Growth A
Columbia Acorn International Z
Prudential Global Real Estate Fund
Westcore Plus Bond Fund
PIMCO Total Return Admin
Parnassus Income Trust- Equity Income Fd
T. Rowe Price New America Gr
BlackRock Equity Dividend
Prudential Jennison Mid Cap Growth Z
Goldman Sachs Mid Cap Value Fund
Absolute Strategies Institutional Shares
Loomis Sayles Bond Fund
Wasatch Small Cap Growth Fund
Allianz NFJ Small Cap Value
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I'm always at a loss when it comes to which funds to choose as well. Like was said before, it's better to invest in anything than nothing at all. Index funds are usually a good bet as they have extremely low fees. The managed allocation funds can be a good things as well if you want to stay hands off (at least for now) and let the experts decide. Whatever you do, I'd go light on the bonds and be more agressive since you're young.
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Yeah, I had set it at the managed plans to start. 60% Aggressive and 40% Growth. I can always change it later.
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I'm always at a loss when it comes to which funds to choose as well.
I feel the same way, which is why i try to keep it simple.
My IRA breakdown is:
33% - S&P 500 Index fund
17% - International index fund
32% - US bond fund
13% - GNMA fund (Ginnie Mae securities. Don't really know much about these.)
5% - Mid cap fund (midsize companies)
The last 2 are from the 401k rollover, and I'll probably dump them into the index funds.
Looking at this breakdown, I think I may be too heavily in bonds. Im still playing around as I learn, but the ultimate idea is not to mess with it once I get an appropriate allocation.
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I'm always at a loss when it comes to which funds to choose as well.
I feel the same way, which is why i try to keep it simple.
My IRA breakdown is:
33% - S&P 500 Index fund
17% - International index fund
32% - US bond fund
13% - GNMA fund (Ginnie Mae securities. Don't really know much about these.)
5% - Mid cap fund (midsize companies)
The last 2 are from the 401k rollover, and I'll probably dump them into the index funds.
Looking at this breakdown, I think I may be too heavily in bonds. Im still playing around as I learn, but the ultimate idea is not to mess with it once I get an appropriate allocation.
That's way too much in bonds for my taste. I think I've got maybe 10%.
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Lordixor: A little heavier in bonds for the next few years wont hurt you, and will cushion any pull back from the recent equity success.
Jasc15: Remember, once you get your allocation to where you want it, you do need to rebalance to keep that allocation. Most places will let you set up auto-rebalancing.
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I am investing in money markets that will make me a millionaire by the time I am 50. I get to entire early. =D. I am putting around $3000 in different money markets, and adding in around 10 - 15 dollars a week. basically just watching my money grow.
:lol
To be clear, I am only laughing because I think this is incredibly naive. You don't just become a millionaire by the time you're 50 because you tossed $10 or $15 a week into money markets. Anyone who thinks that is probably deluding themselves and any investment expert who tells you that is probably a criminal.
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As someone who works in the Investment Industry for the past 25+ years I can tell you one thing about investing DON'T ..unless you can consider it disposable income..Only people who should be investing are those with excess cash to do so...The downside to investing for the average person heavily outweights any possible future gains
Wisdom
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As someone who works in the Investment Industry for the past 25+ years I can tell you one thing about investing DON'T ..unless you can consider it disposable income..Only people who should be investing are those with excess cash to do so...The downside to investing for the average person heavily outweights any possible future gains
Wisdom
So, the average person should do what, exactly, to plan for retirement?
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I have a 401k that I've been contributing to for 12 years at a pretty good clip. My average return over those 12 years has been around 14% - I'm a lot older than most of you and can't afford to be too risky with my investments. In 2007 I saw the housing bubble coming and moved all of my stuff that was anywhere near "aggressive" into low-interest, "safe" funds. While many people here at work lost 10's of thousands (even 100's of thousands in few cases) I lost $0.00
I don't know shit about stocks, bonds, mutual funds or any of this other stuff, so I pay someone to manage it for me. WELL worth it. Dude saved my ass when the market collapsed.
I highly advise anyone who is considering investing, if you don't know what you're doing, hire someone who does. Yes, you're going to pay a fee, but I've seen people lose their ass because they just didn't have any clue what they were doing and thought if you invest you make money. It's not that simple.
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As someone who works in the Investment Industry for the past 25+ years I can tell you one thing about investing DON'T ..unless you can consider it disposable income..Only people who should be investing are those with excess cash to do so...The downside to investing for the average person heavily outweights any possible future gains
So, the average person should do what, exactly, to plan for retirement?
Wisdom
Talk to an expert in retirement planning, like I did.
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Whoa... weird quoting. My bad.
Kirk, I agree with you, but the person who has no disposable income to invest likely isn't going to have money to pay for a finanical advisor. Or the desire to do so.
I am cautiously optimistic about my wife and I and our planning, but am terrified at what my generation (I am 35) will do when it comes time to retire. So many people I know have done nothing.
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As someone who works in the Investment Industry for the past 25+ years I can tell you one thing about investing DON'T ..unless you can consider it disposable income..Only people who should be investing are those with excess cash to do so...The downside to investing for the average person heavily outweights any possible future gains
Wisdom
That post holds zero wisdom.
The only exception is if the poster is talking specifically about high-risk/speculative/short-time-horizon investing. But considering the context of the thread, I cant see that being the case.
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That's what I assumed he's referring to eric - high risk stuff.
Meanwhile, I saw this and kind of agree with some of it:
https://www.cnn.com/2012/05/08/opinion/walker-retirement/index.html?hpt=hp_t3
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Whoa... weird quoting. My bad.
Kirk, I agree with you, but the person who has no disposable income to invest likely isn't going to have money to pay for a finanical advisor. Or the desire to do so.
I am cautiously optimistic about my wife and I and our planning, but am terrified at what my generation (I am 35) will do when it comes time to retire. So many people I know have done nothing.
Well, most 401(k) plans have a "managed" option which is fairly affordable. That's what I use. The fees come out of your funds. Considering the fact that I don't have the time or knowledge (nor time to acquire the knowledge) of how to properly manage my accounts, given what they charge to do it, I think it's a pretty decent value.
I have a ING plan which provides a service called "Morningstar Retirement Manager (https://corporate.morningstar.com/us/asp/subject.aspx?xmlfile=217.xml)" at a very reasonable fee.
They've done a very good job with my account.
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I am cautiously optimistic about my wife and I and our planning, but am terrified at what my generation (I am 35) will do when it comes time to retire. So many people I know have done nothing.
I'm more terrified at what my parent's generation will do when it comes to retirement. I recall reading something about a very large percent having less than $100k saved. Hopefully our generation will see our parent's issues or the fact that they need to work until they're into their 70s and get serious about saving for retirement. But given our society of instant gratification, I would not be surprised if many 30-somethings reach 50 with very little saved. I personally have decided to buckle down and put at least 12% going forward. I've been doing 9% for the last 6 years (I'm 30). Plus my wife will go back to work at some point when the kids are older and we'll put a big chunk of her income away while continuing to live on just mine.
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Hopefully our generation will see our parent's issues or the fact that they need to work until they're into their 70s and get serious about saving for retirement.
This is probably my main motivation. I've always contributed to my 401k, but I've become especially concerned lately. My parents definitely do not have enough saved to retire, and I have no idea what they will do. I've just bumped my contribution to the max, $17k/year, and I'm thinking of contributing to an IRA in addition.
I just watched an episode of Frontline (https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/retirement/view/) about the shift from pensions to 401k plans. It's a bit dire, and shows people who had the same attitude toward their 401k as they did toward a pension, meaning they assumed they would magically have enough saved by retirement, without regard to how much they would need. To me, that's just ignorance. Companies have mostly shirked the responsibility of providing for their employees retirement (pensions), and it requires the employee to educate themself, which they indicate is a large part of the problem. You don't need to be a professional money manager (as is implied in the documentary) and spend huge amounts of your time managing your retirement account, you just need some fundamentals. On the other hand I feel like I am in the minority, having spent the last few months learning as much as I can about those fundamentals.
Jasc15: Remember, once you get your allocation to where you want it, you do need to rebalance to keep that allocation. Most places will let you set up auto-rebalancing.
Right, but I havent got it to the initial allocation I want yet. Once at that point, I will have to do yearly rebalancing.
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I would do quarterly at a minimum.
And very good post.
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I'd recommend everyone read "A Random Walk Down Wall Street", a great read that essentially argues for the Efficient Market Hypothesis. When I start contributing into a 401K in the near future, it's all going into low cost index funds and I'll spend my time worrying about allocations.
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As much as I've been enthusiastic about saving for retirement, I wonder if I should put more into taxable investments that dont require me to wait until 59 1/2 years old to access. I can contribute to a taxable account at the same rate as a 401k, and once I reach an amount roughly equal to 30 or 40 times my annual expenses*, I could theoretically retire on dividends without having to sell any stocks/funds. However, at this point I will be somewhere in my 50's anyway, which doesnt buy me much time. Just an idea.
* For example, if your annual expenses are $25k/year, with dividends returning 2.5% (.025) annually, you would need $25,000/.025 = $1,000,000
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I'm sure you are, but make sure you're including inflation when you figure out what you'll need to live on in retirement. $25k today would be more like $80k assuming 3% inflation a year over 40 years (assuming I did my math right).
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Yea, you are right. 25k today would have to be $80k in 40 years. I'm just illustrating a concept, which is simple in principle, but would obviously need much more consideration if it were actually implemented. I hadn't even thought of this idea until I read about recently, and it's been bugging me.
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NEVER dismiss the tax-deferred, or tax-free accounts in favor of taxable. The power of deferring, or eliminating, taxes over the long haul is extremely powerful. If you feel that you may need to use funds for retirement before 59-1/2, you should figure out how soon before 59-1/2. Then you will be able to determine how much of your retirement savings should go into taxable investments that you can draw down before using tax-deferred/tax-free accounts once you hit 60.
You also need to take into account other factors. One being that you are thinking about dividends on a stock portfolio....dividends arent guaranteed....so partially transitioning to a fixed income portfolio could be advised. Also remember that inflation doesn't stop when you retire, so your portfolios income would need to increase by 3% a year in retirement.
Another issue is it has been shown that expenses actually will increase markedly in the first few years of retirement as you enjoy trips, etc. To over simplify it to retiring with dividends equalling a salary can be problematic.
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I was looking at putting some money into a CD. It would be locked up for a year with a return of 0.18%
Anyone have experience with CD's. Are there any downsides besides just not being able to touch the money for x amount of time?
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I don't have any money in CD's but from what I understand it's a really safe investment, the issue is low ROI.
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I would never lock money up for a year for such a low return. You can get over 1% in liquid online bank money markets.
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I put my house down payment cash in CDs. I can't risk a market crash just as I need to use this money, and it's marginally better than a regular savings account.
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CIT bank has online savings at 1.3%, Capital One 360 is .75%. Don't lock your money up in a cd at lower interest than that. These are regular, FDIC insured savings accounts you can withdraw your money from anytime.
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I put 10% of each paycheck into my 401k. Its nice because it gets taken out before taxes. I have about 3800 in it so far and made 18% last year. quarter 22% last quarter.I'm pretty much banking on that compounding till I retire in the event my lifegoes to shit.
I'm kind of glad I found this post here. I'm not saying this to brag, I'm saying this to encourage others to start investing/saving young.
I'm 28 and just passed the $45,000 mark in my 401K. In the six years since that post, between my own contributions and employers matching, I've managed to put aside and gain more than $40K for retirement. That will only continue to compound as life goes on. Start saving now.
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I put 10% of each paycheck into my 401k. Its nice because it gets taken out before taxes. I have about 3800 in it so far and made 18% last year. quarter 22% last quarter.I'm pretty much banking on that compounding till I retire in the event my lifegoes to shit.
I'm kind of glad I found this post here. I'm not saying this to brag, I'm saying this to encourage others to start investing/saving young.
I'm 28 and just passed the $45,000 mark in my 401K. In the six years since that post, between my own contributions and employers matching, I've managed to put aside and gain more than $40K for retirement. That will only continue to compound as life goes on. Start saving now.
most definitely, and if at all possible contribute the max to your 401K. My wife and I hooked up with Edward Jones about 10 years ago (we are now in our 40's) and I wish we had done it years earlier.
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I put 10% of each paycheck into my 401k. Its nice because it gets taken out before taxes. I have about 3800 in it so far and made 18% last year. quarter 22% last quarter.I'm pretty much banking on that compounding till I retire in the event my lifegoes to shit.
I'm kind of glad I found this post here. I'm not saying this to brag, I'm saying this to encourage others to start investing/saving young.
I'm 28 and just passed the $45,000 mark in my 401K. In the six years since that post, between my own contributions and employers matching, I've managed to put aside and gain more than $40K for retirement. That will only continue to compound as life goes on. Start saving now.
DO NOT TOUCH IT.
I don't know if you heard that, or not, but I'll say again, DO NOT TOUCH IT.
Margot Robbie comes to your house and says "me and three of my friends will be your sex slaves, all you have to do is take out $20k from your 401k", DO NOT TOUCH IT.
Bernie comes to you and says "I have a plan; your personal choice can be President tomorrow, I just need $30k from your 401k", DO NOT TOUCH IT.
John Petrucci says "Hey, the guys and I will play your backyard twice a year, your choice of setlist, for the rest of our active career; it'll only cost you $25k from your 401k, DO NOT TOUCH IT.
I have no excuses, I have no one to blame but myself, but through a couple shaky years in a tough marriage and a shitty divorce, and I did touch it, and it's definitely my biggest - and perhaps only - regret in life.
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When you no longer work for that company, be sure to roll the 401k to an IRA.
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When you no longer work for that company, be sure to roll the 401k to an IRA.
I've just merged every time I move to a new place. This is the third place I've worked while contributing to my 401K. I've used 3 different companies to manage the funds, but they are currently all in my Fidelity account.
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That sucks Stadler you had to eat into it a bit. I think people often approach a point in life where they may need to eat into that savings and I hope no one has to do that, including myself.
One thing that makes the 401k a bit easier in that regard is that I essentially don't even see it. I don't typically check on it and I try not to look too much into my pay stubs to find the numbers. It's a mental game. I know I have issues where I like to spend money, like that Petrucci example would really tempt me, but if I don't see it then its significantly easier for me to not touch it. Granted I haven't reached a point where I needed that money, but if I continue to play the mental game of "it's not even there" then it's easier to just keep throwing money into it (I'm at 7% with my employer matching 4%) and saving it for later.
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When you no longer work for that company, be sure to roll the 401k to an IRA.
I've just merged every time I move to a new place. This is the third place I've worked while contributing to my 401K. I've used 3 different companies to manage the funds, but they are currently all in my Fidelity account.
I've considered moving my IRA funds into my current 401K - the compounding would likely be better and I'd see higher returns with a larger balance.
Then again, my IRA is invested conservatively and my current 401K is aggressive, so I'm never sure what would be better.
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I put 10% of each paycheck into my 401k. Its nice because it gets taken out before taxes. I have about 3800 in it so far and made 18% last year. quarter 22% last quarter.I'm pretty much banking on that compounding till I retire in the event my lifegoes to shit.
I'm kind of glad I found this post here. I'm not saying this to brag, I'm saying this to encourage others to start investing/saving young.
I'm 28 and just passed the $45,000 mark in my 401K. In the six years since that post, between my own contributions and employers matching, I've managed to put aside and gain more than $40K for retirement. That will only continue to compound as life goes on. Start saving now.
DO NOT TOUCH IT.
I don't know if you heard that, or not, but I'll say again, DO NOT TOUCH IT.
Margot Robbie comes to your house and says "me and three of my friends will be your sex slaves, all you have to do is take out $20k from your 401k", DO NOT TOUCH IT.
Bernie comes to you and says "I have a plan; your personal choice can be President tomorrow, I just need $30k from your 401k", DO NOT TOUCH IT.
John Petrucci says "Hey, the guys and I will play your backyard twice a year, your choice of setlist, for the rest of our active career; it'll only cost you $25k from your 401k, DO NOT TOUCH IT.
I have no excuses, I have no one to blame but myself, but through a couple shaky years in a tough marriage and a shitty divorce, and I did touch it, and it's definitely my biggest - and perhaps only - regret in life.
Stadler is definitely correct, but I'd probably still crumble in scenarios 1 and 3 :lol
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I think the best investments one could make in this climate would be canned food, MRE's and ammunition.
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When you no longer work for that company, be sure to roll the 401k to an IRA.
I've just merged every time I move to a new place. This is the third place I've worked while contributing to my 401K. I've used 3 different companies to manage the funds, but they are currently all in my Fidelity account.
I've considered moving my IRA funds into my current 401K - the compounding would likely be better and I'd see higher returns with a larger balance.
Then again, my IRA is invested conservatively and my current 401K is aggressive, so I'm never sure what would be better.
IRAs have infinitely more investment choices, making it more likely to construct a portfolio that fits your needs and risk tolerance better. Plus it will have less fees, both hidden and stated. The 401k beats the IRA in the accumulation phase due to its matching feature, and in some cases its borrowing features.
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Bump!
For the first time in my short life I have a decent surplus in my bank account and I'm trying to figure out an investing strategy. I'm thinking of investing mainly in low-cost bond and stock index funds, both domestic and international, and letting them sit for the foreseeable future.
My only concerns are that my future job status is kind of unpredictable—I've been working freelance on a writing project that has allowed me to save a good amount, but I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to do in a couple months when that project is complete—and I'd also like to save a solid amount for a downpayment on a house in the next 5 years ideally. Given that, I'm not sure how much of my money ought to be tied up in anything, much less index funds. I'm confident in those funds' ability to appreciate in 10+ years, but I'd hate to have to cash out after 3 years and take a loss.
Basically I'm not sure I've reached the point where it's worth letting inflation eat at my savings for the sake of predictability, but I'm feeling pretty torn about this. Any suggestions? Should I leave it in a money market account? Maybe wait for the next recession, by which point I will hopefully have a better idea of what my long-term job prospects are and I can be more confident in the mid-term upward trajectory of the market?
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I'd normally say index funds are the way to go but if you think you'll be withdrawing soon (less than 5 years) I'd probably look for a safer instrument. A lot of signs point to recession, such as the inverted yield curve so my bet is index will enter a correction or maybe even recession.
The problem is there aren't that many safe instruments that will yield you substantial money unless you have a decent amount to put away.
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Bump!
For the first time in my short life I have a decent surplus in my bank account and I'm trying to figure out an investing strategy. I'm thinking of investing mainly in low-cost bond and stock index funds, both domestic and international, and letting them sit for the foreseeable future.
My only concerns are that my future job status is kind of unpredictable—I've been working freelance on a writing project that has allowed me to save a good amount, but I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to do in a couple months when that project is complete—and I'd also like to save a solid amount for a downpayment on a house in the next 5 years ideally. Given that, I'm not sure how much of my money ought to be tied up in anything, much less index funds. I'm confident in those funds' ability to appreciate in 10+ years, but I'd hate to have to cash out after 3 years and take a loss.
Basically I'm not sure I've reached the point where it's worth letting inflation eat at my savings for the sake of predictability, but I'm feeling pretty torn about this. Any suggestions? Should I leave it in a money market account? Maybe wait for the next recession, by which point I will hopefully have a better idea of what my long-term job prospects are and I can be more confident in the mid-term upward trajectory of the market?
I've moved all of my non-401K investments into marijuana cultivation facilities and startups. That industry has barely had a chance to stretch its legs yet. I've done very well on a number of them, and none have tanked on my yet.
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If you potentially need the money in 5-ish year, you're best off just finding a high-yield online savings account and parking it there. You can get up to 2.5% on those right now which will at least come close to offsetting inflation. If you're going to invest in index funds, you should really be saving for retirement or at least 10+ years out, given the likelihood of a recession within the next few years. VTSAX is a good one to just park everything in if you decide to go that route.
As happy I am for Chino that his investments are doing well, I would not recommend investing in individual stocks/companies or in a single industry with this type of money unless you really know what you're doing.
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Agreed with lordxizor, unless you're completely comfortable with the risk of your investment going to zero then I would avoid trying to pick individual stocks. If this is money that you'd like to make work for you now but will ultimately be looking to use as down payment for a house a few years down the road then I'd probably stick with a savings account.
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I've moved all of my non-401K investments into marijuana cultivation facilities and startups. That industry has barely had a chance to stretch its legs yet. I've done very well on a number of them, and none have tanked on my yet.
I say this with amazement and wonder (and support), not snark and sarcasm, but if you asked the 20 year old Stadler, sitting in his neighbor Brett's dorm room listening to that inane racket (the Grateful Dead, who I wasn't into AT ALL at the time) trying to blow smoke into Madeline's mouth and with my addled brain trying desperately to figure a way to kiss her without it being awkward* that not 30 years hence we would be investing in the product that on that day Brett apparently scraped off the wheel well of his car, I would have thought you were playing.
* I did figure a way, but torpedo'd all my efforts spectacularly later in the evening. No, not a #MeToo moment, but in some ways, worse.
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Well my marijuana investment has gone sideways of late :lol
But while everyone seems to say don't buy a stock with that money, part of me says buy Amazon with that money
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There's been an industry-wide cool down since March/April. I think the market was really anticipating both NY and NJ legalizing. Once both of those fell through, things cooled off. I'm still confident and honestly don't see how the marijuana industry doesn't become the next boom.
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There's been an industry-wide cool down since March/April. I think the market was really anticipating both NY and NJ legalizing. Once both of those fell through, things cooled off. I'm still confident and honestly don't see how the marijuana industry doesn't become the next boom.
I'm still holding for that reason, I think there's still potential. And maybe since shit is down in the industry its not a bad time to buy in, but what do I know.
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There's been an industry-wide cool down since March/April. I think the market was really anticipating both NY and NJ legalizing. Once both of those fell through, things cooled off. I'm still confident and honestly don't see how the marijuana industry doesn't become the next boom.
I'm still holding for that reason, I think there's still potential. And maybe since shit is down in the industry its not a bad time to buy in, but what do I know.
I try and buy $100-$200 worth of shares per month. It's not a ton of money, but I've been doing it for about 18 months now and have a nice nest egg going, especially with a lot of the gains I made in 2018 (all of which were used to buy in the recent dips).
These are all the ones I have my eye on. I don't currently hold all of these, but have at one point in the last year.
- TGIFF
- OAI
- SVVTF
- CRON
- ITHUF
- ACB
- MEDIF
- PLPRF
TGIFF is the one I'm really banking on. They have a ton of potential and just turned the lights on in a monster facility they just built. In two months time once the new numbers start rolling in, I'm anticipating a good pop.
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Everybody having fun watching their investments go all over the place the last couple weeks?
I'm not an active trader, just investing in index funds to reach financial independence in hopefully 15-20 years, so for me I just watch without changing my strategy at all. It is kind of fun now that I have a decent chunk invested that my investments can lose more value in a day (like yesterday) than I bring home in a month.
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Yeah, I really like how the market took a gigantic dump yesterday. :\
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Everybody having fun watching their investments go all over the place the last couple weeks?
I'm not an active trader, just investing in index funds to reach financial independence in hopefully 15-20 years, so for me I just watch without changing my strategy at all. It is kind of fun now that I have a decent chunk invested that my investments can lose more value in a day (like yesterday) than I bring home in a month.
Ahhh... just how it is. Yesterday was the first time since 2007 (not a good year) that the most watched portion of the yield curve (2-yr and 10-yr Treasuries) inverted; this type of action, in this particular comparison of the yield curve, has preceded the last six or seven "recession" periods so investors (a fickle bunch for certain as I can attest to) kind of punted out of short-term. It was a very brief inversion, but this move coupled with poor economic numbers from China and Europe (Germany I think?), along with the trade war rumor mill kind of drove investors into safe havens (bonds) for fear of volatility in short-term investments (I think the VIX spiked yesterday too, I'd be surprised if it didn't).
Couple all of the above with the fact that another portion of the yield curve has been inverted since early Spring (3-month/10-Year since mid to late March I think) and that the trade war keeps whipsawing between good and bad news and you get yesterdays action. It's better today as there are reassuring voices from all over the place (including Yellen's statement) and strong retail numbers so the market's kind of stabilized for today anyway. It's just the financial world we're in right now... Bulls, Bears, and people from Conn. :biggrin:
I'm torn though... as the bond market pushes interest rates down, my business picks up.
Trading Crypto a bit more now, I've honestly become used to volatility... if you can time the swings in Crypto in the right way, you can make serious money (in my experience, crypto trades on technicals and the guys I follow have yet to be wrong in a significant way).
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Everybody having fun watching their investments go all over the place the last couple weeks?
I'm not an active trader, just investing in index funds to reach financial independence in hopefully 15-20 years, so for me I just watch without changing my strategy at all. It is kind of fun now that I have a decent chunk invested that my investments can lose more value in a day (like yesterday) than I bring home in a month.
Tell my about it I was up almost 30% this year trading and not I'm a little under 21%, I'm going to take a break from the market for a while. I keep getting whipsawed in my positions.
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So I don't know much about this stuff, but aren't we coming up quickly on a good opportunity to invest in index funds?
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So I don't know much about this stuff, but aren't we coming up quickly on a good opportunity to invest in index funds?
We're coming up on a good opportunity to buy into just about anything. If you bought today, you'd be guaranteed to make a pretty penny if you were willing to sit on it a few years.
I'm looking into companies that are in the supply chain for bidets.
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I'm sitting on a decent pile of cash at the moment (well... I always am really) as an emergency fund. Tempted to take half of it and throw it in the market when it appears to bottom out. Now, how to predict when that will be....
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So I don't know much about this stuff, but aren't we coming up quickly on a good opportunity to invest in index funds?
We're coming up on a good opportunity to buy into just about anything. If you bought today, you'd be guaranteed to make a pretty penny if you were willing to sit on it a few years.
I'm looking into companies that are in the supply chain for bidets.
Not only buy but If you are more risk tolerant then you can get some puts on s&p during the drops. I'm close to clearing 12k from the past 3 weeks.
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Curious for those of you that are more dollar cost averaging type of investors (investing $ on a regularly timed schedule), how are you choosing when to put your money in the market? Obviously my 401k through work is based on when I get paid and I have no control over that. I also put money into my and my wife's Roth IRAs monthly as well. I'm debating if it makes sent to change the frequency (say twice a month, same amount of $). I'm basically just waiting for a down day of 1% or greater in the market to throw the money in. Not sure if there's a better strategy right now given how volatile and back and forth everything is.
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Curious for those of you that are more dollar cost averaging type of investors (investing $ on a regularly timed schedule), how are you choosing when to put your money in the market? Obviously my 401k through work is based on when I get paid and I have no control over that. I also put money into my and my wife's Roth IRAs monthly as well. I'm debating if it makes sent to change the frequency (say twice a month, same amount of $). I'm basically just waiting for a down day of 1% or greater in the market to throw the money in. Not sure if there's a better strategy right now given how volatile and back and forth everything is.
I usually invest during 1% or greater dips. The key is to do it constantly (this is why dollar cost averaging works better). The psychological aspect of waiting until it dips and then investing, is the big hurdle vs DCA. So if you keep doing the "DCA" during dips, you should be fine. That's what I've been doing. Although, I'm using Betterment and not individual stocks. I just opened a M1 Finance account so I'll start doing that with M1..or maybe just do dividend investing through M1 with individual stocks.
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Thinking about trying to do some stock trading for the very first time.
Any recommendations of sites to use?
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I trade with TD Ameritrade for my stocks and options, and Oanda for FX. I like it however the ThinkOrSwim desktop platform is garbage but the web platform is pretty robust for 90% of things you want to do. The trading is commission free and options are dirt cheap, .65 cents a contract. Robin Hood is a popular platform but id say stay away, they have to best mobile platform around but in high volitatily markets they've had some issues with platform stability and uptimes which can prevent order fulfillment.
Are you planning on day trading? If so there a few other things to consider.
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Thanks. I think I would be day trading, but I'm not even really sure what that is entirely to be honest.
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Well it can mean lot of things lol but typically that would be trading options/stocks in a short period of time, holding for less than a day; for example buying apple stock at the start of the day presuming the price will go up and selling at the end of the day for a profit. If you're interested in trading options (I'm making this assumption simply because day trading stocks for profit usually requires a big bankroll coupled with plenty of margin) go with TD. The biggest reason is that if you trade with a cash only account you will not be subject to day trader rules like you would be with Robin hood. The reason robin hood accounts have this limitation is because they offer instant deposit which will make your account a margin account which then falls under the pattern day trader rule.
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Cool. I will look into those. Thanks
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Do lots of research before you even start. Most people who try to start frequent trades lose money. It's not as easy as it sounds.
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Woooo boy I can attest to that. It took some time before I started getting a steady income from it, I even at one point tried to go full-time trading but failed because of the pressure to make consistent income.
My biggest advice I have is never, ever pay for any type of trading service/indicator/signal service. If someone has a consistent way of making money in the market they wouldn't need to sell their tips and advice.
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Do you guys have other sources of passive income?
I am also thinking about getting into rental property and am at the beginning stages of researching that.
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I've done that too :lol, well kind of. I had a four plex I rented for a while when I ran the hotel. It was a good investment but finding quality renters was hard. After a few evictions I ended up doing long term seasonal rentals
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Yeah, I could imagine finding good tenants will be a challenge. I'm willing to give it a shot though and will probably use a property manager.
I've just gotten to the point where although my job makes more than enough money for me to be good financially, but there are some mental people there that want to run to HR if a stiff breeze goes by and report anything and everything, so I need to start getting other streams of income in place.
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I'd love to own rental properties, but I don't have the cash for a down payment right now and real estate prices are sky high at the moment, so I don't feel like it's a great time to buy. And it just sounds like a lot of work. I invest in REITs instead. Maybe someday though...
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My previous employers were real estate investors and had success with a couple rental properties. It might be a regional issue, but more progressive areas are enacting legislation making it more and more challenging to do anything about deadbeat tenants.
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My previous employers were real estate investors and had success with a couple rental properties. It might be a regional issue, but more progressive areas are enacting legislation making it more and more challenging to do anything about deadbeat tenants.
Yeah, Minneapolis is difficult and I know many rental property owners are moving out of the city. Most of the suburbs around me are easier.
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Do you guys have other sources of passive income?
I am also thinking about getting into rental property and am at the beginning stages of researching that.
You could also build a portfolio with high dividend stocks. Check this guy's portfolio.
https://www.thedividendpig.com/dividend-portfolio/
You can use M1 Dividend with the above portfolio and they let you invest with fractional shares if you don't have a lot of cash available.
Not only you get the benefit of the company appreciation throughout time, but you get constant dividend payouts and if re-invested, you can get higher returns.
I also use Betterment for kind of like a set it and forget it. They are a Roboadvisor but so far, I haven't been disappointed by the fees (low) and returns (pretty good prior to this Covid crashes).
I would like to get into options but I need to learn more about them. Any good starting educational sites or books on how to start Reaper?
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I have an options textbook from the 90's that gives you a lot of foundational information but is a little bit out of date, I'll try to dig it up and shoot you a pm. There is a good bit of information to learn the ins and outs on youtube and investopedia. If you go through the youtube route be weary of the indicator/trade signal sellers. I also learned a lot with trial by fire using a paper account with ThinkorSwim. Finally there is wallstreetbets on reddit which is essentially an options gambling subreddit, that said there can be some really interesting analysis pop up there if you are willing to sort through the memes, if you go to WSB check out Kamikaze Cash on youtube. He lays out some good rules for options day trading as well as some of the advanced strategies used in options.
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There's no way we're not going to have another market crash soon, right? I know long term investors should just stay is and ride out the dips, but man, is it tempting to sell right now. I'm tempted to sell off a couple funds I have an just stick them in bonds for the time being. Someone talk me out of it. :)
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None of us can reliably time the market. There used to be no way we were going to have a national downturn in the housing market :)
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None of us can reliably time the market. There used to be no way we were going to have a national downturn in the housing market :)
No, but even if I sell tomorrow and miss another 10% growth before the market drops big time, I'm still ahead, right? As long as I buy back in at a price that's lower than what I sold at. I'm not going to do it because all the financial experts I trust say to just stay in and keep dollar cost averaging, but still... Tempting.
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There is a saying that no one has gone broke taking profits. I personally believe there will be another down turn, how much and when i don't know. I closed out my last calls today and I'm going to stay out myself for a while and stick to fx.
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I have an options textbook from the 90's that gives you a lot of foundational information but is a little bit out of date, I'll try to dig it up and shoot you a pm. There is a good bit of information to learn the ins and outs on youtube and investopedia. If you go through the youtube route be weary of the indicator/trade signal sellers. I also learned a lot with trial by fire using a paper account with ThinkorSwim. Finally there is wallstreetbets on reddit which is essentially an options gambling subreddit, that said there can be some really interesting analysis pop up there if you are willing to sort through the memes, if you go to WSB check out Kamikaze Cash on youtube. He lays out some good rules for options day trading as well as some of the advanced strategies used in options.
Thanks for the info. I’ll check your recommendations. I hoping that this year I can buy a duplex.
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I stumbled upon a guy on Reddit about two years ago that time and time again would make the most ridiculous calls on successful penny stocks (I'm not a penny guy). But for laughs, I started following everything he posted, keeping tabs on all his calls and how they played out. He's right a shocking amount of the time.
He's been praising JADA for a few weeks now, and I decided to gamble a little bit. I bought 5000 shares for $0.04 and it's sitting at $0.30 as I type this. I sold off half of my shares a few minutes ago for a nice little profit and kept the other 2500 shares in there. It's up 98% today alone.
Edit: 154% now :lol I'm pissed I sold those shares so early. I was already up like 90% on them, and when it hit +45% this morning, I figured that was a good time to exit.
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nice! This wasn't on wallstreetbets was it?
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nice! This wasn't on wallstreetbets was it?
Nah. I can't stand that sub. I think people purposely troll other users with bad picks on purpose there. It's really vile there sometimes. The guy I'm referring to is a rogue poster that pretty much dumps all his thoughts on a sub he created called r/PennyHaven. Guy's name is u/CaptainWeee
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I've seen Captainwee's posts a few times. I'd like to do some penny stock investing but the amount of hoops I have to jump through at work to execute one penny trade isn't worth it.
I like WSB, there is a lot of real garbage there but the meme's are fantastic.
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I've seen Captainwee's posts a few times. I'd like to do some penny stock investing but the amount of hoops I have to jump through at work to execute one penny trade isn't worth it.
I like WSB, there is a lot of real garbage there but the meme's are fantastic.
I go through Fidelity and have no issues. Only caveat is you can't put in orders for OTC stocks when the market is closed.
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I've seen Captainwee's posts a few times. I'd like to do some penny stock investing but the amount of hoops I have to jump through at work to execute one penny trade isn't worth it.
I like WSB, there is a lot of real garbage there but the meme's are fantastic.
I go through Fidelity and have no issues. Only caveat is you can't put in orders for OTC stocks when the market is closed.
I believe Reaper works for a bank so to do any investment you need the bank to sign off on you to allow it, to prevent inside trading and whatnot. It prevented me from wanting to dip my toes in awhile ago when I used to work for a bank. I'd be more open to penny stocks if they were available on robinhood.
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Yea you hit the nail on the head cram, I work for an investment bank (but not an investor myself) so to get one stock trade approved I have to submit a request, it will most likely get denied, if it doesn't get denied it goes under review, if it gets approved I then have to comply with minimal holding times before selling. There are some instruments that I can trade without requesting approval like ETFs and FX.
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Ahhhh. That makes sense. Bummer. There are rules for me trading insurance stocks because of the information my department sees.
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How many people completely max out their retirement savings? I know about the 15% rule (15% of your gross goes to retirement), and I assume that most people aren't even doing that. But does anyone make it a goal to cap out investing in a Roth IRA and 401k every single year?
Just did the math on this. We get to about 15% between our IRAs and my wife's defined contribution plan. I do not have a plan through work, but Mrs. Cool has both a defined contribution and defined benefits plan. There were times in my 20s I legit thought I was a month or two away from sleeping in my car, so I get how it can be hard for people to sock away any amount of money, but we all, collectively and individually, gotta find a way to do it.
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Just did the math on this. We get to about 15% between our IRAs and my wife's defined contribution plan. I do not have a plan through work, but Mrs. Cool has both a defined contribution and defined benefits plan. There were times in my 20s I legit thought I was a month or two away from sleeping in my car, so I get how it can be hard for people to sock away any amount of money, but we all, collectively and individually, gotta find a way to do it.
Goodness...it sounds like you're not in that situation any more. That must be a huge relief.
Guys, I'm kinda new to personal finance (maybe about 3 years). I'm getting more into the idea of maxing everything out, being a responsible adult, doing well for myself and a future family. I've been figuring out what it would look at different incomes and investment strategies. I live in MO, so I'll factor in taxes for MO accordingly...
1. Poverty line
Pre-tax income: $22k.
Post-tax income: $18k
Investment strategy: 6k into Roth IRA
Left over: $12k (or about $1k/month)
2. Average income
Pre-tax: $50k
Post-tax: $40k
Investment strategy: $6k into Roth IRA, $19.5k into 401k
Left over: $12.5k (or about $1k/month)
3. Six-figures
Pre-tax: $100k
Post-tax: $70k
Investment strategy: $6k into Roth IRA, $19.5k into 401k
Left over:$42.5k (or about $3.5k/month)
4. Mid-career
Pre-tax: $150k
Post-tax: $100k
Investment strategy: $19.5k into 401k
Left over: $80.5k (or about $6.5k/month)
5. Baller
Pre-tax: $200k
Post-tas: $140k
Investment strategy: $19.5k into 401k
Left over: $120.5k (or about $10k/month)
Presently, I'm in category 1, because I'm a graduate student on a living stipend, so that's what I'd get. I would say I live "comfortably", but I intentionally avoid large expenses (no car, rare trips, etc.). I think supporting a family on that income would be extremely challenging, if not undoable.
Category 2 leaves me with the same net "leftover" money after investing, so I'd assume my QoL and lifestyle would be exactly the same as it is in Category 1.
Category 3 looks to be the biggest step up. As a single person, I feel that I would be able to have everything I could really want. I think it would be totally doable to support a family on that income, too. It'd be tight, but I think I could do it and spouse wouldn't need to work either.
Category 4 looks like I wouldn't really feel a difference between 3 and 4 if I were a single person. But with kids and a family, it looks like we'd be pretty cushy. They'd go to the best private schools, enjoy the best extracurricular activities. We'd be looking good.
Category 5 looks extraneous. I can't think of what would be added to life stepping from 4 to 5. More real estate investing? Multiple homes? Trophy cars? Not sure what would be gained.
I'm kind of an idealist and I honestly don't have a clear perspective on things. This is just how the numbers seem to me. Please correct me if I'm way off base or if you have something to add from your experience.
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Almost no one is investing at those levels apart from FIRE (financial independence retire early... look it up if you're not familiar) people. Half invest nothing, probably half of the rest
invest less than 10%. We invest between 20-25% toward financial independence and are solidly in your level 3 in terms of income, but also have four kids and only one full time income which makes things a little trickier. We're on pace to reach financial independence in our mid-50s. Not sure what that means in terms of retirement, but I'll be in a position where I can work if I choose to instead of having to work.
I am super passionate about personal finance. I think the vast majority of people could be doing so much better with just a few minor changes, including me honestly even though we're doing quite well for ourselves at the moment.
I'm actually launching a side business as a personal finance coach in order to build my passions for smart financial decisions and helping people into what will ideally grow into a full time business someday. Shameless plug if anyone wants help getting out of debt, investing for retirement, setting up a budget, or simply taking control of their finances.
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I think the vast majority of people could be doing so much better with just a few minor changes....
I know when I was in my 20s and realized I wasn't saving anything for retirement, I had no idea how or where to get started. I ended up asking my dad, who was an accountant. He wasn't as much help as I had hoped, but he did point me in the right direction, and that was all I needed to get started. I bet for a lot of people a little guidance could go a long way.
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I think the vast majority of people could be doing so much better with just a few minor changes....
I know when I was in my 20s and realized I wasn't saving anything for retirement, I had no idea how or where to get started. I ended up asking my dad, who was an accountant. He wasn't as much help as I had hoped, but he did point me in the right direction, and that was all I needed to get started. I bet for a lot of people a little guidance could go a long way.
Absolutely. Having a workplace 401k certainly helps with that, but even that can be overwhelming. But for those without one, there's nothing obvious about opening and funding an IRA.
The bad thing is that the first dollar you invest is the most important one as it has the most time to grow. Those investments made in your 20s are way more valuable than those in your 50s or 60s when most people get serious about it.
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I've only had one job that offered a 401k plan. I recall it was pretty easy to set-up and understand, and this was back when I knew nothing about investing. I think setting up and managing your own IRA would be much more overwhelming than enrolling in a 401k at work.
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I recently signed up with eToro, I wanted to do it with Fidelity but they don't allow non US residents to do it.
I don't know much about investing, but this is something I would love to do, even if only starting with small stocks.
For those that are into investing, what would you recommend me?
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For those that are into investing, what would you recommend me?
What are your goals? Long-term financial stability, or short term gains? What level of risk are you comfortable with?
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For those that are into investing, what would you recommend me?
What are your goals? Long-term financial stability, or short term gains? What level of risk are you comfortable with?
i would say long term financial stability
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Low-cost passive index funds
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I think the vast majority of people could be doing so much better with just a few minor changes....
I know when I was in my 20s and realized I wasn't saving anything for retirement, I had no idea how or where to get started. I ended up asking my dad, who was an accountant. He wasn't as much help as I had hoped, but he did point me in the right direction, and that was all I needed to get started. I bet for a lot of people a little guidance could go a long way.
Absolutely. Having a workplace 401k certainly helps with that, but even that can be overwhelming. But for those without one, there's nothing obvious about opening and funding an IRA.
The bad thing is that the first dollar you invest is the most important one as it has the most time to grow. Those investments made in your 20s are way more valuable than those in your 50s or 60s when most people get serious about it.
I'm posting this not to brag, but rather to put it into perspective for some of the younger members on this forum. Starting and contributing to my 401K plan was something my father got on my case about as I neared adulthood. He waited until his early 30s to start saving, and he calls it his life's biggest regret. I started contributing the maximum I was allowed to my 401K plan about a week after I turned 21. We're just shy of the 11th anniversary of that move. Since then, between continuing my own contributions and employers matching, I just cracked $100K in my retirement portfolio, and I'm not even 32 yet. It's pretty much the one thing I've managed to get right in adulthood seeing as my savings account only has about four weeks of runway in it :lol Even if I were to cease all 401K contributions tomorrow, what I have in there now should still be worth $1.1M-ish by the time I'm ready to retire.
Get in as early as you can, people. You'll thank yourselves down the road.
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^ That. So very much. Pay yourself first. $50/mo if that's all you can. Plan the investments/deposits the same day as your payday so you (ideally) never even notice it's "missing".
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My favorite financial advisor youtube channel talks all the time about how $1 invested at age 20 with average returns can turn into $88. $1 at 30 is like $23. $1 at 40 is $7. Time is the most powerful thing when it comes to gaining wealth. Even if it's just $50 a month at first it can make a huge difference.
My experience was similar to Chino. I thankfully always got my full employer match in my 401k starting at 23. I cracked $100k around 33-34 $200k less than 3 years later and am well on my way to $300k less than 2 years later. Things really start to accelerate after that first $100k.
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I think the vast majority of people could be doing so much better with just a few minor changes....
I know when I was in my 20s and realized I wasn't saving anything for retirement, I had no idea how or where to get started. I ended up asking my dad, who was an accountant. He wasn't as much help as I had hoped, but he did point me in the right direction, and that was all I needed to get started. I bet for a lot of people a little guidance could go a long way.
Absolutely. Having a workplace 401k certainly helps with that, but even that can be overwhelming. But for those without one, there's nothing obvious about opening and funding an IRA.
The bad thing is that the first dollar you invest is the most important one as it has the most time to grow. Those investments made in your 20s are way more valuable than those in your 50s or 60s when most people get serious about it.
I'm posting this not to brag, but rather to put it into perspective for some of the younger members on this forum. Starting and contributing to my 401K plan was something my father got on my case about as I neared adulthood. He waited until his early 30s to start saving, and he calls it his life's biggest regret. I started contributing the maximum I was allowed to my 401K plan about a week after I turned 21. We're just shy of the 11th anniversary of that move. Since then, between continuing my own contributions and employers matching, I just cracked $100K in my retirement portfolio, and I'm not even 32 yet. It's pretty much the one thing I've managed to get right in adulthood seeing as my savings account only has about four weeks of runway in it :lol Even if I were to cease all 401K contributions tomorrow, what I have in there now should still be worth $1.1M-ish by the time I'm ready to retire.
Get in as early as you can, people. You'll thank yourselves down the road.
Yea, this is good advice. If you can afford to max out the 401k, the earlier the better. It'll pay off big time later. My first job after college that I worked at for 7 or so years didn't even offer a 401k so I was pretty late to to game when I finally started contributing almost 7 years ago now. I haven't been able to max it out each year, but my savings have grown significantly regardless as I made sure to at least get the highest employer match. For someone like me, where managing money is often a mental game, having that money put away automatically without me even really seeing and noticing is really important towards me not spending it. Between my 401k and my house, as long as I can hold a job I'll be set in the long run without having to have a large cash savings. I mean, I have a nice little 2 year supply of cash if needed, but it won't take much for me to have to crack into it (like something breaking in the house or losing my job). But it's nice to have that set of money set aside that's growing (generally) that I don't see and don't really think too much about. If you can afford it, take full advantage of a 401k.
I guess it also helps not having kids :lol I'd be struggling so much more financially if I had kids, but then again, that's another reason to start early.
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In many cases you're better off getting the full company match on your 401k, then maxing out your Roth IRA, then going back to max out your 401k. The Roth IRA likely has lower frees and you can invest in literally anything instead of what your company chooses to put as options in the 401k. But the phycological aspect of the money never entering your bank account makes it better for some people to just stick with the 401k.
And yes, having kids make it more difficult to save, but we manage to do so even with four kids and one income. I really, really want to retire someday. Or at least reach financial independence where I can choose to work instead of having to. I think that day will be a huge psychological weight off my shoulders.
Two year in cash is a lot cram. Most recommend 3-6 months. Any particular reason you feel the need to carry so much?
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Two year in cash is a lot cram. Most recommend 3-6 months. Any particular reason you feel the need to carry so much?
Honestly have been thinking about this. I'm not quite sure what the "recommended" amount of cash is to have. 6 months does not seem like a lot of time to me. I often worry about one wrong thing happening, whether it is my house or my health or job, that I could really use that cash. I've only recently got to this point so am pretty much thinking any extra cash is going to the stock market, one way or the other. Also should have my car paid off in 2021, I was putting most of my extra cash to pay that off the last two years instead of investing.
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I think I asked this somewhere else, but curious to get all you money-lovers' opinions here....
What income would be required to accomplish the following goals?
1) Living in TN
2) maxing out tax-advantaged retirement accounts
3) saving for x kids' full college path (including graduate degrees)
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I think I asked this somewhere else, but curious to get all you money-lovers' opinions here....
What income would be required to accomplish the following goals?
1) Living in TN
2) maxing out tax-advantaged retirement accounts
3) saving for x kids' full college path (including graduate degrees)
I would start with what you think you need to live on after paying for 2 and 3. If you think $50k is enough to have a modest home and live the lifestyle you want to live, then work from that. Number 3 is a big wildcard too. I have no idea how much money you'd have to put away monthly to accomplish that. Personally I wouldn't pay for my kid's grad school or 100% of their undergrad, but that's just me. Let's use $250 a month for illustrative purposes.
$50k living expenses
$19.5k 401k max-out
$6k IRA max out
$3k college savings (assuming one kid)
That's $78.5k after taxes, assuming you're doing a Roth 401k and Roth IRA. So roughly $100k before taxes.
That's going to be tough to save that much money and maybe to make that much depending on what you do and how experienced you are. And honestly instead of blindly maxing out both your 401k and IRA, you should determine at what age to you want retire, how much retirement income you think you'll need, and determine what you need to save to get there. Especially if you're young, it may be far less than you'd think.
For example, I recently starting working with a financial advisor and he gives you "your number" as part of the initial onboarding. I'm 39 with $270k already invested for retirement. To reach my goal of $70k of income in retirement I'd only have to save $2,066 annually to retire at 65, $6,279 at 62, and $14,153 at 58. I was shocked how low these number are. I've been saving $24k+ for the last few years and intend to continue that, so I'm way ahead of where I need to be. I'm personally OK with that because I figure I'll dial back my investing as the kids get older and get more expensive and college kicks in. My ideal goal is to reach financial independence at 58.
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Two year in cash is a lot cram. Most recommend 3-6 months. Any particular reason you feel the need to carry so much?
Honestly have been thinking about this. I'm not quite sure what the "recommended" amount of cash is to have. 6 months does not seem like a lot of time to me. I often worry about one wrong thing happening, whether it is my house or my health or job, that I could really use that cash. I've only recently got to this point so am pretty much thinking any extra cash is going to the stock market, one way or the other. Also should have my car paid off in 2021, I was putting most of my extra cash to pay that off the last two years instead of investing.
Mathematically, you'd almost certainly be best off throwing all but 3-6 months into the stock market. But personal finance is personal and it's not all about math. If keeping it in cash helps you sleep soundly at night, there's nothing wrong with that as long as you're also investing and avoiding high interest debt. You need to determine what your goals are and have your money work towards that. I don't know you or you situation, but don't just keep that money under a mattress out of fear.
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I think I asked this somewhere else, but curious to get all you money-lovers' opinions here....
What income would be required to accomplish the following goals?
1) Living in TN
2) maxing out tax-advantaged retirement accounts
3) saving for x kids' full college path (including graduate degrees)
I would start with what you think you need to live on after paying for 2 and 3. If you think $50k is enough to have a modest home and live the lifestyle you want to live, then work from that. Number 3 is a big wildcard too. I have no idea how much money you'd have to put away monthly to accomplish that. Personally I wouldn't pay for my kid's grad school or 100% of their undergrad, but that's just me. Let's use $250 a month for illustrative purposes.
$50k living expenses
$19.5k 401k max-out
$6k IRA max out
$3k college savings (assuming one kid)
That's $78.5k after taxes, assuming you're doing a Roth 401k and Roth IRA. So roughly $100k before taxes.
That's going to be tough to save that much money and maybe to make that much depending on what you do and how experienced you are. And honestly instead of blindly maxing out both your 401k and IRA, you should determine at what age to you want retire, how much retirement income you think you'll need, and determine what you need to save to get there. Especially if you're young, it may be far less than you'd think.
For example, I recently starting working with a financial advisor and he gives you "your number" as part of the initial onboarding. I'm 39 with $270k already invested for retirement. To reach my goal of $70k of income in retirement I'd only have to save $2,066 annually to retire at 65, $6,279 at 62, and $14,153 at 58. I was shocked how low these number are. I've been saving $24k+ for the last few years and intend to continue that, so I'm way ahead of where I need to be. I'm personally OK with that because I figure I'll dial back my investing as the kids get older and get more expensive and college kicks in. My ideal goal is to reach financial independence at 58.
For sure. I've heard 15% gross should go to investing from Dave Ramsey, although his stuff is simplified for personal finance newbies. I suppose truth is that I have no idea how much I want to live off of when I'm older and retired. I'd want to die in my house with a nurse taking care of me, that's for sure. I'd also love a yacht and a big-ass house. And honestly, at my young age I don't see myself interested in ever fully retiring.
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For sure. I've heard 15% gross should go to investing from Dave Ramsey, although his stuff is simplified for personal finance newbies. I suppose truth is that I have no idea how much I want to live off of when I'm older and retired. I'd want to die in my house with a nurse taking care of me, that's for sure. I'd also love a yacht and a big-ass house. And honestly, at my young age I don't see myself interested in ever fully retiring.
Dave Ramsey is a decent one size fits all solution and he's obviously very successful at getting people's finances on track, but I think there are better, more personalized ways of doing it than following his baby steps. My financial coach training was actually through Dave Ramsey, but I'm not fully on board with everything they teach.
It's really hard to figure those types of things out, especially when you're young. Just don't fall into the trap of not investing because you can't ever see yourself fully retiring. A large percentage of people don't choose to retire, but are forced into it based on health or their company letting them go sooner than they're ready. This is why I say I'm saving for financial independence rather than for retirement. If I reach FI at 58 (my current goal), but choose to work until 70, that's great. Reaching FI gives you the ability to do what you want to do with your time without having to worry about the paycheck that comes with it. That sounds incredibly freeing to me personally.
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For sure. I've heard 15% gross should go to investing from Dave Ramsey, although his stuff is simplified for personal finance newbies. I suppose truth is that I have no idea how much I want to live off of when I'm older and retired. I'd want to die in my house with a nurse taking care of me, that's for sure. I'd also love a yacht and a big-ass house. And honestly, at my young age I don't see myself interested in ever fully retiring.
Dave Ramsey is a decent one size fits all solution and he's obviously very successful at getting people's finances on track, but I think there are better, more personalized ways of doing it than following his baby steps. My financial coach training was actually through Dave Ramsey, but I'm not fully on board with everything they teach.
It's really hard to figure those types of things out, especially when you're young. Just don't fall into the trap of not investing because you can't ever see yourself fully retiring. A large percentage of people don't choose to retire, but are forced into it based on health or their company letting them go sooner than they're ready. This is why I say I'm saving for financial independence rather than for retirement. If I reach FI at 58 (my current goal), but choose to work until 70, that's great. Reaching FI gives you the ability to do what you want to do with your time without having to worry about the paycheck that comes with it. That sounds incredibly freeing to me personally.
Great statement. I’d never really thought about it in these explicit terms, but this is my exact mindset (and ironically, goal/timeframe). :tup
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For sure. I've heard 15% gross should go to investing from Dave Ramsey, although his stuff is simplified for personal finance newbies. I suppose truth is that I have no idea how much I want to live off of when I'm older and retired. I'd want to die in my house with a nurse taking care of me, that's for sure. I'd also love a yacht and a big-ass house. And honestly, at my young age I don't see myself interested in ever fully retiring.
Dave Ramsey is a decent one size fits all solution and he's obviously very successful at getting people's finances on track, but I think there are better, more personalized ways of doing it than following his baby steps. My financial coach training was actually through Dave Ramsey, but I'm not fully on board with everything they teach.
It's really hard to figure those types of things out, especially when you're young. Just don't fall into the trap of not investing because you can't ever see yourself fully retiring. A large percentage of people don't choose to retire, but are forced into it based on health or their company letting them go sooner than they're ready. This is why I say I'm saving for financial independence rather than for retirement. If I reach FI at 58 (my current goal), but choose to work until 70, that's great. Reaching FI gives you the ability to do what you want to do with your time without having to worry about the paycheck that comes with it. That sounds incredibly freeing to me personally.
Great statement. I’d never really thought about it in these explicit terms, but this is my exact mindset (and ironically, goal/timeframe). :tup
Guys, teach me! Please I would love to do something like this (maybe at at lower level) but still.
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Does anybody recommend a stock alert service or use one? Any thoughts on the Motley Fool one?
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I saw my sister's husband for the first time this year when I went to FL to see my family and he really helped me with my investment strategy. Fixed my 401k for more aggressive and cheaper investments while still being diverse. Also, set up a high yield savings for my cash I have just sitting around. Sounds basic, but I totally didn't realize there were free websites with 0.5 and no minimums. Also, finally got my federal tax return today and paid off my car which leaves my mortgage as the only debt. Then I took the rest of the tax return and invested into VT (vanguard total world stock ETF). That was actually something I had started doing with some extra cash every month already. Feeling good about going into 2021 financially.
Now I'm wondering if I should put more into bitcoin... I think it's just a matter of when really. My small "gift" investment from my brother has tripled in one year.
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I'm very surprised high yield online savings accounts aren't more widely known. I've had one for over 15 years. As recently as 2019 I was making 2.5%. Rates have dropped a ton obviously and are around 0.5% now, but that's still way better than 0.01% that many brick and mortar banks give.
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How many people are messing with bit coin and is it legit?
I know I'm way late to the party, but its got my attention now with everything going on. How do you even start? Just go online and buy it?
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I have bitcoin and a few other crypto's on coinbase.com, there are other outlets where you can buy from like robin hood. Buying it is simple, create an account at coinbase, verify your identity and buy some bitcoin (or other cryptos)
It's a legit currency that can be used a few locations but a lot of people use it as an ultra-high risk investment vehicle. My buddy who works as a data scientist at coinbase told me a lot of younger people are flocking to it as olders folks like to flock to gold.
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I view bitcoin similarly to how some view gold. It's a hedge against complete economic collapse or hyperinflation, but really shouldn't be viewed as a normal investment since it's so volatile. I personally don't own any, but have thought about it.
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How many people are messing with bit coin and is it legit?
I know I'm way late to the party, but its got my attention now with everything going on. How do you even start? Just go online and buy it?
Reap said what to do, but I'd recommend Robinhood over coinbase because robinhood is free. Coinbase is good if you are interested in other cryptocurrencies, but if you just want bitcoin, stick wtih robinhood IMO.
My brother gave me $100 in bitcoin last christmas as a gift, said hold it and it'll be the most expensive gift you've ever gotten :lol Well, I put in anohter $100 that same time to get the $10 start up bonus. So $210 in bitcoin last Christmas and it's sitting around 1150 now so almost made $1k from that gift.
Also, I wouldn't spend bitcoin. If you want to get in, hold it. The value is going to go way up IMO over time and spending it would be like overpaying significantly for whatever you are purchasing.
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Good points guys. Thanks
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I just looked at bitcoin. It's not something I've ever followed. I knew it was going crazy lately but I didn't realize it was going that crazy!
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Yea it's pretty nuts. There was a fantastic story I read yesterday about a guy who had a little over 7000 bitcoin and he can't access it because he forgot his password.
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/12/technology/bitcoin-passwords-wallets-fortunes.html
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I just looked at bitcoin. It's not something I've ever followed. I knew it was going crazy lately but I didn't realize it was going that crazy!
It's really wild, and I really don't totally understand it, or more importantly, why people are valuing it so much, but so far it seems to have some staying power. I'm thinking on the next dip to throw another couple hundred in just to see, but I'm not risky enough to throw any serious amount of money into it for the fact that I don't understand it all.
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When Bitcoin was $135 a coin, I was given the opportunity to go halves on a $10k purchase of them. Not doing it is one of my biggest regrets in life. I instead put a lot of that money into cannabis stocks *barfs*.
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When Bitcoin was $135 a coin, I was given the opportunity to go halves on a $10k purchase of them. Not doing it is one of my biggest regrets in life. I instead put a lot of that money into cannabis stocks *barfs*.
damn, but those types of regrets are normal if you play the investing game. So many "what ifs". My CGC burned me bad, but I held it and it's been doing really well lately.
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I'm thinking on the next dip to throw another couple hundred in just to see,...
Next dip? Looking at its history, dips have been few and far between.
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I'm thinking on the next dip to throw another couple hundred in just to see,...
Next dip? Looking at its history, dips have been few and far between.
Really? Over the last couple years maybe, but it's been volatile as hell over the last decade or so.
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I'm thinking on the next dip to throw another couple hundred in just to see,...
Next dip? Looking at its history, dips have been few and far between.
It had a 25% drop just last week and today regained itself. It's pretty wild. I'm not against putting some money into it because of the potential, but could never throw a lot into it. Also, I think there's definitely criminal activity associated with it, as in dark web currency.
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Next dip? Looking at its history, dips have been few and far between.
Really? Over the last couple years maybe, but it's been volatile as hell over the last decade or so.
Ha, you are right, I had the chart set at 1Yr without noticing. That peak in Dec 17 is pretty unique, as it took about 3 years to come out of it.
I evaluate my portfolio this time of year, and I will definitely be keeping my eyes on this.
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When Bitcoin was $135 a coin, I was given the opportunity to go halves on a $10k purchase of them. Not doing it is one of my biggest regrets in life. I instead put a lot of that money into cannabis stocks *barfs*.
I have so many of those regrets :lol, I had multiple chances to buy bitcoin when it was pennies for a coin and I thought "Why would I throw a few hundred away?"
My other big regret is I held a lot of puts on SPY right at the start of the pandemic when spy was at 330ish, the position went against me and I was very quickly in the red $1000 so I chickened out and closed all those positions, had I kept them to expiry it would've been close to $100k in profits.
I'm thinking on the next dip to throw another couple hundred in just to see,...
Next dip? Looking at its history, dips have been few and far between.
It had a 25% drop just last week and today regained itself. It's pretty wild. I'm not against putting some money into it because of the potential, but could never throw a lot into it. Also, I think there's definitely criminal activity associated with it, as in dark web currency.
This was a big reason I wasn't that interested in Bitcoin because it was used for a lot of dark web transactions and I kept wondering how would it gain a foothold as a transactional daily currency.
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Do you guys have a goal in mind for Roth vs traditional assets? I was always gunning to get to a 50/50 mix after using only traditional 401k for the first 13 years of my career. Well... I'm getting close to 50/50 at this point and I'm not sure if I should shift my contributions to maintain a 50/50 mix or if I should keep plugging away at Roth.
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Do you guys have a goal in mind for Roth vs traditional assets? I was always gunning to get to a 50/50 mix after using only traditional 401k for the first 13 years of my career. Well... I'm getting close to 50/50 at this point and I'm not sure if I should shift my contributions to maintain a 50/50 mix or if I should keep plugging away at Roth.
Rule of thumb is:
-401k up to the max employer contribution
-Roth or IRA (6k per year)
-Health Savings Account (if you are eligible; $3600 for individuals; $7200 for family)
-Max 401k ($19.5k per year). Just be careful if employer matches per paycheck. If you max it out early, you won't get the employer contribution.
After that, go for taxable brokerage account. Now you can do 50/50 with 401k and Taxable brokerage. With the taxable account, you can withdraw your money at any time. I'm currently doing 50/50 with employer 401k and taxable since I already maxed out my Roth contribution for the year.
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Yeah, I have my own similar priorities, but that doesn't answer my question. Do I stick with Roth or traditional for the 401k and IRA? I'm inclined to just stick with Roth for both given my current tax bracket and the fact that taxes have to go up someday to pay all the insane debt our government is taking on. But I like having around a 50/50 mix overall with all my investments combined. But that's not really based on anything mathematical, just a nice feeling.
I should clarify that it's 50/50 Roth versus traditional in all.of my investments, not in my current contributions.
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Yeah, I have my own similar priorities, but that doesn't answer my question. Do I stick with Roth or traditional for the 401k and IRA? I'm inclined to just stick with Roth for both given my current tax bracket and the fact that taxes have to go up someday to pay all the insane debt our government is taking on. But I like having around a 50/50 mix overall with all my investments combined. But that's not really based on anything mathematical, just a nice feeling.
I should clarify that it's 50/50 Roth versus traditional in all.of my investments, not in my current contributions.
Ok, my bad. So your 401k has both Roth and traditional. Well, I would go 50/50. With the traditional, you lower your taxable income. With Roth, you don't get that benefit but you don't get taxed during withdrawal. With your IRA, you can go Roth all the way. The beauty of the Roth IRA (the one outside your employer) is that you can use it as an emergency fund. You can withdraw your contributions (not earnings!) without being taxed. That's why outside your 401k, I would go Roth. I'm on the same boat as you: taxes have to eventually go up (matter of when, not if they go up).
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But I like having around a 50/50 mix overall with all my investments combined. But that's not really based on anything mathematical, just a nice feeling.
I've checked out some online calculators that are supposed to tell you which is best suited for your circumstances, but it is difficult to make the necessary assumptions about where you'll be financially in 20-30+ years. My split is about 60/40, the 40% being traditional that was rolled over from my longest employment, and the 60% being everything I've set aside since. I was going to convert the traditional but the calculations I ran showed I could actually lose money in the long haul.
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But I like having around a 50/50 mix overall with all my investments combined. But that's not really based on anything mathematical, just a nice feeling.
I've checked out some online calculators that are supposed to tell you which is best suited for your circumstances, but it is difficult to make the necessary assumptions about where you'll be financially in 20-30+ years. My split is about 60/40, the 40% being traditional that was rolled over from my longest employment, and the 60% being everything I've set aside since. I was going to convert the traditional but the calculations I ran showed I could actually lose money in the long haul.
My financial advisor gives us access to software that can do all these types of simulations to figure out the best path, but it's complicated as hell to figure out how to use. I should just ask him to do it for me. It just uses current tax rates and already scheduled changes like the rollback of the Trump tax cuts though. I mean, taxes have to go up some day, right? Neither party seems interested in stopping the spending.
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WTF is going on with Gamestop :lol
Now AMC?
Is reddit manipulating the market? I'm so clueless as to what's going on.
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WTF is going on with Gamestop :lol
Now AMC?
Is reddit manipulating the market? I'm so clueless as to what's going on.
Yes, that reddit crowd is basically manipulating the market. Kind of bizarre what's going on.
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WTF is going on with Gamestop :lol
Now AMC?
Is reddit manipulating the market? I'm so clueless as to what's going on.
Yup, they all said "Fuck You Hedgefund Billionares" and began to buy.
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WTF is going on with Gamestop :lol
Now AMC?
Is reddit manipulating the market? I'm so clueless as to what's going on.
Yes, that reddit crowd is basically manipulating the market. Kind of bizarre what's going on.
Is that manipulating? How about the CNBC who told Melvin sold his position, but obviously not true, isn't that manipulating the market too?
Elon Musk and some other big fishes also tweeted about GME, are they also manipulating the market, I seriously don't understand.
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Manipulating might not be the right word, but it doesn't seem the intention is normal here. I really don't know. I watched a youtube video this morning and it seems more aligned with:
they all said "Fuck You Hedgefund Billionares" and began to buy.
than a legit investment strategy. But like I said, I don't understand this and it certainly seems like some people are significantly profit (reddit people) while others significantly lose (hedge fund billionaires)
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Manipulating might not be the right word, but it doesn't seem the intention is normal here. I really don't know. I watched a youtube video this morning and it seems more aligned with:
they all said "Fuck You Hedgefund Billionares" and began to buy.
than a legit investment strategy. But like I said, I don't understand this and it certainly seems like some people are significantly profit (reddit people) while others significantly lose (hedge fund billionaires)
Chammat's on CNBC now: https://www.livenewsnow.com/american/cnbc-america.html
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Manipulating might not be the right word, but it doesn't seem the intention is normal here. I really don't know. I watched a youtube video this morning and it seems more aligned with:
they all said "Fuck You Hedgefund Billionares" and began to buy.
than a legit investment strategy. But like I said, I don't understand this and it certainly seems like some people are significantly profit (reddit people) while others significantly lose (hedge fund billionaires)
Chammat's on CNBC now: https://www.livenewsnow.com/american/cnbc-america.html
Thanks for sharing, listening now. No idea who Chamath is, but he was referenced in the youtube video I watched. Also, the pic they are using of him... he looks high as a kite :lol
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Manipulating might not be the right word, but it doesn't seem the intention is normal here. I really don't know. I watched a youtube video this morning and it seems more aligned with:
they all said "Fuck You Hedgefund Billionares" and began to buy.
than a legit investment strategy. But like I said, I don't understand this and it certainly seems like some people are significantly profit (reddit people) while others significantly lose (hedge fund billionaires)
Chammat's on CNBC now: https://www.livenewsnow.com/american/cnbc-america.html
Thanks for sharing, listening now. No idea who Chamath is, but he was referenced in the youtube video I watched. Also, the pic they are using of him... he looks high as a kite :lol
CEO @SocialCapital
Chairman @VirginGalactic
Owner @Warriors
Bestie @theallinpod
All those @ are Twitter accounts of his companies
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Manipulating might not be the right word, but it doesn't seem the intention is normal here. I really don't know. I watched a youtube video this morning and it seems more aligned with:
they all said "Fuck You Hedgefund Billionares" and began to buy.
than a legit investment strategy. But like I said, I don't understand this and it certainly seems like some people are significantly profit (reddit people) while others significantly lose (hedge fund billionaires)
I see it as all those people, grouping together, and using that platform to play the game.
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Manipulating might not be the right word, but it doesn't seem the intention is normal here. I really don't know. I watched a youtube video this morning and it seems more aligned with:
they all said "Fuck You Hedgefund Billionares" and began to buy.
than a legit investment strategy. But like I said, I don't understand this and it certainly seems like some people are significantly profit (reddit people) while others significantly lose (hedge fund billionaires)
Chammat's on CNBC now: https://www.livenewsnow.com/american/cnbc-america.html
Thanks for sharing, listening now. No idea who Chamath is, but he was referenced in the youtube video I watched. Also, the pic they are using of him... he looks high as a kite :lol
:corn :corn :corn :corn
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FYI, I know some of how the Stock Market works. We had to do a Stock Market Game, for 8th grade as a requirement for some stupid program called ROPES. :lol
I really wished this would have happened back then, I wonder how my teacher would've tried explaining this to us. I don't think she would be able to. :lol
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Manipulating might not be the right word, but it doesn't seem the intention is normal here. I really don't know. I watched a youtube video this morning and it seems more aligned with:
they all said "Fuck You Hedgefund Billionares" and began to buy.
than a legit investment strategy. But like I said, I don't understand this and it certainly seems like some people are significantly profit (reddit people) while others significantly lose (hedge fund billionaires)
Chammat's on CNBC now: https://www.livenewsnow.com/american/cnbc-america.html
Thanks for sharing, listening now. No idea who Chamath is, but he was referenced in the youtube video I watched. Also, the pic they are using of him... he looks high as a kite :lol
I think I recognized that name. I think I saw him in a World Series of Poker episode back in 2011. My impression was that he was one of those rich guys in the Bay Area in California that plays with Phil Hellmuth in private games.
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This GME nonsense is exactly why I keep everything in low cost index funds :lol
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Nice read: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbes-personal-shopper/2021/01/26/best-xbox-series-x-s-accessories/
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Yeah, manipulating may be too strong a word, but it's the same basic idea.
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It's crazy ridiculous what's happening now with GME and some other names. This phenomenon will definitely come under some scrutiny by the SEC etc. By the way I bought GME at $19. Took some off the table, but still holding about half my position.
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It's crazy ridiculous what's happening now with GME and some other names. This phenomenon will definitely come under some scrutiny by the SEC etc. By the way I bought GME at $19. Took some off the table, but still holding about half my position.
Lucky you. It'll be interesting what the SEC can do here. But all these sites not allowing you to trade seems like an SEC rules violation as well. This is wild. I'm almost tempted to buy now based on reading the subreddit, but I don't know. Maybe I'll get in on the next ones... EXPR, AMC, BBBY have been talked about.
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As someone who has no investment in the stock market, I find these shenanigans hilarious. Plus its always interesting to see something happen which causes wall street of all people to cry for regulation.
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A buddy of mine said he made a quick $75 today thanks to reddit.
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So this thing's well above my pay grade, but I'm curious about something. Does Gamestop itself actually have any cards to play in this? Is there someway this can be leveraged? Are they just passive observers? What would happen if they decided today would be a good day to file for bankruptcy?
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At this point, Gamestop as a company could take advantage of the high price valuation by issuing more stock in a public offering, but that in itself would likely drive the price of the stock down because it would dilute the number of shares outstanding.
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It's crazy ridiculous what's happening now with GME and some other names. This phenomenon will definitely come under some scrutiny by the SEC etc. By the way I bought GME at $19. Took some off the table, but still holding about half my position.
Lucky you. It'll be interesting what the SEC can do here. But all these sites not allowing you to trade seems like an SEC rules violation as well. This is wild. I'm almost tempted to buy now based on reading the subreddit, but I don't know. Maybe I'll get in on the next ones... EXPR, AMC, BBBY have been talked about.
I got in on the GME train pretty early luckily. WSB is really quite a phenomenon (that's currently set to private). I was able to clear out a bunch of money using their tips from last year when I first discovered it.
Some other good tickers out right now are PLTR (they had a live demo yesterday that was good), NOK (bought some leaps here that are already up 40%), BBBY, and AMC. Tesla was the biggest pump of last year for WSB but u/deepfuckingvalue started posting about GME back in july which slowly snowballed into what we have here.
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A buddy of mine said he made a quick $75 today thanks to reddit.
My buddy got into it yesterday and bought the furthest possible OTM call on GME for 1/29 and was able to flip 213 into about 1900 in a mattter of hours. It's truly insane.
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Today is literally the first day I have ever intentionally looked at something on Reddit.
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It's crazy ridiculous what's happening now with GME and some other names. This phenomenon will definitely come under some scrutiny by the SEC etc. By the way I bought GME at $19. Took some off the table, but still holding about half my position.
Lucky you. It'll be interesting what the SEC can do here. But all these sites not allowing you to trade seems like an SEC rules violation as well. This is wild. I'm almost tempted to buy now based on reading the subreddit, but I don't know. Maybe I'll get in on the next ones... EXPR, AMC, BBBY have been talked about.
Yep. I actually joined the Wall Street Bets Reddit several months ago, where I got the down-low on GME. Granted there is a LOT of juvenile crap to wade through on that site before getting to the real nitty gritty. And you still have to do your own DD (due diligence) and verify news, info and research from other legit sources.
The funny thing is that up until last year, I worked for a Wall Street bank (laid off after 33 years there), specifically in a division that bankrolls hedge funds and helps them locate borrows on their shorts positions. So now I get to work the other side of the spectrum.
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(https://i.ibb.co/mFc7k50/gme.png)
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It's crazy ridiculous what's happening now with GME and some other names. This phenomenon will definitely come under some scrutiny by the SEC etc. By the way I bought GME at $19. Took some off the table, but still holding about half my position.
Lucky you. It'll be interesting what the SEC can do here. But all these sites not allowing you to trade seems like an SEC rules violation as well. This is wild. I'm almost tempted to buy now based on reading the subreddit, but I don't know. Maybe I'll get in on the next ones... EXPR, AMC, BBBY have been talked about.
Yep. I actually joined the Wall Street Bets Reddit several months ago, where I got the down-low on GME. Granted there is a LOT of juvenile crap to wade through on that site before getting to the real nitty gritty. And you still have to do your own DD (due diligence) and verify news, info and research from other legit sources.
The funny thing is that up until last year, I worked for a Wall Street bank (laid off after 33 years there), specifically in a division that bankrolls hedge funds and helps them locate borrows on their shorts positions. So now I get to work the other side of the spectrum.
Oh nice! I currently work at an investment bank so it's always been tough getting into some of the WSB trades because of the many hoops I have to jump before I can buy and options/stocks. Have you gotten in on any of the other stocks WSB has been pumping? PLTR is doing pretty well post demo although I'm not sure how earnings will play out, NOK has been alright too.
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Mark Cuban has chimed in as well on the GME debate
https://twitter.com/SquawkCNBC
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It's crazy ridiculous what's happening now with GME and some other names. This phenomenon will definitely come under some scrutiny by the SEC etc. By the way I bought GME at $19. Took some off the table, but still holding about half my position.
Lucky you. It'll be interesting what the SEC can do here. But all these sites not allowing you to trade seems like an SEC rules violation as well. This is wild. I'm almost tempted to buy now based on reading the subreddit, but I don't know. Maybe I'll get in on the next ones... EXPR, AMC, BBBY have been talked about.
Yep. I actually joined the Wall Street Bets Reddit several months ago, where I got the down-low on GME. Granted there is a LOT of juvenile crap to wade through on that site before getting to the real nitty gritty. And you still have to do your own DD (due diligence) and verify news, info and research from other legit sources.
The funny thing is that up until last year, I worked for a Wall Street bank (laid off after 33 years there), specifically in a division that bankrolls hedge funds and helps them locate borrows on their shorts positions. So now I get to work the other side of the spectrum.
Oh nice! I currently work at an investment bank so it's always been tough getting into some of the WSB trades because of the many hoops I have to jump before I can buy and options/stocks. Have you gotten in on any of the other stocks WSB has been pumping? PLTR is doing pretty well post demo although I'm not sure how earnings will play out, NOK has been alright too.
Yes, while i was working at the bank there were a ton of trading restrictions that handcuffed me. As soon as i left, i felt free to invest as i pleased.
As far as the names that got a lot of mention at the wsb subreddit, besides GME, i also got BB and PLTR.
The thing that troubles me about NOK is that the company announced that they have no idea why their stock price has jumped. There’s simply no news to justify the movement.
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Looks like the Robinhood app has locked out the little guy, which seems like corporate suicide.
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Yup my thoughts as well, especially with their IPO coming up shortly.
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Yea Robinhood is looking really shady right now, this is quite fascinating
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If it isn't illegal, it should be.
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If it isn't illegal, it should be.
I love how my big banker friend is defending the brokers from removing these stocks, "saving you from hurting yourself" yeah OK isn't this a free market? There's big money involved here and they are making decisions to protect themselves. It's fairly clear to me and I'm not expert here. I think this is very shady and maybe illegal but I'm not knowledgable to make that call. It just seems wrong though.
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Soooo, apparently robinhood is now selling of GME shares without users' permission?
https://twitter.com/ArkhonDH/status/1354834763245359111
I'm no expert, but that seems....off?
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I don't think I've ever seen bipartisan support like this for anything :lol https://twitter.com/tedcruz/status/1354833603943931905
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I don't think I've ever seen bipartisan support like this for anything :lol https://twitter.com/tedcruz/status/1354833603943931905
This is truly amazing to see
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I don't think I've ever seen bipartisan support like this for anything :lol https://twitter.com/tedcruz/status/1354833603943931905
This is truly amazing to see
Welp...
(https://i.redd.it/tpw5ek5l15e61.jpg)
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That lasted long.
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AOC on Twitch live now https://www.twitch.tv/aoc
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Reddit hurts my eyes.... is there talk of other/new stocks they are targeting (assuming this gets back on track?)
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https://mobile.reuters.com/
See this article for other stock names that are targets. The cat’s out of the bag.
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So I use Robinhood and I'm now searching for another way to manage my small amount of stocks. Any recommendations?
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So I use Robinhood and I'm now searching for another way to manage my small amount of stocks. Any recommendations?
There's Webull and M1Finance. Don't know if Schwab got into the fractional shares thing. For day trading, not sure if M1Finance works. For the long run, it does.
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So I use Robinhood and I'm now searching for another way to manage my small amount of stocks. Any recommendations?
I have no qualms with Fidelity. I manage one of my 401K accounts through them, as well as my day trades.
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I'm a fan of TD Ameritrade, their web application is great (the one at trade.thinkorswim.com, not their main page)
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Reddit hurts my eyes.... is there talk of other/new stocks they are targeting (assuming this gets back on track?)
Elon Musk seems to be pushing dogecoin, no idea why. It's a digital currency so it's not the same as these short squeezes.
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Reddit hurts my eyes.... is there talk of other/new stocks they are targeting (assuming this gets back on track?)
Elon Musk seems to be pushing dogecoin, no idea why. It's a digital currency so it's not the same as these short squeezes.
He probably has a lot of shares in it, and is trying to get people to bring it up.
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I'm throwing $500 at DOGE. I don't care at this point after seeing some of the stuff that's happened the last few days. I can't get it anywhere though. I wanted to go through Robinhood, but they halted crypto as I was placing my order. I'm trying to get some through Voyager, but I think their systems are overloaded right now. I'm getting a weird authentication error.
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I'm throwing $500 at DOGE. I don't care at this point after seeing some of the stuff that's happened the last few days. I can't get it anywhere though. I wanted to go through Robinhood, but they halted crypto as I was placing my order. I'm trying to get some through Voyager, but I think their systems are overloaded right now. I'm getting a weird authentication error.
Weird, I was able to buy some Doge 10 right after I made that post :lol Only $40 though because I had some cash sitting in my robinhood account not used. Just something to play around with, because I don't trust this coin at all. Maybe it has to do with how much you are buying? LIke I think robinhood is really cutting down on what you can do right now.
I may move to etrade or fidelity. Sucks because I like the robinhood app, but I don't want to support their shady business.
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I'm throwing $500 at DOGE. I don't care at this point after seeing some of the stuff that's happened the last few days. I can't get it anywhere though. I wanted to go through Robinhood, but they halted crypto as I was placing my order. I'm trying to get some through Voyager, but I think their systems are overloaded right now. I'm getting a weird authentication error.
Weird, I was able to buy some Doge 10 right after I made that post :lol Only $40 though because I had some cash sitting in my robinhood account not used. Just something to play around with, because I don't trust this coin at all. Maybe it has to do with how much you are buying? LIke I think robinhood is really cutting down on what you can do right now.
I may move to etrade or fidelity. Sucks because I like the robinhood app, but I don't want to support their shady business.
Fidelity doesn't trade Crypto.
I just got this email from Voyager:
"Dear Brian,
We apologize for the inconvenience, our app is experiencing intermittent outages due to unprecedented growth. All funds are safe. We’ve been seeing 100 new accounts a minute, and are increasing our capacity. We are working as fast as we can to respond to all support inquiries. We appreciate everyone’s patience and loyalty to Voyager."
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Just got a message from Robinhood saying that any cash from recent deposits or sales of current stock require 72 hours before being allowed to be used to buy crypto. That feels pretty bullshitty. The money is in my Robinhood account, not in my bank account, I should be free to do with it as I please on the site.
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Facebook is now shutting down groups with 100K+ members that revolve around this kind of trading.
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Doesn't take long for Zuck to comply :lol
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Has anyone tried MooMoo? Looks similar to Robinhood. I wouldn't want to do TDAmeritrade since they did some of the same stuff Robinhood did I thought? I haven't checked out WebBull yet. Fidelity I think is a bit more structured than I'm looking for and M1 looked like it was more about lending?
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So with TD I haven't had any issues executing orders, there wasn't a stoppage as far as I'm aware. However there was a brief 10 minute outage a few days ago.
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I'm throwing $500 at DOGE. I don't care at this point after seeing some of the stuff that's happened the last few days. I can't get it anywhere though. I wanted to go through Robinhood, but they halted crypto as I was placing my order. I'm trying to get some through Voyager, but I think their systems are overloaded right now. I'm getting a weird authentication error.
I got $50 at uphold
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GME still holding at around $300.
It’s become a game of chicken. Who will blink first? The hedge funds or an unruly gang of chat room retail traders. It’s not even about investing anymore, evolving into some sort of twisted social movement/statement/morality play. In some ways, this reminds me of the attacks on the capitol from just a few weeks ago. Insanity has taken hold.
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I was going to sign up at Robinhood to explore crypto trading, but now having second thoughts. I use Schwab for all my other stuff, who doesn't trade crypto.
I'm throwing $500 at DOGE. I don't care at this point after seeing some of the stuff that's happened the last few days. I can't get it anywhere though. I wanted to go through Robinhood, but they halted crypto as I was placing my order. I'm trying to get some through Voyager, but I think their systems are overloaded right now. I'm getting a weird authentication error.
I got $50 at uphold
Dang... Doge, Uphold... I got some research to do!
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There are cryptos available to buy/sell right in the Paypal app. Bitcoin and Etherium, but I don’t see Doge.
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Holy sh*t!
GameStop short-seller Melvin Capital lost 53% this month after the Reddit-fueled frenzy sent shares soaring
https://www.businessinsider.com/melvin-capital-lost-53-percent-january-after-gamestop-shares-skyrocketed-2021-1
And the GMW saga it's no over yet!
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Well, that was fun. Back to reality?
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I don't think it's over yet. GME is going to run again.
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Well, that was fun. Back to reality?
I wouldnt be surprised if the reddit gang just finds more stocks to do similar too. While GME might be back down (although still significantly higher than it's actual worth) there's got to be more stocks that can be squeezed I'd imagine.
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I don't think it's over yet. GME is going to run again.
Me neither, and as I have read, the apes on WSB are not selling, they are buying the dips.
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Not sure where else to put this story, but here goes...
Since early December, the elevator in my nine-story building broke down. Maintenance has done nothing to fix the situation. Sometime in January, the property manager (let's call him Clay, because that's his real name) offered us a compensation contract: $45 per diem since the day the elevator broke until the day it is fixed on the condition that we don't sue them. That is actually enough to cover for our entire rent, so my apt mate and I agreed. However, just yesterday, after nearly two months since the we signed the original contract, our compensation credits were supposed to be applied to our online account, but instead we get an email from the "senior property manager" (let's call her Jo, because that's her real name), saying that Clay sent out an invalid contract for reasons X, Y, Z, and instead we are going to be sent a new compensation contract for $1.50 per diem instead of $45.
Every tenant in the building is utterly pissed. We are talking about collectively withholding our rent payments and keeping our own ledger of what they owe us. We are talking about throwing graffiti up all over the building, flying "Brothel" banners out of every window, pulling the fire alarm every day, etc.., until we get what we want. We're talking about getting the local news station down here. It's nice to be a part of something, but obviously I wish they'd just give us what we want.
Anyway, this is going to end up costing me $2000+ dollars. Or not; I can't decide whether I'm going to cave and give them rent, as I don't want to get evicted. But **** them.
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Definitely wrong thread
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$GME seems to be at it again!
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Yea I didn't get in this time but my brother and his friends got a great entry, I'm interested to see what they clear over the next few days.
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I rolled the dice on my company stock last March, Marathon Petroleum. Usually the stock fluctuates between $40-$70 a share. In March it plummeted to as low as $16. I bought about $80K worth at $19 a share. Today it closed at $56.65. In less than a year I'm up $210K and climbing. It's still moving upwards and I'm watching it very closely! I feel confident in saying it is the only positive for me to come out of this pandemic.
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WSB is targeting $800p/s
https://old.reddit.com/r/wallstreetbets/comments/ls0wmd/if_gamestop_hits_800_before_226_we_will_trigger/
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I rolled the dice on my company stock last March, Marathon Petroleum. Usually the stock fluctuates between $40-$70 a share. In March it plummeted to as low as $16. I bought about $80K worth at $19 a share. Today it closed at $56.65. In less than a year I'm up $210K and climbing. It's still moving upwards and I'm watching it very closely! I feel confident in saying it is the only positive for me to come out of this pandemic.
NICE!!!! Idiot me did the opposite, and bailed on some of my shares in March when I was convinced the markets were gonna go even further than they did. I didn't sell at the lowest, but pretty close to it. :facepalm:
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NICE!!!! Idiot me did the opposite, and bailed on some of my shares in March when I was convinced the markets were gonna go even further than they did. I didn't sell at the lowest, but pretty close to it. :facepalm:
I'm sure you weren't alone in making a move like that. Hell, back in 2000 my dad who is very savvy did the same thing.
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I rolled the dice on my company stock last March, Marathon Petroleum. Usually the stock fluctuates between $40-$70 a share. In March it plummeted to as low as $16. I bought about $80K worth at $19 a share. Today it closed at $56.65. In less than a year I'm up $210K and climbing. It's still moving upwards and I'm watching it very closely! I feel confident in saying it is the only positive for me to come out of this pandemic.
Hell yea :metal
WSB is targeting $800p/s
https://old.reddit.com/r/wallstreetbets/comments/ls0wmd/if_gamestop_hits_800_before_226_we_will_trigger/
I'm still very skeptical of touching anything GME.
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GME just cleared $300/share this morning.
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GME just cleared $300/share this morning.
I think it's amazing that this is still a thing :lol
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I bought on the dip and it's fascinating to watch it climb back. With some of the recent announcements about the company, this feels like it's going to be a bit more sustained rise than last time.
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I bought on the dip and it's fascinating to watch it climb back. With some of the recent announcements about the company, this feels like it's going to be a bit more sustained rise than last time.
What I don't understand is how even with changes for the company, how it could be valued this high. I mean, I know it's still kind of a game with these traders, but as someone on the sideline, I still don't see how I could put money into it.
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Yeah Cramx, it is clearly a speculative play. Don't invest any money in something so highly speculative that you cant be ok with losing all of it.
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Crazy! When GME peaked I read there were others they were targeting too* that have yet to pop.
*I may or may not have sunk some cash in to these stocks
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Crazy! When GME peaked I read there were others they were targeting too* that have yet to pop.
*I may or may not have sunk some cash in to these stocks
TBH, I was going to as well but that was when robinhood shut it all down. They may have, in the end, actually protected me from myself which is what they were stating all along. In the end, maybe Robinhood wasn't so wrong.
I received a small bonus last week and put almost all of it into a few ETFs, and put a small amount into bitcoin. I actually wanted to put more into bitcoin but by the time the money got approved into robinhood, bitcoin was already going back up so I put a small amount in to hold and so far its looking like maybe I should have put more into it.
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My daughter loves to play Roblox. It has been a great way to play and connect with some friends without being able to see them during Covid. They just went public (RBLX) so I bought her a share for her birthday.
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I seem to be noticing a massive increase in radio commercials touting the benefits of investing in gold. Anyone here have any gold in their portfolio?
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I seem to be noticing a massive increase in radio commercials touting the benefits of investing in gold. Anyone here have any gold in their portfolio?
Nope. I've debated over the years, but I've never seen any compelling arguments that I should. In general, the more you hear something advertised, the less likely it is that it's a good investment.
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I seem to be noticing a massive increase in radio commercials touting the benefits of investing in gold. Anyone here have any gold in their portfolio?
While I don't personally hold any gold I'm not surprised that it's on the news. When the market turns downward people will flock to presumably safer investments like gold.
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I seem to be noticing a massive increase in radio commercials touting the benefits of investing in gold. Anyone here have any gold in their portfolio?
While I don't personally hold any gold I'm not surprised that it's on the news. When the market turns downward people will flock to presumably safer investments like gold.
I saw something in the news yesterday about Switzerland buying gold from Russia just recently too. I've heard about doing this in times when currencies aren't very stable. I don't know much about it though.
I seem to be noticing a massive increase in radio commercials touting the benefits of investing in gold. Anyone here have any gold in their portfolio?
Nope. I've debated over the years, but I've never seen any compelling arguments that I should. In general, the more you hear something advertised, the less likely it is that it's a good investment.
This just makes me thinking of my Dad buying coins from commercials as an investment :lol
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My dad bought some coins, probably from the same commercials haha but it became a hobby for him, not something to fortify his retirement.
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My dad bought some coins, probably from the same commercials haha but it became a hobby for him, not something to fortify his retirement.
My siblings rip on my Dad for many things including buying the coins, but it's just funny how he doubles down on it being an investment instead of just saying it's for fun or he enjoys collecting them.
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So I have a 403b with work. Does it make any sense to open a separate Roth IRA on the side or just invest through the 403b?
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So I have a 403b with work. Does it make any sense to open a separate Roth IRA on the side or just invest through the 403b?
I would do both. Is there a matching contribution your employer makes to the 403b? If yes, I would get the full match, then move on to a Roth IRA, then go back to the 403b with whatever you can afford until it gets maxed out too.
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Makes sense.
How about this. I just started and will admit I know nothing. I opened a Charles schwab account that defaulted to an individual brokerage account. I then opened a Roth IRA with them. So I now have two things to invest from.
(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/1a/dd/5c/1add5cdbdf2d4dfe835068373104fddf.jpg)
Does it even make sense to have both? And if so, when would you use either one?
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Makes sense.
How about this. I just started and will admit I know nothing. I opened a Charles schwab account that defaulted to an individual brokerage account. I then opened a Roth IRA with them. So I now have two things to invest from.
(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/1a/dd/5c/1add5cdbdf2d4dfe835068373104fddf.jpg)
Does it even make sense to have both? And if so, when would you use either one?
The individual brokerage account is a taxable account. I would max out tax advantaged accounts like the 403b and Roth IRA before adding anything to a taxable account, unless you have a specific plan for why you need to access the money before 59. That's the one advantage of a taxable account is that you can access the money whenever you want for whatever reason you want. But unless you're planning to exit the workforce early, or have some other large purchase on a time horizon that makes sense to have the money invested in the market instead of just in a savings account, I wouldn't contribute to the taxable account until you've got the tax advantaged accounts maxed out or you're putting at least 25% of your income into them.
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Inadvertent double post
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Excellent advice. Thank you
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Here goes a question about CD laddering
All these numbers are just imaginary, but Say for instance there are 3 cd's
1 month at 3%
3 month at 3.5%
6 month at 4%
I have 15k to invest
I put it all into the one month CD and then each month get a return and re-invest into a one month and just keep doing this.
Or
Put 5k into the 1 month, 3 month and 6 month
Which is better?
In example A, I see a return every month (which will really knock down monthly bills)
In example B, I see higher overall return but have to wait one month, 3 months and 6 months respectively. 6 months is a long time to wait for 1% extra of return (outside of dividends or other incentives)
If I wait 6 months for a higher return, that's 6 individual months where I am not seeing any return. I do understand that rates can go down and that's the reasoning behind laddering, but if you are always getting a monthly return that would counteract that right?
TLDR - why not just throw a ton of money into a one month CD every month and get a monthly return vs. waiting much longer periods of time for slightly higher returns
I am new to all this and I may be understanding this wrong, but Any guidance would be appreciated.
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Could it be a taxes and fees thing?
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If you need access to the money, then the shorter length makes more sense, if not, then the long term. But I'm also not sure how the taxes/fees work on CDs, but I'd imagine that also favors the long term.
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I'm not sure it's worth getting too fancy for 1% more, but if the extra $150 a year is meaningful for you then it might be worth it. I've typically seen a CD ladder structured to have you splitting your money 6 ways and buying a 6 month CD every month with 1/6th of your cash. It'll take 6 months to get there, but eventually you'll have a CD mature and pay out every month. Then you put that money back into another 6 month CD and rinse and repeat. Like this:
Month 1:
Buy 6 month CD for $2500
Buy 1 month CD for $12500
Month 2:
Buy 6 month CD for $2500
Buy 1 month CD for $10000
Hold 6 month CDs worth $2500
Month 3:
Buy 6 month CD for $2500
Buy 1 month CD for $7500
Hold 6 month CDs worth $5000
Skip a few...
Month 7:
Pocket $100 profit from maturing 6 month CD
Buy 6 month CD for $2500 from the matured CD
Hold 6 month CDs worth $12500
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Thanks for the info guys. It makes a lot more sense now
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So I'm starting, after a long time coming, to finally try to get into the investment game after some inspiration by reading some articles from Mr. Money Moustache. I'm thinking about invest a few thousand into some Vanguard Index Funds and try to get my feet wet there and see how the slow process works and go from there. I'm wondering if there are other newby things I can do in the investment front. I already got a 401k that I opened a few years back and won't touch the thing. I'm not worried about having the cash to pay my car loan and credit card bills in the next few years, so I'm just ready to want to learn more about the process and complex intricacies of investing.
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So I'm starting, after a long time coming, to finally try to get into the investment game after some inspiration by reading some articles from Mr. Money Moustache. I'm thinking about invest a few thousand into some Vanguard Index Funds and try to get my feet wet there and see how the slow process works and go from there. I'm wondering if there are other newby things I can do in the investment front. I already got a 401k that I opened a few years back and won't touch the thing. I'm not worried about having the cash to pay my car loan and credit card bills in the next few years, so I'm just ready to want to learn more about the process and complex intricacies of investing.
Regular purchases every week or month into a low cost index fund is the way to go. Never sell, just keep buying. Get your full employer match in your 401k if you have one, then max out your Roth IRA before putting anything more into your 401k.
If you do have credit card debt, you should be paying that off before investing.
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^all of that
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I have 529 accounts for college savings for each of my kids. I had the investments set in what is essentially a target date fund that gets more conservative as they get older. I mostly haven't looked at them much over the years, but I took a look the other day and noticed that my 13 year old's account had basically been flat over the last couple years. I looked at the fund he was in at it's uber conservative, like mostly in cash. I am so annoyed I didn't look at this more closely. I wasted so many years getting crap returns because of this dumb they're in. I moved everyone to the aggressive fund, which is still 20% in bonds, so not really even all that aggressive. I feel bad for my oldest two kids because they're going to have far less money for college than they would have if I had been more aggressive when they were younger. I'm really kicking myself for not paying more attention.
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I have 529 accounts for college savings for each of my kids. I had the investments set in what is essentially a target date fund that gets more conservative as they get older. I mostly haven't looked at them much over the years, but I took a look the other day and noticed that my 13 year old's account had basically been flat over the last couple years. I looked at the fund he was in at it's uber conservative, like mostly in cash. I am so annoyed I didn't look at this more closely. I wasted so many years getting crap returns because of this dumb they're in. I moved everyone to the aggressive fund, which is still 20% in bonds, so not really even all that aggressive. I feel bad for my oldest two kids because they're going to have far less money for college than they would have if I had been more aggressive when they were younger. I'm really kicking myself for not paying more attention.
Don't be too hard on yourself. You could have played it aggressively and ended up worse too.
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I do a thorough check of my IRAs and other investments this time every year, but haven't even glanced at my 529s in a long time. Thank you for the reminder!
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I do a thorough check of my IRAs and other investments this time every year, but haven't even glanced at my 529s in a long time. Thank you for the reminder!
I'm all over my other investments and am super intentional about everything. That's part of the reason I'm so annoyed with myself.about this. My oldest son's account is probably thousands of dollars lower than it could have been if I had just paid attention.
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So with these couple banks failing, anybody doing anything different with their money. Are you pulling it out of things, just leaving it as is?
How much worse do you think this will get?
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So with these couple banks failing, anybody doing anything different with their money. Are you pulling it out of things, just leaving it as is?
How much worse do you think this will get?
Had I not just puled out most of my savings to pay for a new HVAC system, I would be leaving my money where it is. As long as it's FDIC insured, you'll be fine.
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So with these couple banks failing, anybody doing anything different with their money. Are you pulling it out of things, just leaving it as is?
How much worse do you think this will get?
I work for a very large investment bank and I've actually fairly involved with the bank failure stuff from an intake side and truly I wouldn't worry. You're money is FDIC insured and if you have more than 250k I'd stay move your funds to one of the big four banks. I do see more scrutiny coming down the pike for banks as a result of this, maybe not as big as Dodd-Frank but significant.
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Bump.
Got some more time on my hands and seriously looking at investing a little bit of money and see what happens but man this stuff is confusing going in blind. Early on, seems finding a good platform to start with and putting a small amount to start with into an index fund is the way to go and feel things out. Although, I see index funds classed and EFT's but reading up it seems they are different things? Seems a lot of local sites I can only sign up through and EFT. I'm guessing they are near similar enough though.
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An ETF can be traded at any time like a stock, but typically only in full share increments (though some platforms to offer fractional shares). An index fund typically only trades at the end of the day and can usually be bought and sold in any amount (once you've met the minimum if there is one). You can get an S&P index fund of ETF, so they could hold the exact same companies, It's mostly a difference in how they're traded. There can be tax advantages to one versus the other depending on the type of account you're holding them in, but I'm less familiar with that.
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An ETF can be traded at any time like a stock, but typically only in full share increments (though some platforms to offer fractional shares). An index fund typically only trades at the end of the day and can usually be bought and sold in any amount (once you've met the minimum if there is one). You can get an S&P index fund of ETF, so they could hold the exact same companies, It's mostly a difference in how they're traded. There can be tax advantages to one versus the other depending on the type of account you're holding them in, but I'm less familiar with that.
Thanks mate. Seems doing my research here, EFT seems to be the common trend. I guess early on I'm not that fussed with when it's traded and all that since I'm looking at perhaps a dollar cost average strategy and hold it long term. Seems ETFs you can put in smaller amounts.
I think Ive found a good platform to start with and might start putting money in the ASX200 which is the Aussie equivalent of the S&P500 and maybe go from there. I'm a tightass and just want a way to get myself in there first then go from there.
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I'm just happy I can look at my investment accounts and not want to weep. The chart spanning the last 5 years looks like someone dropped an anvil on the second half of 2022.
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I'm just happy I can look at my investment accounts and not want to weep. The chart spanning the last 5 years looks like someone dropped an anvil on the second half of 2022.
Shits bound to turn around thought right?
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It's turn around nicely since the start of the year. It's nearly back up to it's peak, which was around this time 2021.
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It's turn around nicely since the start of the year. It's nearly back up to it's peak, which was around this time 2021.
Oh yeah sorry, I missed you said 2022.
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I don't understand the stock market (which is just why I just buy index funds and never sell). Weren't we supposed to have a recession this year? Wouldn't a significant majority of people say that things feel tight financially and that they're struggling more than they were pre-covid? Inflation is still higher than ideal. So of course the stock market is about to reach all-time highs. Makes total sense. :lol
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Yeah, this is why I work in finance and do nothing but low cost index funds :lol
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I'm just happy I can look at my investment accounts and not want to weep. The chart spanning the last 5 years looks like someone dropped an anvil on the second half of 2022.
Shits bound to turn around thought right?
I work at a large investment bank and their opinion, and communications to us is that a recession should hit next year. They've said that in the past too though so who really knows. I do know that they allocated $1b for severance packages next year so that's interesting...
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Im not sure I believe anyone who says "recession" or "boom" this shit comes and goes and a lot of times makes little sense to me.
I believe the market is at an all time high this week since the fed announced they will be cutting rates next year.
I've stopped trading any stocks. I just buy and hold ETFs at this point. Also I havent really bought much at all lately because I can get 5% interest on cash because rates are so high. I'm getting a nice chunk of money each month just leaving money in that account.
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Im not sure I believe anyone who says "recession" or "boom" this shit comes and goes and a lot of times makes little sense to me.
I believe the market is at an all time high this week since the fed announced they will be cutting rates next year.
I've stopped trading any stocks. I just buy and hold ETFs at this point. Also I havent really bought much at all lately because I can get 5% interest on cash because rates are so high. I'm getting a nice chunk of money each month just leaving money in that account.
This is also why I haven't really looked into stocks until now. I'm getting similar interest on my cash so the short term gains is around the same at 5%. It's a amazing income boost each month. But I know now some of that at least should be going into EFTs. The bonus interest is good, but not sure it's matching the inflation.
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I've been doing a lot of reading today to try and educate myself on this whole investing thing. While the bonus 5% cash interest I've been receiving on my savings is a nice bonus without having to do anything, it seems a lot of wasted years I could have put money into a simple vanguard or beta EFT which would have yielded a lot more return over time. I guess it's never too late though. Better starting now at 39 than 49.
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Do it! I started in my late 20s with very little, and had years of regret not starting sooner. Now I am 47 and pleased with how things have grown over the years, which makes me forget about getting in later than maybe I would have preferred.
I had no idea about these 5% rates!
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I mean, for years I was just working so much I didn't have time for anything like this but it's only been the last couple of years with interest rates going up that has seen upwards of 5% returns on high interest accounts before that, it was nothing which sucks in hindsight.
But yeah, I've opened an account with a brokerage platform and have transferred $500 to start with (Saturday here so won't clear until Mon/Tue) and will just go with probably the biggest ETF (Vanguard) to start with and go from there. I think I'll have the tact of putting money in each week as opposed to putting large lump sums in, in these early stages anyway. Once that initial money is in there I'll learn more, monitor it and maybe after I have money filtering into it will look into an ETF that dabbles in the US market. Although it seems the US has been on a good run so am wary and will just start with the Aussie bound ETF.
I know $500 to start with is nothing but I'll make sure I do it all correct and keep filtering money through when I can.
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Next week I'll sit and read through this entire thread too. Probably all the learning and info I need right in these 9 pages from you guys.
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My most simple and best advice is to find a good, broad market ETF, choose your weekly or monthly budget, and just put it on automatic purchase. Don't care how the money is doing, just keep buying. Do not sell!! Even if the market drops 50%. Just keep buying. It will take several years or even a decade to really start to see the magic of compound interest, but your patience will be worth it.
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Cheers mate, that definitely seems the simplest strategy from all the reading I've been doing too. I'll put in amounts weekly or fortnightly and extra where I can, plus the interest earned from the stocks will go straight back in too. Hopefully I can see some significant gain when I'm 45 but really hoping to see some results by the time I'm 50.
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Man this is slightly confusing. Put some money into a platform and now trying to place the order. Trying to figure out limit price vs market price is confusing.
I'm guessing when putting money in weekly or fortnightly you're not putting in an amount, you buying a number of shares? Like, this particular share costs 92.76 so I'm putting that amount in each time? This platform has a value or quantity option however but both seem to give off the same values, so that's why it's slightly doing my head in.
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Man this is slightly confusing. Put some money into a platform and now trying to place the order. Trying to figure out limit price vs market price is confusing.
I'm guessing when putting money in weekly or fortnightly you're not putting in an amount, you buying a number of shares? Like, this particular share costs 92.76 so I'm putting that amount in each time? This platform has a value or quantity option however but both seem to give off the same values, so that's why it's slightly doing my head in.
Market: An order to buy or sell at the best price available when the order reaches the marketplace. A Market Order guarantees execution, but not price.
Limit: An order to Buy or Sell a security only at a price that is specified (the limit) or at a better price. A Limit Order is not guaranteed, but if executed, the price you set or a better price is guaranteed.
At this stage of your investing just place an order at the market price. You don't need to worry about what the exact price is.
I believe you have to purchase stocks or ETFs based on a specified quantity, but you can purchase mutual funds based on an exact dollar amount. lordxizor please clarify if I am wrong.
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Thanks Chris. I think with this particular ETF having a $500 buy in, that's where I was confused on the buying of singular shares at that 92 dollar price, as the maths obviously doesn't add up. I'll whack some more money in and just buy 6 shares at market price maybe and go from there. I mean, it's not like I was going to put in $10 at a time so $100 each time for me is more than fine. Appreciate the response. A lot to get the head around.
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When I switched to Schwab in 2020, I had a call with one of their advisors. It was not a detailed call but she did run a report on my retirement accounts to evaluate my financial situation. All of this was free and while not overly insightful (other than to find out I was on a solid trajectory and did not need any immediate course correction) it was nice to be able to talk to a professional about my finances. I've never had further conversations with them but know they are available should i wish to. If your bank offers these services, take advantage of them.
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That's a damn good feature to have to an investing platform! Not sure if anyone offers that here but I haven thought about seeing a financial advisor. I always get scared off by paying money to someone else to help me with my money, especially when I'm not a complete idiot.
I think CMC the platform I'm using though has a good support feature so maybe there is something there.
I've transferred some more cash over and yeah seems like Market price is the easiest go to option to just put money down and start investing. Means, I can buy 6-7 shares straight up. Next will be to research if to keep buying from the one or start to eventually diversify across maybe 2 or 3 other ETF's. I'm enjoying the learning process though.
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I inherited an account with Edward Jones from my grandparents. We chat twice a year about how things are going, if I have any concerns, etc. It's actually really nice. It also allowed me to roll all my straggler 401ks from former jobs into one place.
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That's a damn good feature to have to an investing platform! Not sure if anyone offers that here but I haven thought about seeing a financial advisor. I always get scared off by paying money to someone else to help me with my money, especially when I'm not a complete idiot.
I think CMC the platform I'm using though has a good support feature so maybe there is something there.
I've transferred some more cash over and yeah seems like Market price is the easiest go to option to just put money down and start investing. Means, I can buy 6-7 shares straight up. Next will be to research if to keep buying from the one or start to eventually diversify across maybe 2 or 3 other ETF's. I'm enjoying the learning process though.
My work 401k has some built in features with Fidelity for getting access to a financial advisor, but like the bolded, I feel the same as they are not free :lol Luckily my brother in law is into this kind of stuff and will go through my 401k and give me advice that I actually trust.
Also, without knowing more info, I would say to diversify more ETFs.
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My work 401k is also through Fidelity. We have an advisor who we opened a fund with and it's through Schwab, even though he doesn't work for them. But he advises us on both mine and my wife's 401k's as well.
We feel comfortable with our advisor for sure, and there's no way I'd go at it alone.
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My work 401k is also through Fidelity. We have an advisor who we opened a fund with and it's through Schwab, even though he doesn't work for them. But he advises us on both mine and my wife's 401k's as well.
We feel comfortable with our advisor for sure, and there's no way I'd go at it alone.
The thing is, I can go in there and make the changes and whatnot, but I'm just not knowledgeable to know what's a good investment or not. I can see the costs, performance, and whatnot, but I just don't know or have the desire to understand every single company or fund I'm investing in. My brother in law loves this stuff, so he'll allocate my funds for me and make sure I'm OK with it all. I wouldn't go at it alone either, because when I first did my 401k wasn't moving much at all since it was all just going to very general funds that didn't move much. My 401k is getting a 10% return lifetime on it, but would probably be getting 5% if someone didn't help me. YTD is like 20% though, crazy.
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My work 401k is also through Fidelity. We have an advisor who we opened a fund with and it's through Schwab, even though he doesn't work for them. But he advises us on both mine and my wife's 401k's as well.
We feel comfortable with our advisor for sure, and there's no way I'd go at it alone.
The thing is, I can go in there and make the changes and whatnot, but I'm just not knowledgeable to know what's a good investment or not. I can see the costs, performance, and whatnot, but I just don't know or have the desire to understand every single company or fund I'm investing in. My brother in law loves this stuff, so he'll allocate my funds for me and make sure I'm OK with it all. I wouldn't go at it alone either, because when I first did my 401k wasn't moving much at all since it was all just going to very general funds that didn't move much. My 401k is getting a 10% return lifetime on it, but would probably be getting 5% if someone didn't help me. YTD is like 20% though, crazy.
Yes, the year is ending on a strong note.
My brother is in the field, but I'd never put that on us.
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Hmm....I'm guessing 401K is like our superannuation over here I'll look that up later and come back and comment.
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My work 401k is also through Fidelity. We have an advisor who we opened a fund with and it's through Schwab, even though he doesn't work for them. But he advises us on both mine and my wife's 401k's as well.
We feel comfortable with our advisor for sure, and there's no way I'd go at it alone.
The thing is, I can go in there and make the changes and whatnot, but I'm just not knowledgeable to know what's a good investment or not. I can see the costs, performance, and whatnot, but I just don't know or have the desire to understand every single company or fund I'm investing in. My brother in law loves this stuff, so he'll allocate my funds for me and make sure I'm OK with it all. I wouldn't go at it alone either, because when I first did my 401k wasn't moving much at all since it was all just going to very general funds that didn't move much. My 401k is getting a 10% return lifetime on it, but would probably be getting 5% if someone didn't help me. YTD is like 20% though, crazy.
Yes, the year is ending on a strong note.
My brother is in the field, but I'd never put that on us.
Yeah, I get the idea of not wanting your borther to be at potential fault for a loss of money or jsut knowing your financials. I'm just a solo dude here so I don't have a wife and kids riding off this. I trust him and if it fucks up, remember, I agreed to it and he showed me it and I still agreed. It's still on me. He literally loves this. He just did my brother's wife's as well over Thanksgiving while we all in Florida at my parents. It's become like a thing where he'll deal with it very happily. Yeah, it also gets personal, but I don't care. I think we all kind of know where we stand financially within my family. If he sees my 401k #'s, I don't have any reason to think he'll think of me any differently or talk about it. He's shown me his portfolie before as well.
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So yes, seems it's the same as superannuation over here. I've never really looked into it or thought about putting more money into mine. Not sure if it's the same in the states but we can't access it until we are 60 or 65 or something. I'm happy to let it accumulate for the basics of what the employer has to put in it for another 20 years and go from there. Same as Marc, while I'm not touching mine, no dependents for me so I'm looking at this money as bonus money when I get to retirement. My goal is not to have to rely on that money when I hit the age of 60.
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So yes, seems it's the same as superannuation over here. I've never really looked into it or thought about putting more money into mine. Not sure if it's the same in the states but we can't access it until we are 60 or 65 or something. I'm happy to let it accumulate for the basics of what the employer has to put in it for another 20 years and go from there. Same as Marc, while I'm not touching mine, no dependents for me so I'm looking at this money as bonus money when I get to retirement. My goal is not to have to rely on that money when I hit the age of 60.
Correct. As retirement accounts have tax advantages, one of the requirements is that it is used for retirement, so you cannot access those funds without a significant tax hit before whatever the minimum withdrawal age is. I think in the US it is 59.
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59.5 to be exact in the US. There are a few exceptions, like buying your first home, or you can have a hardship exemption.
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My work 401k is also through Fidelity. We have an advisor who we opened a fund with and it's through Schwab, even though he doesn't work for them. But he advises us on both mine and my wife's 401k's as well.
We feel comfortable with our advisor for sure, and there's no way I'd go at it alone.
The thing is, I can go in there and make the changes and whatnot, but I'm just not knowledgeable to know what's a good investment or not. I can see the costs, performance, and whatnot, but I just don't know or have the desire to understand every single company or fund I'm investing in. My brother in law loves this stuff, so he'll allocate my funds for me and make sure I'm OK with it all. I wouldn't go at it alone either, because when I first did my 401k wasn't moving much at all since it was all just going to very general funds that didn't move much. My 401k is getting a 10% return lifetime on it, but would probably be getting 5% if someone didn't help me. YTD is like 20% though, crazy.
Yes, the year is ending on a strong note.
My brother is in the field, but I'd never put that on us.
This year has been killer for me as well investment wise, my 401k did really well and my FX account had one of the biggest years ever.
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59.5 to be exact in the US. There are a few exceptions, like buying your first home, or you can have a hardship exemption.
What a strange figure lol.
Over here you can't touch it for anything prior to the age criteria but the Government were allowing people to access their Super funds during COVID.
We can't access it for first home ownership, but our Government hands out generous grants to people getting their first homes.
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So I learning more about mutual funds and I am reading that there are 4 types:
Growth and income funds
Growth funds
Aggressive growth funds
International funds
Does anyone know what the S and P 500 would fall into? Would it be growth and income?
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The S&P500 is just an index fund of the top 500 us companies by market cap (with some rare exceptions). It's a representation of those companies, when they go well then the S&P does well. You can't really buy into the S&P, but rather you would purchase an ETF that contains the same blend and weight of stocks that the S&P has, like the SPY ETF.
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Thanks Reaper
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My understanding of thise categories is that there is no formal definition. The company that makes the fund describes it in the way they think is appropriate. I think the category is less important than the description of what the fund is hoping to achieve.