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 kake
The answer to1984 is 1776.
 
Registered: 05/06/99
Posts: 2,778
Loc: The 66th harmonic
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 Invest Your Money! Share you advice... 
#5269157 - 02/06/06 10:45 AM (6 years, 3 months ago) |
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I'm only 22, I own a few stocks, but I want to start investing in things like mutual funds which tend to involve less risk. I am looking for better ways to invest my money and better options. I currently have an Ameritrade account but I almost never use it. I want to minimize overhead costs, such as trade/account fees as much as possible and am looking for new investment opportunities within or outside of Ameritrade.
What ways do you invest and what pitfalls should be avoided?
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Prisoner#1
Even Dumber ThanAdvertized!
Registered: 01/22/03
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 Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: kake]
#5269199 - 02/06/06 10:59 AM (6 years, 3 months ago) |
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what you need to ask is what kind of risks you're willing to take, what you have to invest and what sort of returns you would like
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 InjectTruth
Wasting my Time,Waiting for theEnd
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Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: kake]
#5269206 - 02/06/06 11:02 AM (6 years, 3 months ago) |
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Find a good mutual fund and stick with it. Make monthly contributions of the same amount. Learn about Dollar Cost Averaging (Put in $50 a month, Sept1 prices are $50 a share, you get one share. Oct1 prices are $25 a share, you get 2 shares. Nov2 prices are $75 a share, you get .75 shares. This is dollar cost averaging. Dont get scared and pull out when the share price drops, this is just a "Sale". after all, mutual funds can get rid of and add new positions, so its not as volatile as a single private stock.
Good mutual fund companies will have different fund categories like "Income", "Growth", "Aggressive" "Principal Conservation". These different categories do different things.
Aggressive tries to make the most money. This is also the biggest risk. Income funds hold stock that provide good dividends. Principal conservation funds are more conservative, and aim to never lose your initial investment, but appreciate slower due to less risk.
I will tell you this. About 3-4 years ago, I got in on SAGBX, Saloman Smith Barney's Aggressive Growth Fund. BOY, do I wish I would have made monthly contributions. My first contribution, the shares were under $50. They are now about $105 a piece. That fund is a safe bet.
This is a good facet of a solid long term savings plan, however, Im looking for a more short term strategy to make small gains ($50 - $100 a day) consistently. can anyone contribute?
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goobler
Reanimated
Registered: 02/24/03
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Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: kake]
#5269277 - 02/06/06 11:28 AM (6 years, 3 months ago) |
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Prisoner#1
Even Dumber ThanAdvertized!
Registered: 01/22/03
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Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: goobler]
#5269310 - 02/06/06 11:39 AM (6 years, 3 months ago) |
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bio-med/sci and trash are always good investments
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kake
The answer to1984 is 1776.
Registered: 05/06/99
Posts: 2,778
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Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: Prisoner#1]
#5269532 - 02/06/06 12:47 PM (6 years, 3 months ago) |
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thanks for the tips InjectTruth. that's the sort of stuff I'm interested in (weekly/monthly consistent contributions to whatever).
On the subject of IRA's, one of my professors made Roth IRA's sound like such an easy way to become a millionaire if you just start investing in it early, but the downfall I see in investing a considerable portion of your pay into an IRA is that you won't be able to touch that money until you're 59-60? And what happens if you die earlier?
Now they say the mistake most people make it to start putting money into an IRA when they're in their 40's instead of their 20's or 30's which costs them hundreds of thousands of dollars on lost interest in the end. But right now I can't even picture myself at age 60. So I'm looking for maybe an aggressive growth fund that I can put maybe 50$/month into. I'll check out the SAGBX. Who else has done well with mutual funds? Let's help each other make some money! 
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The answer to 1984 is 1776.
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goobler
Reanimated
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Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: kake]
#5269574 - 02/06/06 01:00 PM (6 years, 3 months ago) |
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put the $$ away in an IRA
seriously
not enough to make you poor but some to take advantage of the interest
you can withdraw early there is just a penalty and there are medical/hardship exceptions
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badchad
Mad Scientist
Registered: 03/02/05
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Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: kake]
#5269598 - 02/06/06 01:09 PM (6 years, 3 months ago) |
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I think you need to determine how much you want to invest, and how much you are expecting to gain. A lot of people have grand dreams of becoming rich through investments. The reality my be different.
For instance, the annual growth of a mutual fund seems to yield anywhere from 10-20% (depending on what sources you pull up on google). So, for arguments sake, we'll assume a return of %15.
If you invest $1000, at 15% for 10 years, you'll end up with about $16,000 after 20 years. This equal about $768.00 per year. Not exactly a get rich quick scheme. I would certainly encourage people to consider financial planning, just keep in mind that it isn't always a get rich quick scheme.
And by the way, here's the investment calculator I used to do the math (someone correct me if I'm wrong). http://www.moneychimp.com/articles/finworks/fmbasinv.htm
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...the whole experience is (and is as) a profound piece of knowledge. It is an indellible experience; it is forever known. I have known myself in a way I doubt I would have ever occurred except as it did.
Smith, P. Bull. Menninger Clinic (1959) 23:20-27; p. 27.
...most subjects find the experience valuable, some find it frightening, and many say that is it uniquely lovely.
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kake
The answer to1984 is 1776.
Registered: 05/06/99
Posts: 2,778
Loc: The 66th harmonic
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Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: badchad]
#5269771 - 02/06/06 01:54 PM (6 years, 3 months ago) |
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That's true, but that alone (putting away 1000$ and forgetting about it) will not make you rich. What I think you want to do instead is keep putting more money into it so it grows more exponentially. For instance, putting $1000/yr. for 20 years, you've invested $20,000 but you would end up with roughly $134,000 @ 15% growth, which is a pretty figure. Of course, you have to realize that inflation will cause that $134,000 to be worth less in 20 years than it does today, but it's still better than putting $1000 away and never adding anything to it.
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The answer to 1984 is 1776.
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Prisoner#1
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Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: kake]
#5269818 - 02/06/06 02:08 PM (6 years, 3 months ago) |
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Quote:
kake said:
you've invested $20,000 but you would end up with roughly $134,000 @ 15% growth
where can I get a 15% return
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kake
The answer to1984 is 1776.
Registered: 05/06/99
Posts: 2,778
Loc: The 66th harmonic
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Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: kake]
#5269833 - 02/06/06 02:11 PM (6 years, 3 months ago) |
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hehe I was wondering the same thing. A more likely return would be around 10%
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The answer to 1984 is 1776.
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Prisoner#1
Even Dumber ThanAdvertized!
Registered: 01/22/03
Posts: 152,609
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Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: kake]
#5269870 - 02/06/06 02:19 PM (6 years, 3 months ago) |
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a more likely return is about 5.5% on the high end, lots of companies make claims
of hig yeild funds but very few can make good, those that can are very high risk
if you consider purchasing stocks, look for companies that pay their dividends in
stock certificates.
I recently pulled everything I had invested out, capital gains ate me alive,
another thing to consider when investing
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kake
The answer to1984 is 1776.
Registered: 05/06/99
Posts: 2,778
Loc: The 66th harmonic
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Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: kake]
#5270112 - 02/06/06 03:17 PM (6 years, 3 months ago) |
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That doesn't sound right at all. Performance will always vary but over a 20-year span you can expect about a 9-10% annual returns on AVERAGE, if I'm wrong on this I'd like to see some statistics to back it up (I know I'm being lazy 
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The answer to 1984 is 1776.
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supercollider
superconducting
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Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: kake]
#5271097 - 02/06/06 06:57 PM (6 years, 3 months ago) |
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I've been investing in mutual funds for a couple years. I bought into two new funds a little over a month ago: KSCOX and RSNRX. Both took off like rockets as soon as I bought them. Up 6.8% and 10% respectively, all in a month, check the charts. These are no-load funds with very good histories too. Just make sure you shop thoroughly. Don't buy something just because someone on a message board mentioned it. Etrade has tons of search features for looking at funds by volatility, sector, etc. I'm sure Ameritrade does too. Use them.
By the way, you have to buy funds in fairly big chunks, $1000-$5000 for an initial purchase, then $100-$500 subsequent in most cases. So if you do your $50 a month, you'll have to leave that in the bank for a few months at a time between purchases. Those amounts will be less if you do it IRA style, however.
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Supercollider? I just met her!
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gregorio
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Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: Prisoner#1]
#5271723 - 02/06/06 09:28 PM (6 years, 3 months ago) |
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Quote:
Prisoner#1 said:
what you need to ask is what kind of risks you're willing to take, what you have to invest and what sort of returns you would like
Couldn't have said it better myself!!! 
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Confucian
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Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: InjectTruth]
#11672044 - 12/17/09 09:02 PM (2 years, 5 months ago) |
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The following post was made on 2/6/06:
Quote:
InjectTruth said:
Find a good mutual fund and stick with it. Make monthly contributions of the same amount.
I will tell you this. About 3-4 years ago, I got in on SAGBX, Saloman Smith Barney's Aggressive Growth Fund. BOY, do I wish I would have made monthly contributions. My first contribution, the shares were under $50. They are now about $105 a piece. That fund is a safe bet.
8 year chart of SAGBX:
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badchad
Mad Scientist
Registered: 03/02/05
Posts: 7,896
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Re: Invest Your Money! Share you advice... [Re: Confucian]
#11676366 - 12/18/09 04:09 PM (2 years, 5 months ago) |
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Hindsight is always 20/20.
Just to add a bit, if you are truly in it for the long haul, gain employment with a company that has a good 401k and retirement program.
My employment matches annual contributions up to 16k/year.
That is, when it put money in, it doubles. Gauranteed. Average returns are relatively low at 4-5%, but things would have to tank very hard to LOSE money (since its being doubled off the bat).
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...the whole experience is (and is as) a profound piece of knowledge. It is an indellible experience; it is forever known. I have known myself in a way I doubt I would have ever occurred except as it did.
Smith, P. Bull. Menninger Clinic (1959) 23:20-27; p. 27.
...most subjects find the experience valuable, some find it frightening, and many say that is it uniquely lovely.
Osmond, H. Annals, NY Acad Science (1957) 66:418-434; p.436
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