Ira Withdrawal Strategy

December 2nd, 2010

Question: Where does a 26yr with no current investments put his 1st 50,000US$?

I’m 26yr old, with no current investment holdings. I have about 50K in liquid assets and I am looking to start a comprehensive investment strategy (near, mid, and long-term)

Near-term:

Money-market, savings account or something else? Need to stay liquid here

Mid-Term:

Mutual-funds or ETF? Index or managed? Any suggestions on specific funds? Also, need to stay fairly liquid

Long-term:

I have no employer to match my 401K so should I go with an IRA or a 401k? Tax implications? Early Withdrawal penalities?

Finally, is there anywhere that I can get all these things done in one place so I don’t have to manage relationships with 4 different banks?

Thx!

Answer: Think about what it is that you want. What are your goals for this money?

Do you know anything about investing, mutual funds or the stock market?

Diversify. Do not put all your eggs in one basket.

Investing tends to only get exciting when you make money quickly or you see the end result of a good investment over a fairly long period of time 15 – 20 years or longer.

The more risk we are prepared to take, the more we can expect to make. That is why the stock market will generally return more than a savings account.

To be successful you will need patience, discipline, and wisdom. But most importantly you need a plan and you need to define your goals.

It may prove expensive to acquire that much needed wisdom on your own. Learn by other peoples mistakes. Learn from other peoples successes. Read some books. Visit your local book store and find a book that you like and feel comfortable with.

Some of the titles I have on my bookshelf include:
One Up on Wall Street by Peter Lynch
How to make money in Stocks by William J. O’Neil (Founder of Investor’s Business Daily)
The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas J Stanley and William D Danco

Check out web sites like fool.com and yahoo finance.
Investigate trading strategies with a proven track record over 3, 5, 10, and 15 years.

Pick something that you understand, find easy to use and will help you realise your goals. Pick a strategy where you can take responsibility for your investments and be in full control of your capital.

Systems like the Stocks Monthly system are definitely worth investigating once you are up to speed with the nuts and bolts of investing.

Doug Flynn, CFP and a Roth IRA strategy for 2009-2010 on CNBC’s “On the Money” w/ Carmen Wong Ulrich