Tag Archives: individual
Investing In Individual Stocks Is Not the Only Game In Town
We need to have a talk. Some of you? Yeah. I hate to break it to you but some of you will never have the emotional temperament to invest in stocks. Many financial planners and professionals seem to refuse to accept or believe this basic fact, hoping that rational arguments will win those of you who make up this minority over to their side by using historical proof, statistical evidence, and logical, well-documented cases. In some instances they are correct. In the end, some of you are a lost cause.
That does not mean you have to give up on your hopes and dreams for financial independence or significant wealth! Far from it! It just leaves you with one less tool in the toolbox of your family’s finances and that we need to look further than Wall Street to find intelligent things you can do with your savings.
Specifically, it reduces you to two big asset allocation asset classes unless you want to get into the esoteric like mineral rights, music copyrights, patents, trademarks, etc., which isn’t an area most normal investors want to tread in unless they have unique insights in a field or industry due to their career.
How do you know if you are the type of investor that probably shouldn’t be holding individual common stocks in your portfolio, much less try to choose new positions to add to your holdings? This checklist might help …
Investing In Individual Stocks Is Not the Only Game In Town originally appeared on About.com Investing for Beginners on Saturday, December 31st, 2011 at 20:39:43.
Q&A: What’s the difference between an IRA and a regular individual account?
Question by LOL: What’s the difference between an IRA and a regular individual account?
I know an IRA is for retirement, but many brokers charge extra for an IRA account. So why don’t you just open an individual account and use it as an IRA?
Best answer:
Answer by Don P
Because you can deduct the money you put into an IRA from your income tax and you don’t pay tax on the interest earned until you take the money out. With an individual account, you have to pay tax on the interest earned every year. If you do a ROTH account, you pay the tax up front and then pay no tax when you withdraw the money.
Generally speaking, do most 401k plans allow the participant to invest in individual stocks?
Question by Yay Ah!: Generally speaking, do most 401k plans allow the participant to invest in individual stocks?
And by individual stocks, I don’t mean the company’s stock. I’m talking about non-employer stocks traded on an exchange.
In addition, do most 401k plans allow the participant invest in any mutual fund of his/her choice? Or do most 401k plans offer only a limited mutual fund selection?
*I know plans vary. But, this is just a general question.
Best answer:
Answer by Sean Roberts
Adam,
A 401K is like a shopping cart in a supermarket. You can buy any type of investment from a stable stock such as Exxon to a speculative venture capital stock, to a mutual fund, to a corporate bond, to a municipal bond, or anything else. I would advise you to diversify your portfolio as much as possible. You are not obligated to buy stock in your employer’s company.
A 401K is handled by a third party investment firm. Your company only knows how much you have contributed to your 401K, but not what you bought with it.
