Overheard conversation!!!!

[LittleBill21]

It's not always a bad idea to buy a house with a mortgage. Considering that a good mutual fund can return 25% per year and interest on a house is only 3-5%, you're losing money by buying with cash. And considering that if you have your money in a fund you can get at if a real emergency arrises. Just be careful not to get stung in the next downturn, and that is not too hard to avoid.

There are a number of ways to make money besides not spending it. Spending a little can sometimes make you a lot.

I get a lot of pleasure from knowing there is no bank involved in owning my home. Of course, ownership only means the County won't take it away from you as long as you keep paying your taxes. So who really owns it? Not much different than a mortgage.

please provide the names of the mutual funds that are averaging 25%, i have had funds, none average 25%, although i agree it prolly would have been better to drop it in the stock market at the time, i didn't really want to do that, not to mention closing costs were much higher with a mortgage, several other things were higher then buying out right.

eh is what it is. all the money i don't pay into a mortgage now goes into the stocks anyway, so how much i would have made would be a bit harder to figure out, and my mortgage at the time i think was 2.7% if i wanted to be honest. it was a good time to borrow money

 

[Rowdy Redneck]

please provide the names of the mutual funds that are averaging 25%,

My thoughts exactly. I'd love to get in on that action!

 

[/pine]

Top-Performing Mutual Funds by Category

 

[bunyip]

My thoughts exactly. I'd love to get in on that action!

Send me your money, low risk, you are account #1.

 

[/pine]

From what I've observed the majority of TBN'ers tend to be prudent with financial investments and feel more comfortable with mutual funds over individual securities...and for good reason for the most part...
Like the old adage: How do you make a small fortune in the stock market?...start with a large fortune...! outsiders and common peoples get the crumbs...

BUT...IMO...The securities (stock) markets is the best legal casino in the world...And if you've got a few bucks you can afford to lose you can also hit the jackpot with a whole lot better odds than any lottery or lottery type game...

It really only takes a few bucks to set up an online brokerage account...many do not even require a minimum balance...if you have MFs' through a financial house (brokerage) many will set up cash accounts at no charge and charge less than $10/trade for online transactions...which offer the full spectrum of market and stop orders etc...

The stock market is a casino where anyone can change the odds in their favor...all it takes is some cognitive research and a game sense of risk...to me it's much more fun than other gambling vices (other than the greyhound track)...and you can set your own limits...

 

[Raspy]

all the money i don't pay into a mortgage now goes into the stocks anyway, time to borrow money

Just be ready to turn it into cash and sit on it when the market starts back down. Or at the very least, don't sell too late and lock in your losses.

 

[newbury]

<snip>We are still young, but I refuse to open a credit card. She finally talked me into it and I set a limit to where I can pay it off in one pay check if something happens. Finally getting it through to her that a great credit score just means you are good at being in debt.

Nope

PJ - a great credit score does NOT necessarily mean you are good at being in debt. I have ABSOLUTELY no debt and my credit card score is well over 820. A good credit score means you are good at managing money.

Yup

i have to agree. thinking a credit card is a bad thing is foolish. i had a credit card since i was 18, never had a balance, never paid 1 dime in interest. and i have raked in over prolly 5k in cash rewards since i got them (all i use are credit cards which have rewards attached).
<snip>

Good example of "taking advantage of the system ethically".

It's not always a bad idea to buy a house with a mortgage.<snip>

Yup
And what are your options? Renting at $2K/month versus a $2K mortgage? You've got to have somewhere to live.

Another thing I see people criticizing is borrowing money to buy a car/truck.

Right now I can borrow for a car at $1.99% from Commonwealth One FCU and INVEST in a certificate at 2.75% at Navy Federal FCU. And if I borrow that money I would have sunk into the vehicle is available to take advantage of MAJOR bargains.

Example - I financed our $27K VW Jetta in 2008 at about 1.25%. About the same time a house in Fulton, MS came up on the foreclosure sales for $25K, looking for a quick sale. We plunked the $$$ down, didn't even try to take out a loan. Sometime you need liquid assets.
I just looked, Zillow values it at $95K, the County taxes us at about $50K.

 

[MossRoad]

Very few people are good at timing the market. Very few. They sell too late, locking in their losses, and they buy back in too late, missing the gains. Dollar cost averaging in proven mutual funds over the long haul seems to be the most prudent route for the average investor.

 

[RSKY]

please provide the names of the mutual funds that are averaging 25%, i have had funds, none average 25%, although i agree it prolly would have been better to drop it in the stock market at the time, i didn't really want to do that, not to mention closing costs were much higher with a mortgage, several other things were higher then buying out right.

eh is what it is. all the money i don't pay into a mortgage now goes into the stocks anyway, so how much i would have made would be a bit harder to figure out, and my mortgage at the time i think was 2.7% if i wanted to be honest. it was a good time to borrow money

Register and log on to the Fidelity Financial website. I think you can do that without purchasing anything. Once there you can shop for funds and make up your own mind what to buy. I never have and never will buy single issue stocks. Too much risk. And when I invest in a new mutual fund I go thru the companies they are invested in and make sure I am not investing in two funds that buy the same stocks. I never invest in funds that have transaction fees. Well,......maybe a really good one every now and then.

I have moved my wife's and my teacher daughter's 401K money into Fidelity Contra (50% of investment in each) which made 32.25% last year and Fidelity Growth Company which made 36.76% for the past twelve months. Both of those funds have averaged 12% earnings SINCE 1986 INCLUDING SEVERAL DOWNTURNS. That is over thirty years thru several severe downturns.

I just moved some of my money into Fidelity's China Region Fund which paid nearly 52% for the past twelve months. I could kick myself for not getting in that one last year. There is one Quantified Investor Class fund offered that paid more than 68% last year. I am scared of that one. If you don't mind paying transaction fees there is a Morgan Stanley Fund that paid more than 78%. I am terrified of that one, looks like it is investing in startups and risky companies in SE Asia. I am brave, not stupid.

These are high risk but high yield large cap growth funds. They can make you a LOT of money, and they can loose money. My top fund since 2013 has been a Biotech Fund that paid more than 30% a year for three years. Then it lost money for a year or so. One that I got in because my advisor strongly suggested was a Yachtman Fund that made about 1% for three years. I really wanted out but she kept telling me it was great to have during a downturn. Then for one year it was my highest earner.

Mr. Trump is making me a lot of money. Well, he has made me a lot of money if things hold up and the Dems don't manage to sabotage the economy to bring him down.

I have tried to tell people on here and in person, DON'T give your money to a local yokel investor. They will take your money and put it in mutual funds and take a cut for themselves for "managing" your money. That money is your future and your retirement. Learn a little and take care of it yourself. Don't go wild and you will have more money to invest. The more you have the more you earn and the more you can take out without cutting into your investment's earnings.

People get concerned about the cost of things and concern themselves with trivial matters while ignoring the things that can affect them and their retirement the most. If you invest wisely you can have several hundred thousand dollars in investments. And the general idea is that you can take out around $1000 each month for every $100,000 invested with your portfolio slowly growing. When the markets start giving trouble you have to adjust what you take as income. I have cut mine more than half before. Just tighten your belt for a while because THE MARKET ALWAYS COMES BACK. If it doesn't your money is worthless anyway.

We have things we need to do, things we need/want to buy, vacations we want to take. We are putting things off because we are making too much on each dollar invested. Because the way the market is going right now every dollar I take out will cost me an extra $0.30 lost at the end of the year.

RSKY

 

[RSKY]

On yeah, I forgot to add this. There are more than 3700 'no transaction fees' funds offered for my IRA. And nearly 11,000 if you don't mind the fees.

Other than a friendly one hour chat with my advisor every three or four months all my transactions are done online. Two weeks ago I finished my 'every six months review and rebalance' moving money to funds that were doing well and out of funds that were lagging. I spend three or four hours a day on this for about three days. Then I go back and check up on the sell and buy orders I have made over the next week or so. So I spend about two or three hours a month taking care of my investments. This doesn't count the times I glance at it to see how it is doing.

RSKY

 

[RSKY]

Just be ready to turn it into cash and sit on it when the market starts back down. Or at the very least, don't sell too late and lock in your losses.

When the market is going strong stay in growth funds. But always have a few bucks in some good large cap value funds and some good bond funds. If it looks like the market is going to have a correction start shifting money out of the riskier growth funds into the value and bond ones.

Advice I got from some people a lot smarter than I am. Has served me well.

RSKY

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Simmer down you old timers...

Food for thought (a few quotes from days-gone-by):

"I see no hope for the future of our people if they are dependent on frivolous youth of today, for certainly all youth are reckless beyond words... When I was young, we were taught to be discreet and respectful of elders, but the present youth are exceedingly wise [disrespectful] and impatient of restraint".
(Hesiod, 8th century BC)

'The children now love luxury; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise. Children are tyrants, not servants of the households. They no longer rise when their elders enter the room. They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up dainties at the table, cross their legs, and tyrannize over their teachers.'
(Socrates)

"The world is passing through troublous times. The young people of today think of nothing but themselves. They have no reverence for parents or old age. They are impatient of all restraint. They talk as if they knew everything, and what passes for wisdom with us is foolishness with them. As for the girls, they are forward, immodest and unladylike in speech, behavior and dress."
(From a sermon preached by Peter the Hermit in A.D. 1274)

They [Young People] have exalted notions, because they have not been humbled by life or learned its necessary limitations; moreover, their hopeful disposition makes them think themselves equal to great things -- and that means having exalted notions. They would always rather do noble deeds than useful ones: Their lives are regulated more by moral feeling than by reasoning -- all their mistakes are in the direction of doing things excessively and vehemently. They overdo everything -- they love too much, hate too much, and the same with everything else.
(Aristotle)


So this is nothing new, or special. Older generations have been complaining about younger since we first learned how to talk (and complain). I'm pretty sure each of your own parent's generations had the same complaints overall about YOUR generation.

Such is the way of things.

Right on. Civilizations have been collapsing for thousands of years.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

i have to agree. thinking a credit card is a bad thing is foolish. i had a credit card since i was 18, never had a balance, never paid 1 dime in interest. and i have raked in over prolly 5k in cash rewards since i got them (all i use are credit cards which have rewards attached).

i also have a 804 credit score and never had a single debt in my life including purchasing my house. i got a mortgage pre approval just for giggles and was approved for over 500k in 20 seconds over the phone.

My credit cards make ME money, if you have no self control, you have no need for a credit card.

I am also 34 and is my wife, she averages $320 in rewards every 6 months, and we just got new cards with even better returns.

work smarter not harder

I'm always tinkering with the house, and Discover will give you a discount on Lowe's gift cards, a $25 card for $20 in cashback balance. The Farmer's Co-op gives an up front 5% discount if you pay cash instead of plastic, and also returns a nice dividend check every August. I just got my year-end statement and spent about $4500 there, just on fuel, hardware and feed. I've been doing my own home improvements since I was in my '20s, but I don't know if young people have the interest or skills any more. I do know one young couple who bought an old house and are busily fixing all the stuff that is wrong with it. The guy is replacing all the plumbing with PEX. I sure wish that stuff was around when I was in my 20s.

Don't forget to ask for the senior citizen discount. I'm 70, but they still card me because they don't believe I'm that old. It's the perils of a full head of hair that never went gray. They don't automatically assume I'm a senior citizen. It adds up at restaurants, hotels, barber shops, etc. Not that a millennial will have to worry about that for a few decades yet.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

It's not always a bad idea to buy a house with a mortgage. Considering that a good mutual fund can return 25% per year and interest on a house is only 3-5%, you're losing money by buying with cash. And considering that if you have your money in a fund you can get at if a real emergency arrises. Just be careful not to get stung in the next downturn, and that is not too hard to avoid.

There are a number of ways to make money besides not spending it. Spending a little can sometimes make you a lot.

I get a lot of pleasure from knowing there is no bank involved in owning my home. Of course, ownership only means the County won't take it away from you as long as you keep paying your taxes. So who really owns it? Not much different than a mortgage.

Ultra aggressive funds that earn 25% a year can also lose 25% a year.

 

[shaeff]

i have to agree. thinking a credit card is a bad thing is foolish. i had a credit card since i was 18, never had a balance, never paid 1 dime in interest. and i have raked in over prolly 5k in cash rewards since i got them (all i use are credit cards which have rewards attached).

i also have a 804 credit score and never had a single debt in my life including purchasing my house. i got a mortgage pre approval just for giggles and was approved for over 500k in 20 seconds over the phone.

My credit cards make ME money, if you have no self control, you have no need for a credit card.

I am also 34 and is my wife, she averages $320 in rewards every 6 months, and we just got new cards with even better returns.

work smarter not harder

Right on, we do the exact same thing. We were also approved for WAY more than we needed, honestly it was enough to put us in a hole we'd never climb out of. We went with or original plan and never looked back. We always take the rewards and drop them back on top of the credit card balance before the due-date. We bought our property for cash after saving feverishly, and when we built the house, it was immediately assessed for way more than our mortgage. I'd say we're right-side-up. (Luckily, the bank assessed it very high, but the town didn't so we don't even pay super high taxes.)

In any case, if you're not reaping the rewards that credit cards offer, I think you're missing out. Like Bill, I've never paid a dime in interest.

 

[RSKY]

I know most of the older people on here (nearly said guys on here, kinda sexist of me) know this so I am talking to the younger ones who haven't had time to make the mistakes us old guys have.

DO NOT CARRY DEBT ON A CREDIT CARD.

The only time I have paid interest on a credit card was when I swapped a couple numbers on a check. Had to pay fees and interest on something around $10. But it was my mistake.

I solved that problem by paying everything online. That also saves me $5/month in postage. My wife uses cards from stores, Dillards, Kohls, Old Navy, etc., to get the discounts and bonuses that come with them. I slowly changed due dates so that I now sit down on the 10th of each month and pay nearly everything online. There are a few bills I still write checks for and mail them it but it is only a few.

DO NOT CARRY DEBT ON A CREDIT CARD.

To all you younger ones reading this, take the time to study your finances. Make the decision to put money back in a 401K or an IRA. Watch that money and learn a little about investing. It can make the difference in retiring at 55 or retiring at 65.

I use credit cards on nearly every purchase we make. Getting 1%, 2%, or 5% back on a purchase can add up to several hundreds or thousands of dollars a year. For example, one card we use gives back 3% on restaurant meals and 5% back on gas. That one sends me a check once a year in February. Another card puts 2% of all purchases back in my IRA account. That is the account I draw part of my income from. Other cards, Lowes for example, give back 5% for each in store purchase.

All that adds up.

But one rule you must remember. If you don't have the cash to pay for a purchase, don't use a credit card as a short term loan. Pay it off each month. Or that purchase you got 5% back on will loose you 3% a month at the least. On some cards if you carry the balance for that purchase one month you will lose what you saved plus some more in fees and interest.

For gosh sakes, learn a little about money and how to manage it. You are going to make mistakes but so what, that is how you learn. If I had known thirty years ago what I know now about money and investing I would be a wealthy person instead of somebody watching closely every purchase.

End of sermon.

RSKY

 

[Larry Caldwell]

For you codgers who have to deal with the feds taking a big hunk of your SS check every month, my sneaky older brother turned me on to a trick. Send cash sheltered withdrawals (IRA, 401K) directly to the charities you support, rather than taking the money and sending them a check. That way it never shows up on your gross income, for purposes of taxing your SS. With the new Republican tax bill, this will be even more important, because they don't want you deducting charitable contributions.

 

[zmountaineer]

A couple years ago I basically bought half of my house using a rewards credit card. I would buy the materials on the card then submit the receipt to the bank for reimbursement. The check was approved within 3 days. So I got the cash rewards from the credit card and had the balances paid off by my escrow account at the bank.

 

[PJSprog]

I cringe every time I hear the credit repair commercial that starts out "Don't let the credit card companies TRICK you into thinking you have to pay it all back".

That one always sends me into fits of twitching and eye-rolling. I've also been known to develop temporary bouts of Tourette Syndrome during that commercial.

 

[/pine]

That one always sends me into fits of twitching and eye-rolling. I've also been known to develop temporary bouts of Tourette Syndrome during that commercial.

There is a commercial running in the Atlanta market that does similar to me...

It's put on by a two bit ambulance chasing law firm that shows a big long table with dozens of (supposedly) lawyers all sitting at multi line telephone banks chatting it up...with the announcer urging anyone that has been in an accident THAT WAS NOT YOUR FAULT CALL call in now to see what your case is really worth...!!

This is the reason I think they should outlaw law firms from charging contingency fees and make them charge flat rates without the 40%+ percentages...

I've thought of anonymously posting their tel. # on CL as a free fantasy *** line...!