Investing my own hard-earned money

I agree an investor should be savvy enough to rebalance on his/her own, but for an investor who doesn't want to take the time to do that or isn't knowledgeable enough about the market to do that, these funds gradually move you out of stock funds and into bond funds as your target retirement date approaches. I'm pretty sure they don't rebalance every year to make sure you've got the proper ratios.

 

Now THIS is what this board is about! Thanks for all the tips, T-B-F, etc.

This place can be very useful sometimes...and then when Bruh comes around...not so much

 

I have had my investments with Vanguard for 11-12 years now and am extremely pleased, not just with the return but with the customer service. Their Web site is one of the best in the biz.

 

There are some very good Web sites out there (cbsmarketwatch.com, cnbc.com, morningstar.com, just to name a few) where you can do some research. I'm not a fan of the lifecycle funds, either; they're a little too conservative for my liking.

 

If it's not important enough to an investor to check, rebalance, reallocate and monitor, then that investor has serious issues.

 

I am certainly no expert, but I have studied and taught economics. The one piece of advice I always give is "If you can't afford to lose it, don't risk it." Only invest what you can afford to lose without it effecting you financially.
It's like going to a casino. If you can afford to drop only a hundred bucks without it hurting you, then take nickels and play the slots. That way you can have fun, not get hurt, and still have fun.
Never invest with the thought in mind that it will make you rich. Only in rare situations (ie. stock splits) does that happen. Normal investing will just make you some extra money that can be socked away for later years.
One very safe investment is gold. It will fluctuate some, like all stocks. But as the world's currency reserves expans, so will the value of the metal that supports it.

 

May I suggest ... http://www.vicefund.com/ ... tobacco, alcohol, casinos, aerospace and defense companies.

 

Inky: You're right. Tobacco and casinos do quite well.

For a newcomer, I'd also recommend a mutual fund or ETF that deals in utilities. No matter how bad the economy gets, people still need to heat and cool their homes, power their large-screen TVs and keep the frig going. Rarely will the stocks go through the roof, but there are a lot of steady climbers and most of them pay dividends, too. That quarterly check never is a bad thing.

 

they are indeed good income sources. And if you re-invest those payouts, it's slot like a capital growth. Are reinvested dividends taxed? I can't remember.

 

I believe reinvested dividents are taxed but at the lower (15%) capital gains rate. But I'm not an expert on the 10,000 pages of IRS regulations.

 

As the others have stated, (1) understand the risks; and (2) start with mutual funds.

Mutual funds are easy to buy, have smaller risk because they are already diversified. I suggest Vanguard funds because they have very small admin costs and have performed very well over the long run (5-10 years).

Buying now is a great time because prices are depressed. Just have faith in the long run that they will bounce back and historically it has been shown that they will.

You've already done the hardest thing, making investing a goal. Good luck.

 

I go to www.buyandhold.com

The minimum deposit is very small - like $20. It only charges a $6.99/month fee and you get two free trades (purchases or sells) a month. And it's user-friendly as hell. You select your own stocks and how much to invest in each one. I really like it.