I posted this i n the General Forum... I have some money that I would like to invest . I am young so I would like something more long term, I am not really looking into real estate. Any suggetions? Thanks
Investing Help
- Thread starter bgold13
- Start date
- Feb 12, 2000
- 10,652
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My best advice is that if you ANY debt (other than mortgage), get rid of it before you start investing. I know people who brag about making 10% in a bear market, but have a $5,000 balance on a credit card charging 12.9% rolling interest. This doesn't make sense.
Other than that, there are better sources than me for investing advice. Good luck. Thinking about it early is a good sign for you.
Other than that, there are better sources than me for investing advice. Good luck. Thinking about it early is a good sign for you.
when I read this post my phone rang and a friend came into some money, he spends money easily and wanted to know he could do with the money in 3 months...could it double (joke...I hope). it is a small amount and he is also young so here are my suggestions, instead of spending it on a bigger TV or more stereo equipment.
1.like dawgball said pay off debt, anything over 5% would look at getting rid of. many people have credit card debt.
2. index funds are not a bad place to start, if you buy them on the market spiders, diamonds, or as a mutual fund ( lower the MER the better for index mutual funds).
you can use them to diversify into sectors with these products but would start with a broad index covers most of the market first.
also you can get products that cover bonds in Canada we have XIU which track TSX/SP60 (60 companies ) and also have G5,G10 index products that track 5 year and 10 year government bonds.
so you can quickly have exposure to bonds and equities. most mutual funds do not beat the index averages.
3. would look at DRIP and SPP if you are a small investor starting out. DRIP (Dividend Re-investment plan) and Share purchase plan. these are plans that allow you to buy stocks and have the dividends re-invested without paying commissions. many are blue chip companies. I have a collection of these, in the US there are companies that allow you to enter a wide selection of plans. Sharebuilder and Buy and hold. believe it is $4.99 everytime you want to buy but they re-invest the dividends for free. not a member must be a US citizen but might be easier than looking after a dozen of seperate plans (like I do...) they have plenty of stocks to choose from so would do reaserch on the companies.
look for companies that pay dividends and have steady and growing earnings. look for companies that have been good long term performers. might be a good way to experience share ownership for risking a small amount of money.
4. Also investigate before acting on any advice. There is an add for the Toronto Financial forum (a large show in Canada) in the NP and Globe and Mail in Canada they have four speakers highlighted; two of them Garth Turner, and Jerry White. would rather take investment advice from .....well lets us not be tooooo negative. There was an article highlighting these two and some others written in ROB magazine November good article. some one may try to sell you something for a reason or have a bias you should always check these out. For instance look into sharebuilder or buy and hold but it may not be for you, or you may not want index funds.
5. after a few years you have built up some indexed funds and stock positions, look to diversify with international stocks and funds, the US is not the only market in the world. do this with international funds (mutual), stocks/ADRs, webs.
6. build up some cash, have 3-6 months of cash on hand. just in case something happens you do not have to destroy your investments.
7. finally here are some rules from Jesse Livermore a great trader in the early 1900s. you may not agree with them but always have or develop rules and try to follow them. then never break the rules.
thanks
selkirk
Jessie Livermore's Rules For Captial Gains
1.Nothing new occurs in the business of speculating or investing in securities.
2.Money cannot consistently be made trading every day or every week during the year.
3.Don't trust your own opinion and back your judgment until the action of the market
itself confirms your opinion.
4.Markets are never wrong; opinions often are.
5.The real money made in speculating has been in commitments showing a profit right
from the start.
6.As long as a stock is acting right, and the material is right, do not be in a hurry to take
a profit.
7.One should never permit speculative ventures to run into investments.
8.The money lost by speculation alone is small compared with the gigantic sums lost by
so-called investors who have let their investments ride.
9.Never sell a stock because it seems high-priced.
10.Never buy a stock because it has had a big decline from it's previous high.
11.I become a buyer as soon as a stock makes a new high on it's movements after having had a normal reaction.
12.Never average losses.
13.The human side of every person is the greatest enemy of the average investor or speculator.
14.It is not well to be too curious about the reasons behind price movements.
15.Wishful thinking must be banished.
16.Big movements take time to develop.
17.It is much easier to watch a few than many.
18.If you cannot make money out of the leading active issues, you are not going to make money out of the market as a whole.
19.The leaders of today may not be the leaders two years from now.
20.Do not become completely bearish or bullish on the market because one stock in a particular group has plainly reversed it's course from the general market trend.
21.Few people ever make money on tips. Beware of inside information. If there was any easy money lying around, no one would force it into your pocket.
1.like dawgball said pay off debt, anything over 5% would look at getting rid of. many people have credit card debt.
2. index funds are not a bad place to start, if you buy them on the market spiders, diamonds, or as a mutual fund ( lower the MER the better for index mutual funds).
you can use them to diversify into sectors with these products but would start with a broad index covers most of the market first.
also you can get products that cover bonds in Canada we have XIU which track TSX/SP60 (60 companies ) and also have G5,G10 index products that track 5 year and 10 year government bonds.
so you can quickly have exposure to bonds and equities. most mutual funds do not beat the index averages.
3. would look at DRIP and SPP if you are a small investor starting out. DRIP (Dividend Re-investment plan) and Share purchase plan. these are plans that allow you to buy stocks and have the dividends re-invested without paying commissions. many are blue chip companies. I have a collection of these, in the US there are companies that allow you to enter a wide selection of plans. Sharebuilder and Buy and hold. believe it is $4.99 everytime you want to buy but they re-invest the dividends for free. not a member must be a US citizen but might be easier than looking after a dozen of seperate plans (like I do...) they have plenty of stocks to choose from so would do reaserch on the companies.
look for companies that pay dividends and have steady and growing earnings. look for companies that have been good long term performers. might be a good way to experience share ownership for risking a small amount of money.
4. Also investigate before acting on any advice. There is an add for the Toronto Financial forum (a large show in Canada) in the NP and Globe and Mail in Canada they have four speakers highlighted; two of them Garth Turner, and Jerry White. would rather take investment advice from .....well lets us not be tooooo negative. There was an article highlighting these two and some others written in ROB magazine November good article. some one may try to sell you something for a reason or have a bias you should always check these out. For instance look into sharebuilder or buy and hold but it may not be for you, or you may not want index funds.
5. after a few years you have built up some indexed funds and stock positions, look to diversify with international stocks and funds, the US is not the only market in the world. do this with international funds (mutual), stocks/ADRs, webs.
6. build up some cash, have 3-6 months of cash on hand. just in case something happens you do not have to destroy your investments.
7. finally here are some rules from Jesse Livermore a great trader in the early 1900s. you may not agree with them but always have or develop rules and try to follow them. then never break the rules.
thanks
selkirk
Jessie Livermore's Rules For Captial Gains
1.Nothing new occurs in the business of speculating or investing in securities.
2.Money cannot consistently be made trading every day or every week during the year.
3.Don't trust your own opinion and back your judgment until the action of the market
itself confirms your opinion.
4.Markets are never wrong; opinions often are.
5.The real money made in speculating has been in commitments showing a profit right
from the start.
6.As long as a stock is acting right, and the material is right, do not be in a hurry to take
a profit.
7.One should never permit speculative ventures to run into investments.
8.The money lost by speculation alone is small compared with the gigantic sums lost by
so-called investors who have let their investments ride.
9.Never sell a stock because it seems high-priced.
10.Never buy a stock because it has had a big decline from it's previous high.
11.I become a buyer as soon as a stock makes a new high on it's movements after having had a normal reaction.
12.Never average losses.
13.The human side of every person is the greatest enemy of the average investor or speculator.
14.It is not well to be too curious about the reasons behind price movements.
15.Wishful thinking must be banished.
16.Big movements take time to develop.
17.It is much easier to watch a few than many.
18.If you cannot make money out of the leading active issues, you are not going to make money out of the market as a whole.
19.The leaders of today may not be the leaders two years from now.
20.Do not become completely bearish or bullish on the market because one stock in a particular group has plainly reversed it's course from the general market trend.
21.Few people ever make money on tips. Beware of inside information. If there was any easy money lying around, no one would force it into your pocket.
I really appreciate the write-up. I am going to look into a lot of dfferent options. Maybe invest most of it and put away a tiny bit of it and go see the city i was born in again.. Toronto for a few days!
Thanks Sellkirk
Thanks Sellkirk
Selkirk:
Somehow keeping 3-6 months of cash depends on the circumstances. If one is single I think all one needs to do is open a line of credit where one can have access to the money when needed. At least that is what I have done. Of course I have enuf money in ING [savings acct] .. enuf to live for a year but that is gonna be used for downpayment on home when i can afford and wanna buy one.
For a family things may be different and I cannot comment.
bgold: those are words of wisdom .. not many people will take the time to give ya advince in so much detail .. great u asked the Qs.
Great advice as always
Cheers !!!
Spock
Somehow keeping 3-6 months of cash depends on the circumstances. If one is single I think all one needs to do is open a line of credit where one can have access to the money when needed. At least that is what I have done. Of course I have enuf money in ING [savings acct] .. enuf to live for a year but that is gonna be used for downpayment on home when i can afford and wanna buy one.
For a family things may be different and I cannot comment.
bgold: those are words of wisdom .. not many people will take the time to give ya advince in so much detail .. great u asked the Qs.
Great advice as always
Cheers !!!
Spock
Spock I agree with you a line of credit is important. 3-6 months is a large amount and it depends on how many dependants. Probably a person can get by on one month of cash, it depends on many factors.
Know some people in small businesses who have had their lines of credit pulled or cut back sharply, this harmed the businesses in the short term.
thanks
selkirk
Know some people in small businesses who have had their lines of credit pulled or cut back sharply, this harmed the businesses in the short term.
thanks
selkirk
Selkirk,
Great info as always...THANKS
Spock,
I just opened an account with the girlfriend last month as we have been dating just over 14 months and I thought it was time to open a joint savings account. Started with $500 each for a total of $1000.00 @ 2.75% annually, and will be contributing monthly to this account as this will be $ that we won't be able to touch...
Mayur, when you get back home I will show you slips that made me sick to my stomach. My dad showed me his records with Nortel over the last few years, he has lost over $780,000.00 as a result of NORTEL, but he has made some of it back as he bought 30,000 shares at $1.25 and sold them at $3.90.
But to have over 12 shares at $124.00 and then see it stumble the way it did, made me sick. Thankfully he sold most of it at $52.00.
Even now I am still sick....
Great info as always...THANKS
Spock,
I just opened an account with the girlfriend last month as we have been dating just over 14 months and I thought it was time to open a joint savings account. Started with $500 each for a total of $1000.00 @ 2.75% annually, and will be contributing monthly to this account as this will be $ that we won't be able to touch...
Mayur, when you get back home I will show you slips that made me sick to my stomach. My dad showed me his records with Nortel over the last few years, he has lost over $780,000.00 as a result of NORTEL, but he has made some of it back as he bought 30,000 shares at $1.25 and sold them at $3.90.
But to have over 12 shares at $124.00 and then see it stumble the way it did, made me sick. Thankfully he sold most of it at $52.00.
Even now I am still sick....
