| For those wishing to invest their money | | | | known, major brokerage to handle your |
| – usually those wishing to put away a | | | | investment. Even with inflation you can |
| tidy nest egg for retirement or their | | | | expect to make only 4% profit per year. Of |
| children for school – there are a lot | | | | course, 4% of $5,000 is only $200, but over a |
| of decisions to make. You can't jump into | | | | period of 10 years that turns into $2,000. Of |
| just any arrangement, and especially not the | | | | course, in today's economy $2,000 won't even |
| first offer that comes your way. Perhaps the | | | | last a month for rent, food, utilties, etc. |
| most pertinent question you might ask | | | | Even so, bonds have advantages no other |
| yourself when investing is, what should oneu | | | | instrument enjoys. Since they have a set |
| invest in – in other words, what's good | | | | interest rate and maturity date, their |
| to invest in right now? | | | | behavior is much more readily predictable, |
| | | | given plausible assumptions about interest |
| 1. Put Your Money First | | | | rate changes and other economic factors. You |
| | | | can't attribute this kind of reliability to |
| The final aspect of investing in bonds | | | | stocks, for example. |
| shouldn't be the qustion as to what you | | | | |
| should buy or sell, but rather, how much | | | | 3. Currencies Or Commodities |
| capital you are going to gain in the form of | | | | |
| dividends. Remember, you aren't buying | | | | The beginning investor should never engage in |
| stocks, you are investing. This means you | | | | trading commodities or currencies, such as |
| expect a return on your investment. | | | | FOREX. Don't believe the hype surrounding |
| | | | these investments – there is a reason |
| 2. Stocks | | | | why so much money is floating around out |
| | | | there – people are losing it! |
| If you plan on investing in stocks, a general | | | | |
| rule is to hold them for at least 10 years. | | | | 4. Real Estate |
| Stocks will, over this period of time, | | | | |
| outperform any other possible investment. | | | | If you think that the value of real estate is |
| Don't even think about real estate, bonds, or | | | | always on the rise, think again. Although a |
| commodities, stocks are definately the way to | | | | great way to make substantial gains, if you |
| go, and it is not uncommon to see returns of | | | | are going to make any real money you have to |
| up to or over 10%. | | | | be able to invest a lot of your capital |
| | | | – more than any other variety of |
| Of course, that is not to say that stocks are | | | | investing. Many simply can't do it part time |
| always the safest choice. Few investors | | | | and try to make it their full time job. Some |
| actually buy stock and hold it for ten or | | | | succeed, many fail. |
| more years. Also, with the exception of | | | | |
| mutual funds individuals tend not to invest | | | | 5. Funds |
| in stocks in general, but rather in a | | | | |
| particular company. Also, even then, times | | | | If you are looking to make some quick cash, |
| change because new and better technologies | | | | funds offer a great alternative to direct |
| come to pass. General Electric no longer | | | | investing. Mutual funds, one of the more |
| makes most of its revenue from light bulbs, | | | | common types, pool investor money and |
| for example. | | | | diversify investment (usually) into a variety |
| | | | of instruments – stocks, bonds, |
| 2. Bonds | | | | currency, commodities, etc. Investors save |
| | | | money by not incurring a fee for every trade, |
| If youre going to go with a bond, first of | | | | but pay management fees of one kind or |
| all, expect to pay a minimum of $5,000. You | | | | another (usually annual), and those can eat |
| will definately want to invest in a bond that | | | | substantially into overall return on your |
| is rated AA or higher, and stick to a well | | | | investment. |