USbosunCG
New Member
Cash: $ 0.90
Posts: 4
Joined: 19 Oct 2005
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Hey guys this is my first post on money talk. My name is Tyler and im 19, im not in college right now and Im a high school graduate. Ive enlisted into the coast guard and leave in early January 2006. I will be under the GI Bill which will pay me up to 36,000 over 4 years for my college tuition and also other payments to help me with other costs of college. Im very interested in managing the money that I make and have a savings account with a good amount in it right now. I will have a few thousand dollars saved up by the time I leave for basic, and also the money that Ill be making in basic will also only be saved to add to it. What I would like to is make money off the money Ive saved up.
my problem is that I dont know much about investing, or funds, or much about money and how to make more from it. Being in the coastguard Ill have a good oppurtunity to save a good deal of money. I would like to know whats possible for me to do with the money Ive saved, what the best and most successful ways are for making that money more money. It wouldnt be that much, unless I go overseas or am on board an offshore tour for more 6 months my savings will only be about $8,000. Ive read a lot on these boards and online but I would like to get a book that would help me out. Im also facing what I would like to go to college for, I have not quite decided but I would like a career I enjoy that is also quite profitable. If you guys could suggest some books related to financial guidance and investing Id appreciate it, any replies and links are welcome too. Thanks.
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Wed Oct 19, 2005 5:04 pm |
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sayyes
Preferred Member
Cash: $ 11.60
Posts: 143
Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Location: Newport, RI
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Some background:
When you invest in a mutual fund your money gets pooled with everyone else's money and is used to buy a handful of different stocks. Investing in many stocks alleviates alot of the risk because if one of the stocks tanks, hopefully the others won't!
Electronically Traded Funds (ETFs) are like mutual funds except that they are easier to buy and sell because they are bought and sold on the stock market like regular stocks. With mutual funds you usually can only buy or sell at the end of the day.
Now, index funds invest in the stocks that make up the S&P 500. The S&P 500 is a list of the biggest companies, and are generally considered safer than investing in small companies (Wal-Mart probably is not going to go bankrupt).
Now, some advice:
If you're entering the CG soon (and I applaud you) you probably won't have time to research stocks, watch media reports, and read balance sheets if you get sent overseas, and certainly not while you are in basic training. Therefore I would stay away from individual stocks. Instead, I would suggest investing in an index fund (I've heard good things about Vanguard's) or an ETF that tracks the index (IVV is what I invest in).
As far as books go, I would recommend Peter Lynch's One Up On Wall Street to learn how to find companies to invest in. Or, if you just want to learn about money management I would suggest you go over to http://www.fool.com and poke around on the topics on the left hand menu. You'll learn all about Roth IRAs (which you should open) and everything else that is important.
If you have any other specific questions, feel free to post it here!
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Wed Oct 19, 2005 10:13 pm |
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USbosunCG
New Member
Cash: $ 0.90
Posts: 4
Joined: 19 Oct 2005
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quote:
Originally posted by sayyes
Some background:
When you invest in a mutual fund your money gets pooled with everyone else's money and is used to buy a handful of different stocks. Investing in many stocks alleviates alot of the risk because if one of the stocks tanks, hopefully the others won't!
Electronically Traded Funds (ETFs) are like mutual funds except that they are easier to buy and sell because they are bought and sold on the stock market like regular stocks. With mutual funds you usually can only buy or sell at the end of the day.
Now, index funds invest in the stocks that make up the S&P 500. The S&P 500 is a list of the biggest companies, and are generally considered safer than investing in small companies (Wal-Mart probably is not going to go bankrupt).
Now, some advice:
If you're entering the CG soon (and I applaud you) you probably won't have time to research stocks, watch media reports, and read balance sheets if you get sent overseas, and certainly not while you are in basic training. Therefore I would stay away from individual stocks. Instead, I would suggest investing in an index fund (I've heard good things about Vanguard's) or an ETF that tracks the index (IVV is what I invest in).
As far as books go, I would recommend Peter Lynch's One Up On Wall Street to learn how to find companies to invest in. Or, if you just want to learn about money management I would suggest you go over to http://www.fool.com and poke around on the topics on the left hand menu. You'll learn all about Roth IRAs (which you should open) and everything else that is important.
If you have any other specific questions, feel free to post it here!
Hey thanks for all the advice its really helpful. That fool site is awesome too I cant beleive I had never seen it before, helps a lot with definitions and terms that Im not aware of. Im gonna hit up the half priced book store and look for the one you suggested this weekend and see what else I can find. As of now I have a little less than 3 months before I ship to basic, so ive got a little bit of time. Unfortunatly I dont have cable TV at my house (this really sucks) so I cant view the current stocks, but Ive always got the internet. In basic we wont have time for anything other than learning basic fundamentals, not even any spare time to read, but once Ive gotten to my station Ill have a lot more time. My goal is to learn everything I need to know before actually starting the fund im going to. I want to make all the right moves and best decisions, I wish I had some sort of experienced mentor to guide but I dont. Im dependant only on what I learn and thats why I am here so I can get answers from people 'in the know'. So I appreciate any help at all anyone can give me.
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Fri Oct 21, 2005 5:36 pm |
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sayyes
Preferred Member
Cash: $ 11.60
Posts: 143
Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Location: Newport, RI
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No problem and good luck!
Just FYI, the people at fool.com (David and Tom Gardner) have a couple of books out too if you enjoy that style of writing. Most of their titles begin with "Motley Fool's Guide To..." something.
Don't worry about not having cable. Most of the "financial" shows are just a bunch of hype. You won't learn much from watching them.
Money Blog | Financial Goals Explained | Bargains Online | Refinance
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Fri Oct 21, 2005 7:42 pm |
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mailboy6
Member
Cash: $ 2.10
Posts: 14
Joined: 22 Oct 2005
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I suggest starting a business that you can do in your part time. Check my link for an idea.
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Sat Oct 22, 2005 1:04 am |
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