During the last two years (2008-2010) we’ve seen the stock market as well as the housing market and financial institutions go through a very rough period of correction. Now in the second half of 2010, average investors are wondering if they should start investing again. Well it depends on what you’re going to invest in.
We are no where at there bottom or the worse of it yet, but at the same time I’m looking at many different investments I may want to get in on. I will say though that the stock market is not one of them at this time. In my opinion, there is no reason for the DOW to be over 10,000 and I do expect it to come back down below 9000. When I do not know, but it will be there in due time.
What about precious metals? There is only a limited amount of gold in this world and it’s one of the few things that will retain it’s value (if not go up) in our present economic condition. I’ve been building a portfolio of just different precious metals. If you’re looking to buy gold make sure you are buying actual gold pieces and not some paper stock that trades off of gold. Between the two, only actual gold will be worth anything when and if our economy crashes.
As for the housing industry, I suggest you take your time and look for solid and profitable deals. The housing market will not turn around any time soon so you will have plenty of time to find the right one for you. We will see foreclosures going on for years to come so prices will stay in the general area if not come down even more. As an investor, you will need to look at properties that will return to good value in five to eight years from now. The days of flipping houses are on hold and will be that way for some time.
Stay away from investing in any financial institution since they are still not sure of what will happen in time with all the government regulations that will be coming down the line. So is it time to start investing? Yes if you take your time and study what it is you want to invest in.
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After all this time that I’ve been saying that there is no good reason for the DOW and the rest of the markets to be as high as it is, we can see from the comments from the Federal Reserve, we are not bouncing back from the recovery as they and the Obama Administration have been trying to feed us for the last year. The Federal Reserve states that the economy is not growing as fast as they once thought. To make matters worse, the dollar is at a fifteen year low against the Yen.
In the first forty five minutes of trading today, the DOW is down 200 points. A sign that that investors and brokers are waking up to the realization of the fact that we are not out of the woods yet. NASDAQ is also down 54 points in the same amount of time. All together, each of the three idicies have lost roughly 2% in less than one hour.
Of course I expect the markets to jump back up, but that will be from the market makers trying to make some more profits on this sell off. The DOW has moved up to 10,700 i the last week and there should be some profit taking, but this drop is not going to end with a few people taking their profits. I feel that some will start weening out of the stock market in preparation of the correction we’ll see in the second half of this year.
If you are still looking for some trading action, because you love the game of the markets, I suggest that you learn and start shorting stocks and the overall market.
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Investing hard-earned money in Individual Retirement Funds can be risky, but there are IRA funds that have been performing very well and would definitely be wise to consider. Dodge and Cox Stock has proven to be a reliable fund since its start in 1965. Sometimes going with an older fund is a good idea. The strong performance of Dodge and Cox makes it a good choice for those who are interested in dividend-oriented portfolios and strong risk-adjusted returns.
Vanguard REIT Index Fund has proven to be another fund with good performance. Even though real estate has been risky of late, this fund has been doing very well, especially considering that REITs must distribute 90% of earnings to shareholders every year. Real estate allows for a more diversified portfolio and is a good choice for an IRA fund.
Roth IRAs have always been a good option for IRA investing. After age 59 and 1/2, withdrawals are not taxed, and the rules for withdrawal are more flexible to work with. And since contributions can be withdrawn without the risk of penalty or taxes, Roth IRAs are a good choice if money may be needed sooner rather than later.
Another good choice would be the Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Fund. Half of its portfolio deals in agency and Treasury bonds and the other half in corporate bonds. This fund is expected to perform well in years to come.
Third Avenue Value has been performing reasonably well in the last ten years. Considering the state of the economy, this fund is still doing better than others. It might be worth checking into as an IRA investment. The funds listed here are options to consider when looking for the best IRA funds. Retirement should be relaxing and worry-free, and good investing today can contribute towards a happier tomorrow.
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