It’s never too early or too late to start investing. Investing in the stock market and other avenues is a risky but oft-rewarding financial strategy that can give you a lot of profit. Now more than ever, it is imperative to take charge of your own finances and start saving for retirement.
Saving for Retirement: A Good Start
An essential part of investing is saving—if you want to spend money, you have to have money. Andrew Tobias, author of The Only Investment Guide You’ll Ever Need, offers plentiful nuggets of advice on saving money in order to start investing. He advises readers to avoid credit card debt, because interest rates can have a severe, negative impact on your savings. He also suggests such things like lowering insurance premiums by increasing deductibles and to buy items in bulk to save on long term costs.
Older adults can take advantage of their age when trying to save money. Of course there are senior benefits, but it goes beyond that. Many older adults choose to move cities or even states as they grow older and their children leave the home. Downsizing homes and moving to a location with a lower cost of living can be a huge boon to your savings.
Investing in Your Future: The Stock Market
The stock market is a fickle friend. Many Americans have stock portfolios in which they choose a varied array of stocks to invest in and hope they get a return. Because the stock market is so unpredictable and fluctuates daily, it can be daunting to start investing. John C. Bogle, author of The Little Book of Common Sense Investing, offers some general rules for playing the stock market.
- Buy and hold stocks, rather than constantly buying and trading
- Keep your portfolio diversified—invest in different kinds of stocks, industries, and companies
- Invest through low-cost index funds, in order to keep brokerage fees and transaction costs to a minimum
If you have built a solid nest egg and want to be a little more risky, the stock market is the perfect place to do so. Invest in some startups, rather than the tried-and-true big corporations—perhaps it’ll pay off! However, always make sure you still have a good cushion of money in your savings.
Financial Planning after Fifty
Financial planner Carrie Schwab-Pomerantz has written the ultimate guide to financial planning for older adults. The Charles Schwab Guide to Finances After Fifty takes a look at how Americans nearing retirement age can maximize their savings and investments. For example, Schwab-Pomerantz goes over the pros and cons of paying off your mortgage and how to determine whether that is a good financial move. She also has advice for readers who have not adequately saved for retirement.
While savings are incredibly important, investing is also a good way to increase your nest egg. After you’ve spent years saving, it’s natural that you would want to start spending the money—and “spending” money via investments can be a very rewarding route to take!