Good INVESTMENT ideas?

I recently acquired a good chunk of money from a CD that my grandmother had set up for me some time ago. I hesitate putting it back into another CD because of the rates are so terrible. Any ideas of another good financial investment? I'm even willing to go for a moderate risk :-). Thanks!!

Open up a mutual fund account and characterize it as a traditional or Roth IRA. Right now because the market is so flaky, invest in defensive funds like commodities (have you seen the price of corn or gold lately?!!), gas, oil, fine art, etc. Be careful with the international market at this time, but don't completely forego investing in it, either.

Depending on how much money you've got, also consider some individual stocks, but remember, your tax consequences are different. The IRA will offer tax deferral and thus the power of compounding, whereas any gains paid from the individual stocks will be due at tax time each year, not just when you withdraw the money like the traditional IRA. You have to keep the money for 5 years in the Roth for the withdrawals/gains to be tax-free.

Depending on your tax bracket, consider municipal funds, which aren't taxed by the feds. Don't forget to put a percentage of safety in your investment with bonds and government securities.

The best thing to do is to talk to an investment professional so that he/she can asses your information and objectives.

If you want to dabble in learning things, open up an ETrade account with a small amount of the money.

Buy some piece of land in developing countries like india, where the money will be trebled in no time..,
Try to go for NZ/Oz bank accounts which offer good amount of interest.., donno how you would invest in other countries being an american.., but there shud be a way.., try it

Standard investment advice is that you should invest in a diversified mix of stocks, bonds, and money market funds. If you are like most people you will invest part of your money aggressively in stocks, and part conservatively in money market funds and bond funds. However, some young people will go all stocks, and some very conservative people will go all money markets. The links below have on-line questionnaires which will give you an idea of how to do "Asset Allocation," determining how much to put in each type of investment.

You want to buy a diversified portfolio of stocks as individual stocks are too risky. Highly knowledgeable people can buy a properly balanced portfolio, but most folks have a difficult time balancing things on their own. They will misbalance their portfolio by buying all small stocks or all growth stocks, or some other misbalanced assortment of stocks. Back in 2000, Some people bought all internet stocks; they got burnt when they all crashed together. You have to diversify across industries. Unless you know what you are doing, it is best to buy mutual funds. Buy no-load, low cost funds. Mutual funds should have expense ratios of less than 0.5%.

If your company offers a 401K plan at work, try to invest the most you can. The money grows tax free, and some companies will match your contribution. Investing in a mutual fund IRA is also a good idea. If you have children, you may want to consider a 529 plan or other college savings plan that grows tax free.

I like index funds. Because of their broad diversification, you are less likely to have a dramatic drop in value. They also have the lowest expenses. For stock funds, I would suggest putting ~70-80% of your money in the Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund. and ~20-30% in a foreign stock index fund. However, there are many different opinions out there on what the best mutual funds are. Read the links below and form your own opinion.

If you have high-interest debt, like credit cards, it is best to pay this off first before trying most of the investment ideas above. You should also have 3-6 months of salary saved up as an emergency fund in a bank or money market fund before trying more risky investments.

Believing advice you get on Yahoo answers can be risky, so read these websites for further information. If you find it too confusing, contact a professional financial advisor. They will charge you significant commissions, however.

Sources:
(all links are to non-profit groups or to Yahoo sites. None are solicitation)
http://finance.yahoo.com/education/begin_investing
http://finance.yahoo.com/funds/basics
http://www.vanguard.com/VGApp/hnw/planningeducation
http://sec.gov/investor/pubs/assetallocation.htm

Asset Allocation Calculators
(Determining how much to put in stocks and how much into bonds and money markets is a personal decision depending on your financial status. These Asset Allocation questionaires give you a rough idea how to do this.
https://personal.vanguard.com/VGApp/hnw/FundsInvQuestionnaire?cbdInitTransUrl=https%3A//flagship.vanguard.com/VGApp/hnw/planningeducation/education
https://ais2.tiaa-cref.org/cgi-bin/WebObjects.exe/DTAssetAlcEval

If you are looking long-term you have several options available to you that offer lower risk.

Your first option, should be to open a retirement account. This is always a good investment, regardless
of who you are.

If you have fully funded your retirement account and would like other options, you should consider a DRIP Plan.

They are seldom recommended by brokers due to the low rate of commissions received. However, these
reinvestment plans can be very powerful long-term investment. Studies have shown that DRIP's are one of
the best strategies on Wall Street.

They are inexpensive and easy to start. New investors to the stock market should definitely consider a DRIP Plan.

Companies like Toyota, Royal Canadian Bank, Sony, Bank of America, General Electric and many other Blue Chip
Stocks can be purchased through your DRIP Plan, with as little as 1 share in most cases.

These long-term plans are great for beginners as well as veterans. Check them out.

Look at all suiggestions carefully and make a wise decision based upone what you are comfortable with.

Good Luck

Hello,

I also had a similair problem as you have.
I had a good amount of money, and wanted it to grow.
So I looked around on the internet to find something that is:
1) giving me great returns towards a relatively small risk

2) Professional people who know what they where doing with my money.

I'm glad to say I finally found a moneymanager who is capable of giving me good returns and give me a great support.
On this blog you can follow up all the results that he is making:
http://my-robottrader.blogspot.com/

My money is working for me, in a little over two months I already have a ROI of 68%.
So you don't hear me complaining!
Annyway if you would like to get in touch with my moneymanager to have some more information feel free to contact me you can send an email to me at derrekmay at gmail.com.
Then I'll give you the email adress of my moneymanager

Hope this has helped you!

You ARE VERY fortunate. You have "found money".

Whatever the amount is, this is what you should do:

First & Formost: 10% to your favorite charity or charities. It could be your church, temple or mosque.

10% to yourself to save for your future.

10% to have a good time or to get some of thowe things you want and need.

35% for taxes and your other financial responsiblilities. UNLESS there were provisions made for that.

25% to invest as you see fit or in a business or venture you KNOW HOW to do and aabout.

10% "for a rainy day".

I want everyone to know I DO NOT own any portion of this manâ€™s estate, nor am I associated with him or any one else connected with him in any way. I am not part of the publishing company or an agent or anything else. This man does not know me from Adam AND I donâ€™t know him. I know of him and the wonderful book he wrote. THIS IS NOT SPAM.
You should buy a copy of this book:
â€œThe Richest Man in Babylonâ€ by George S. Classon
Its very easy to read. Its very easy to follow. You can write in it. You can make notes in it. All you have to do is to read five [5] pages - Letâ€™s count
1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 pages of this book - or any book - each and every day.
OR You can leave it sit on the shelf, on a table or on the floor and let it collect dust.

Suggestion: Journal every day on your computer. What you learned and what you were taught. What to do and what not to do.

Thanks for asking your Q! I enjoyed answering it!

VTY,
Ron Berue
Yes, that is my real last name!

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