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Assuming you're already paying double on your 10 year mortgage, maxing 401k, enough emergency stash, what would you do with the remaining 3k take home?
Options:
- IRA (no ira account currently)
- save in cash
- pay down mortgage even further
- buy stocks/large caps
- mutual funds
- invest in local businesses? (don't know how to even go about this...)
- CD (at 1% return...)
- Other?
I do like the idea of having liquid assets, as you never know when the BEST opportunity on the planet may present itself and you won't be able to 'jump' on it, unless you have cash....as cash is always king it seems...
thoughts welcome.
3.25% mortgage you're already paying double on I wouldn't worry about paying more on it. You've got good thinking with having some liquid stuff around in case a real estate investment pops up. In this market, it's a golden time for those able to afford buying property.
Wouldn't invest in local businesses, unless you own them. Skip the CD.
IRA is up to you. You can only add max $5,000 a year, so with $3,000 a month you won't be adding to it for long.
Some cash is good, too much is waste.
Other than that, stocks are something worth looking into. If you don't like high risk, look for ones with low volatility. Often the matured dividend paying ones.
Do you have kids/neices/nephews/grandkids who could use help on the college funding side? How about starting a 529 plan for them?
If no the questions above, I'd pay an additional $1K/month on the mortgage, put another $900 in IRAs for you and spouse, put the remaining $1000 in stock market mutual funds. My all-time fav is Fidelity Contrafund.
3.25% mortgage you're already paying double on I wouldn't worry about paying more on it. You've got good thinking with having some liquid stuff around in case a real estate investment pops up. In this market, it's a golden time for those able to afford buying property.
Wouldn't invest in local businesses, unless you own them. Skip the CD.
IRA is up to you. You can only add max $5,000 a year, so with $3,000 a month you won't be adding to it for long.
Some cash is good, too much is waste.
Other than that, stocks are something worth looking into. If you don't like high risk, look for ones with low volatility. Often the matured dividend paying ones.
thanks!
I appreciate the comment.
that's my feeling too about the mortgage........since the rate is so low, i almost would rather have cash sitting there earning nothing but available for an 'opportunity'......
i'll have to look into your stocks option........i lost a bit of money when i was first out of college (only about 2k....) so that has scared me a bit away from stocks.....and if i go with microsoft or some solid stock....well.....their stocks haven't changed much since 5 years ago when i was looking at them...lol....so it would just be dividends for the most part.....not sure if it'll be worth it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lenniel
Where are you with life insurance?
Do you have kids/neices/nephews/grandkids who could use help on the college funding side? How about starting a 529 plan for them?
If no the questions above, I'd pay an additional $1K/month on the mortgage, put another $900 in IRAs for you and spouse, put the remaining $1000 in stock market mutual funds. My all-time fav is Fidelity Contrafund.
great ideas!
not going to waste my money on life insurance though...........
i do have to look into the 529 plans..........is there an option where you pay for the school at today's rate? any pointers would be appreciated.
i guess i could do 1k more a month on the mortgage.....and i guess funding the ira 10k like you said (both me and wife) would be a good thing.......i'll have to look more into the mutual fund you mentioned for the other 1k......
thanks!
I appreciate the comment.
that's my feeling too about the mortgage........since the rate is so low, i almost would rather have cash sitting there earning nothing but available for an 'opportunity'......
i'll have to look into your stocks option........i lost a bit of money when i was first out of college (only about 2k....) so that has scared me a bit away from stocks.....and if i go with microsoft or some solid stock....well.....their stocks haven't changed much since 5 years ago when i was looking at them...lol....so it would just be dividends for the most part.....not sure if it'll be worth it.
great ideas!
not going to waste my money on life insurance though...........
i do have to look into the 529 plans..........is there an option where you pay for the school at today's rate? any pointers would be appreciated.
i guess i could do 1k more a month on the mortgage.....and i guess funding the ira 10k like you said (both me and wife) would be a good thing.......i'll have to look more into the mutual fund you mentioned for the other 1k......
thanks!!!
Paying for term life insurance does suck but if you have dependents, it's a necessary evil.
As for 529 plans, I started mine when the kids were newborns so not sure what the new rules might be. Plenty of info on the web though.
I don't work for Fidelity or anything but i've owned Contrafund for probably at least 15 years and it's a consistent performer. Dan Abramoff (I think that's his name?) is the mgr and has been there forever.
By the way, if you didn't like losing $2K in the stock market before, stay away from individual stocks unless you're willing to ride the ups and downs without losing sleep. Otherwise, go with solid mutual funds that get you more diversification.
.....i don't think i'll be doing any of that... especially not a church if that's what your idea of a charity is.
A charity could be any organization you feel does good for society. Whether that be a church or homeless shelter or third-world development program is up to you.
You're paying double on your mortgage, you've maxed out your 401k, etc., so why hoard money for a future that you may not even be alive to experience? Sometimes it's better for the common good, and advantageous for the individual, to stimulate the economy in the present, especially the economies of impoverished places or local businesses that could use it to meet their basic needs.
A charity could be any organization you feel does good for society. Whether that be a church or homeless shelter or third-world development program is up to you.
You're paying double on your mortgage, you've maxed out your 401k, etc., so why hoard money for a future that you may not even be alive to experience? Sometimes it's better for the common good, and advantageous for the individual, to stimulate the economy in the present, especially the economies of impoverished places or local businesses that could use it to meet their basic needs.
Hoard?
You think of saving and trying to invest money as hoarding?
I'm assuming you have no other debt besides the mortgage right?
I tend to agree with you on this too.....But for that, i'd need liquid assets......i have a HELOC on my current home for about 60k. (zero balance). but i don't feel comfortable touching that for buying an 'investment' property......and i don't want to touch the emergency fund for the investment property either.....and that leaves me with about 20k or so of liquid assets as of right now.....but as you know, buying an 'investment' property requires more than 10 or 20% of down payment! some places i've contacted don't even consider anything other than cash offers lol
correct.
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especially not a church if that's what your idea of a charity is.
