Looking for Investment and Credit Advice Vol. i don't want to resell drugs

hello NT investment gurus. i'm 25 years old and i currently have about ~$15,000 just sitting in a savings account that i don't touch. i have a stable job and i am able to add more to it every pay period. i also always pay off my credit card in full every month and have no trouble meeting my monthly bills. i plan on stashing some of this into a "rainy day" fund and the rest i was thinking of either investing into something or putting a down payment when the new 4 series comes out :lol:

i have a couple questions:

1. i am unsure of my credit score and if i were to buy a new car, i would want the best rate possible. what is a good amount to leave on my credit card to improve my credit score? i always pay everything off in full but i was told that this isn't the best way to improve my credit score. can someone clarify this for me?

2. i was looking into both an IRA and Roth IRA, but i don't want to commit to putting a large some of my savings into it at once. i know it is subjective, but how much do people usually start their IRA with? are there any other long term alternatives investments you suggest?

any other suggestions are welcome as well

thanks for the help in advance :D

Roth IRA's are currently capped at a $5.5k for the year 2013, but you still have time to contribute $5k to your 2012 year. I would highly recommend maxing out at least one year's worth of contributions.

Main difference between Roth IRA and IRA is that in a Roth IRA it has to be from income earned thus it has already been taxed. If you don't have a job you can't even contribute to a Roth IRA. And when you finally withdraw at 60+ all your earnings are tax free. In a traditional IRA it the other way around. It's not capped and you can invest limitless but when you withdraw you're paying taxes on your earnings.

Highly recommend going the Roth IRA route, and at 25 you're sitting pretty. Make the max contribution every year, but its understandable if you skip out on maxing out 2012 and 2013 for now.

Finally where do you "invest" your money when its in there. You make your own decisions, but I myself have my money in companies like Coca Cola that in over 100 years have never missed paying out on dividends. Do some research on your own and don't gamble your retirement money on volatile stocks. Keep it safe. Also you can look into life cycle funds.
 
so if you get over the income limit for roth IRA accounts, what happens? You can't contribute more and you can't touch the money until 59.5 yr old?
 
so if you get over the income limit for roth IRA accounts, what happens? You can't contribute more and you can't touch the money until 59.5 yr old?

Hopefully I understand your question fully. You can only contribute $5,500 to a Roth Ira for 2013 . Of that $5,500 contribution let's say you invest it and make it grow to $10k. You can withdraw your original contribution ($5,500) at no charge, but any of the remaining earnings ($4,500) would be penalized at 10%. There are a few exceptions to this such as first time home buying but mainly yes, it has to stay in there until retirement.

And yes, each year you can make a new contribution to the account. Like I mentioned you can still make a contribution for 2012 up until April 15th iirc which is the end of the fiscal year.
 
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Pretty sure this is where I started my research when I first opened my Roth IRA.

http://www.rothira.com/

Should explain everything you need to know, but I'd be glad to answer any other questions to the best of my ability.
 
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Hopefully I understand your question fully. You can only contribute $5,500 to a Roth Ira for 2013 . Of that $5,500 contribution let's say you invest it and make it grow to $10k. You can withdraw your original contribution ($5,500) at no charge, but any of the remaining earnings ($4,500) would be penalized at 10%. There are a few exceptions to this such as first time home buying but mainly yes, it has to stay in there until retirement.

And yes, each year you can make a new contribution to the account. Like I mentioned you can still make a contribution for 2012 up until April 15th iirc which is the end of the fiscal year.

thanks for the response. I meant what happens after you make more than $110k annual (single)?

Im in similar boat as OP basically, but I'm not sure if the roth IRA is good for me as the rate I'm going...thinking about investing (actively) but I'm still hesitant due to lack of education. Reading the motley fool beginners guide. Any other tips?
 
Oh I see, I didn't understand that or know the answer because I don't make that much lol.

I'm not sure what's best for you if you're in the income bracket. What Roth IRA's boil down to is that you pick that over a traditional IRA if you're pretty low income now and expect to be at a higher tax bracket come 60 years old which I generalized as probably 90% of NT's demographic.

Only real advice I have is what I learned from experience so far. I gambled on a pharmaceutical company and lost 3 years worth of my IRA contribution, and I can't just re-contribute that because its capped yearly at 5k for me. All my money is invested in companies that pay dividends and what you can do is enroll in DRIP - Dividend reinvestment plan - which basically buys more stock in the company with the money they paid out to you. You should be able to do that with whichever investment group you decide to park your money in.

And all that doesn't mean that if you have a little extra money aside from your IRA money you can't just open a separate investment account and play a little. When you're young is a good time to take on slightly risky investments that can pay out big time.
 
Oh I see, I didn't understand that or know the answer because I don't make that much lol.

I'm not sure what's best for you if you're in the income bracket. What Roth IRA's boil down to is that you pick that over a traditional IRA if you're pretty low income now and expect to be at a higher tax bracket come 60 years old which I generalized as probably 90% of NT's demographic.

Only real advice I have is what I learned from experience so far. I gambled on a pharmaceutical company and lost 3 years worth of my IRA contribution, and I can't just re-contribute that because its capped yearly at 5k for me. All my money is invested in companies that pay dividends and what you can do is enroll in DRIP - Dividend reinvestment plan - which basically buys more stock in the company with the money they paid out to you. You should be able to do that with whichever investment group you decide to park your money in.

And all that doesn't mean that if you have a little extra money aside from your IRA money you can't just open a separate investment account and play a little. When you're young is a good time to take on slightly risky investments that can pay out big time.

Thanks man. My company's stock pays a dividend and is reinvested (quarterly I think?) into the 401k I believe.

I'm thinking of biting the bullet and opening a brokerage account and buying into some mutual funds and keep reading until I'm comfortable enough to buy separate stocks. Any suggestions for "safe" mutual funds/ETFs I should look into?
 
Like you I'm siding towards the cautious side and want to let the "professionals" manage my money. I mentioned it before but you can look into a life cycle fund by Vanguard or Fidelity. Basically you buy into a fund that invests fairly risky now and then tapers off into safer investments the closer to its expiration date.
 
^that's how my 401k is managed. Vanguard 2045 fund or something like that. I know it's dumb to invest my money blindly, but keeping tens of thousands more than I need in my savings is almost just as bad. Nobody's going to make happen but me, just have to commit myself to research, which I'm only doing on/off
 
sort of off topic but if you had a relatively large debt but almost enough cash savings (but it is all your savings), would you pull the trigger and pay it off when you acquired enough or would you ride out the payments? 
 
sort of off topic but if you had a relatively large debt but almost enough cash savings (but it is all your savings), would you pull the trigger and pay it off when you acquired enough or would you ride out the payments? 
Me personal I would say that u should start paying the debt off starting with your oldest. It is good to pay the payments but it will not increase your credit score(how u would want it to increase) . So unless u have plans for the savings put it to good use. Plus how old are u?
 
Me personal I would say that u should start paying the debt off starting with your oldest. It is good to pay the payments but it will not increase your credit score(how u would want it to increase) . So unless u have plans for the savings put it to good use. Plus how old are u?
25, its a student loan worth about 33k, ill have about 15k after tax season and my work bonus + 10k in the market.

no plans for the money i was saving besides just to add more to investments.  

obviously id still be short about paying it off, but am on the fence about taking the money from accounts i set up for long term investments. 
 
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Ill say this everytime when videos like this posted. 12% where? 6% where?
https://www.americanfunds.com/funds/details/ica/a.html

A 78 year track record with an average of a 12%/yr. return.

You're welcome
wink.gif
What do you think about junk bond funds. Like symbol JNK? With a yield over 6%, it is tempting.

I'm a bit wary of adding to current stock positions with the Dow at 14,000.
There's a reason why they're called "junk bonds". You're investing in HIGH risk debt. That means there is likely potential that the company/country issuing the debt will default and you won't get your initial investment back. Ask yourself, are you willing to risk your entire investment amount for a measly 6% back on your money?

Regarding JNK? just looking at the chart, it's terrible on multiple accounts. The primary reason is that I don't like investing in things that haven't been around for at least 10 years so you have a good feel for its long term track record. This opened in 2008 and has yet to return to its initial price. While stocks may go down soon, the historical rate of return has been much better than the bond market. Invest in international funds, small caps, & blue chips to diversify your portfolio. There are plenty of solid funds out there with good track records.
https://www.americanfunds.com/funds/details/ica/a.html

A 78 year track record with an average of a 12%/yr. return.

You're welcome
wink.gif
man I`m so weary with this kind of stuff after seeing them Scam Specials on Tv.
What's to be weary of? It's not like this is a Bernie Madoff scam. This is an established company that's survived even during the Depression. If it were a scam, the SEC would have shut them down LONG ago. If you're still weary, contribute to separate funds (which is advised anyways)
 
I would really listen to crcballer. He's always demonstrated a great understanding of how money works and the most efficient ways to get it to work for you. Rex knows his **** on the stock market stuff though too.

I would just say keep it simple. Don't peek at your balance and get giddy about the ability to buy nice things. 15k is a good amount, but in the grand scheme it really isn't much at all. Still, a great start, but you have to think forward. I would invest 10k into a Roth IRA as that is a very good way to start off a retirement account. Leave 3k or so in your savings as an emergency fund. I keep my savings account in an online only account (ally bank) so that it isn't as easily accessible. Out of sight, out of mind. Plus, it takes a few days for the money to be transferred to my checking and most of the time, speaking from the past, when I would want the money, it would be for instant gratification or use. If I don't get it for a few days, I just say forget it. After that, use the thousand or two to treat yourself if you must. Keeps you sane. Buy a bunch of little things or one big purchase.

I skimmed your post OP so sorry if I missed something...Something like your age, perhaps. It isn't a bad idea to start saving for a house. potentially. Interest rates are extremely low and you have a good chunk of money that if you can save a few more thousand, you can accomplish all I said above and still be able to put a nice down payment on a house. Just a thought, but it depends where you are in life and your mindset.
 
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Ill say this everytime when videos like this posted. 12% where? 6% where?

https://www.americanfunds.com/funds/details/ica/a.html


A 78 year track record with an average of a 12%/yr. return.


You're welcome :wink:


What do you think about junk bond funds. Like symbol JNK? With a yield over 6%, it is tempting.


I'm a bit wary of adding to current stock positions with the Dow at 14,000.

There's a reason why they're called "junk bonds". You're investing in HIGH risk debt. That means there is likely potential that the company/country issuing the debt will default and you won't get your initial investment back. Ask yourself, are you willing to risk your entire investment amount for a measly 6% back on your money?

Regarding JNK? just looking at the chart, it's terrible on multiple accounts. The primary reason is that I don't like investing in things that haven't been around for at least 10 years so you have a good feel for its long term track record. This opened in 2008 and has yet to return to its initial price. While stocks may go down soon, the historical rate of return has been much better than the bond market. Invest in international funds, small caps, & blue chips to diversify your portfolio. There are plenty of solid funds out there with good track records.

Thanks for the response.
 
Any thoughts on preferred stock? I'm looking for nice safe investments with a high rate of interest. With the Dow at an all-time high, I'm not really looking to put cash into the market like that.

I'm looking online and seeing preferred stock by some large corporations with coupon payments as high as 6-8%.
 
Any thoughts on preferred stock? I'm looking for nice safe investments with a high rate of interest. With the Dow at an all-time high, I'm not really looking to put cash into the market like that.

I'm looking online and seeing preferred stock by some large corporations with coupon payments as high as 6-8%.

Buffett and Mungar, the two greatest investors of all-time, recommend you put your money into index funds if you're passive. Just because the Dow's at 14K right now, doesn't mean it couldn't be 12K or 20K in 2015. It's very hard/if not impossible to "time" the market, so I'd say some low cost index funds. You can scale in monthly if you'd like.
 
Any thoughts on preferred stock? I'm looking for nice safe investments with a high rate of interest. With the Dow at an all-time high, I'm not really looking to put cash into the market like that.

I'm looking online and seeing preferred stock by some large corporations with coupon payments as high as 6-8%.

Buffett and Mungar, the two greatest investors of all-time, recommend you put your money into index funds if you're passive. Just because the Dow's at 14K right now, doesn't mean it couldn't be 12K or 20K in 2015. It's very hard/if not impossible to "time" the market, so I'd say some low cost index funds. You can scale in monthly if you'd like.

Index funds lost 50% in the last financial crisis. I'm good on all that.

The main recommendation you need to know is: Don't fight the Fed. When Bernanke takes the alcohol away from the party, It's all over.

Also, Buffet and Mungar came up in a different time. Our country was different, our economy was different.
 
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I blindly throw money into my 401k because its taxed not and my company matches up to 6% so I figure its free money.

What funds are best? Plus I plan on leaving the company in the next 24 months what are my options then?
 
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