Any of y'all "direct" investors?

[Mr Whiskey]

By this I mean YOU decide what stocks, bonds, or commodities to put your hard earned dollar in, not some fund manager or "asset allocation specialist".
Reason I ask, recently ran into an old friend "Mad Jack". He started drivin' a truck when he was 14 to help support his family & he's still drivin' a single axle dump truck at 77.
Got me thinkin' 'bout the future.
Those of ya that do invest/trade "by thine own hand" so to speak, I'd be interested to know how ya got started & how ya go about it day to day?
Through a broker, online platform, other?
How often?
Where/how you choose your investments?
Where you research them?
Anything you'd be willin' to share, TIA.

[The emperor has no clothes]

I did at one time. Almost doubled my money in less than a year. Thought I was a genius. Then it started going south. Got out when I was slightly less than even. Too much stress for me. I just stick to mutual funds now. (Sorry, I know this doesn’t help)

[sandy]

Try to find a reputable broker and get into Managed Mutual Funds. Start investing early in life and never stop. It'll pay off when you're in your 60's.

[Jess from VA]

Whiskey, I never used a broker or adviser or anyone who would charge a fee.  I'm not saying that might not be a good thing to do, IF you get the right guy who does not influence you to churn your accounts, just so he can earn a commission on every sale (and maybe purchases too).  I did some reading on the subject, and I talked to a few friends and family with more money and experience than I had too.

So I am/was not a trained investor, so I did what common sense and wisdom dictates;  I chose widely based/diversified growth and/or growth and income mutual funds, that did not have large fees, and were never high priced (per share)(some of these are very successful funds, but you find out you lose opportunity for growth when it's $100-200 a share, pass it by no matter how well it is doing), and I bought and HELD for long periods (always with Fidelity Investments and the limited choices of the Federal Thrift Savings program (with a little govt matching, which no one should ever pass up)).  

I would follow my investments over time, not daily or weekly, but every few months.  And every once in a while,  I might pull out of A, and go to B with one of my funds that was not doing as good as my others (I was generally in 4-6 mutual funds).  It took a little time and study, but was far from rocket science.  Toward the end, I also invested in some foreign ETFs which were doing better than American markets after the 2008 crash.  I made some and lost some in those.

I never purchased an individual stock in my life, though if I had a job like many do where the company will match a number of purchased shares in their own company, I would never turn that deal down (unless they were making screen doors for submarines).

I would be afraid of the market today however.  It has been blasting along for years (with only a good economy for months) and the number of predictions for a big correction (crash) keeps going up all the time.  I got out of the market entirely when I retired.  And with hind sight, I could have made some very decent money over the last few years.  But in retirement on low fixed incomes, you will never catch up with any catastrophic losses.  So even though I made next to nothing, I've also lost next to nothing (save very small inflation).  I'm a conservative in all things, including investing.  And I have to say, the loss of worry and anxiety about being actively in the market, esp in and after 2008, has been worth it's weight in gold to my mental health.  

How you invest must be related to how long you can and will stay in the market (to ride out any big downturns).  History shows us that you will average 7-10% gains over the long haul... but that may need 30 or more years to be true.  The closer to retirement you are, the more careful you need to be.

That's all I got.

PS, with my Fidelity Investments Brokerage account (no extra charge), I was always able to call and talk with a Broker qualified guy on the phone about things in general.  I didn't do it much, and the advice was always pretty generic, but it was helpful from time to time. 

[Mr Whiskey]

Try to find a reputable broker and get into Managed Mutual Funds. Start investing early in life and never stop. It'll pay off when you're in your 60's.

Thanks, shoulda mentioned I jus' turned 50,
& I've always been of the mind that the best steward of ones assets is yourself. No one's gonna care about my financial future as much as I am, so Managed Mutual Funds isn't quite what I'm lookin' for, but thanks for the reply.
Yes, I do wish I'd been more "savvy" concerning money when I was younger, then I wouldn't be feeling the need to play "catch up".

Whiskey, I never used a broker or adviser or anyone who would charge a fee.  I'm not saying that might not be a good thing to do, IF you get the right guy who does not influence you to churn your accounts, just so he can earn a commission on every sale (and maybe purchases too).  I did some reading on the subject, and I talked to a few friends and family with more money and experience than I had too.

So I am/was not a trained investor, so I did what common sense and wisdom dictates;  I chose widely based/diversified growth and/or growth and income mutual funds, that did not have large fees, and were never high priced (per share)(some of these are very successful funds, but you find out you lose opportunity for growth when it's $200 a share, pass it by no matter how well it is doing), and I bought and HELD for long periods (always with Fidelity Investments and the limited choices of the Federal Thrift Savings program (with a little govt matching, which no one should ever pass up)). 

I would follow my investments over time, not daily or weekly, but every few months.  And every once in a while,  I might pull out of A, and go to B with one of my funds that was not doing as good as my others (I was generally in 4-6 mutual funds).  It took a little time and study, but was far from rocket science.  Toward the end, I also invested in some foreign ETFs which were doing better than American markets after the 2008 crash.  I made some and lost some in those.

I never purchased an individual stock in my life, though if I had a job like many do where the company will match a number of purchased shares in their own company, I would never turn that deal down (unless they were making screen doors for submarines).

I would be afraid of the market today however.  It has been blasting along for years (with only a good economy for months) and the number of predictions for a big correction (crash) keeps going up all the time.  I got out of the market entirely when I retired.  And with hind sight, I could have made some very decent money over the last few years.  But in retirement on low fixed incomes, you will never catch up with any catastrophic losses.  So even though I made next to nothing, I've also lost next to nothing (save very small inflation).  I'm a conservative in all things, including investing.  And I have to say, the loss of worry and anxiety about being actively in the market, esp in and after 2008, has been worth it's weight in gold to my mental health.   

How you invest must be related to how long you can and will stay in the market (to ride out any big downturns).  History shows us that you will average 7-10% gains over the long haul... but that may need 30 or more years to be true.  The closer to retirement you are, the more careful you need to be.

That's all I got.

Thanks, this is what I jus' started doin' with Sugar's new 401k. Funny thing, Fidelity Investments is the primary I chose for her & it's on my calendar reminder to check it every other month.
I'm not that far from retirement age & we've not got much put back, don't own our own home, so I guess I'm feelin' alittle like not got much to lose.

Sure wish... but hindsight's always 20/20 aint it Bro!
Jus' hope I can avoid those "screen doors"

[Jess from VA]

Whiskey, Fidelity Inv has a pretty good reputation.  So does Wells Fargo.

Even though starting late, never treat investing like a poker game, or you'll get the same bad result.

[Serk]

The spousal unit is a retirement plan administrator (or was, now she does technical solutions architecting to other companies that administer and run retirement plans.)

Even with all that, I keep my retirement investing in mutual funds. It lessens the upside, but it also spreads out the risk.

I used to dabble in individual company stocks, made a little money, but I always treated that side as fun, like a trip to Vegas. Never put more in it than I could afford to lose (Kinda like I'm doing with crypto currency now, dabbling in it, but never putting more money in to it than I could afford to lose.)

All my "serious" long term investments are in mutual funds, mostly "Target date" oriented ones. (Plans oriented towards your projected retirement date.)

Needless to say but I'll say it, especially if you're starting late, put in as much as you possibly can now, even if it hurts...

[Mr Whiskey]

Whiskey, Fidelity Inv has a pretty good reputation.  So does Wells Fargo.

Even though starting late, never treat investing like a poker game, or you'll get the same bad result.

10-4, & thanks!
Yeah, I sux at poker...too much of the craziness goin' through my head
shows on my face

The spousal unit is a retirement plan administrator (or was, now she does technical solutions architecting to other companies that administer and run retirement plans.)

Even with all that, I keep my retirement investing in mutual funds. It lessens the upside, but it also spreads out the risk.

I used to dabble in individual company stocks, made a little money, but I always treated that side as fun, like a trip to Vegas. Never put more in it than I could afford to lose (Kinda like I'm doing with crypto currency now, dabbling in it, but never putting more money in to it than I could afford to lose.)

All my "serious" long term investments are in mutual funds, mostly "Target date" oriented ones. (Plans oriented towards your projected retirement date.)

Needless to say but I'll say it, especially if you're starting late, put in as much as you possibly can now, even if it hurts...

Thanks, yeah I'm plannin' to make some "painful" contributions, camper's already gone, bike's probably next (caint believe I jus' said that out loud )
& since I aint pullin' all that rig, downsize'n the diesel dually to a beater Toyota.
Still at the beginning of the learnin' curve (jus' learned the term "target date fund" recently with Sugar's new 401k) but guess I need to open an IRA or Roth.
Want to attack this issue on multiple fronts, some safer, some not so.
I'll understand completely if you don't want to answer these questions, but ya never know unless ya ask... which crypto, & how ya doin'? Thought about puttin' the bike money in it.

[Serk]

which crypto, & how ya doin'? Thought about puttin' the bike money in it.[/size]

I only started dabbling in crypto last week, and it's HIGHLY speculative IMHO. I'm only tossing a little bit of money in it (About $500 right now, I'll toss $20 or so per paycheck in there whenever the prices dip, but I look at it as something in lieu of buying lottery tickets, not a "serious" investment.)

I'm using Coincase as my broker and my crypto wallet for now, they're pretty user friendly. If you decide to dip your toes in it please consider using my referral link:

https://www.coinbase.com/join/5a5621eef940fe030ddc6060

If you use that link and jump through their verification hoops and buy at least $100 of Bitcoin, you'll get $10 of free Bitcoin and so will I.

Right now I'm mostly in Bitcoin (BTC) with a decent amount in Ethereum (ETH) and just enough to say I'm in it in Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and Litecoin (LTC).

Just checked my dashboard, and I've made $12 in the last week, on paper at least. But I'm not planning on flipping it fast, gonna let it ride for a while until it either goes way up or I lose it all...

I DEFINITELY wouldn't put more into crypto than you can afford to lose, especially at this late date. If only I'd known a few years ago where it'd be today I'd be a multi millionaire but c'est la vie...

(I've got a friend that put around $1000 into crypto several years ago and is a millionaire now... *Sigh* I'm pretty sure those days are behind us though...)

[hubcapsc]

I imagine doing it  

Where/how you choose your investments?

Look around for boring ubiquitous commodity kinds of stuff...
The Hub Group is something I "picked" while watching a mile
long train double-stacked with Hub Group containers.

Where you research them?

Put "the hub group" into google. Besides all the "normal" search
results that come out, there in the little google summary in the top
right:

Stock price: HUBG (NASDAQ) $51.85 +0.25 (+0.48%)
Jan 12, 4:00 PM EST - Disclaimer

I guess if you "picked" some likely stocks and paid attention to them
as above for some amount of time you might have an idea about which
ones you wish you owned...

-Mike "past performance doesn't guarantee future performance   "

[¿spoom]

Like Jess & Serk said. Back about 20 years ago when I picked some individual stocks, I used a broker who charged by the transaction, think it was $20~$25 for buy/sell compared to the $5 I see on ads now for e-trade kinda stuff. I had an account and could call and say, "get me 100 shares of amalgamated algamation if it's still under $20" and that was it. I also had the majority of my account in market shares. Seldom beat the S&P500 with my standalone picks by even 1% and sometimes lost in comparison, so I stopped. There wasn't easy online trading when I got started, so I can't say how to do what. The biggest problem is what's your time worth? I didn't have 20 hours a week to do research, and a dartboard seemed a poor Plan B. Hard to go wrong betting against Charles Payne's advice, but if you buy on Monday what he liked Saturday morning, it may have had a temporary spike from his advice. Besides, he bought Friday afternoon or earlier.
It's kind of like asking, "how do I pick the Kentucky Derby winner"?
I would honestly check around locally for a broker you can connect with on a personal level, and seek his/her advice. Have dinner, pick up the check. The more pressure you feel to play catch up, the worse you are liable to think and act wisely. I recently turned 62 and I'll be semi-retiring sometime this year if all goes according to plan. Up until last Fall I was mostly in stocks, playing it dangerous but also paying attention. About 2 weeks before the election, when it looked like Trump would win and the talking heads were trying scare people with how the market would crash if he did, along with the planet imploding, I went to 100% aggressive stocks. He won, I earned $18k in the 1st Quarter of 2017.  Fast forward, This Monday was rather stressful, as I spent the morning playing 3-way phone talks, transferring 401ks from two different firms to a IRA in a third. It was like trying to pick up a bowling ball with a pool cue while herding squirrels, but we got there. Though I personally feel the market (S&P) will still be strong for the next few months, I personally just dumped everything off into a 1½% 6mo. Cert. IRA because I want to be able to sleep at night again. I'll probably lose $10k~$20k in 2018 from this move, and even my broker has begged me to do otherwise, but he listens, and he understands. I lost around $33k in two weeks around 1999 or 2000 (I forget) expecting a rebound. Took years to get it back and I don't want to face that again. For right now I have had a huge run at the table and I am done. Chips cashed in and in relative terms, darn near have it in a coffee can buried in the backyard. I mention all this because it's 100% the wrong thing for you to do and probably 50% wrong for me, but I feel you really should get a broker to at least hear out your needs and make a plan. I was with Fidelity and ZF (Schwab) and am now with Raymond James. Told my RJ agent I didn't want to hear a word about annuities or I'd walk out the door, we get along fine
Try and look at the best/worst case scenarios   and decide if the difference is worth the risk. If you could make 10% a year, you could double your money in what, 7 years? (don't have calculator handy) but what if you lose 1%? 10%? 50%? It took me over 5 years just to make my $30k back, not counting opportunity cost on the missing money. Short answer, it's legal gambling and you don't want to bet the food money. The older you get, the more it's your food money  
  

[¿spoom]

I imagine doing it  

Where/how you choose your investments?

Look around for boring ubiquitous commodity kinds of stuff...
The Hub Group is something I "picked" while watching a mile
long train double-stacked with Hub Group containers.

Where you research them?

Put "the hub group" into google. Besides all the "normal" search
results that come out, there in the little google summary in the top
right:

Stock price: HUBG (NASDAQ) $51.85 +0.25 (+0.48%)
Jan 12, 4:00 PM EST - Disclaimer

I guess if you "picked" some likely stocks and paid attention to them
as above for some amount of time you might have an idea about which
ones you wish you owned...

-Mike "past performance doesn't guarantee future performance   "

Very true. 'course some REALLY smart people bought heavily into the White Star Line, I mean, how could you go wrong investing in John Pierpont Morgan as he attempted to corner the steamship market with IMM? 

[Oss]

It was like trying to pick up a bowling ball with a pool cue while herding squirrels,

God that was funny, I am gonna steal that one for use in court one day

[¿spoom]

It was like trying to pick up a bowling ball with a pool cue while herding squirrels,

God that was funny, I am gonna steal that one for use in court one day

You may have full rights for personal use for the customary 0.26%
(of a squirrel) 

[Jess from VA]

Just for starters Whiskey, lets talk about IRAs.  How you invest your IRA comes second, but first, maybe you can get a leg up on investing by just picking the smarter investment mechanism.

My knowledge has shelf-life-rules, that have now all now been changed, but the basic rules are the same.  

If you and the spouse's joint income is below a certain limit (and you are not covered by a co retirement plan), you can deduct all (or part) of each of your annual contributions from taxable income in a Traditional IRA.  You have to pay taxes later (when you are making less and paying in a reduced tax bracket), but paying less taxes today is always a good deal (and conversely, may allow you to invest a bit more now).

Most of my investment years, the max annual contribution to a Trad IRA was $2K a year.  That's now $5.5K each, and $6.5K if 50 or over.  Paying no (or only partial) taxes on this kind of money NOW is a very good deal.  

I got full deductability for me and the wife for a number of years, then partial deductability, and when no deductability was left (because we made too much), I invested in Roth IRAs, because unlike your 401K, although all contributions to Roth are POST tax dollars, there's no taxes on principle or earnings in a Roth, when you begin to take your money out.  

Now if your wife has a good 401K (say with some matching company benefits), you don't pass that up, but when she leaves (or they change 401K plans), then you roll that money all into a Traditional IRA, because no investment plan allows more consumer control of your own money more than an IRA.  401Ks can be looked at by authorities on demand, IRAs take a court order.  That's just one for instance.

Depending on who you have the IRA with, the sky is the limit on investment choices inside the IRA (like with Fidelity).  

Whether an IRA or 401K, you cannot have this money back without penalty before 59.5 years of age (emergency loans may be available).  

https://www.fidelity.com/retirement-ira/contribution-limits-deadlines  

[¿spoom]

Just for starters Whiskey, lets talk about IRAs.  How you invest your IRA comes second, but first, maybe you can get a leg up on investing by just picking the smarter investment mechanism.

My knowledge has shelf-life-rules, that have now all now been changed, but the basic rules are the same.  

If you and the spouse's joint income is below a certain limit (and you are not covered by a co retirement plan), you can deduct all (or part) of each of your annual contributions from taxable income in a Traditional IRA.  You have to pay taxes later (when you are making less and paying in a reduced tax bracket), but paying less taxes today is always a good deal (and conversely, may allow you to invest a bit more now).

Most of my investment years, the max annual contribution to a Trad IRA was $2K a year.  That's now $5.5K each, and $6.5K if 50 or over.  Paying no (or only partial) taxes on this kind of money NOW is a very good deal.  

I got full deductability for me and the wife for a number of years, then partial deductability, and when no deductability was left (because we made too much), I invested in Roth IRAs, because unlike your 401K, although all contributions to Roth are POST tax dollars, there's no taxes on principle or earnings in a Roth, when you begin to take your money out.  

Now if your wife has a good 401K (say with some matching company benefits), you don't pass that up, but when she leaves (or they change 401K plans), then you roll that money all into a Traditional IRA, because no investment plan allows more consumer control of your own money more than an IRA.  401Ks can be looked at by authorities on demand, IRAs take a court order.  That's just one for instance.

Depending on who you have the IRA with, the sky is the limit on investment choices inside the IRA (like with Fidelity).  

Whether an IRA or 401K, you cannot have this money back without penalty before 59.5 years of age (emergency loans may be available).  

https://www.fidelity.com/retirement-ira/contribution-limits-deadlines  

One thing that may be due for serious discussion is that tax-deferred part. Before Obamacare I'd have agreed before even reading the fine print, but now the rules have changed and may change many more times. I swear if I could have a do-over for my entire 401k life I would have paid the darn taxes and been done with it. My money, no birthday questions, no games. Let's say I retire at 62 tomorrow and sign up for SS and a crazy low payment, subsidized Obamacare $1300/month health insurance plan that I get for what, $200? 300? a month. Now I decide later I want a new bike. No problem, let's grab $30k tax deferred fun money from my IRA and head for the dealer. What does my health subsidy go to? Do I have a "you don't get squat" $50k+ income that year? (I honestly don't know) If not, what if the law changes the following year? I hate my current situation where most everything I worked for is visible and conditional to current or future whims of Congress. I probably should have just bought a Krugerrand every time I had the then current price of one saved up, and been done with it. Trump is a temporary diversion from the "show you're broke and win a prize" mentality of the last administration and left's current Bernie Santa, Warren heroes in waiting. So long as there's increased "means testing" rumblings, I'd rather not have a bunch of exposed wealth. Just a devil's advocate thought.

[Pappy!]

For research I use the "Motley Fool". They are extremely good with investment strategy and seem to make very few mistakes. I have made money investing with their stock suggestions. In these days of the early Trump administration you almost cannot help making money in the market.
As far as 401K goes I manage my investments in a more limited way since the offerings are limited. Since the Trump economy came in I changed to a more aggressive stance and in one 401K I am earning approx. 23% right now. In another I am earning around 17%. The second fund is actually managed by a pro. He is more conservative than I am apparently.

[FryeVRCCDS0067]

I got started with a 401 with Fidelity about 20 years ago. I really like Fidelity and in particular Fidelity mutual funds although I do have individual stocks with Fidelity, TD Ameritrade and another stock company I got involved with because they have a local branch. In hindsight, if I had been aware of their high trade charges i would have never walked through their door.

Fidelity generally charges 0 dollars per trade of their mutual funds and their mutual funds have far outperformed individual stocks for me. I use their website to research the Morning Star rating of these funds and use that and what little common sense I have to make my choices.

I look for funds with a 4 star or above overall rating. At least a 4 out of 5 returns rating, a very low expense rating and a risk rating of just over medium. I also look for funds which primarily own domestic stocks. One that I picked this way has nearly doubled in value since I've owned it.

I also pay attention to the news and how I think things will go with certain stocks based on that. Such as buying into defense oriented companies just after the election on the sure knowledge that Trump would start rebuilding our military. If I'd had more confidence in the good guys winning I would have done so before the election when the world looked like crap for the defense industry and really cleaned up.

Sometimes, just as in my daily life, I try to do the exact opposite of what I see most people doing, such as.

Just after 9/11 when stocks tanked badly. My 401 probably lost 40% or more during that period. Many of my co-workers panicked and moved their 401 stocks to less risky holdings after they had already lost a crap load of money. When they did this they locked in their losses. What I did was move out of less risky funds putting my entire retirement fund into the riskier ones that had bottomed. I also greatly increased my payroll deductions so I could buy up more shares while the price was low. The result was that I cleaned up when the prices came back while my co-workers had to live with the losses they locked in as a result of their panic selling.

You can open a TD Ameritrade account online with $50 and then buy and sell individual stocks, not sure about mutual funds, I haven't looked. The people at Fidelity are superb and always friendly, polite and helpful.

Individual stocks are, in my experience harder to make money in and riskier too in my opinion. Although they are kinda fun. As I reach the non-working part of my life I'll probably start moving out of growth oriented funds and more into funds that pay good dividends which can be used as income without selling shares of the underlying stock.

One other thing, I never buy a stock or mutual fund I don't intend to keep at least a year. Many people trade back and forth frequently and make money evidently but it's not something I do.

[¿spoom]

I got started with a 401 with Fidelity about 20 years ago. I really like Fidelity and in particular Fidelity mutual funds although I do have individual stocks with Fidelity, TD Ameritrade and another stock company I got involved with because they have a local branch. In hindsight, if I had been aware of their high trade charges i would have never walked through their door.

Fidelity generally charges 0 dollars per trade of their mutual funds and their mutual funds have far outperformed individual stocks for me. I use their website to research the Morning Star rating of these funds and use that and what little common sense I have to make my choices.

I look for funds with a 4 star or above overall rating. At least a 4 out of 5 returns rating, a very low expense rating and a risk rating of just over medium. I also look for funds which primarily own domestic stocks. One that I picked this way has nearly doubled in value since I've owned it.

I also pay attention to the news and how I think things will go with certain stocks based on that. Such as buying into defense oriented companies just after the election on the sure knowledge that Trump would start rebuilding our military. If I'd had more confidence in the good guys winning I would have done so before the election when the world looked like crap for the defense industry and really cleaned up.

Sometimes, just as in my daily life, I try to do the exact opposite of what I see most people doing, such as.

Just after 9/11 when stocks tanked badly. My 401 probably lost 40% or more during that period. Many of my co-workers panicked and moved their 401 stocks to less risky holdings after they had already lost a crap load of money. When they did this they locked in their losses. What I did was move out of less risky funds putting my entire retirement fund into the riskier ones that had bottomed. I also greatly increased my payroll deductions so I could buy up more shares while the price was low. The result was that I cleaned up when the prices came back while my co-workers had to live with the losses they locked in as a result of their panic selling.

You can open a TD Ameritrade account online with $50 and then buy and sell individual stocks, not sure about mutual funds, I haven't looked. The people at Fidelity are superb and always friendly, polite and helpful.

Individual stocks are, in my experience harder to make money in and riskier too in my opinion. Although they are kinda fun. As I reach the non-working part of my life I'll probably start moving out of growth oriented funds and more into funds that pay good dividends which can be used as income without selling shares of the underlying stock.

One other thing, I never buy a stock or mutual fund I don't intend to keep at least a year. Many people trade back and forth frequently and make money evidently but it's not something I do.

Good points, and I always had great service from Fidelity, also Schwab. The main reason I'm with Raymond James now is because I wished to use a new, local agent whom I get along well with, is very competent, and being in his 30's will hopfully be the last agent I outlive. Since my future needs will be very simple compared to the past, and the RJ fees are all about the same as the other big boys, it all came down to personalities and access.

Loved your, "I also pay attention to the news and how I think things will go with certain stocks based on that. Such as buying into defense oriented companies just after the election on the sure knowledge that Trump would start rebuilding our military. If I'd had more confidence in the good guys winning I would have done so before the election when the world looked like crap for the defense industry and really cleaned up.

Sometimes, just as in my daily life, I try to do the exact opposite of what I see most people doing, such as."
That's me to a fault, and exactly what I did the last week of Oct before the election. Military and energy did very well, and that's why I decided to not be greedy (i.e. risky) and sit out for a while. Like playing poker, when you need the money desperately you often can't be clinical and make moves based only on the cards and your opponent. I found myself caring too much about what I kept opposed to made this year, so unlike the advice I'd give the OP, I got out.

[FryeVRCCDS0067]

I got started with a 401 with Fidelity about 20 years ago. I really like Fidelity and in particular Fidelity mutual funds although I do have individual stocks with Fidelity, TD Ameritrade and another stock company I got involved with because they have a local branch. In hindsight, if I had been aware of their high trade charges i would have never walked through their door.

Fidelity generally charges 0 dollars per trade of their mutual funds and their mutual funds have far outperformed individual stocks for me. I use their website to research the Morning Star rating of these funds and use that and what little common sense I have to make my choices.

I look for funds with a 4 star or above overall rating. At least a 4 out of 5 returns rating, a very low expense rating and a risk rating of just over medium. I also look for funds which primarily own domestic stocks. One that I picked this way has nearly doubled in value since I've owned it.

I also pay attention to the news and how I think things will go with certain stocks based on that. Such as buying into defense oriented companies just after the election on the sure knowledge that Trump would start rebuilding our military. If I'd had more confidence in the good guys winning I would have done so before the election when the world looked like crap for the defense industry and really cleaned up.

Sometimes, just as in my daily life, I try to do the exact opposite of what I see most people doing, such as.

Just after 9/11 when stocks tanked badly. My 401 probably lost 40% or more during that period. Many of my co-workers panicked and moved their 401 stocks to less risky holdings after they had already lost a crap load of money. When they did this they locked in their losses. What I did was move out of less risky funds putting my entire retirement fund into the riskier ones that had bottomed. I also greatly increased my payroll deductions so I could buy up more shares while the price was low. The result was that I cleaned up when the prices came back while my co-workers had to live with the losses they locked in as a result of their panic selling.

You can open a TD Ameritrade account online with $50 and then buy and sell individual stocks, not sure about mutual funds, I haven't looked. The people at Fidelity are superb and always friendly, polite and helpful.

Individual stocks are, in my experience harder to make money in and riskier too in my opinion. Although they are kinda fun. As I reach the non-working part of my life I'll probably start moving out of growth oriented funds and more into funds that pay good dividends which can be used as income without selling shares of the underlying stock.

One other thing, I never buy a stock or mutual fund I don't intend to keep at least a year. Many people trade back and forth frequently and make money evidently but it's not something I do.

Like playing poker, when you need the money desperately you often can't be clinical and make moves based only on the cards and your opponent. I found myself caring too much about what I kept opposed to made this year, so unlike the advice I'd give the OP, I got out.

Pretty much where I anticipate being in 3 years. I've got much to learn about how (if possible) to generate income from and still protect whatever I have accumulated by that time. Really enjoyed and learned from you posts by the way. Thanks

[Mr Whiskey]

If you and the spouse's joint income is below a certain limit (and you are not covered by a co retirement plan), you can deduct all (or part) of each of your annual contributions from taxable income in a Traditional IRA.  You have to pay taxes later (when you are making less and paying in a reduced tax bracket), but paying less taxes today is always a good deal (and conversely, may allow you to invest a bit more now).

Most of my investment years, the max annual contribution to a Trad IRA was $2K a year.  That's now $5.5K each, and $6.5K if 50 or over.  Paying no (or only partial) taxes on this kind of money NOW is a very good deal.  

I got full deductability for me and the wife for a number of years, then partial deductability, and when no deductability was left (because we made too much), I invested in Roth IRAs, because unlike your 401K, although all contributions to Roth are POST tax dollars, there's no taxes on principle or earnings in a Roth, when you begin to take your money out.  

Now if your wife has a good 401K (say with some matching company benefits), you don't pass that up, but when she leaves (or they change 401K plans), then you roll that money all into a Traditional IRA, because no investment plan allows more consumer control of your own money more than an IRA.  401Ks can be looked at by authorities on demand, IRAs take a court order.  That's just one for instance.

Depending on who you have the IRA with, the sky is the limit on investment choices inside the IRA (like with Fidelity).  

Whether an IRA or 401K, you cannot have this money back without penalty before 59.5 years of age (emergency loans may be available).  

https://www.fidelity.com/retirement-ira/contribution-limits-deadlines  

Wow, jus' wow! I learned more about money in 3 min. than they managed to teach me in 3 years of high school!
Yes, Sugar's 401k matches up to 6% dollar for dollar and that's what she's puttin' in. I now think I'll increase our contributions to that substantially. I mean we aint got alot but it's jus' us here (kids are grow'd) & we carry no debt. Everything we've got is paid for so we jus' need to budget better & "pay ourselves" with those contributions. I also agree with your line of thinking concerning tax's, more to invest now & hope it doesn't come back to bite me in the a$$ down the road when Big Brother can see it.
Didn't know there was no tax on earnings in a Roth, I'll school myself on them as well.
Thank you, seriously!

I'm using Coincase as my broker and my crypto wallet for now, they're pretty user friendly. If you decide to dip your toes in it please consider using my referral link:

https://www.coinbase.com/join/5a5621eef940fe030ddc6060

If you use that link and jump through their verification hoops and buy at least $100 of Bitcoin, you'll get $10 of free Bitcoin and so will I.

I DEFINITELY wouldn't put more into crypto than you can afford to lose, especially at this late date. If only I'd known a few years ago where it'd be today I'd be a multi millionaire but c'est la vie...

(I've got a friend that put around $1000 into crypto several years ago and is a millionaire now... *Sigh* I'm pretty sure those days are behind us though...)

Thank you & I will use the link if I decide to get in (who doesn't like free $!)
I agree the "best" days of crypto are prob already behind us. Might be a few more "rockets" but... how to pick 'em.
I've got a friend who got into Bitcoin for pennies, & sold 400 coin in late '16. Now he made 100k, paid off his house & cars, & doesn't complain because a very modest investment made him a substantial gain (fewer worries) but that 400 coin would be worth roughly 6 million today!

I imagine doing it 

Where/how you choose your investments?

Look around for boring ubiquitous commodity kinds of stuff...
The Hub Group is something I "picked" while watching a mile
long train double-stacked with Hub Group containers.

Sounds like something I would do Thanks
So, how much imaginary money has it made ya? (If ya don't mind my askin' )

There wasn't easy online trading when I got started, so I can't say how to do what. The biggest problem is what's your time worth? I didn't have 20 hours a week to do research, and a dartboard seemed a poor Plan B.

I would honestly check around locally for a broker you can connect with on a personal level, and seek his/her advice. Have dinner, pick up the check. The more pressure you feel to play catch up, the worse you are liable to think and act wisely.

I decide later I want a new bike. No problem, let's grab $30k tax deferred fun money from my IRA and head for the dealer. What does my health subsidy go to? Do I have a "you don't get squat" $50k+ income that year? (I honestly don't know) If not, what if the law changes the following year? I hate my current situation where most everything I worked for is visible and conditional to current or future whims of Congress.

I actually enjoy the research! I'm one of those people who has to have a high volume of input pretty much constantly (& I quit watching TV over a decade ago, lol) so I thrive on diggin' at the PC. (I'm also an extrovert and find my ability to annoy people in general rather entertaining, aint nobody I caint talk too )
I'll have fun shakin' down brokers
Thanks for the warning, I don't particularly like Uncle Sam (or anyone else for that matter) in my financial business either.

Fidelity generally charges 0 dollars per trade of their mutual funds and their mutual funds have far outperformed individual stocks for me. I use their website to research the Morning Star rating of these funds and use that and what little common sense I have to make my choices.

I look for funds with a 4 star or above overall rating. At least a 4 out of 5 returns rating, a very low expense rating and a risk rating of just over medium. I also look for funds which primarily own domestic stocks. One that I picked this way has nearly doubled in value since I've owned it.

Sometimes, just as in my daily life, I try to do the exact opposite of what I see most people doing, such as.

Just after 9/11 when stocks tanked badly. My 401 probably lost 40% or more during that period. Many of my co-workers panicked and moved their 401 stocks to less risky holdings after they had already lost a crap load of money. When they did this they locked in their losses. What I did was move out of less risky funds putting my entire retirement fund into the riskier ones that had bottomed. I also greatly increased my payroll deductions so I could buy up more shares while the price was low. The result was that I cleaned up when the prices came back while my co-workers had to live with the losses they locked in as a result of their panic selling.

Thanks for the advice on mutual funds, I'll remember to check out the Morning Star ratings, & I also tend to do things that often run counter to the current. I remember telling someone not long after 9/11 "should be buyin' airline stocks". I believe Buffett did jus' that & cleaned up.

For research I use the "Motley Fool". They are extremely good with investment strategy and seem to make very few mistakes. I have made money investing with their stock suggestions. In these days of the early Trump administration you almost cannot help making money in the market.
As far as 401K goes I manage my investments in a more limited way since the offerings are limited. Since the Trump economy came in I changed to a more aggressive stance and in one 401K I am earning approx. 23% right now. In another I am earning around 17%. The second fund is actually managed by a pro. He is more conservative than I am apparently.

You're the second one to mention Motley Fool to me in a good light & I'm thrilled to hear it, since I'm already following them. Also nice to know someone's out performing the "pros" Always wondered what makes 'em so special anyway, they had to learn how to pick 'em, so why caint I

[Hacked Valk]

A broker is only going to take a share of your account whether it goes up or down and may increase your costs by making frequent trades. Go online to Vanguard (my employers choice of a mutual fund for very good reasons), open an account and put money into a balanced fund that holds stocks and bonds.  Always be prepared for bad years, enjoy the good times and don't try to outguess the market by changing funds. Traditional wisdom is stocks outperform bonds over time with the emphasis on time but bonds remain more stable.  In a rising inflation it's possible to loose money in a bond fund.  In a balanced fund or an age based fund stocks and bonds together provide stability with a growth potential upside from stocks.  Buying individual stocks is risky because it's easy to hop onto the latest "hot" deals.  By the time the average investor hears about them it's too late.  Don't fall for advice to buy cybercurrencies, metals like gold or penny stocks.  Don't listen to the shouting advisers online or on television/radio.  There is NO guarantee in any investment.

[Mr Whiskey]

A broker is only going to take a share of your account whether it goes up or down and may increase your costs by making frequent trades. Go online to Vanguard (my employers choice of a mutual fund for very good reasons), open an account and put money into a balanced fund that holds stocks and bonds.  Always be prepared for bad years, enjoy the good times and don't try to outguess the market by changing funds. Traditional wisdom is stocks outperform bonds over time with the emphasis on time but bonds remain more stable.  In a rising inflation it's possible to loose money in a bond fund.  In a balanced fund or an age based fund stocks and bonds together provide stability with a growth potential upside from stocks.  Buying individual stocks is risky because it's easy to hop onto the latest "hot" deals.  By the time the average investor hears about them it's too late.  Don't fall for advice to buy cybercurrencies, metals like gold or penny stocks.  Don't listen to the shouting advisers online or on television/radio.  There is NO guarantee in any investment.

Thanks, I'll take a look at Vanguard, & I'm an almost impossible sell. I might buy somethin'...but it's darn hard to sell me anything
I always think of Rockefeller & the shoe shine boy,
when the man on the street knows, it's time to get out!

P.S. Dig your tag line!
Makes me think of...
"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."
Arthur C. Clarke

A pane of glass is an invisible force field, to a fly

[Hacked Valk]

A broker is only going to take a share of your account whether it goes up or down and may increase your costs by making frequent trades. Go online to Vanguard (my employers choice of a mutual fund for very good reasons), open an account and put money into a balanced fund that holds stocks and bonds.  Always be prepared for bad years, enjoy the good times and don't try to outguess the market by changing funds. Traditional wisdom is stocks outperform bonds over time with the emphasis on time but bonds remain more stable.  In a rising inflation it's possible to loose money in a bond fund.  In a balanced fund or an age based fund stocks and bonds together provide stability with a growth potential upside from stocks.  Buying individual stocks is risky because it's easy to hop onto the latest "hot" deals.  By the time the average investor hears about them it's too late.  Don't fall for advice to buy cybercurrencies, metals like gold or penny stocks.  Don't listen to the shouting advisers online or on television/radio.  There is NO guarantee in any investment.

Thanks, I'll take a look at Vanguard, & I'm an almost impossible sell. I might buy somethin'...but it's darn hard to sell me anything
I always think of Rockefeller & the shoe shine boy,
when the man on the street knows, it's time to get out!

P.S. Dig your tag line!
Makes me think of...
"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."
Arthur C. Clarke

A pane of glass is an invisible force field, to a fly

Let me say that Vanguard will NEVER try to sell you anything or make any kind of recommendation.  If ask they may offer suggestions specific for your situation but not point you to specific vestments.  Their representatives make NO commissions and are all salaried.  Also, they are almost always have the lowest fees of any of the mutual funds. Nor is there even any need to talk to anyone.  Everything can be done online if desired including openings closing accounts, transferring money between different funds or moving money from them back to your bank.  I've been a member for about 35 years and since they went online have yet to talk directly with them.  All decisions about my money, where it's kept when it's moved are handled with a few key clicks.  With only a few exceptions you are free to move money out of a fund at any time and also with few exceptions it costs nothing to join or leave a particular fund.  I.e. No load. Don't invest in any loaded mutual funds.  Vanguard does Discourage frequent trading between funds by applying a time interval before you can replace money in a particular fund after withdrawing it or exchanging it to another fund. Finally they are structured so that Vanguard is investor (me and everyone else who has money with them) owned so no company or entity makes a profit from them.  You can also buy new corporate, instituional or government bonds or on the secondary market as well as new bank or secondary market CD's at no cost.  You can tell I like them a lot but you go with whomever you're comfortable with.  

[¿spoom]

"Yes, Sugar's 401k matches up to 6% dollar for dollar and that's what she's puttin' in."

Hard to beat a 6% head start, and since you're already in it, it's seamless to add too. Just make sure you're going to be vested in their match, and if you're thinking of leaving them managing it no longer tied to an employer make sure you know what all their fees are from managing to transferring funds out, to making changes, etc.

[¿spoom]

My favorite is the companies that hawked silver as a great investment a short time ago, and of course it tanked because it had already been driven up by frightened, gullible "investors". Now, these exact same POS metal dealers run TV commercials showing (correctly) that "silver is at record lows, and if you buy now you could...". There's no shame with these guys whatsoever. I can't believe somebody who lost 50% previously hasn't seen one of the new commercials and brain-snapped into becoming an "active shooter situation".

[¿spoom]

A broker is only going to take a share of your account whether it goes up or down

While true, it's a little simplistic because the fee CAN be very, very low, and the funds lost with a simple mistake can easily exceed the broker's fee. I like Vanguard and had a good sum in one of it's funds at one time. It was in an account that was being charged a .26% fee, which in my case I felt was negligible for the service provided. When you're working 10-12 hours a day as a sole proprietor business, research time was at times competing with my sanity. One has to put a realistic value on one's time. Peeps used to laugh at me for dropping a car off to have a new exhaust put on or replacing upper & lower intake manifold gaskets. I was in skilled trades (robotics and other automation) and I much preferred to spend 4 hours in the plant doing what I was good at on a Saturday, earning enough to pay the mechanic to do what he was good at for 6 hours instead of me doing it for the first time and taking all weekend (or worse) to do it myself. When I'm retired I'll be glad to do most everything for my self.

[The emperor has no clothes]

My favorite is the companies that hawked silver as a great investment a short time ago, and of course it tanked because it had already been driven up by frightened, gullible "investors". Now, these exact same POS metal dealers run TV commercials showing (correctly) that "silver is at record lows, and if you buy now you could...". There's no shame with these guys whatsoever. I can't believe somebody who lost 50% previously hasn't seen one of the new commercials and brain-snapped into becoming an "active shooter situation".

When I was in my 20's a friends Dad kept harping to me that I should buy silver. He swore I'd get rich. I got tired of hearing it every time I'd go over to my friends house. To shut him up I finally bought some. In no time at all it tanked. Never a word was said about investing again.   (I still have an ingot just to remind me not to be foolish)

[Hacked Valk]

Gold has been on a tear the last week going up about 125 bucks an ounce.  Better buy now before it's too late..lol
If one is so inclined to dip their toe into precious metal (actual metal, not futures or stock) I can recommend AJPM in Portland Oregon as a very reputable dealer.  There is of course a difference in the price they offer depending on buying or selling. It's not bad but discourages trying to make a quick buck. Today there is about a 60.00 dollar difference in buy/sell at a spot price of $1335 per ounce.  Difference in buy/sell for silver is a lot higher percentage wise. $1.50 to $2.00 depending on its form and amount.
Meathead, that was likely back when the Hunt brothers were trying to manipulate the silve market and caused a huge bubble. Gold more recently after 9-11.

[The emperor has no clothes]

Gold has been on a tear the last week going up about 125 bucks an ounce.  Better buy now before it's too late..lol
If one is so inclined to dip their toe into precious metal (actual metal, not futures or stock) I can recommend AJPM in Portland Oregon as a very reputable dealer.  There is of course a difference in the price they offer depending on buying or selling. It's not bad but discourages trying to make a quick buck. Today there is about a 60.00 dollar difference in buy/sell at a spot price of $1335 per ounce.  Difference in buy/sell for silver is a lot higher percentage wise. $1.50 to $2.00 depending on its form and amount.
Meathead, that was likely back when the Hunt brothers were trying to manipulate the silve market and caused a huge bubble. Gold more recently after 9-11.

Yes it was.  After that and after nearly getting burned in the dotcom bubble, I decided that stuff was too stressful for me. I've been very aggressive with my 401k investments and it's done me good. But, I initially would look at it EVERY day. Sometimes losing 20-30k in a day, sometimes making the same. Now I look at it only every other month or so, and I'm a lot happier. My next big decision will be what to do as I near retirement. I hate to get less aggressive but I know it would be wise to.

[Hacked Valk]

I understand.  No clear answer.  Being retired I'm split about 60/40 bonds to stock funds.  But I think tomorrow I'll put more in short term bonds since the market has gone up so much.  Maybe 75/25. May miss out on more gains but I'm too old to recover from another large correction or worse. 

[phideux]

I let the pros handle my investments for me, but on the side, I got a little bit of money that I play with.
The biggest rule, don't be playing the market with money you can't afford to lose. Lately I have been doing great playing the stocks. I've been playing in the Pot market. Legal weed is becoming one of the biggest industries of this century, and will only become bigger as more and more states jump on the bandwagon. I wont tell you what to buy or not buy. Do the research. Maybe you will be the next Marijuana Millionaire.
If I would have started out with the tens of thousands instead of a couple thousand, I would have been there now.

[The emperor has no clothes]

I let the pros handle my investments for me, but on the side, I got a little bit of money that I play with.
The biggest rule, don't be playing the market with money you can't afford to lose. Lately I have been doing great playing the stocks. I've been playing in the Pot market. Legal weed is becoming one of the biggest industries of this century, and will only become bigger as more and more states jump on the bandwagon. I wont tell you what to buy or not buy. Do the research. Maybe you will be the next Marijuana Millionaire.
If I would have started out with the tens of thousands instead of a couple thousand, I would have been there now.

Hopefully Jeff Sessions won't wipe you out. 

[Jess from VA]

I also have a lifetime of investing in precious metals.

Ruger, Colt, Smith, Winchester, Remington, Browning, Springield Armory (old and new), Marlin, Mossberg, Sig, Stag, FN.......

Oh yeah, and lots of lead and brass.

(But no stinking Glocks.)  

And while I could hardly live off my earnings from this metal, it is absolutely certain that it is worth a bunch more than I paid for it.  But this particular investment is strictly buy and hold, though I do part with some lead from time to time.

I did dabble in gold (mines, not metal) for awhile.  Had to wait almost 5 years to get out even.  

  

[Serk]

(But no stinking Glocks.)  

I knew I liked you for good reasons...

[¿spoom]

I let the pros handle my investments for me, but on the side, I got a little bit of money that I play with.
The biggest rule, don't be playing the market with money you can't afford to lose. Lately I have been doing great playing the stocks. I've been playing in the Pot market. Legal weed is becoming one of the biggest industries of this century, and will only become bigger as more and more states jump on the bandwagon. I wont tell you what to buy or not buy. Do the research. Maybe you will be the next Marijuana Millionaire.
If I would have started out with the tens of thousands instead of a couple thousand, I would have been there now.

You got more balls than the NBA. If the Feds start to enforce the laws...

[Ken Tarver]

Jess,
I’m not attempting to argue but for me there was a way to draw from my IRA before 59 1/2.
When I retired from Ma Bell at 51 y o, I took my company saving plan and lump sum retirement money and put in an managed IRA. A cpa told me there was a way I could draw from that IRA before I was
59 1/2 with no penalty. I told my money mgr about it, and she had never heard about it, but researched it and found out the info was correct. I forget the plan name or number, and I don’t know if that option is still available. Anyway, I made draws from the IRA from the time I retired till turning 59 1/2 (and still drawing). The requirement for making the draw in that time frame was that I had to withdraw the exact amount, to the exact penny, whether it be a monthly, quarterly, or annual. I chose the annual draw just thinking in my pea-brain it would be less chance of someone screwing it up. After age 59 1/2 the amount of draw is flexible.
And at 66 now, I’m still making that same draw.

Ken

[Hacked Valk]

Ken, you annuitized you IRA.
I felt the same about investing in pot stocks about four years ago.  I bought a couplethousand shares of
a company called Grow Life (Symbol PHOT on OTC)They sell supplies to growers.  Think I paid around 30 Cents a share.  Price went up for a while then they got caught in some kind of accounting irregularities and the price dropped to practically nothing.  I still have it and current price is 0.003 . That's 3/10 of a cent  .  Not even a penny stock. Watching it keeps me humble.

[phideux]

I let the pros handle my investments for me, but on the side, I got a little bit of money that I play with.
The biggest rule, don't be playing the market with money you can't afford to lose. Lately I have been doing great playing the stocks. I've been playing in the Pot market. Legal weed is becoming one of the biggest industries of this century, and will only become bigger as more and more states jump on the bandwagon. I wont tell you what to buy or not buy. Do the research. Maybe you will be the next Marijuana Millionaire.
If I would have started out with the tens of thousands instead of a couple thousand, I would have been there now.

You got more balls than the NBA. If the Feds start to enforce the laws...

I don't see them enforcing it any time soon, too much money in it. Also get some gold and silver, not some stocks that say you are in gold and silver, but the real deal.

[Jess from VA]

Jess,
I’m not attempting to argue but for me there was a way to draw from my IRA before 59 1/2.
When I retired from Ma Bell at 51 y o, I took my company saving plan and lump sum retirement money and put in an managed IRA. A cpa told me there was a way I could draw from that IRA before I was
59 1/2 with no penalty. I told my money mgr about it, and she had never heard about it, but researched it and found out the info was correct. I forget the plan name or number, and I don’t know if that option is still available. Anyway, I made draws from the IRA from the time I retired till turning 59 1/2 (and still drawing). The requirement for making the draw in that time frame was that I had to withdraw the exact amount, to the exact penny, whether it be a monthly, quarterly, or annual. I chose the annual draw just thinking in my pea-brain it would be less chance of someone screwing it up. After age 59 1/2 the amount of draw is flexible.
And at 66 now, I’m still making that same draw.

Ken

Well Ken, as I said in my post, my shelf life on on the rules is dated (and I'm no investment pro).  If there is such a thing as annuitizing your IRA (to take some before 59.5 without penalty), I've never heard of it.  But I'm glad you pointed it out for folks.

Lately, at almost 65, I am wondering if I should go ahead and set up the plan (which satisfies the IRS) to begin taking my traditional IRA (into which I rolled my lifetime 401K), either monthly or annually.  The same plan I MUST set up by 70.5, or get penalized. 

I have no IRA money in the market (just cash, at peanuts, but no risk of loss except inflation), so it's not like I would lose any potential earnings.  I do not need this money, and am motoring along just fine on my small pension and Social Security, and the last thing I want to do is pay more taxes (which of course I will), but I'm thinking if I amortize this chunk of change over a longer period (starting at 65 instead of 70.5), maybe my net taxes over time will be a bit less than otherwise.  (If that makes any sense)

I also am responsible for no one but myself, and no family is depending on my savings (at my eventual death). 

And I am aware that one must always be cognizant of potential changes in the rules and the tax rates.

Any thoughts? Anyone?