I was sure proud of myself for jumping out of the market in 08 right before the crash. The problem is I didn't jump back in soon enough. I would have been better off just leaving it in and taking the hit but riding it back up.
I became fairly cynical about the markets and just didn't trust it at all. It seemed like a shell game. I bought a bunch of silver in 08 and 09 and made some on it then kept a little as an emergency fund. I then started buying rentals for few years. Then I focused on getting out of debt the last 5 years. We've always put some in the markets but i keep 50k of it in a very low risk money market that only pays 2% as an emergency type fund.
Now that our debts gone except for the 1 rental we are trying to put 19k a year in my wifes 401 and 6k in my IRA. We are paying the rental down quick as we can but decided to start investing now too even if it means a few years more of rental payments. My health is not good and I was only able to get 250k in life insurance so I'm trying to save and invest what i can to leave the family in a good spot if my card gets pulled.
After talking to my in laws the main thing they had going for them was time. They didn't make a lot in their early years but started paying into different retirement investments in their twenties. They just left it in and let it ride. If it went down they just bought more. They retired with millions but still won't usually buy a grandkid lunch.
I try to save and manage my money but I've just never been able to be as cheap as some people can. I just couldn't pass up a fieldcraft in 6 creed for $1150 for example. I wish I would have been putting $500 a month in since I was about 25. Can't turn back the clock but I can start now. I put $5500 in an IRA last year and plan to max it out every year from here on out and max out the wifes 401k. If we save any beyond that we may do hard money loans or more real estate.
They way the world and labor markets are changing I feel more compelled than ever to leave something for my kids. My oldest is only 7 but they all have savings accounts, cds, and they each have a sizable bag of silver and a little gold. I'd like to start buying them a few select stocks and funds.
I think I'll get started on a fidelity or vanguard acct. I just need to decide between the two. I also need to know if there's any downside to ETFs. They sound like a good alternative to traditional funds. I'd like to get a good chunk in an index fund or two and spread the rest around the market a bit. I'm kind of excited to start learning about the markets again after writing them off during the Obama years.
Bb
