Quote:
Originally Posted by LordSquidworth
I've never liked mutual funds.
With $2,000 you won't have stellar results, but I'd still manage it myself if I were you.
Best to learn when you have the ability to do so. $2000 won't kill you. I started in 2008 after getting tired of others managing it. It can be a little rough when you start out. But as you get practice it gets easier. Just leave emotion at the door.
Feel free to PM me your stock picks and if I'm on I'll give a quick thumbs up or not.
|
Ditto.
If the OP is serious about long-term investing, he or she should select 7-8 sectors in which to invest in over a 5-10 year period. Putting money into 1 or 2 of the best companies in each sector he can, in time, build up a decent portfolio that is not held captive by the whims of "managers" or the herd that invests with the "managers".
These are the sectors that I like:
Cigarettes
Consumer Staples (food, toilet paper)
Agriculture
Gas/Energy
Utilities
Pharmaceuticals
Global/Overseas (use a closed-end fund or etf)
Industrials
Sovereign Bond funds (country bonds, not US)
Take that $2,000 burning a hole in your pocket and buy shares in the #1 or #2 company in one of those sectors. For example, under cigarettes, take Philip Morris Int'l (PM). It pays a great dividend, and gets you outside the USA. Or, take Eaton (ETN) within the industrial space.
When you can save up another $2,000, find the #1 or #2 dividend-payer in another of the sectors; e.g., Johnson&Johnson (JNJ) or Abbott Labs (ABT) in the pharmaceuticals.
If you really want to do the mutual fund route, do that until you can get ~$20,000 saved up and then invest $2,000 each into 10 sectors, or $4,000 each into 5 sectors. Whatever; your eventual goal should be to set up your own mutual fund without the "management" fees and shackles to the herd.
