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Reddit mentions of The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing

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Reddit mentions: 72

We found 72 Reddit mentions of The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing. Here are the top ones.

The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing
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Found 72 comments on The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing:

u/lobster_johnson · 1391 pointsr/personalfinance

The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing by Taylor Larimore is a great introduction to investing. It might look silly, but it's not a silly book.

It's intended for "normal people" with no background in economics. It explains the basics of the stock market, funds, ETFs, bonds, etc., as well as the basics of investment — risk management, compound returns, value investing/fundamental analysis, etc. — in simple, understandable terms.

"Boglehead" is a humorous term for people who espouse the investing philosophy of John C. Bogle, founder of Vanguard — the largest and most consumer-friendly provider of mutual funds in the U.S. — and creator of the first commercially available index fund. Bogleheads usually recommend a simple "three-fund portfolio" as a diversification strategy, based on the idea that index funds by design will, over time, give non-professionals the best returns, as opposed to individual stock picking.

Bogle himself wrote a bunch of books. The Little Book of Common Sense Investing is supposed to be great.

u/technofox01 · 533 pointsr/personalfinance

I used to sell annuities as a broker, yes this is the main reason. You are better off investing in a Roth IRA or some other retirement account first, then - if possible when you retire - obtain a variable annuity with a principle/income protection (just in case the market crashes, but you get more dough when it goes up, than fixed).

Long story short, read Bogleheads Guide to Investing or Bogleheads Guide to Retirement; sources:

The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing https://www.amazon.com/dp/1118921283/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_d006Bb505YNH1

The Bogleheads' Guide to Retirement Planning https://www.amazon.com/dp/0470919019/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_z006Bb4QAZKBM

These two books are more than enough to give anyone the knowledge in terms of investing and retirement planning. Or just hit me up with questions, please note that I haven’t been licensed in almost a decade, because I had chosen not to renew my series 6 and 63. Anyway, I hope my post helps.

Edit: damn autocorrect.

u/davidmhorton · 84 pointsr/IWantToLearn

Buy and read these books (first):

Bogle on Mutual Funds https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/111908833X/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Bogleheads Guide to Investing
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1118921283/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The Four Pillars of Investing
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0071747052/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

After reading those, download Robinhood and put $100 in (no more) and play around for like 6 months before even thinking about trying to play with larger amounts.

-- OR - skip Robinhood and download "Betterment" and just slowly put money in there and build some wealth.

Happy Learning.

u/mrzulu · 51 pointsr/personalfinance

First things first: ground yourself. You make great money, and, besides some irrational fears about things collapsing left and right, seem to have your shit together. Stop being afraid of what could happen with the economy or the stock market in the short term, and prepare your personal finances for the long haul. After all, that's your stated goal: "make sure my little one is reasonably comfortable when he turns 21 and my wife and I aren't too broke when we retire."

> investment related seem to be very different now in 2016

No, not really. The fundamentals of modern money management and investing are more or less the same today as they were in the 1930s -- spend less than you earn, save money for emergencies, and buy and hold investments for retirement. This is really, really easy to do. Buy a copy of The Boglehead's Guide to Investing. Read it cover to cover, take the best bits and leave the rest. It'll give you a solid rubric onto which you can act.

> at least 40% of my income is going to the various taxes in Japan without any apparent benefit to me or my family

"Apparent" here is the operative word. Emegency and public services are funded, the streets get cleaned, the roads get paved, the sidewalks are kept is usable shape, and a good chunk of your medical coverage is paid for by the taxes you pay in Japan. Without the civilization built around you you'd have a bigger problem than paying taxes. Taxes aren't always merely pissing away money with absolutely no return.

TLDR; stop being chicken little, read a book, educate yourself, and you'll sleep better with a fool-proof plan for your financial future.

u/scooterdog · 14 pointsr/financialindependence

Qualifications: grew up in a very modest (i.e. lower) part of town, parents worked in blue-collar professions, and started buying a rental property in the 1960's, then dad passed away (with four kids). Now definitely intergenerational wealth, all kids went to college in STEM, parents in their 90's (step-dad helped build up RE holdings to 36 units) with holdings in the 8-figures. No I haven't inherited any of it (yet) but well into middle age myself, make very good money (and will leave it at that), and have a few RE holdings.

> I'll have manager experience. I'm also reading a book called "real estate investing for dummies" and I just finished "rich Dad poor Dad"

Good for you, I didn't start reading books on anything finance related until well into my 20's, and then I read a lot of very good books. I don't think much of Kiyosaki, frankly, but as Brian Tracy said 'to earn more you must learn more'. So don't stop, keep on reading, and especially books over blog posts and short pieces. Why? Books will have more complex ideas and more research to back it up.

Regarding your game plan: you did not indicate what you are interested in doing, and what you do well, and what people will pay you to do, and what the world needs. Take a look at this ikigai graphic. Not sure if you know that welding or sales is this for you, and of course there are other things you may grow into. But hey if you have a good idea that this is the path you want to take, good for you!

I came here to say about sales, few salespeople are on Reddit, they are very busy making lots of money to talk about it. In my own (technical) sales field base runs from $65K up to $120K with another 40% commission, but you need to have the right background (STEM college degree, experience as a customer, and aptitude for outside sales) so barriers to entry are high. So yes, six figures in your late 20's is achievable, and it does take a lot of hard work, no doubt!

Of course owning your own business as a contractor, or becoming a top welder, or tons of other things you could do, I know of plenty of people who do very well.

Regarding the end goal, admirable, and I say your thinking is in the right place. The road to FI is varied - real estate is a very good method (the way my parents went, they bought low and held onto their properties in a HCOL area), investing into index funds another good method (again read books like Boglehead's Guide to Investing, or another favorite of mine on the sidebar called The Richest Man in Babylon) The amount these books can make you over five or ten years is a lot. Over 15 or 25 years is huge.

> Even if I don't get to enjoy it

I see many piling on here saying 'you should enjoy it' but I didn't interpret this comment in that way. You realize it's a road not many take (too many live way beyond their means, and don't have savings / passive income / true wealth to show for it). Yes there's sacrifice, and it takes a long time to build up $1,500 in monthly passive income much less $15,000, but people do this and often you cannot tell. (For example, look up the book The Millionaire Next Door.)

Are you on the right path? Definitely YES. The path to financial independence starts with a mindset, and the fact you are asking the question puts you out in front of all the peers of yours who are thinking about lots of other things, which you know all too well.

Will you make mistakes along the way? Of course, we are all human. The important thing is mindset, and the great thing of being younger is that you have time to make other choices, and learn along the way.


u/johncheswick · 12 pointsr/investing

PDF

Updated version for Kindle through Amazon

It's a solid starting point. At times it feels like a sales pitch for Vanguard, but it's still not bad advice. It does have good info on the basics though.

u/discoganya · 11 pointsr/personalfinance

No kids, mortgage, etc? If so then in order or priority:

  • Contribute to the work-based plan (401(k), 403b,) enough to get the full employer match (the match is like free money, your best possible investment),
  • Pay off high interest debt (a guaranteed high return, the next best thing to free money),
  • Contribute to a Health Savings Account (HSA) if available (unlike many other tax deductions, there are no income restrictions to contribute to an HSA)
  • Contribute the maximum to an IRA, traditional or Roth, depending on income eligibility
  • Contribute the remainder of the maximum employee contribution to the work-based plan

    At this stage saving money (accumulation) is way more important than asset allocation (stocks, bonds, CDs, etc.)

    Buy this book and read it
u/[deleted] · 10 pointsr/DaveRamsey

Unless you need complicated estate planning advice, there is no reason not to DIY.

Read this book: https://www.amazon.com/Bogleheads-Guide-Investing-Taylor-Larimore/dp/1118921283/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_2/134-5701116-1803216?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1118921283&pd_rd_r=753f1a8f-a96d-11e9-ae12-fbad7273ae80&pd_rd_w=HT0vn&pd_rd_wg=FztaG&pf_rd_p=a2006322-0bc0-4db9-a08e-d168c18ce6f0&pf_rd_r=FT6KAPX3YW3PYSFVN14X&psc=1&refRID=FT6KAPX3YW3PYSFVN14X

Or TL/DR version: https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Three-fund_portfolio

If you are just setting up a Roth IRA and want to get started, go on Vanguard/Fidelity/Schwab and buy a target date fund close to your retirement date. Done.

Paying loads and buying high cost mutual funds is beyond silly in 2019.

u/kajsfjzkk · 9 pointsr/personalfinance

\> This is not a financial problem, this is a trauma problem.

Perfectly said.

OP, in therapy you can talk about your experiences growing up with financial worries. A good therapist can help you explore how those experiences affected you and help you identify the narratives you tell yourself as a result.

It sounds like the financial hyper-awareness has actually served a very useful purpose for you so far. You did well in school and worked your way into a good career. But there's a saying: "What got you here won't get you there." Now your anxiety around finances is holding you back, and you would be better served by spending less energy worrying about finances while still putting a plan in place to responsibly manage your finances.

A therapist can also help you retrain your thinking. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is one type of therapy which is aimed at retraining negative automatic thoughts. You identify negative thoughts and write them down, then apply techniques from the CBT toolbox to understand why those thoughts are distorted and replace them with more adaptive thoughts that better reflect reality.

The key point is that your brain won't let you simply choose to stop thinking a negative thought, because there's usually a kernel of truth. You need to replace the negative thought with a new thought that also true but is more adaptive.

So for example, when you think:

\> I'm suddenly gonna lose all my money at the blink of an eye

You can write that thought down, then look at a list of cognitive distortions and identify things like "all or nothing thinking" and "jumping to conclusions". From there you can identify potentially useful CBT techniques. Some techniques work better for certain types of cognitive distortions. So you might try techniques like exploring "What's the worst that would happen? How would I need to react if I actually lost all my money?", or you might try keeping count of unwanted thoughts to make yourself better at noticing them as they appear. There are dozens of techniques.

I'll note that studies have actually shown that CBT from a book can be just as effective as CBT with a therapist. I'd recommend finding a therapist if you're able, because they can help in ways that a book can't. But it's worth mentioning for anyone who isn't able to see a therapist, or isn't sure whether their therapist is any good.

You can just open up the book, start reading, and do the exercises. The key is that you can't just skim the book. You have to actually do the work and write down your answers.

Here's a good book on CBT:

https://www.amazon.com/When-Panic-Attacks-Drug-Free-Anxiety/dp/076792083X

Here is a good blog post on how to find a therapist:

https://blog.valerieaurora.org/2016/04/17/howto-therapy-what-psychotherapy-is-how-to-find-a-therapist-and-when-to-fire-your-therapist/

Finally, one way to feel more in control is to learn more about managing your finances. I'd recommend reading a good book on personal finance, like this one:

https://www.amazon.com/Bogleheads-Guide-Investing-Taylor-Larimore/dp/1118921283

And then I'd recommend writing out an "investing policy statement". Basically it's a written statement describing your financial goals and long term plan of how to attain them. You're effectively writing instructions for your future self. This can help put worrying to rest. For example, you can consult the statement to remind yourself that you planned to save $___/month toward a house and $___/month toward retirement. If you are meeting your goals, you shouldn't feel guilty about spending money on things you enjoy.

Here's a blog post describing an investing policy statement:

https://www.whitecoatinvestor.com/how-to-write-an-investing-personal-statement/

u/marcusaurelius_stoic · 7 pointsr/eupersonalfinance

It really depends which kind of saver/investor you are.

My recommendation is to start from with the bogleheads wiki:

u/yankee-white · 7 pointsr/Bogleheads

Start by buying yourself a copy of the Boglehead Guide to Investing. It will be the best $20 expense you'll ever have in investing. Beyond that, we don't know much about you or what your investing goals are.

u/mimefrog · 6 pointsr/investing

A lot of people feel strongly that Bogleheads.org provides a sound strategy. They have a book as well.

u/john1443 · 6 pointsr/Finanzen

Ich hab's nicht gelesen - vielleicht The Bogleheads' gGuide to Investing? Oder eines der anderen Bücher auf dieser Liste?

u/SgtJockMacPherson · 5 pointsr/DaveRamsey

The best thing you can do is read and then read some more! Find those articles about investing and start learning the language. You can probably find what you need from a couple of books at the library or you can find them on Amazon but if you need help understanding it, then get help. You can call an investment broker in your area and schedule a meeting. They will usually spend some time with you for free in hopes that you will invest with them in the future.


[Mandatory link to Bogle type book] (https://www.amazon.com/Bogleheads-Guide-Investing-Taylor-Larimore/dp/1118921283/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1526318235&sr=8-3&keywords=jack+bogle)

u/BlackwaterPark10 · 5 pointsr/DaveRamsey

Great job! Now go read this book, open a Roth IRA at Vanguard, and auto invest into VTSAX Mutual Fund for the next 40 years, and you will be unfathomably rich. Dont bother with bonds, simply VTSAX and maybe a spinkle 10% at most of VTIAX for some international companies.

​

https://www.amazon.com/Bogleheads-Guide-Investing-Taylor-Larimore/dp/1118921283/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1WLP27B3ZCKPW&keywords=bogleheads+guide+to+investing&qid=1565873408&s=gateway&sprefix=bogleheads+retirement%2Caps%2C138&sr=8-3

​

​

https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/index.php

​

https://www.reddit.com/r/Bogleheads/

u/judgemebymyusername · 5 pointsr/personalfinance

DO NOT buy a new fucking car. This is the most common mistake I see newly enlisted kids make. If you do buy a car, make it something affordable like Honda or Toyota sedan. Learn how to work on it yourself - most AF bases have an auto hobby shop with tools and everything you need, even people to help you out. It's a great way to save money, make some friends, and learn some skills that will last you a lifetime.

And for God's sake put something in your TSP, at least 5% into the target date fund, especially your Roth TSP if you you manage to work for a tax free income at some time.

Take your first paycheck and spend $15 on The Bogleheads Guide to Investing. You'll thank me later.

Finally, open an account with USAA and do all your banking there, as well as all of your insurance. USAA access alone is something a lot of us want but can't get.

Another common mistake that newly enlisted make is getting married way too young or having babies way too young. Keep it in your pants. Some of these kids are divorced with 2 kids by 25 years old. Don't be that guy. And don't take up smoking cigarettes.

/endrant

u/buzzsawddog · 5 pointsr/M1Finance

Save a buck and borrow it from the local library. https://www.amazon.com/dp/1118921283/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_FytlDbJFB2DME

I did not know about the 3fund book but think it would be silly to buy it :) it is going top tell you to balance for risk between a total market, total international, and total bond. It might talk about a split total bond/ total international bond... https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Three-fund_portfolio. But hey might be worth a read if your library had it.

u/goodDayM · 4 pointsr/investing

I'd recommend listening the Freakonomics episode The Stupidest Thing You Can Do With Your Money. And also reading this book: The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing.

Both will tell you about passively managed index funds. Most actively managed funds fail to beat them. Warren Buffett bet $1 million that an index fund would make you richer than if you entrusted it with hedge fund managers, and he won.

u/SteelSharpensSteel · 4 pointsr/marriedredpill

On What to Read


Here are some suggestions on books and websites:


The Millionaire Next Door by Stanley and Danko - https://www.amazon.com/Millionaire-Next-Door-Surprising-Americas/dp/1589795474


If You Can by William Bernstein - http://efficientfrontier.com/ef/0adhoc/2books.htm


Free version is here - https://www.dropbox.com/s/5tj8480ji58j00f/If%20You%20Can.pdf?dl=0


The Investor's Manifesto. Preparing for Prosperity, Armageddon, and Everything in Between by William Bernstein - https://www.amazon.com/Investors-Manifesto-Prosperity-Armageddon-Everything/dp/1118073762


The Bogleheads Guide to Investing - https://www.amazon.com/Bogleheads-Guide-Investing-Taylor-Larimore/dp/1118921283


The Coffeehouse Investor - https://www.amazon.com/Coffeehouse-Investor-Wealth-Ignore-Street/dp/0976585707


The Bogleheads' Guide to Retirement Planning - https://www.amazon.com/Bogleheads-Guide-Retirement-Planning/dp/0470455578


The Four Pillars of Investing: Lessons for Building a Winning Portfolio by William Bernstein - https://www.amazon.com/Four-Pillars-Investing-Building-Portfolio/dp/0071747052/


Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey - https://www.amazon.com/Total-Money-Makeover-Classic-Financial/dp/1595555277


Personal Finance for Dummies by Eric Tyson - https://www.amazon.com/Personal-Finance-Dummies-Eric-Tyson/dp/1118117859


Investing for Dummies by Eric Tyson - https://www.amazon.com/Investing-Dummies-Eric-Tyson/dp/1119320690/


The Millionaire Real Estate Investor per red-sfplus’s post (can confirm this is excellent) - https://www.amazon.com/Millionaire-Real-Estate-Investor/dp/0071446370/


For all the M.Ds on here and HNW individuals, you might want to check out https://www.whitecoatinvestor.com/ and his blog – found it to be very useful.


https://www.irs.gov/ or your government’s tax page. If you’ve been reading, you know that millionaires know more than your average bear about the tax code.


https://www.reddit.com/r/TheRedPill/comments/7vohb3/money/


https://www.reddit.com/r/TheRedPill/comments/3hzcvn/financial_advice_from_a_financier/


https://www.artofmanliness.com/2017/09/22/4-money-tips-4-personal-finance-legends/


Personal Finance Flowchart from their wiki - https://i.imgur.com/lSoUQr2.png


Additional Lists of Books:


https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Books:_recommendations_and_reviews


https://www.whitecoatinvestor.com/books-4/


Subreddits


https://www.reddit.com/r/investing/


https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/ - I would highly encourage you to spend a half hour browsing their wiki - https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/index and investing advice - https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/investing


https://www.reddit.com/r/financialindependence/


https://www.reddit.com/r/SecurityAnalysis/


https://www.reddit.com/r/finance/


https://www.reddit.com/r/portfolios/


https://www.reddit.com/r/Bogleheads/


MRP References


https://www.reddit.com/r/marriedredpill/comments/40whjy/finally_talked_to_my_wife_about_our_finances_it/


https://www.reddit.com/r/marriedredpill/comments/67nxdu/finances_with_a_sahm/


https://www.reddit.com/r/marriedredpill/comments/488pa0/60_dod_week_6_finances/ (original)


https://www.reddit.com/r/marriedredpill/comments/6a6712/60_dod_week_6_finances/ (year 2)


https://www.reddit.com/r/marriedredpill/comments/3xw015/how_to_prepare_for_a_talk_about_finances/


https://www.reddit.com/r/marriedredpill/comments/30z704/taking_back_the_finances/


https://www.reddit.com/r/marriedredpill/comments/2uzukg/married_redpill_finances_and_money/


https://www.reddit.com/r/marriedredpill/comments/3637q5/some_thoughts_on_mrp_and_finances/


https://www.reddit.com/r/askMRP/comments/8dwaqt/best_practices_for_finances_within_marriage/


https://www.reddit.com/r/marriedredpill/comments/588e5o/gain_control_of_the_treasury/


Final Thoughts


There are already a lot of high net worth individuals on these subs (if you don’t believe me, look at the OYS for the past few months). This should be a review for most folks. The key points stay the same – have a plan, get out of the hole you are in, have a budget, do the right moves for wealth accumulation. Lead your family in your finances. Own it.


What are YOU doing to own your finances? Give some examples below.


u/andthenisawtheblood · 4 pointsr/personalfinance

I really like Investopedia University. It's free and very informative and they will have pages with short videos/articles explaining terms and concepts as well. A good start would be their Financial Concepts and Index Investing entries. Also wanted to add their Retirement Plans page. You'll mostly want to read about Traditional and Roth IRAs, and Qualified Plans.

The biggest tip I could give is to just keep reading, I found I was actually interested in this stuff so it was easy to read all about it. If you don't understand something make the effort to learn and then continue. It doesn't have to be complicated, index investing is a great way to build wealth over the long term.

I never really read any actual books, because honestly the best advice for 90% of people would be to just invest in index funds, and there's plenty of free information online, but you can read The Boglehead's Guide to Investing.

Bill Ackerman has a good video that does a good job of breaking it down.

u/calcium · 4 pointsr/financialindependence

Welcome to the states! It sounds like you and your husband are doing quite well for yourselves. Saving for the future and being financially independent is a great goal to strive for. Maxing out your IRA and 401K is a great idea as it'll save money on taxes. Beyond that, I recommend low-cost mutual funds for nonpre-tax savings - a good book to read that's great for beginners would be The Boglehead's Guide to Investing. I also recommend checking out /r/personalfinance

As to worrying about lifestyle creep, there are a few tricks I like to do to keep me from spending needlessly. The first is to envision how long it would require me to work to be able to afford something. For example, you make $55k/yr or about $27.50 pretax, so if you see a new pair of shoes that are $125, you'd need to work for a little more than 5 hours to be able to afford them. Are they still worth it to you?

Another trick is to wait several weeks from buying large, expensive items. I like to set a price point for myself and if it's over that ($250) I need to wait several weeks to buy it. If I forget about it or find 2 weeks later I don't need it than I just saved myself money - it's saved me from buying a lot of needless electronics. This takes some will power, but I believe that you can do it.

u/GasStationSushi · 4 pointsr/Silverbugs

You need to go read some financial management books.
Here's one to start.

Assuming you're in the US and presumably in a low tax bracket, you should be putting money into a Roth IRA.

Sidenote: My company offers 100% 401K matching, no vesting period, and offers good low cost/fee funds. Yet I still have co-workers that don't fucking do it, despite being literally a 100% return on investment for just plopping money in there.

u/Noetyk · 4 pointsr/personalfinance

Go read The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing and you'll be set to get started investing. It's well-written and easy to understand.

u/hexydes · 3 pointsr/investing

+1 to Vanguard. Another good book for OP.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1118921283/

u/gabrocheleau · 3 pointsr/financialindependence

I really like this idea, and it's pretty much what I'm doing. Last year I posted something about this here on r/financialindependence and I've also exposed my lifestyle here.

Since my teenage years, my goal has been to live free. I stumbled upon FI books early on ("Boglehead's guide to investing" anyone!?) and figured hitting FI early on was possible and desirable. I majored to be an Actuary and while studying, I started creating websites and doing other freelance work on the side. These projects took off very slowly, but were enough to pay for random college expenses.

When I graduated, I took a gap year and my freelance work was enough to sustain while traveling through Southeast Asia. At that point, I was netting ~500 to 1000$ a month from 20 hours of work (per month). I loved the lifestyle of working an hour or two every other day. It just became something I did once in a while on the computer instead of (or actually, while) browsing Reddit or FB.

I realized that if I roughly doubled this income, I might be able to sustain this lifestyle permanently. Coming back home (to Canada), I invested a lot of energy expanding several streams of income (mostly freelance work) and eventually it paid off. I even had the luxury of turning down 9-to-5 high-paying actuarial jobs.

Remote work now takes roughly 5 hours of my time each week (and 95% of that can be done whenever I feel like), and it allows me to live in a very low COL area, which ironically might help me reach FI sooner than if I worked in a HCOL city as an Actuary. Although I wouldn't mind living like this for a long time, I'm on track to become financially independent at around 30 y/o (in ~5 years).

While I understand that for many, working part time is not an option, trying a lifestyle that resembles "FIRE" (lots of free time, low stress, no financial worries) can really be beneficial. I feel like many blindly aim for FIRE because they dislike work, or like the idea of not having to work, and while I can fully understand why, living for the future is a dangerous gamble. Not because "you might die before" as stereotypical consumers might claim, but because of the terrible mental habits you risk developing. I believe that people overestimate the reliability of postponing happiness for extended periods of time. While the grass is quite green without work, in itself it doesn't do much, it only makes you more of what you already are.

Happiness is largely determined by mental habits. If you are not developing great mental habits RIGHT NOW, they won't magically appear the day you retire. All around me, I see people waiting for retirement to finally travel/invest time in passions/develop skills/etc. I'm skeptical of how well this works in practice. I have the feeling that people would benefit from treating their mental habits with the same care that they show towards their bank account. Surely you don't want this path to mentally cripple you and end up like this.

Like others mention, I wouldn't really call myself "half-retired" though. It's really nothing more than a cooler lifestyle. (subjective, of course).

u/Athabascad · 3 pointsr/RobinHood

Schwab has some etfs with even lower ratios but since the assets under management (AUM) of these ETFS is significantly lower on them I use the above. If you care to check though the equivalents of the above would be:

SCHX - US Large Cap Blend - 0.03%

SCHM - US Mid Cap Blend - 0.05%

SCHA - US Small Cap Blend - 0.05%

SCHE - Foreign Emerging - 0.13%

SCHF - Foreign Developed - 0.06%

SCHZ - Total Bond Market - 0.04%

also check out
https://portfoliocharts.com/

and read this
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1118921283/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

also read this
https://seekingalpha.com/article/15134-the-seeking-alpha-etf-investing-guide

u/SteveAM1 · 3 pointsr/personalfinance

It's actually not as complicated as you might think. Read this book and you'll be in good shape.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1118921283

u/niko-su · 3 pointsr/eupersonalfinance

I'm pretty much at the same boat with you (same age, Berlin, cash I'm sitting on) but my mortgage is a bit cheaper (1.04% since I made 50% downpayment I guess). So with 4% Tilgung and this 5% yearly payment, it should be paid off in 10 years, however, I'm still considering If will do it or will make this cash perform better when invested.

I currently have around 12% of my cash invested in ETF, the rest sits in my Tagesgeld. I will gradually increase the investment amount, since I only started last month so I'm still kinda learning before going full speed.

I suggest you to spend some time reading about it before going this path. finanztip.de has tons of info but only in German. The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing is a kind of classic book, a bit focused on US realities, but still gives a good overview of different investment instruments and personal finances.

u/theberkshire · 3 pointsr/Investments

Congratulations on being wise enough with your money at such a young age to do your research and ask questions. That's exactly what you should continue doing, as it will pay off in the long run far more than any single investment you can make right now.

Along those lines I would invest a small amount of that money in some basic books about money that will help you develop a fundamental philosophy about your relationship with money and building wealth. Ebook, blogs and apps all have their benefits, but you really should have a basic financial library of physical books you can have on hand.

Your Money or Your Life:
https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780143115762

The Simple Path to Wealth: Your road map to financial independence and a rich, free life:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1533667926%5D(https://www.amazon.com/dp/1533667926/

The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing https://www.amazon.com/dp/1118921283/

The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America's Wealthy https://www.amazon.com/dp/1589795474/

That short list is in no way complete, but will get you started.

As far as websites/blogs/free reads here's a few to consider:

http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Main_Page

https://yourmoneyoryourlife.com/book-summary/

http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/blog/

https://www.thesimpledollar.com/

It's great that you have a nice little lump sum of money to invest right now, but the key to building wealth generally won't involve lump sums every now and then and finding places to put them. The key is to discipline yourself to set aside portions of any amount money that comes in and have an automatic system to invest it and let it grow without touching it.

Have a plan for every paycheck, bonus, tax refund, inheritance, bank heist money :) you come into to have a portion funneled into your investments before you're tempted to find other, unlimited, things to do with it.

This is the greatest book probably ever written on that concept:

http://www.ccsales.com/the_richest_man_in_babylon.pdf

Having a goal, a plan for getting there, and the discipline to actually execute it will make you wealthy. Wealth gives you choices, freedom, and opportunity, and the earlier you start building it, the easier it will be to have these things. If you don't appreciate how important those are to living a good life, I guarantee you will in the years ahead.

At some point you will hear the name Warren Buffett (if you haven't already). He's the single greatest investor who's ever lived and my personal favorite. Once you have the basics down, and you might have further interest in investing I would recommend studying him. Even though there are countless books and websites devoted to him, he's already left us nearly everything you need to know about investing right there on his simple company website in the form of his annual letters--basically a free master class on investing, written by a genious who also happens to have great wit:

http://berkshirehathaway.com/letters/letters.html

In a much broader sense beyond investing, there is a book more than a hundred years old that discusses getting to wealth in a very interesting and powerful way. I've used it as inspiration from a standpoint as a business person, but I think it's worth studying seriously for anyone trying to build wealth.

I believe you can still get a free copy here:

http://scienceofgettingrich.net/subscribe.html

If you don't want to subscribe, just Google "The Science of Getting Rich".

And here's a good audio version as well:

https://archive.org/details/TheScienceofGettingRich

No matter what philosophy and path you take, I always include another personal recommendation to set aside a small portion of your portfolio into something "alternative" that interests you and might have the potential to build or at least preserve wealth. For me it's basically precious metals, and more specifically collectible silver and gold coins. I've also collected old paper money, stamps, stock certificates, rare books, and music and movie memorabilia all to a lesser degree. Keeps things interesting, and sometimes you can do pretty well with experience and a little luck.

And best of luck to you!


*Edit: Sp+fixed links, and here's my best TLDL:


Buy physical copies of some basic wealth building books. Consider :

Your Money or Your Life: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780143115762

The Simple Path to Wealth: Your road map to financial independence and a rich, free life:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1533667926/

The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing https://www.amazon.com/dp/1118921283/

Read "The Richest Man in Babylon" and follow the concept of always paying yourself first:

http://www.ccsales.com/the_richest_man_in_babylon.pdf

Warren Buffett is an investing God. If/when you're ready to learn more, just start here:
http://berkshirehathaway.com/letters/letters.html

Read and/or listen to "The Science of Getting Rich":

http://scienceofgettingrich.net/subscribe.html

https://archive.org/details/TheScienceofGettingRich

Diversify a small portion of your wealth with physical assets you can hold and that might have a lifelong interest to you. A quick recommendation would be to start with 5% of your portfolio in precious metals, perhaps a small variety of silver bullion coins and bars. (I'd be happy to give you specific suggestions on these if wanted).

u/MillenniumCondor · 3 pointsr/Buttcoin

I would just sell it and take the ~25% loss. You could do a lot worse. If you want a sound investment strategy, read the Bogleheads investment philosophy. They recommend dollar-cost-averaging your way into a diversified portfolio of low-cost, no-load index funds. You might also check out The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing. It is a great introduction to proper investing (not speculating, which is what crypto "investors" are actually engaged in). Your local public library probably has a copy. Even at $11/hr you can save for a comfortable retirement. If you can manage to save up $1000 in your savings account, you can buy an all-in one fund and simply put a fraction of your paycheck into it every month. It's hard to get rich quick, but easy to get rich slowly.

u/JustMid · 3 pointsr/stocks

I just bought this book.

The investopedia has a bunch of information as well.

You can also simulate trading stock with fake currency but in the real market. I just set up an account with sprinklebit because some guy recommended it.

u/branstad · 3 pointsr/financialindependence

Do you have written out Investment Policy Statement for your current situation? If not, learn more here or here - simple version. If you have an IPS in place now, you can review it with your wife. Then you can create a "what-if" IPS, to use in the event of your untimely demise.

Ours is actually a two-step process:

  1. Short-term: What to do with insurance and other inherited accounts [Example: Put insurance money in 1 or more FDIC insured online savings accounts. Leave investment accounts as-is. Don't make big decisions during a very emotional time.]

  2. Long-term: Managing the portfolio [Example: Pay off mortgage, set a new asset allocation, re-balance across new funds, etc.]

    Is your wife a book person? Mine is, so Bogleheads' Guide to Investing is on the list. I've also suggested she post on the Bogleheads Forums as that community has helped shape my/our current IPS. I've warned her not to trust "Financial Advisors" that are essentially salespeople. You mentioned you have an accountant/CFP you trust, so that person would likely be part of your plan.

    Finally, have an Inventory List of all the checking/savings/retirement/insurance accounts and their details. Make sure your wife knows where that list is. Detail any auto-payments or auto-withdrawals. For example, if my wife immediately cancels my primary credit card, our cable/internet bill won't get paid.

    At least every couple years, have the (potentially uncomfortable) conversation about what to do. A plan is only as good as the knowledge and understanding of the people who have to implement it.
u/IvyRaider · 2 pointsr/CFB

Here you go. This, and Total Money Makeover changed my life (just don't listen to Ramsey's advice on mutual funds and stick with indexing per Bogle). Also, use YNAB to budget every cent that you come across.

TLDR:

  • save $1000 cash

  • snowball your debts

  • go back and save up to 6 months of bills (some suggest 12 months in this economy)

  • max your retirement. /r/personalfinance suggests the following

    a. contribute to your 401k up until company match

    b. contribute to your Roth until max

    c. go back to your 401k until you hit the limit

    d. now you can play with individual stocks

  • pay cash for everything. If you can't afford it, save.
u/morebass · 2 pointsr/investing

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1118921283/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_wNC-AbC6T6R30

Bogleheads guide to investing. It assumes you have no knowledge of it and at least around where I am it's highly recommended to get started with.

u/jevans102 · 2 pointsr/personalfinance

Newer version of the same book. Difference in price is only a few dollars.

Thanks for sharing OP. I bought a highly recommended introduction to the stock market book. It's been enlightening, but it's too in-depth for me to get as much out as needed. I just ordered your recommendation. I'm looking forward to reading it!

u/Chummage · 2 pointsr/FinancialPlanning

I've read about half of these. Pretty dry reading. I would recommend the following:

The Wealthy Barber

I Will Teach You to be Rich

Bogleheads' Guide to Investing

All About Asset Allocation

The basic point of all of the books above and in the article is that you aren't going to beat the pros in investing, in fact the pros can't even keep up the same record from year to year. Index funds are the way to go. Other books above go over what the asset allocation looks like and also goes over insurance and other things to make your finances sound.


As an aside, I never could stick with a budget until using the software YNAB and now that I'm doing a monthly budget I am seeing massive benefits.

u/FliesLikeABrick · 2 pointsr/therewasanattempt

there are 3-4 books that I keep at least 2 copies on-hand of, because they are informative and I like giving them to people with no expectation of giving them back.

Ok this sounds like I am talking about religious texts - they aren't. They are:

- Normal Accidents: Living with High-Risk Technologies

- The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right

- The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing

- The Little Book of Common Sense Investing: The Only Way to Guarantee Your Fair Share of Stock Market Returns (Little Books. Big Profits)

​

The first two are must-reads for engineers working in any kind of system, be it computers, electronics, mechanical, or people systems (project management, etc)

​

The last 2 I tend to recommend to people who think that reasonable investment awareness and decisions requires a lot of specialized knowledge and attention

u/team_xbladz · 2 pointsr/Futurology

> Got any investing advice for a college student with no real living expenses working part time?

Start here.

Since you're starting out, accumulating an emergency fund first in a savings account is likely your primary goal. Once you get down to step 4, then I would set up automatic investments into an IRA at Vanguard, with 100% of contributions into Vanguard Target Retirement 2060.

>I only ask since it's something I've wanted to learn more about for a while

If you want to learn more about WHY this is a good idea, I highly recommend reading through the Stock Series by JLCollins. He presents it in an enjoyable and not overly technical way to keep it interesting. If you prefer books, then the Bogleheads Guide to Investing is a great resource. Borrow it from the library to save some money!

My best advice as a student is to take full advantage of the career center at your college: resume review, internship opportunities, interview practice, etc. Attaining an internship in your field will give you a huge leg up on everyone else graduating with you.

TL;DR

u/atoz88 · 2 pointsr/personalfinance

There are lots of good ones, and they all say the same thing - max out your retirement plans and own total market index funds at Vanguard. The Bogleheads Guide is good if you don't mind paying. Some good free ebooks, too, for example Investing In Four Hours will be free Aug 5.

u/BitFagget · 2 pointsr/investing

Invest 18.36 in this: https://www.amazon.com/Bogleheads-Guide-Investing-Taylor-Larimore/dp/1118921283/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1549887599&sr=8-3&keywords=bogleheads+guide+to+investing That’s only 0.12% of your capital. Then invest some time into reading it. Then come back again.

If you want instant cash flows, certificate of deposits will pay you 450 bucks a year at present rates.

u/indexinvestoreu · 2 pointsr/eupersonalfinance

For the type of investing I do, which mostly involves buying low cost index funds for a long period of time, my favorite recommendation is The Bogleheads Guide To Investing. I think you only need that one (to start). But you can pair it with the Little Book of Common Sense Investing which I also enjoyed.

If you want to see what to expect from this type of investing you can take a look at the Bogleheads wiki which is a phenomenal (free) resource and community and has answers to the most common questions. It has even more recommendations of books.

To be honest, there is a ton of great content out there. You can learn from many sources as there is no definitive answer or way to convey an idea. I just narrowed it down to those sources because they are the ones which I think will give you the most value with the least time invested.

Note that this only focuses on one kind of investing. It won't help you day trade, pick stocks, etc.

u/dasbif · 2 pointsr/personalfinance

I recommend you read the book The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing before getting started.

Here's an Amazon link, or you can get it at your local library, etc -
https://www.amazon.com/Bogleheads-Guide-Investing-Taylor-Larimore/dp/1118921283/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=KP78QCEDHFVPPNNRV293

u/LevelOneTroll · 2 pointsr/personalfinance

Try to contribute at least as much that is matched by your company into the 401k. Then, if you have extra money left over, put what you can into a Roth IRA. If you find that you can max it out each year ($5500), then increase your contributions to the 401k until the total percentage you're investing is 15% of your annual income.

Stay away from individual stocks. Read The Boglehead's Guide to Investing.

u/slyde56 · 2 pointsr/personalfinance

I'm not the guy I believe you're replying to, but I think that /u/nullstring means that once you have a job with a 401k, you'll need to reevaluate which (Roth or 401k) you'll max out first.

This book comes highly recommended here and elsewhere if you're interested in learning more.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0471730335 (second edition here http://www.amazon.com/Bogleheads-Guide-Investing-Taylor-Larimore/dp/1118921283)

Feel free to pm me if you want.

edit: added second edition

u/davomyster · 2 pointsr/investing

Oh hells yeah I do! I give this book to everybody because it's shockingly simple, easy to understand, makes no assumptions about pre-existing subject knowledge, is written clearly and consicely, and its format follows a logical progression that makes it accessible and the best recommendation for a high schooler or a school superintendent with a Harvard PhD, two people I've gifted this book and who both loved it and changed the way they handled their finances.

It's called The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing

I provided an Amazon link, where you can get it for around $15. I can't speak highly enough about this book. If most of your financial knowledge comes from what you've been reading that stock blog you mentioned, this book will change your life. Without any hyperbole, it most definitely changed mine.

u/steptonwat · 1 pointr/IWantToLearn

You should start by reading The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing and A Random Walk Down Wall Street. Both are short reads and very useful for beginning investors.

These books, and most of the people at /r/personalfinance, will tell you that your best bet is to buy index funds. They will also point you to Vanguard, who generally has the lowest fees around. There are a couple of strategies that get advertised a lot:

  1. Buy a target date fund. You just choose when you want to retire and invest in that fund. It has a balance of domestic and foreign stocks and bonds that shift towards more bonds as your retirement date approaches. Example: Vanguard Target Retirement 2045 Fund (VTIVX)

  2. Buy a "3 fund portfolio". This is generally a broad domestic stock index, a broad international stock index, and a broad bond index. This could be VTSMX, VGTSX, and VBMFX.

    In terms of your money, you should start by maxing your IRA and 401(k) contributions each year, and then invest however much more into a standard "taxable" account. Note that you generally want your bond holdings in a tax-sheltered IRA or 401(k). Also note that there are other companies that offer low-fee index funds as well.
u/CarlSagansturtleneck · 1 pointr/videos

A decent place to start.

If you don't want to read a book, then just google "index funds" and "asset allocation" to get started.

u/5_yr_lurker · 1 pointr/personalfinance

I am currently a resident in my research years and finally started taking an interest in my finances. I would argue that you do not necessarily need an adviser yet. You should do some reading first. Here are some websites White Coat Investor (WCI) and Bogleheads, which has a great forum and wiki. You should definitely read these 2 books:

  • The White Coat Investor. It is a little to basic for me and I pretty much had zero knowledge about finances but its a quick easy read.

  • The Boglehead's Guide to Investing. I personally think this is the gold standard for personal finance/retirement investing. (Read it even though it says not to if you have large loans). It is also a quick easy read but explains things considerable better than WCI book. It also discusses adviser and types of different advisers. Going forward you should make it a habit to read at least one finance book a year (treat it like CME).

    I too plan on PSLF (my residency + fellowship will be 9 years so pretty easy decision). My personal opinion is to live like a resident for 2-3 more years (no lifestyle inflation) and accumulate as much money as possible. That means renting for the same amount (if possible) wherever you move for you job. No new cars and the like... After just 2-3 years of this, you will have a decent chunk of money for whatever.
u/4zen · 1 pointr/personalfinance

Do it. We recently moved some old former employer retirement accounts that were in American Funds to a new Vanguard account and couldn't be happier. Vanguard is awesome.

I highly suggest reading The Boglehead's Guide to Investing.

u/BoomAngry · 1 pointr/personalfinance

The same thing happened to me in 2015. I was just starting my retirement savings out of school and ended up losing money in the first few months. But that was just unfortunate timing of the market. The shares I bought before that small market correction are now worth more than when I originally bought them.

We're both probably around the same age so time is on our side. If you're in a target date fund, you're well-diversified and don't need to worry about the short-term volatility in the market. If for some reason we lose all of our money, the world is screwed anyway and the last thing we'd worry about is our retirement accounts.

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/dollarcostaveraging.asp

This will give you a good, brief explanation of dollar-cost averaging.

Also, I recommend picking up this book at your library: https://www.amazon.com/Bogleheads-Guide-Investing-Taylor-Larimore/dp/1118921283/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=HGEPDXET2CJ1VWJ3ZA9Y

It's a quick read and will give you more confidence in what you're doing. You have 7 months until you can contribute more to your Roth so that gives you plenty of time to get a good understanding and gain confidence in setting yourself up for the future.

u/Jim3535 · 1 pointr/personalfinance

This video is a good TL;DR despite the clickbait title.

The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing is a really good, practical book on investing.

A Random Walk down Wall Street: The Time-tested Strategy for Successful Investing is a pretty thorough takedown of stock analysis and picking.

u/nevertoolate1983 · 1 pointr/CFP

How about a list of books/resources in the sidebar for those just starting out?

I heard these are two good books for beginners
The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing
www.amazon.com/dp/1118921283/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_W7g3BbGXSD37E

So You Want to Be A Financial Planner www.amazon.com/dp/0985259426/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_P5g3BbMY4M9NP

u/xilex · 1 pointr/personalfinance

This book was my first introduction to this world

The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing https://www.amazon.com/dp/1118921283/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_suBOybE0AZ4CY

u/nudelete · 1 pointr/Nudelete

>The purpose of this post is help new investors. Often times we may be asked by a friend or family member what they should invest in. They can be easily turned off by throwing multiple FAQs and guides at them. I have found that for a new investor, reading through wikipedia pages on lazy or 3-fund portfolios can be daunting. Reading books on the subject can be over the head of most people as well, if they do not have a finance background. Understanding stocks and bonds as well as the overall market is difficult so don't feel bad about not understanding it. I will try to keep this as short and sweet as possible. Hopefully you can link friends or family who are just starting off with investing to this post to set them on the right path. This information is covered in the FAQ very briefly without much explanation, however. Hopefully others can add insights that could be helpful for readers of this guide or additional questions to add on if they come up.
>
>Disclosure: I am not a financial adviser. I do not work in the financial sector. I do invest in some of the funds that may be listed in this guide. I did not author/publish any recommended books in this guide. I am also not a CPA. This guide is not intended to discuss tax planning.
>
>#Why should I invest?
>
>You should invest in order to help your money grow. Without growth from investing, it would be impossible for most people to retire. 401ks, IRAs, Pensions, and even Social Security all rely on investment returns to meet their obligations.
>
>#Isn't investing risky? How can I be sure I'm not going to lose everything?
>
>Investing doesn't have to be very risky. If you are investing in a single stock and that company goes out of business, then you can lose a lot of money. This is why diversification is important. It like the saying goes, "never put all your eggs in one basket." If they basket breaks then all your eggs break. If you invest in thousands of companies or put your eggs in thousands of baskets then you are much less likely to lose your investment and are quite more likely to gain money. For example, since it was started in 1994 the LifeStrategy growth fund listed below has grown 8% on average per year and invests in thousands of stocks and bonds, international and domestic.
>
>You may think that a 1% high yield savings account is a "safe investment." However, if inflation is over 1% per year, which it often is, it means that you are actually losing purchasing power on that money in the savings account.
>
>Even if you started investing right before a major financial crisis, you would still have more money than a very high yield savings account: Chart
>
>#I Know absolutely nothing about investing, what stocks should I buy?
>
>Target Date Fund or Lifestyle Fund. These are ALL-IN-ONE solutions for investing.
>
>Step 1: Open an account with Vanguard if you don't already have one.
>
>CLICK HERE to determine a good Target date fund for you. How a target date fund works is that it starts off with a higher percentage of stocks to bonds such as 90/10 and then moves toward 50/50 as you near the target date.
>
>For Lifestyle Funds:
>
>the Vanguard LifeStrategy Growth Fund is a solid choice that gives you an 80/20 stock to bond ratio.
>
>the Vanguard LifeStrategy Moderate Growth Fund is also a good choice for a 60/40 stock to bond ration.
>
>Vanguard can make a personalized recommendation for you as well if you aren't sure
>
>in general the higher amount of bonds you have, the less risk but lower growth potential your investment will have.
>
>#Shouldn't I listen to a financial adviser instead of some stranger on reddit?
>
>Well That depends on a few things:
>
>How much money is this financial adviser gaining from your business? I am gaining zero, so I have no reason to steer you wrong. Some times a financial adviser is out to make significant commissions by landing business, especially in extremely high fee "investments" such as whole life insurance or similar policies. Even 1% fees to hold and manage your investments can take a huge bite out of your account over time.
>
>Fee based advisers are the kind that you pay for an appointment, much like a doctor visit, and then they give you advice on your investments. Try to make sure however that they do not try to advise you into using investment vehicles that they receive commission from. These can be helpful in certain situations because you aren't throwing away money for years and years just to have an adviser handle your money.
>
>Consumer Reports says this could happen with some financial advisers. Basically they use their positions and your lack of knowledge to get you to invest in things to make them more money, costing you dearly in the long term.
>
>#Why are you suggesting Vanguard? What about other banks / brokerages?
>
>I find Vanguard the easiest to use. They also are structured to keep your investments safe. Once you reach a $50,000 with them, you have access to professional advisers. Unlike other banks/brokerages the advisers at Vanguard DO NOT RECEIVE COMMISSIONS. They are salaried so they have no reason to steer you wrong. Source
>
>Vanguard also has some of (if not the) lowest fees in the industry. This saves you money in the long term vs using other institutions or a financial adviser to manage your money.
>
>#Are there other investments besides these All-in-one funds?
>
>Yes, of course. Here are some more examples of portfolios that you could use as well:
>
>
Examples of so called "Lazy Portfolios"
>
> These are some 3 fund portfolios
>
>
>#Are there any good books I could read to understand these investments more?
>
>Book recommendations:
>
>
The Bogleheads Guide to Investing
>
> The Only Guide to a Winning Investment Strategy You'll Ever Need: The Way Smart Money Invests Today
>
>
Book List from Bogleheads wiki
>
>

u/FrontpageWatch · 1 pointr/longtail

>The purpose of this post is help new investors. Often times we may be asked by a friend or family member what they should invest in. They can be easily turned off by throwing multiple FAQs and guides at them. I have found that for a new investor, reading through wikipedia pages on lazy or 3-fund portfolios can be daunting. Reading books on the subject can be over the head of most people as well, if they do not have a finance background. Understanding stocks and bonds as well as the overall market is difficult so don't feel bad about not understanding it. I will try to keep this as short and sweet as possible. Hopefully you can link friends or family who are just starting off with investing to this post to set them on the right path. This information is covered in the FAQ very briefly without much explanation, however. Hopefully others can add insights that could be helpful for readers of this guide or additional questions to add on if they come up.
>
>Disclosure: I am not a financial adviser. I do not work in the financial sector. I do invest in some of the funds that may be listed in this guide. I did not author/publish any recommended books in this guide. I am also not a CPA. This guide is not intended to discuss tax planning.
>
>#Why should I invest?
>
>You should invest in order to help your money grow. Without growth from investing, it would be impossible for most people to retire. 401ks, IRAs, Pensions, and even Social Security all rely on investment returns to meet their obligations.
>
>#Isn't investing risky? How can I be sure I'm not going to lose everything?
>
>Investing doesn't have to be very risky. If you are investing in a single stock and that company goes out of business, then you can lose a lot of money. This is why diversification is important. It like the saying goes, "never put all your eggs in one basket." If they basket breaks then all your eggs break. If you invest in thousands of companies or put your eggs in thousands of baskets then you are much less likely to lose your investment and are quite more likely to gain money. For example, since it was started in 1994 the LifeStrategy growth fund listed below has grown 8% on average per year and invests in thousands of stocks and bonds, international and domestic.
>
>You may think that a 1% high yield savings account is a "safe investment." However, if inflation is over 1% per year, which it often is, it means that you are actually losing purchasing power on that money in the savings account.
>
>Even if you started investing right before a major financial crisis, you would still have more money than a very high yield savings account: Chart
>
>#I Know absolutely nothing about investing, what stocks should I buy?
>
>Target Date Fund or Lifestyle Fund. These are ALL-IN-ONE solutions for investing.
>
>Step 1: Open an account with Vanguard if you don't already have one.
>
>CLICK HERE to determine a good Target date fund for you. How a target date fund works is that it starts off with a higher percentage of stocks to bonds such as 90/10 and then moves toward 50/50 as you near the target date.
>
>For Lifestyle Funds:
>
>the Vanguard LifeStrategy Growth Fund is a solid choice that gives you an 80/20 stock to bond ratio.
>
>the Vanguard LifeStrategy Moderate Growth Fund is also a good choice for a 60/40 stock to bond ration.
>
>Vanguard can make a personalized recommendation for you as well if you aren't sure
>
>in general the higher amount of bonds you have, the less risk but lower growth potential your investment will have.
>
>#Shouldn't I listen to a financial adviser instead of some stranger on reddit?
>
>Well That depends on a few things:
>
>How much money is this financial adviser gaining from your business? I am gaining zero, so I have no reason to steer you wrong. Some times a financial adviser is out to make significant commissions by landing business, especially in extremely high fee "investments" such as whole life insurance or similar policies. Even 1% fees to hold and manage your investments can take a huge bite out of your account over time.
>
>Fee based advisers are the kind that you pay for an appointment, much like a doctor visit, and then they give you advice on your investments. Try to make sure however that they do not try to advise you into using investment vehicles that they receive commission from. These can be helpful in certain situations because you aren't throwing away money for years and years just to have an adviser handle your money.
>
>Consumer Reports says this could happen with some financial advisers. Basically they use their positions and your lack of knowledge to get you to invest in things to make them more money, costing you dearly in the long term.
>
>#Why are you suggesting Vanguard? What about other banks / brokerages?
>
>I find Vanguard the easiest to use. They also are structured to keep your investments safe. Once you reach a $50,000 with them, you have access to professional advisers. Unlike other banks/brokerages the advisers at Vanguard DO NOT RECEIVE COMMISSIONS. They are salaried so they have no reason to steer you wrong. Source
>
>Vanguard also has some of (if not the) lowest fees in the industry. This saves you money in the long term vs using other institutions or a financial adviser to manage your money.
>
>#Are there other investments besides these All-in-one funds?
>
>Yes, of course. Here are some more examples of portfolios that you could use as well:
>
>
Examples of so called "Lazy Portfolios"
>
> These are some 3 fund portfolios
>
>
>#Are there any good books I could read to understand these investments more?
>
>Book recommendations:
>
>
The Bogleheads Guide to Investing
>
> The Only Guide to a Winning Investment Strategy You'll Ever Need: The Way Smart Money Invests Today
>
>
Book List from Bogleheads wiki
>
>

u/underpopular · 1 pointr/underpopular

>The purpose of this post is help new investors. Often times we may be asked by a friend or family member what they should invest in. They can be easily turned off by throwing multiple FAQs and guides at them. I have found that for a new investor, reading through wikipedia pages on lazy or 3-fund portfolios can be daunting. Reading books on the subject can be over the head of most people as well, if they do not have a finance background. Understanding stocks and bonds as well as the overall market is difficult so don't feel bad about not understanding it. I will try to keep this as short and sweet as possible. Hopefully you can link friends or family who are just starting off with investing to this post to set them on the right path. This information is covered in the FAQ very briefly without much explanation, however. Hopefully others can add insights that could be helpful for readers of this guide or additional questions to add on if they come up.
>
>Disclosure: I am not a financial adviser. I do not work in the financial sector. I do invest in some of the funds that may be listed in this guide. I did not author/publish any recommended books in this guide. I am also not a CPA. This guide is not intended to discuss tax planning.
>
>#Why should I invest?
>
>You should invest in order to help your money grow. Without growth from investing, it would be impossible for most people to retire. 401ks, IRAs, Pensions, and even Social Security all rely on investment returns to meet their obligations.
>
>#Isn't investing risky? How can I be sure I'm not going to lose everything?
>
>Investing doesn't have to be very risky. If you are investing in a single stock and that company goes out of business, then you can lose a lot of money. This is why diversification is important. It like the saying goes, "never put all your eggs in one basket." If they basket breaks then all your eggs break. If you invest in thousands of companies or put your eggs in thousands of baskets then you are much less likely to lose your investment and are quite more likely to gain money. For example, since it was started in 1994 the LifeStrategy growth fund listed below has grown 8% on average per year and invests in thousands of stocks and bonds, international and domestic.
>
>You may think that a 1% high yield savings account is a "safe investment." However, if inflation is over 1% per year, which it often is, it means that you are actually losing purchasing power on that money in the savings account.
>
>Even if you started investing right before a major financial crisis, you would still have more money than a very high yield savings account: Chart
>
>#I Know absolutely nothing about investing, what stocks should I buy?
>
>Target Date Fund or Lifestyle Fund. These are ALL-IN-ONE solutions for investing.
>
>Step 1: Open an account with Vanguard if you don't already have one.
>
>CLICK HERE to determine a good Target date fund for you. How a target date fund works is that it starts off with a higher percentage of stocks to bonds such as 90/10 and then moves toward 50/50 as you near the target date.
>
>For Lifestyle Funds:
>
>the Vanguard LifeStrategy Growth Fund is a solid choice that gives you an 80/20 stock to bond ratio.
>
>the Vanguard LifeStrategy Moderate Growth Fund is also a good choice for a 60/40 stock to bond ration.
>
>Vanguard can make a personalized recommendation for you as well if you aren't sure
>
>in general the higher amount of bonds you have, the less risk but lower growth potential your investment will have.
>
>#Shouldn't I listen to a financial adviser instead of some stranger on reddit?
>
>Well That depends on a few things:
>
>How much money is this financial adviser gaining from your business? I am gaining zero, so I have no reason to steer you wrong. Some times a financial adviser is out to make significant commissions by landing business, especially in extremely high fee "investments" such as whole life insurance or similar policies. Even 1% fees to hold and manage your investments can take a huge bite out of your account over time.
>
>Fee based advisers are the kind that you pay for an appointment, much like a doctor visit, and then they give you advice on your investments. Try to make sure however that they do not try to advise you into using investment vehicles that they receive commission from. These can be helpful in certain situations because you aren't throwing away money for years and years just to have an adviser handle your money.
>
>Consumer Reports says this could happen with some financial advisers. Basically they use their positions and your lack of knowledge to get you to invest in things to make them more money, costing you dearly in the long term.
>
>#Why are you suggesting Vanguard? What about other banks / brokerages?
>
>I find Vanguard the easiest to use. They also are structured to keep your investments safe. Once you reach a $50,000 with them, you have access to professional advisers. Unlike other banks/brokerages the advisers at Vanguard DO NOT RECEIVE COMMISSIONS. They are salaried so they have no reason to steer you wrong. Source
>
>Vanguard also has some of (if not the) lowest fees in the industry. This saves you money in the long term vs using other institutions or a financial adviser to manage your money.
>
>#Are there other investments besides these All-in-one funds?
>
>Yes, of course. Here are some more examples of portfolios that you could use as well:
>
>
Examples of so called "Lazy Portfolios"
>
> These are some 3 fund portfolios
>
>
>#Are there any good books I could read to understand these investments more?
>
>Book recommendations:
>
>
The Bogleheads Guide to Investing
>
> The Only Guide to a Winning Investment Strategy You'll Ever Need: The Way Smart Money Invests Today
>
>
Book List from Bogleheads wiki
>
>

u/coindepth · 1 pointr/PersonalFinanceCanada

Completely agree with this!
Might I also suggest the Bogleheads Guide to Investing https://www.amazon.ca/dp/1118921283/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_x_LxhcAb98W6806
Great book that will not only teach you the basics, but also how to approach investing