Investment ?

[Burr]

IMO, you have 2 issues. Not knowing about investing, and that feeling that you're not getting full value of your available funds.

I've been taught a lot about investing, but I always learned more than what the classroom, book, or magazine article could teach me from the investments I made.

Stocks, bonds, mutual funds are all fairly liquid - meaning you can convert back to cash in a relatively short time period, 1-3 days. At the same time, there are going to be fees, commissions, a cost usually associated with many investments, even no load funds often have a fee structure if the funds do not remain invested for a reasonable period of time. It's simply better with these investments that money does not come in and out frequently. But if it's needed, it can be converted to cash.

So my suggestion is first, see if your bank will extend you a personal line-of-credit - let's say to $5000. Then start your education in investing with your available funds. If you need that rainy day fund for an unexpected expense, use the LOC, but always have enough invested to pay off your LOC in the even current income does not bring that back to $0.00.

Then you will have a way to invest excess / available cash, keep your checking accounts only with the balance needed to pay expected bills, and have a convenient way to access additional funds for short term needs that can be quickly repaid. You'll be building your credit rating, and getting that monthly statement will start an investing education that will continue for a lifetime. Plus you'll have a way to never pay the high credit card interest rates if you have / use credit cards. Pay off CC balances monthly.

Connect your Line-of-credit to your checking account to basically insure you will never have any overdraft charges. If you write a check for more than the account has in it, the LOC kicks in to transfer a "loan" into your checking account to pay the check you wrote.

If you're not comfortable with that, and would rather look at a savings book type of place to put your money - shop around with your local banks. Their rates will vary, and as mentioned earlier, often a credit unions have a much higher return than other competing banks.

[Scott C]

Originally Posted by clawman

No disrespect but Walleye Central may not be the best place for investment advice but could be. Here is a site with many avid knowledgeable investors.
The key is read, read, read and form your opinion of what you are comfortable with.
https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Main_Page

That site is good, but the OP may need this money to eat on, this is NOT investing money. Get debt free, save for a rainy day, then start investing extra money. It works and its stupid simple.

[kman]

Originally Posted by Scott C

That site is good, but the OP may need this money to eat on, this is NOT investing money. Get debt free, save for a rainy day, then start investing extra money. It works and its stupid simple.

Here's where many people fail, waiting for the "right time".....

No different than learning to walk.....Just take the first step.

[whitedogone]

First post.....asking investment advice.

[clawman]

Originally Posted by Scott C

I wouldn't do anything with that amount other than park it in the bank, really I'd keep a minimum of 3 to 6 months living expenses parked in the bank in case life happens.

How can you make such a statement not knowing any more than in the post?

[Bobby Winds]

Ally Bank is paying 1.70% on a SAVINGS Account . . . .

https://www.ally.com/bank/online-savings-account/

[Bugler]

If it truly is rainy day money that you may need to access on short notice then I would only recommend a short term CD.

If you feel you now have enough rainy day money set aside, then I would begin investing any additional funds. Open a Vanguard or Fidelity brokerage fund, and purchase their ETF S&P 500 index fund and turn on the option to automatically deposit more from your bank account each month. The nice thing about buying an ETF fund is that you do not have to meet some of the minimum $3000 balances that many mutual funds have but the ETF will be investing in the same exact funds as the mutual funds. At Vanguard, your brokerage account incurs no transaction fees if you purchase ETF from their fund family. Fidelity may be the same but I no longer have an account their as I consolidated everything to Vanguard.

Once you have built up decent-sized account at Vanguard, you could look at diversifying into more ETF funds there.

[Bugler]

Originally Posted by alexbogdan

If you want you could even fund some new companies around the world, after a detailed analysis of them, and get some profit from the investment that you will do.
You can think about Asia as one of the country with the most companies growing in just a few years.
In case you need to transfer money to someone in Asia have a look at Currency Tube, this service has no fees and it is secure!

To the original poster, Ignore crap like this.

[h8go4s]

Originally Posted by Bugler

To the original poster, Ignore crap like this.

Well, the original post was by "guest" and it was almost two years ago, so I doubt he'll see your advice. This thread was resurrected by a first-time poster with a clickbait link, which I reported, so we can ignore it from now on. Oh, wait.... nothing on the internet ever dies.

[andersaki]

Never ask a lawyer for for medical advice, an accountant for legal advice or a fisherman for financial advice. Good luck.

andersaki