Lux Investing

learn investing?

im completely new to the world of investing. does anyone know of any: -websites -books -magazines i can use to research to get myself started? ultimately i'd like to invest my money online with a company that is easy to use and offers a low commision per trade

Public Comments

1. More and more, we are taking on the bulk of the costs of life. Corporations are cashing out pensions and moving towards the 401k, they’re putting more of the cost of medical insurance on us by way of higher premiums, copays and deductibles. We are funding more for disability, and long term care. Social security may be privatized in which case some very simple math will show most of us will do worse. If you are 25 today and you retire at 67 with a million dollar investment portfolio, that will safely generate $60K/year. But when you are 67, that 60K will only have the buying power of a little over $16K/year. It gets worse though, because at 67, you will still probably have 30 more years to live and that 16K will shrink each year until it’s only worth $8K/year at age 90. A million dollars isn’t what it used to be… and it will be even less in the future. So…. We must all become educated investors much more so then our parents were and start sooner. These are some basic steps to get you started. You’ve got to jump in now. Step 1. First decide what kind of brokerage you want to work with. You can open a brokerage account in your bank, with a large full service brokerage or an internet brokerage. I find when I get help, most people want to sell me things that are better for them then they are for me…. So I use http://www.scottrade.com because it’s cheap and easy with low frills. I like their streaming quotes and I do my own research and make my own investments. But any low cost internet brokerage service is fine. Step 2. get a subscription to Barrons or Investors Business Daily… Don't worry about the cost, and don’t skip this step. Do this for at least 6 months or a year. At first, It seems a bit mysterious, but pretty soon you start to understand the terms and things that investors are looking for and what they are afraid of. Step 3. If you have some money to invest, put it in 3 month CD’s right now. First the market is unstable and second you have some homework in Step 4 to do before you do any investing. Step 4. Go out to the internet and search on the following subjects. Become very familiar with the concepts. Asset allocation Long term investing asset correlation dollar cost averaging inflation Roth ira vs ira Large med small cap Value vs growth Indexed funds No load mutual funds ETF (also ETN and CEF all similar but with special differences) Sector funds Bonds, CD, preferred stock dividends International funds emerging markets commodities Market cycles volatility Fundamental analysis Technical analysis Life insurance term vs whole In most cases, I think it is wise to use indexed mutual funds and ETF to build the base of your portfolio. Step 5 go to http://clearstation.etrade.com/ and sign up for a free account. Play around there by looking at graphs and fundamentals. If you click on the graph names, you will get clear information about what the graph is based on and how to interpret it. I think it’s also a good idea to pretend you have $10,000 and start buying and selling on paper. Keep track of where you are each day for a month… It’s a lot easier to lose play money then real money…. WARNING: don’t rely on technical analysis alone. These graphs are good at telling you WHEN to buy and sell, but now WHAT to buy. Step 6. It’s always a good Idea to see a CFP (certified financial planner) especially if you have a family. But be sure to go to one who charges a fee, rather then one who gets paid a commission on your investments. Their job is to work for your benefit, not to sell you investments. They can cover subjects like employee benefits, insurance, budgeting, living trusts, 401k, taxes and real estate as well as investment types and investment types to keep away from. But you can buy the CFP study guide at any book store and learn a lot about those topics yourself. Always strive to do your own research… you’ll find everyone sounds like an expert so take everything people tell you with a grain of salt. It’s not easy in the beginning but soon you will be the expert. Don’t get involved with futures, currency, options (unless you get stock options at work), commodities, annuities or other derivative type investments at this time. Good Luck
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