Reliable Investing

RELIABLE INVESTING

Investing requires educating one self. Research and knowledge about markets and how to invest is a must for first time investors, and many who now invest. Diving in with both feet from the start is often unsuccessful.

The best paper investment is government paper, bonds, and so on. The theory is that the government will be the last to go broke and fail to pay off on investments. There is the further advantage that income is fixed, dependable, and the capital never goes down, with these investments.

Tangible investments are grain and meat futures, real estate, and coins. There is a limited amount of land so it becomes more valuable as the population grows. The value of real estate can gyrate up and down but it never loses all value. Gold and silver coins are good for they seldom drop below face value, and are likely to have value in any other country.

Stocks, another paper investment, can go up and down more often and even become worthless.

By these few comments one should realize that successful investing requires educating one self to all of the investment possibilities, and potential problems, before plunging into any market.

STABI:IZE YOUR FINANCIAL SITUATION FIRST

The best is to pay off all debts possible and especially credit card debts, and put in savings 3-6 months of ready cash to live on if needed.

DO NOT INVEST TO GET RICH QUICK

If that worked the majority most of the time all of us would be doing it. Such a program is likely to fail.

DETERMINE YOUR STYLE OF INVESTING

Some may be moderate, others aggressive, and still other conservative. Learn your risk tolerance and follow it to prevent frequent stress and upset.

WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS

Set goals after first determining them through considered thinking. Is it retirement? Money for kids to complete college, or pay cash for a house when you retire. Set goals for where you want to go.

ALLOW TIME IN YOUR PLAN

Few, if any, investment plans will make you rich overnight. Ask a CPA and he will tell you that 20 years is a good minimum time period.

LOOK AT YOUR RETIREMENT

How much time is there until you retire? What do you want to have when you retire? How much will your social security be? How much will pension plans bring in? All of this is important to investing.

SET DOWN WITH AN ADVISOR

By all means consult with a financial planner. Be honest with him or her as to where you are today, your debts, income, and where you want to go. He can take that information and map out a good and workable investment plan for you, including how much you can invest, and the frequency. Your bank may have a financial planner that will do this for free.

EVALUATE, EVALUATE

Thoroughly evaluate potential investments. For stock, for example, get their history of income, stock values, and have they paid a dividend every year, and how much was it. And do these indicate dependability in terms of the percent return on our investment.

STRATEGY

Never invest without a plan, and a strategy to reach the goals of that plan. A financial planner will help. Listen to him.

ARE YOU READY

You should be knowledgeable, have a plan and a strategy to achieve its goals, and probably a list of good investments, by now. Then you are ready to risk that first dollar.

IN CLOSING

Investing can be fun and rewarding when one is prepared. When one is unprepared they can lose money or never achieve goals and be miserable. Be prepared and enjoy investing.