financial advisor for providers

nuglet, you have to be balls up to day trade. AND you have to be in play all day long when you trade. Day trading is not for the meek. The request was for help on financial planning, which pretty much tells me that she's not greatly experienced in "the world of finance" like some of us here.

I don't day trade simply because I can't sit and watch the real time displays. Not everybody knows how to make plays on pennies. Me? I used to do currency. Now I don't have time.

But 6 months in a money market or municipal bond fund, then go 4 up in a couch potato in an IRA and in taxable. Buy & hold does well over the long haul.

WTF? All I wanted was for some providers who are in their early 20s to invest some cash and be in a good position later in life. How the hell did this turn into a pissing match.

I don't think this is what Britney had in mind either.

My two cents worth Brit....Find yourself a mentor, and a handfull of ladies and start an "investment club" that meets regularly. Determine a set $ mark for investing dues at each meeting. Your mentor should set up classes each meeting to "teach" you the different aspects of investing. Whether Monthly, bi-monthly, or whatever....
not only can you learn "the ropes of investing" but you also socking some $$ away.
It has worked for my family for years.P.S. It will require doing some research at the library!

when your young is the time to start investing/saving.. its a miracle what compund interest can do...
lets say you invest 10k at age 30 and dont touch it.. and earn 8% a year
to figure out how your money grows use the rule of 72
72/rate of return tells you how long money takes to double
so with 8% a year after 9 years you have 20k
after 18 years 40k
after 27 years 80k

so a 25 year old putting 10k away can have 80k at age 52 without investing another dime

My two cents worth Brit....Find yourself a mentor, and a handfull of ladies and start an "investment club" that meets regularly. Determine a set $ mark for investing dues at each meeting Originally Posted by woodstretcher

That really is an excellent idea.

Also, if you w3atch CNBC on cable TV, you can learn a lot from it. Two other things - the market is forward looking, usually what investors think the economy will be like in 6 months, not what is going on today - except for bad news, and there is an old saying: "as January goes, so goes the rest of the year." That isn't 100% accurate, but it has been pretty often; a bad January has often meant a declining market for the rest of the year.

actionjackson647 - Where did you find 8 percent.. Thats a good return.

when your young is the time to start investing/saving.. its a miracle what compund interest can do...
lets say you invest 10k at age 30 and dont touch it.. and earn 8% a year
to figure out how your money grows use the rule of 72
72/rate of return tells you how long money takes to double
so with 8% a year after 9 years you have 20k
after 18 years 40k
after 27 years 80k

so a 25 year old putting 10k away can have 80k at age 52 without investing another dime Originally Posted by actionjackson647

That's age 57, not 52.
And at 66 you have 160K.

If you wait longer before investing, it takes more to get there. You have to invest 40K at age 48 instead of 10K at 30 to have that 160K nestegg.

actionjackson647 - Where did you find 8 percent.. Thats a good return. Originally Posted by AustinsGurlz

Stock market returns over a long term can average 8%, maybe more, maybe less. CD's or money markets or bonds would not do this.

That's age 57, not 52.
And at 66 you have 160K.

If you wait longer before investing, it takes more to get there. You have to invest 40K at age 48 instead of 10K at 30 to have that 160K nestegg. Originally Posted by ezman

Problem is by the time you're 66 the original 10k when you were 25 will be worth about the same value as 160k at the rate things are going.
A one hour session will cost 5k provided you stop at Randalls and pick up a cheap $900 bottle of wine on the way over.

That's age 57, not 52.
And at 66 you have 160K.

If you wait longer before investing, it takes more to get there. You have to invest 40K at age 48 instead of 10K at 30 to have that 160K nestegg. Originally Posted by ezman

last i checked 25 + 27 years = 52

actionjackson647 - Where did you find 8 percent.. Thats a good return. Originally Posted by AustinsGurlz

long term return are 8%...
give me a dividend paying stock with a 5% yield and you only need 3% price appreciation

One thing I learned in 07/08 is that I need to modify my long term investment views (save, buy n' hold to save, buy'n hold 'n maintain).

A lot of good opinions on investing and trading. Good discussion despite the ratholes.

Like many have mentioned, start with a plan that is realistic.
It can be as easy as save $1200 in the bank by end of year ($100/month). Then the next step can increasing the amount and add an investment type (bonds, funds, etc).

It's interesting to see other people perspective on this topic. All I can say is WOW. There are actually recommendations for day-trading and playing options, currencies and futures. I wouldn't even recommend anyone to play in stocks and mutual funds, unless they know what they're doing, because it is indeed "manipulated" and personally I think it's a scam. You can and will lose all your money. Lots of people lost everything on the 08 crash. Investing for the long term is the way to go, less headaches and short term pain. But as simple as that sounds, picking the right brokerage is like picking the right car, everyone have their own opinion. Originally Posted by xxnubyxx

I didn't intend to make a recommendation, but simply pointed out more activities in "trading." I guess I could've thrown out real estate and other business ventures (act as investor or become involved).

Lost everything in 08 crash? It was a massive correction and investors who perservered 07-09 should be ok now in general.
But bad news can be a clearance sale and its always good to have liquidity so you can buy up when those opportunities arise. The indicators were in mid to late 07 (at least to me).

Agree on the hype generated. The flopping heads screaming 'Buy' are just tools from the manipulators.
I don't think of the market as a scam. Its may be Wall Street casino but the scams are the ones who con investors like Madoff.

codybeast hit the nail on the head. Gold and Silver for me all the way (for the moment at least)

Hey guys, thanks for the of information. I feel a little overwhelmed just reading all of this! Someone here has kindly offered his time to teach us the basics. I love all the suggestions, especially the group. That's a cool idea. If anyone else has some simple $$ tips don't be shy. I know their are probably a lot of people and ladies learning something from this thread.

I know I am