MISTAKES MADE BY INVESTORS

Mistakes made by ordinary investors

MISTAKES MADE BY INVESTORS

Written by R. A. Stewart

We all make mistakes; none more so than when we are making investments but it is important to learn from your mistakes in order not to repeat them. It is also important for investors to note that a financial mistake should not be a deterrent to making further investments. Just keep saving and investing and that will make life easier later on.

Mistakes made by ordinary investors

If you have money invested in your country’s retirement plan then you are an investor whether you know anything about the markets or not. Chances are you have your money investyed in some kind of mutual fund which is managed by a fund manager who invests on your behalf. It is up to you to decide on which fund to invest in and for how long.

1-Too Conservative

You have got to learn how to be an investor and take calculated risks; there are no two ways about it. You can manage these risks to take into consideration you age, goals, and your timeline. If you have your money in conservative funds and you are in your twenties then your retirement fund will fall far short of where it is likely to be when you retire. Investing in growth funds is all about achieving capital gains.

2-Too inconsistent

Lack of consistency as far as contributing to your retirement fund will cost you in the long run. It is easy to be consistent in your contributions when the share market is going strong but it is when the markets are bearish that you need to motivate yourself to keep investing because during the low points is when there are bargains in the share market. If you are working in some type of job then a percentage of your gross wages will be deducted and deposited into your kiwisaver account.

3-Too Emotional

Fear and greed is what drives the share market is an old cliche which rings true. Many investors react to the market’s swings and roundabouts and sell when they should hang on to their stocks. Investing in the share market is a long term game; it is not a sprint, it is a marathon. If you have some kind of retirement fund then your fund manager invests on your behalf, however if you are in New Zealand you are able to switch funds which some investors do in reaction to what the market is doing. If you have some kind of financial goals then this should take into consideration a possible share market crash.

4-Too Greedy

Many investors are simply too greedy; they invest in something offering high returns without paying any attention to the risk they are taking on, or worse still, they place all of their eggs in one basket hoping to make a killing. This all or nothing approach has destroyed several retirement plans. This was certainly the case when several investors saw their life savings disappear with the collapse of several finance companies. Diversification minimizes your risk.

5-Too Impatient

Patience is the name of the game in investing. It is time and not timing which will build your retirement riches. There will be ups and downs in the markets but a bit of patience will pay off in the long run. Something some people do not have so the invest in risky stuff offering quick returns and end up ,losing more often than not.

6-Too Gullible

There are offers or as the are called “opportunities,”promoted online mostly and sometimes in the print media as a way of making quick profits. If an investment seems too good to be true then it mostly certainly is. Usually the person or company promoted such offers are the ones making money out of it. You may have read stories about the amount of money such people have made from whatever it is being promoted but tey are in the minority.

It is up to investors to take responsibility for their own decisions and not try to find a scapegoat if things turn to custard.

ABOUT THIS ARTICLE

This article is based on the writer’s own experience and opinion and may not be applicable to your personal circumstances. Please do your own due diligence when investing. You may share this article or use it as content for your ebook or website.

Investing for seniors

Investing for seniors

Written by R. A. Stewart

 

Your age is a crucial factor in establishing your savings and investing strategy. Your 20s, 30s, 40s, and 50s are your savings years. It is these years when you build up your assets. 

Your 60s and 70s can be considered your spending years. It is when you tick off items on your bucket list while you are able to.

That does not mean that you do not have to work, a lot of older people are taking this option, not because they cannot make ends meet on their pension, but because they enjoy what they are doing.

In New Zealand, retirees will have access to their kiwisaver account once they reach the age of 65. Money invested in kiwisaver will be in growth, balanced, or conservative funds. Most people during their working life opt for growth or balanced funds.

It is time to decide whether to stay with the status quo or invest in more conservative funds. 

Your age and your health are the two most important factors in deciding which fund to invest your money in. 

Older people do not have time on their side to overcome financial setbacks such share market falls and so forth, therefore if you are 60+ it is a good idea to lean toward more conservative investments but still retain some exposure to risk.

It is worth mentioning at this point that New Zealand financial advisor and writer Frances Cook has a formula for calculating how much exposure you should have based on your age, and it is this…

Subtract your age from 100.

If for example you are aged 60 then only 40% of your portfolio should be invested in the share market.

I do not necessarily agree with this formula and my exposure to the share market is more than her formula suggests I have.

However, that is a personal choice; one that I do not necessarily recommend to you because your circumstances will be different as they are for different people.

If you are connected to the internet and you have a lot of spare cash in your account then I suggest that you place most of your money into an account that is not connected to internet banking. This is to reduce your chances of becoming a victim of internet scammers. 

With internet banking being the norm, this could be difficult in the future though.

In any case I still believe that it will pay to arrange your finances so that if you fall victim to a scammer then not all of your money will be lost. 

Don’t leave all of your money in the one account for goodness sake as some victims of scammers have.

If you are traveling then make sure you don’t have access to your life savings because if you do then so will be a scammer if they manage to get hold of your login details.

Scammers have all kinds of ways to trick people into handing over their login details.

Anyone can be a victim so don’t be proud by saying “I am not that stupid.”

As you get older you will have to invest more conservatively; that does not necessarily mean transferring from growth to conservative funds but investing some of your current savings into low risk accounts. The deciding factor is your timeline. How soon you need the money and funds which are going to be used within 12 months are best invested conservatively.

 

www.robertastewart.com

 

ABOUT THIS ARTICLE

This article is of the opinion of the writer and may not be applicable to your personal circumstances. Feel free to share this article. You may also use this article for your website/blog or as content for your ebook.

share market crashes

I posted this article on the site a year ago. Thought I would repost it.

INTRODUCTION

It is not a secret that the stock market can be volatile; history has shown us this. There are many factors which are the cause of a falling market; they could be a change of President in the US, correction in the market, or nervousness by investors resulting in them selling off their stocks. Whether a 1929 or 87 style crash occurs this decade or not, one thing is clear; it is still important to save and invest for the future because one thing is certain; you will cease working one day and need something to fall back on.

History of share market crashes

When one thinks of share market crashes two years spring to mind, 1929 and 1987, hopefully, such crashes on the scale which wiped out life savings are not going to occur in the foreseeable future. It is not guaranteed that it will not happen, but then nothing in this world is guaranteed apart from death and taxes.

There have been other financial meltdowns outside of the two main ones. Asian Financial Crisis of the 90s and the GFC of 2008 wiped billions of dollars off share values. 

The next major financial meltdown in the markets could be caused by the very people who will be most affected by it, Baby Boomers.

Why?

Because as more and more of them retire, they will withdraw their savings out of the stock market causing a major selloff.

This has been predicted in the past but there has not yet been any sign of this happening with the markets at record levels, however, who is bold enough to predict which direction the stock exchange will head in the future?

One thing you can guarantee is that there will be another market crash in the future; investors just need to be prepared for it.

Here are the most notable share market crashes within the last 100 years.

1929-The Wall Street Crash

The Wall Street crash lasted for over four years. Investors borrowed money to buy shares and when shares were sold off to repay the money to their creditors investors were left out of pocket. The 1929 crash led to the 1930s Great depression.

1962-The Kennedy Slide

The stock market had enjoyed a steady rise since the 1929 crash with the ten years prior to 1962 being good ones for the stock exchange. This all changed in January when share prices plummeted. President Kennedy attributed the decline as a correction for the rises of the past ten years.

1973-74-Stock market crash

The Dow Jones fell by 45% during the stock market crash which lasted two years between January 1973 and December 1974. The UK markets feared even worse losing 73% of it’s value during this time. The collapse of the Bretton Woods System was to blame. This is a system devised many decades earlier on an agreed fixed currency rate. 44 countries met in Bretton Wood to discuss the currency issue in 1944 hence the name Bretton Woods System.

1987-Black Monday

19th October 1987 will always be known as “Black Monday,” after the biggest one day fall in the stock market in history took place. Leading up to the crash many traders borrowed money to purchase shares and as share prices rose they borrowed more money using the value of their shares as security, however, when the stock market dropped by 20% in one day many investors owed more money than the value of their shares and found themselves in financial turmoil.

1997-Asian Financial Crisis

Many stock markets in Asia fell dramatically between July and October due to an overheated market. Many who bought shares on credit or with borrowed money were hit hard by the crash.

2007-2008-Global Financial Crisis

The failure of several financial institutions in the United States.

2020-The Covid Market Crash

Stock markets dropped 34% in one day on March 23 2020 as Covid-19 was starting to take hold. This started a worldwide recession caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Who knows when the next share market crash will occur; one thing is for certain, it will be out of the control of investors. It is up to each of us to plan our finances in such a way as to minimise the effect of a financial meltdown in the markets. This can be done by diversification; that is by having your money invested in a range of industries. This way you are not placing too many eggs in the one basket.

ABOUT THIS ARTICLE

This article does not represent financial advice, but rather is the opinion of the writer. It is strongly advised that you seek independent advice from a qualified person. Feel free to share this article. You may use this article as content for your ebook or website. Visit my site www.robertastewart.com for other articles.

Share Market tips

Here is an article I put on the site in 2020 and I thought I would repost it but have made some changes to it.

This article is solely based on the writer’s own opinion and knowledge and is not to be taken as financial advice. If you need the advice of a professional see your bank manager or financial advisor.

Share Market tips

Written by R. A. Stewart

It is crucial for investors to invest in companies which are going to withstand the covid-19 recession which could last for two or three years. It makes me wonder how many companies are still going to be around after this pandemic is over.

So which companies are worth investing in and which ones to avoid?

My picks are:

Genesis Energy

Power companies have to be a good investment since everyone uses power.

Trustpower

Same as for Genesis

Meridian Energy

Same as for Genesis & Trustpower

Spark

Have hosting rights to several sporting events and most people use cellphones. Has to be a good investment.

Fonterra

The milk payout is expected to be low next season so this is a share to snap up when they bottom out.

PGG Wrightson

Farmers are propping up the economy so expect Wrightson Shares to be steady

Westpac Banking

Long term investment. The banking selector thrives off the back of a thriving economy so they are a long term investment.

Warehouse Group

Best of the retail outlets but likely to be affected by the buying online trend.

Fletcher Building

This is one company I am looking at to add to my sharesies portfolio. It is affected by a shortage in building materials but still a good investment.

The companies I am a bit hesitant to invest in are those connected to travel and tourism, insurance, and manufacturing. The travel industry is rebounding but it is still a volatile industry to invest in. Insurance companies are prone to taking a hit from climate change events while manufacturing often suffers from cheap imports.

Most people have retirement savings scheme of some kind and in New Zealand that is called kiwisaver which are managed funds or mutual funds as they are called in America. The fund manager is making the investments on behalf of the fund owner but there is one kind of investment where you are able to make your own decisions and that is www.sharesies.nz This is a New Zealand share trading platform where you are able to join for as little as $1 as their TV ads state. The beauty of sharesies is that you can invest in managed funds or individual companies. It is a great way for the young and not so young to add another string to your financial portfolio and gain some knowledge of the markets at the same time. In the US there is www.robinhood.com There are other share investment platforms which are  cropping up. In NZ there is also Hatch, Kernel, Invest now, and Tiger Trade. They are a great way to get involved in the sharemarket for little outlay and gain experience. 

MY STRATEGY

My strategy with sharesies is to choose a particular share to invest in that throughout the year. I purchase some shares every two weeks in that particular company. That way I will have bought some shares when the price of it is low. This year the company I chose was Fonterra; in 2021 it was Spark, and 2020 Genesis Energy. I am looking at Fletcher Building for next year. All of these are New Zealand companies.

www.robertastewart.com

Retiree scammed out of $100,000

Banking fraud is a major problem in the age of technology and there are some very sad stories of people being scammed out of their life savings. This is one of these stories and this could happen to your elderly relative. At the bottom of this article I have included some steps to take in order to protect yourself against banking scams.

Retiree scammed out of $100,000

A New Zealand bank refused to reimburse a New Zealand retiree after cyber criminals gained access to his account and transferred $100,000 from his accounts to an overseas account.

The 71 year old victim believes the scammers hacked into his banking app.

He claims the bank should take responsibility for his loss.

Three unauthorized transactions were made from the pensioner’s account; the first of 49k and two others of $11k and 38k and while the bank was able to stop the $11k and $38k transactions it was unable to prevent the $49k withdrawal which occurred the day before the other two.

Some of the money was set aside as an inheritance for his grandnieces. It is likely they will now miss out on their inheritance.

The bank’s customer who has been with this particular bank for years described the bank’s position on this situation as harsh.

Police had investigated this matter but believed it was between the bank and their customer to deal with. 

The bank had communications with the beneficiary bank in regards to the stolen money and say if they are unsuccessful in recovering the funds then they will not reimburse their customer for the loss.

There was no evidence to suggest that the bank’s own security system was breached and this was made known to the customer. It tends to suggest that somehow the customer’s to blame for this scam. However, he maintains that he did not share his internet banking login or password with anyone or divulged his personal banking details in response to an unsolicited email.

Unfortunately what happened to this pensioner is not an isolated incident. 

Another pensioner was scammed out of $134,000 and his bank refused to reimburse him after they claimed that he did not take adequate precautions.

Precautions against banking fraud

Here are some basic precautions to take to protect yourself against banking fraud:

1 Do not put all of your eggs in the one basket

The pensioner in this story should not have just left all of his money in the one bank account. He should have opened an account with a separate bank and NOT linked it to internet banking and invested his grand neice’s inheritance in this account. 

2 Do not click on links

Do not click on any links on any email you receive even if you believe it is from your bank because it may be from an internet scammer instead. It is safer to type in the URL address instead and just type in the URL address and log in.

3 Do not link your debit card to your personal savings account. Someone I know had $3,000 NZ go missing from his account when the website that had his banking details was hacked. Fortunately the bank reimbursed him the amount.

4 The other precautions are basic common sense ones such as not sharing passwords and changing passwords occasionally.

5 When signing up to a dating or other sites it will pay to use an email address which is different from the one which you do your banking. 

www.robertastewart.com

5 things you should never borrow money for

5 things you should never borrow money for

Written by R. A. Stewart

Holiday Travel

This is a complete no no because once your holiday is over you have nothing to show for the money which has been spent on it. Before overseas travel is considered it is important to think where in the scheme of this could that money be better spent as far as your goals are concerned. Other debts such as a mortgage, car repayments, and hire purchase repayments must all take priority and this is where any surplus cash should go. To go on holiday while having these debts hanging over your head is completely irresponsible. If this is you then you are heading for financial hardship.

Cryptocurrency

I have said it many times previously; “Only purchase cryptocurrency with your discretionary spending money.” In other words, money which you can fully afford to lose. Money which is set aside for household bills such as the rent/rates money or power should not be used for purchasing cryptocurrency. If you bought bitcoin and lost it all, would that cause you undue hardship? is the question which will determine whether you should go ahead with your purchase. It is also worth remembering that cryptocurrency wallets can be hacked and you can also lose money this way. It is also a good idea to point out that investing in cryptocurrency should never be a substitute for investing in your country’s retirement scheme but rather is something treated separately.

Electronics (TV, Laptop, etc)

There are items which are classed as needs and wants. Needs are things such as rent, power, food and grocery items, car expenses, etc. Wants are luxury items which should only be bought with discretionary spending money. Borrowing money for household goods is called consumer debt. You are borrowing money for items which lose their value over time. If you are borrowing money to pay for your needs then there is something seriously wrong with your household balance sheet and making an appointment with a budget advisor is the first step toward getting back into the black.

Furniture

As with other consumables you should never borrow money for household furniture. It is better to pick up cheap stuff from a charity shop than to go into debt for the sake of impressing your peers with nice stuff which is what you are basically doing. Some folk are so focused on accumulating stuff rather than accumulating assets that they never get around to achieving any kind of financial success because there is always something they want to buy. Once something is paid off they look for something else to buy on credit. It becomes a never ending cycle of debt and in the long term all of the interest payments add up to a huge sum of money.

Pets

An absurd amount of money is spent by some pet owners per annum; namely dogs and cats. It is one thing spending your discretionary money on your hobbies and pet ownership is one, but it is another to use borrowed money to pay for it all. I have seen some people spend a lot of money on vet bills for cats and dogs when the sensible thing to do would be to have the animal put down. I was told of someone who spent a grand on vet bills for a cat only for it to die a few weeks later. Now you have to think what would you have done with that kind of money? It could have been used to pay off a mortgage if you have one or some other debt, or have been invested into some mutual funds. 

We all have a choice to spend whatever discretionary income we have and each choice has different outcomes, therefore the trick is to invest your money into something which will give you the best kind of outcome for your personal circumstances.

www.robertastewart.com

How to Finance Books Book Review

How to Finance Books Book Review

Your Money Your Future by Frances Cook

There are some very good financial how-to books written by New Zealand authors which are a good read. If you come from a country outside of New Zealand then maybe you can find these listed on Ebay. You will almost certainly find these listed on the New Zealand auction site trademe. One such author whose books are worth reading is Frances Cook.

Frances is a top-rated pod caster and personal finance journalist. Her book, YOUR MONEY YOUR FUTURE is worth a good read. “The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago. The second best time is now.” according to Frances. The book contains practical advice which anyone can use to achieve better financial outcomes.

There are several interesting points made by the author; some interesting ones being:

The 4 percent rule

This is how much you can spend on your savings per annum after you retire from working.

Income – expenses = savings

You just need to create a gap between your income and your expenses whichever way suits you, in order to save money; “a very simple equation”says Cook.

Chapter nine is titled, “To understand money, think of it as time.” The more time you have on your side, the more you want to invest in risky assets. It is not risk such as investing in a new cryptocurrency which may make you a packet one year only to lose it the next. Everything comes down to time. It is the key to unlocking the key to what you do and when. Older people need more cash on hand, because they’re in the spending phase of life.

Debt was another topic covered. “Spending money you don’t have is called debt”, says Ms Cook. “It is a monkey on your back. Your debt is standing between you and a better savings rate. The money you can’t have today as a debtor has to pay for the life you lived in the past. The debt needs to go first so that the future doesn’t keep being held back.”

Without knowing your personal situation I believe that even if you are in debt it is still important to contribute to your country’s retirement scheme in order to take advantage of the incentives your government provides, not to mention the captain gains on your money but it is a balancing act and as Frances Cook points out. Debt is a hindrance to your financial well-being and has to go beginning with the debt which you are paying the most interest on.

increasing your income through side hustling is covered. One piece of advice given is to look at other industries and see if you can adopt and repurpose the idea to your own area.

Also covered in the book is retirement and Frances says “You are either retiring from something or retiring to something.”

What do you do with your life if you don’t need your job anymore? It might be volunteering for a charity or community group. If you focus on retiring from something, you focus on what you are leaving behind. If you’re retiring to something instead, you have an end goal in sight. You may have a business you want to launch in an area of your passion. You are creating a life, not just quitting the one you currently have. If all you are focusing on is retirement from the life you had then you will find life very empty afterwards.

Frances Cook really puts things into perspective and asks a few hard questions. At the end of the day, a book such as this, may have a lot of useful snippets of information but it really is up to each individual to establish what their personal goals are and incorporate ideas from the book which are appropriate to your situation.

www.robertastewart.com

Mistakes made by ordinary investors

If you have money invested in your country’s retirement plan then you are an investor whether you know anything about the markets or not. Chances are you have your money invested in some kind of mutual fund which is managed by a fund manager who invests on your behalf. It is up to you to decide on which fund to invest in and for how long.

1-Too Conservative

You have got to learn how to be an investor and take calculated risks; there are no two ways about it. You can manage these risks to take into consideration your age, goals, and your timeline. If you have your money in conservative funds and you are in your twenties then your retirement fund will fall far short of where it is likely to be when you retire. Investing in growth funds is all about achieving capital gains. 

2-Too inconsistent

Lack of consistency as far as contributing to your retirement fund will cost you in the long run. It is easy to be consistent in your contributions when the share market is going strong but it is when the markets are bearish that you need to motivate yourself to keep investing because during the low points is when there are bargains in the share market. If you are working in some type of job then a percentage of your gross wages will be deducted and deposited into your kiwisaver account.

3-Too Emotional

Fear and greed is what drives the share market is an old cliche which rings true. Many investors react to the market’s swings and roundabouts and sell when they should hang on to their stocks. Investing in the share market is a long term game; it is not a sprint, it is a marathon. If you have some kind of retirement fund then your fund manager invests on your behalf, however if you are in New Zealand you are able to switch funds which some investors do in reaction to what the market is doing. If you have some kind of financial goals then this should take into consideration a possible share market crash.

4-Too Greedy

Many investors are simply too greedy; they invest in something offering high returns without paying any attention to the risk they are taking on, or worse still, they place all of their eggs in one basket hoping to make a killing. This all or nothing approach has destroyed several retirement plans. This was certainly the case when several investors saw their life savings disappear with the collapse of several finance companies. Diversification minimizes your risk.

5-Too Impatient

Patience is the name of the game in investing. It is time and not timing which will build your retirement riches. There will be ups and downs in the markets but a bit of patience will pay off in the long run. Something some people do not have so they invest in risky stuff offering quick returns and end up losing more often than not. 

6-Too Gullible

There are offers or as they are called “opportunities,”promoted online mostly and sometimes in the print media as a way of making quick profits. If an investment seems too good to be true then it mostly certainly is. Usually the person or company promoted such offers are the ones making money out of it. You may have read stories about the amount of money such people have made from whatever it is being promoted but they are in the minority. 

It is up to investors to take responsibility for their own decisions and not try to find a scapegoat if things turn to custard.

www.robertastewart.com

Your friends could be costing you money

Your friends could be costing you money

Written by R.A.Stewart

The people you associate with could well be having a detrimental effect on your financial future and though you may not notice it at the beginning, eventually their influence could pull you down to mediocrity. Let’s look at an example from the animal kingdom.

If you lock a sheep on its own in a paddock, it will try to find a way of escaping to find greener pastures but if it has company it is quite content to remain in the same paddock with its friend.

People are like that; some will conform to the standards of others and as far as financial matters are concerned will take on board what the others are saying, and eventually will adopt the same kind of mentality towards finances.

There are different kinds of lifestyle habits which are incompatible to a financially successful lifestyle; drinking, smoking, and eating takeaways regularly are habits which will shorten your life and drain you of your finances.

Your choice of friends will influence your attitude towards money; if you associate with gold digger’s who believe people with lots of money are selfish, then you will be encouraged to spend your money rather than save and invest it.

This is what I am saying in a nutshell:

“The people you choose as your friends will set the standards for your life.” It is important that you keep good company because if you spend too much time with people with bad attitudes, some of their money attitudes will rub off on you. It has been said that you are the average of the five people you spend most of your time with. So who are you spending most of your time with? 

I have known a lot of people with terrible money attitudes. One is “You cannot take it all with you” as if you are going to pass away within the next week or so. What they are doing is to cling on to every excuse they can hold onto for their lack of financial literacy. They will try to make others who are in a better financial shape feel guilty by making them feel stingy or selfish.  This makes them feel less guilty about their own financial situation.

It is better to spend time with Financially literate individuals and in this way you will pickup some of their financial knowhow. You sure will not learn anything from those who friends are the type of people who go out on Saturdays or have no problem with breaking the law then they will encourage you to follow suit and a lot of people do in order to fit in and abandon the values taught by their parents.

The bottom line is, “If you keep company with financially ignorant people then you will become like them.

“He who walks with wise men shall become wise but a companion of fools will be ruined.” Proverbs 13:20

Online Home Business

Have you ever searched for a way to create a sideline income-one that can add another string to your bow?

If so, then do you want to know how you can start doing affiliate marketing from home?

Something that can be done from the comfort of your own home, anywhere in the world, no experience needed.

All you need is a laptop with internet connection.

Look, I cannot guarantee your success because it really is up to you but I can say it is possible because others have done it.

How do I know that?

Because our coach John Crestani is living proof. He is constantly making 6 figures per month with nothing but a computer and a phone.

He did it so why not you?

So if you want to stop dreaming about success and actually experience what it is like to live life on your own terms, you’re going to love this.

. The best part is anyone can do this and the cost is nothing when you compare it to the money you can make. Click on this link here – http://bit.ly/3uQXf7I to check out this opportunity.

That Link again is – http://bit.ly/3uQXf7I

www.robertastewart.com

Share market tips for the Mum and Dad investor

Share market tips for the Mum and Dad investor

Written by R. A. Stewart

I think it is fair to say that a lot of people dream of hitting it big on the share market and some do but for everyone who has found a pot of gold in the markets there are countless others who entered the markets blindly without doing their homework or having a strategy in place; this article is to give you some pointers if you have some money to spare and are looking for somewhere to invest your hard earned cash.

In the share market, as in real life, if you are able to reduce your number of bad decisions then you will be better off; not that there’s anything wrong with making mistakes.

You are sometimes better off by learning a lesson the hard way if that is what it takes for you to get the lesson. 

Here then are my sharemarket pointers.

1 Investing directly into the share market is beyond most small investors because their abilty to diversify their portfolio is limited therefore the only option is to invest all of their funds in one company which leaves them open to disaster. If that particular industry which the company is involved in suffers a downturn, value of the share heads south. It is similar to a horse racing fan attending the track and betting all of their money on the one horse instead of dividing their bankroll between several horses.

Small investors are able to invest in the markets, however, and enjoy the same benefits of larger investors by investing in managed funds; this is where your savings are combined with other investors. You do not have the choice of which companies to invest your money in as that decision is left to the trust manager, however, you can choose which type of fund to invest in whether growth, balanced, or conservative.

2 Investing in the markets is a long-term game, therefore, if you require the money in the short term then you may be better off leaving your money in fixed term interest bearing accounts however, having said that, investing in the markets can increase your savings if you give it enough time. Young people have the advantage of time on their side; they are able to take more risks with their money because they have more time to recover from financial setbacks than their parents.

3 Don’t try to time the markets! It is time and not timing which is the key to making money in the share market. If you are waiting until the markets dip before investing you are missing out on plenty of opportunities to increase your capital and this is particularly true in a rising market. 

4 Decide whether the money is required in the short term, medium term, or long term before deciding on where to invest your money. 

Money needed in the short term or on standby is money which may be needed for car repairs, a holiday, household expenses etc

Medium term funds is money needed for a new car

Long term funds are savings for your retirement such as your superannuation funds.

Short term is not money which should be invested in bank deposits where you are able to have easy access to it.

Medium term money can be invested in managed funds where you are able to have easy access to it but still have the potential for it to grow.

Long term money is money invested in a retirement fund such as kiwisaver in New Zealand.

Conclusion

Think of money as “seed,” it will reap a nice harvest if you give it enough time, therefore you need to sow enough seed in order to increase your wealth; the sharemarket is an excellent investment and managed funds makes it easier for the ordinary person to get involved in the markets. My site www.robertastewart.com has articles to help you increase your wealth. CHECK IT OUT!

Sharesies

Sharesies makes it possible for anyone to get into buying and selling shares. It is an online share market platform where you have the option of purchasing shares in individual companies or in various funds (managed/mutual funds). You can even start with $5. This is a no brainer because it gives investors young and not so young the chance to improve their financial literacy. There is certainly no substitute for experience when it comes to learning and this is applicable to everything else, not just investing.

Join sharesies here: https://sharesies.nz/r/377DFM

Note: This article is of the opinion of the writer and does not represent financial advice.