Investing megathread extravaganza

[DaFace]

A place to talk about investing stuff.

[lewdog]

Welp, I had a limit order that's been sitting there for a few weeks fill today.

Canopy Growth Corp. TWMJF. No available Marijuana ETFs and I wanted some skin in the Green Game. Hit at $7. This is a total risky move and I know it, but this was my take some money to the casino and let it ride type of move.

[Pepe Silvia]

I was the pixie dust spreader on the tilt a whirl, I saved a couple hundred.

[Cornstock]

Originally Posted by lewdog

I definitely agree, although it's not inherently bad to have a small percentage of your income in individual stocks if you feel so compelled. This should only be after you've got something like 10%+ percentage of your income going to retirement investment vehicles (401k/IRAs).

I bought my first individual stocks earlier this year as well. That's after 5 years of ramping my 401k/Roth IRA contributions up to 15%. The money I then invested in individual stocks is IN addition this amount, not in place of those investments. It's currently 6% of my total portfolio and I don't really plan to ever have individuals stocks be more than 10% of my total portfolio.

I really like this approach. You've built a really solid core portfolio at this point, and with some disposable income you've deemed it appropriate to take on some manageable risk in exchange for some higher returns.

The pitfall I see others falling into is investing too heavily into stocks and penny stocks before they've built a portfolio when their real goal should be to build a baseline of wealth. It can be frustrating to lose on some penny stocks early and be compelled to stay with that strategy to try to make it all back. Similar to a gamblers mentality.

You feel much less obliged to take unnecessary risk when your percentage of investments as a whole are making satisfactory returns.

[Cornstock]

Originally Posted by ndws

Yep, I'm on the boring bandwagon already. I just looked at the math on my last pay stub, and between my retirement (pension), 401k, and personal Roth (with company matching totaled in) i'm putting right at 28% of my income into retirement. So unless there is a massive market correction in the handful of years before I retire (I'm 39 now, and my rule 85 doesn't go into effect until I'm 57 at the earliest, I should be ok without needing to rely on any day trading/penny stock nonsense I may try to do on my own.

You're in a good position. The luxury you have as you near retirement is being able to move to a more defensive position to mitigate the risks of a downturn. A cash and fixed income portfolio, or variable/indexed annuity may be good choices in this situation.

I know annuities catch a lot of flack because the sellers usually do take a fairly large upfront commission, but they offer guarantees that can make them well worth the cost.

I heard it put well once "The car you drove up in, that has heated seats and blind spot detection right? Why did you pay extra for those things? Because you perceived value in them. You don't need them to go from point a to point B, but they still have worth. The death benefit and guaranteed returns of annuities are the exact same. There is value there, but that value has a cost."

[Cornstock]

Originally Posted by Demonpenz

it feels great to have it paid off but you could invest money monthly to have a better overall profit. Like I have 0 interest in my car. Would love to pay it off but using my money now to pay off the car instead of using money to make money isn't a good play.

Demonpenz's financial IQ is literally skyrocketing before our very eyes.

[lewdog]

Anyone have any good recommendations for higher paying Savings Accounts? I am looking to move our emergency savings into a savings account that gets 1%+ interest. Good for an extra few hundred dollars a year which is better than my current savings account.

This is the best I have found on the subject.

http://www.magnifymoney.com/blog/ear...ounts275921001

Or any other ideas?

[Demonpenz]

Originally Posted by Cornstock

Demonpenz's financial IQ is literally skyrocketing before our very eyes.

Knowing is one thing but executing is another. The good thing is that I am too lazy to send in more money on my 0 percent car payment or I probably would. Another good thing is my job in my 20's gave me money not a match just gave me retirement money so it was nice to have something before I even took the hit of taking money out of my paycheck.

[TinyEvel]

Hi guys.

I have owned a house for 15years. For the first time, due to moves, I sold it and I'm renting...for now. Hope to get back into a home I can buy in about year. In the meantime, the equity I had built up in previous home is sitting in cash savings. How should I invest it to minimize risk (I need it for down payment on next home in about year) but get best return (savings account is less than 1 percent return)

[scho63]

Originally Posted by lewdog

Anyone have any good recommendations for higher paying Savings Accounts?

It's a complete oxymoron in this environment.

You realize that if you have $20,000 in an emergency fund and you are deciding between a .025% and a 1% fund it's all kind of bullshit and time for about $175 if you left it there for the entire year?

Don't be so short sided.

Buy a short term corporate bond for a much better yield

[scho63]

Originally Posted by TinyEvel

Hi guys.

I have owned a house for 15years. For the first time, due to moves, I sold it and I'm renting...for now. Hope to get back into a home I can buy in about year. In the meantime, the equity I had built up in previous home is sitting in cash savings. How should I invest it to minimize risk (I need it for down payment on next home in about year) but get best return (savings account is less than 1 percent return)

Keep an eye on any capital gains taxes if you sold for higher than purchase plus cap improvements and do not buy for many years to come.

[DaFace]

Originally Posted by lewdog

Anyone have any good recommendations for higher paying Savings Accounts? I am looking to move our emergency savings into a savings account that gets 1%+ interest. Good for an extra few hundred dollars a year which is better than my current savings account.

This is the best I have found on the subject.

http://www.magnifymoney.com/blog/ear...ounts275921001

Or any other ideas?

I've got mine in Discover, and I like it pretty well. Transfers are pretty quick, and the $100 sign up bonus is a nice perk. Even at the higher interest rates, though, you aren't going to get rich. Better than a shitty 0.01% account though.

[DaFace]

Originally Posted by scho63

It's a complete oxymoron in this environment.

You realize that if you have $20,000 in an emergency fund and you are deciding between a .025% and a 1% fund it's all kind of bullshit and time for about $175 if you left it there for the entire year?

Don't be so short sided.

Buy a short term corporate bond for a much better yield

Yeah, a short term bond is probably my suggestion, too. A high yield online savings account like those lew linked would be a good option too.


But really, if we're only talking about a year, it's not going to matter much.

[lewdog]

Originally Posted by scho63

It's a complete oxymoron in this environment.

You realize that if you have $20,000 in an emergency fund and you are deciding between a .025% and a 1% fund it's all kind of bullshit and time for about $175 if you left it there for the entire year?

Don't be so short sided.

Buy a short term corporate bond for a much better yield

Originally Posted by DaFace

Yeah, a short term bond is probably my suggestion, too. A high yield online savings account like those lew linked would be a good option too.


But really, if we're only talking about a year, it's not going to matter much.

I'm torn between understanding that, and wanting the money to be very safe. I realized bond funds are fairly safe, but parking money in there does have a chance to go down.

Here's a 5 star Vanguard short term corporate bond Index. Had I parked money in there 5 years ago, it would have gained only .6% in those 5 years.
And at some point had I needed the money, I could be selling some bonds while they are down. That can't happen in a 1% interest savings account. Bonds to me seem a bit shaky with interest rates sure to rise over the next decade. I'm not sure there's a great play there to park emergency savings unless you guys had something I'm missing?

http://quotes.morningstar.com/chart/...&culture=en-US

[DaFace]

Originally Posted by lewdog

I'm torn between understanding that, and wanting the money to be very safe. I realized bond funds are fairly safe, but parking money in there does have a chance to go down.

Here's a 5 star Vanguard short term corporate bond Index. Had I parked money in there 5 years ago, it would have gained only .6% in those 5 years.
And at some point had I needed the money, I could be selling some bonds while they are down. That can't happen in a 1% interest savings account. Bonds to me seem a bit shaky with interest rates sure to rise over the next decade. I'm not sure there's a great play there to park emergency savings unless you guys had something I'm missing?

http://quotes.morningstar.com/chart/...&culture=en-US

Buying a 1 year bond is different than buying a bond with the intention of selling it. If you hold to maturity, you won't lose value (assuming the issuer doesn't go under or something). A 1 year CD is another similar option.

[lewdog]

Originally Posted by DaFace

Buying a 1 year bond is different than buying a bond with the intention of selling it. If you hold to maturity, you won't lose value (assuming the issuer doesn't go under or something). A 1 year CD is another similar option.

I guess I'll clarify.

I want to park our emergency savings where they are still fairly liquid. Like if our AC goes out and needs replacement in the next few years, I take can take $10k from it and pay cash.