Thinking of entering the market

[SnakeEyeSS]

I'm wanting to increase my "college funds" fster than I'm making them , and have just looked at some different stocks. One stock my brother is thinking of buying a lot of is stabilizing, with all signs pointing it'll increase because of the economy, and because of the business it is.

 

I kinda wish I would have put money in Electronice Boutique, in the last three days it's gain 5.4 bucks! thats over 20%! although they have dropped back down 2.

 

My brother is thinking of using a company his best friend uses and has had good experience with,(don't remember the name). They have a 500 minimun, and I was thinking of joining.

 

The company I like is on a sort of roloer coster, but the "average" is increasing steadily.

 

think I should study the market and get involved, or some of you have any better investment ideas? $500 is about where I want to start.

[SnakeEyeSS]

Geezs, just noticed everything dropped in the last 5 minutes. the DOW dropped $90, mayeb now is a good time to buy?!?

[chevy4x4trucks]

If you want to take your college money and make money on it I would stay away from the stock market and go to the bank and take out a CD. You don't want to loose your college money.

 

Just my $.02

[Lance Link]

Definitely invest your money but not in one stock. Diversity is key- invest in a mutual fund. There are tons of index funds out there that trend with the Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq, etc. That's your best bet. Make sure it's disposable money, though, and not your college fund. Now's a great time to start a Roth IRA, for example, and put $20 a week or so in.

[ness5575]

stocks are not a good short term investment. there is a good chance that whatever you buy will go up, but there is also a good chance that it will go down.

go with something safer, like a cd.

[clk7711]

Now's a great time to start a Roth IRA, for example, and put $20 a week or so in.

I've been doing some research on the Roth IRA and I think I'm gonna open one up. Since I'm only 22, it will have plenty of time to grow and I like the tax free dedution for first time home buyers.

[Shaners]

I agree that stocks are best for the long term (especially in this economy). 4-5 years ago, the market was growing so fast that stocks were a pretty safe investment. Then the bottom fell out... and alot of people lost alot of money!!!

[SnakeEyeSS]

Well its sort of disposible, my "collge" money is money that I got MYSELF and plan on spending on college. I've been looking a trends of stocks for one year periods, and figured that if I did it very carefully, and there wasn't another terrorist attack, I could turn that 500 in 1000-2000 in six months. But I'm going to google "Roth IRA" now to find out what that is!

[99silveradoz71]

Grandma got me started with a Roth, and now I just let it roll over every year to have some cash for retirement.

[gave20]

a Roth IRA is a type of Idividual Retirement Account, a Roth differs from a Traditional in that a Roth is tax free at withdraw where as a traditional IRA's are taxed at withdraw. You don't need a Roth IRA or a Traditional IRA to buy mutual funds or stocks or bonds they are simply vehicles for avoiding taxes and other penalties. One thing to keep in mind with a Roth is you can withdraw your money but only the money invested, any money you withdraw before a five year period that was 'made' you will pay a penalty on and is subject to capital gains tax. An IRA is not a glorified checking account that you can withdraw from willy nilly, if this will be the case open up a CD or a money market account which is much more liquid ( accessible).

[moo snutz]

SnakeEyes - Giving any type of financial advice without knowing all of the individual's personal circumstances is not recommended. That said, the above advice about NOT investing in an individual stock is definitely sound.

 

I've been registered and licensed with the NASD for some time, though I'm not practicing. Currently, I work for an investment management company with $9 billion under management. One of our mutual funds just returned 56% for 2003. This is pretty stellar when you think about how the market has been behaving over the last few years. The way I see it, mutual fund managers get paid for managing their Funds. It's what they do....all day long. There's no way that the average person can devote that amount of time nor have the resources available to perform adequate research on individual stocks. I 'personally' feel that people would generally be better off spending the time that they DO have researching mutual funds and their mangers (there are some pretty rotten ones out there). Even though mutual funds carry risks, by picking a good one, you can find yourself with a nice return AND the comfort knowing that there is a manager/team of dedicated pros looking out for you. Saves you the worry of freaking out when your one stock drops 25% because their 3rd quarter earnings were off by a few cents.

 

All that said. I have some of my money invested automatically each month (I don't even miss it). I also have instructions set up for direct wires to my bank. That way, all I have to do is make a phone call if I need some cash in a hurry. Very nice option.

 

There are thousands of investment options out there. Be wary!

 

Moo

[SnakeEyeSS]

I think my credit union's monthly interest on savings went up to 1.5%. I got some funds trasnferring to do.

[RyanbabZ71]

Right now most rates (savings and cds) ae very low. My savings account earns 0.75% interest and I have a good amount in there and i only make about $200 a yr on interest A yr and a half before I bought my truck I opened 2 cds. One was for 5K and the other 10K and the rates were great (4-5%) now they are like 1-2% if your lucky.

 

I have a 401K through fidelity. I have been putting in 10% of my pay in for retirement (im only 24 but i want to have some $$$ later in life). As of late it has been going up steadily. I have my funds spread out all over (high risk/stable/moderate)

 

Definitly check out http://www.fidelity.com

[SnakeEyeSS]

My savings is flucuating between 1.25 and 1.5, looks like the safest way to go. All the other met5hods have so many "catches" I'm getting a headache think about it.

[QUIKAG]

If you're young and you qualify for a Roth IRA, it would be stupid not to get one set up and running. Then, for diversification and long-term relative stability, I would put the money you contribute to your Roth IRA into a broad index mutual fund as someone has already mentioned.

 

Diversification and a balanced portfolio is critical to long-term success.