Good time to start online investing ? (bonds, Etrade, mutual fund, credit)

[Robzherenow]

Since the market is at a "low", would this be a good time to start buying stocks (etrade, first trade, etc) ?

I know the rule of thumb of investing is to stay in or the long term, but would buying at a time like this put an investor in a better position since stocks are so low?

[Woof]

You can only guess on which way the stock market will move on any given day, but there are some serious problems coming down the turnpike at us, and even former bulls are warning to get out of it for now.

It would be wise to seek a safe haven for your surplus money for a couple of years. However you COULD take a chance, and you might even win big ..... personally, if I were reckless enough to invest now, it would at least be in stocks that are known to do well in a recession.

[Woof Woof Woof!]

Yes, I agree with Woof.

You need to know what you're doing to get into the market now. I suspect a lot of unexperienced folks are jumping in thinking this is a great time to roll the dice.

More experienced investors that I know are looking at safe havens for money.

[jimhcom]

Don't try to catch a falling knife. Wait for the market to prove it has bottomed. There will be plenty of money to be made on the upside, but it will not happen quickly. When stocks are really out of favor it will be time to buy.

[AliceT]

Yes.

[miss.pie]

i start to get interest in this business, but i really don't know how it will work anyone can give me a hint?

[Retroit]

I hope the OP bought!

miss.pie, I'll tell you what I did (and what I'd do today). I read a few books on investing and subscribed to Money magazine to educate myself. I got information from 3 mutual fund companies & bought money market funds with each of them. As I accumulated enough for a minimum purchase of a no-load stock mutual fund ($3000), I bought 2 with each company. When the stock market drops and people start talking about recessions, I transfer more money to those funds. I have since added 2 more funds for more diversification.

Here's a list of mutual fund companies. List of 50 Largest Mutual Fund Companies Ranked by Assets for 2008 They have a lot of info online for first time investors (not available when I started).

I would strongly caution against buying individual stocks unless and until you get very knowledgeable and are willing to spend a lot of time researching and monitoring your investments (and have the temperament to watch your money vanish).

[KrazeeKrewe]

Originally Posted by miss.pie

i start to get interest in this business, but i really don't know how it will work anyone can give me a hint?

You should not get interested in investing in a soaring market that everyone is bragging about. The time to get in is when everyone is cursing the market & swearing that they will never invest again.

I went all into the market at 7200. I got out at 11400. I have been buying houses & gold until New Years when I started selling gold. The Fed, Presidents Working Group (Plunge Protection Team) pumped $9 Trillion into the stock market & banks during the bail-out. Not the measly $700 Billion you were told about. So remember, you are playing against the super computers that can flash-crash & the US Government Federal Reserve. Good Luck to you when they decide to cash-out.

Here is a list of the few we know got bailed-out.

• Goldman Sachs received nearly $600 billion
• Morgan Stanley received nearly $2 trillion
• Citigroup received $1.8 trillion
• Bear Stearns received nearly $1 trillion
• Merrill Lynch received some $1.5 trillion
• Deutsche Bank, a German lender, sold the Fed more than $290 billion worth of mortgage securities
• Credit Suisse, a Swiss bank, sold the Fed more than $287 billion in mortgage bonds
• General Electric
• McDonald's
• Caterpillar
• Harley Davidson
• Toyota
• Verizon

[piyf]

McDonalds got bailed out? That's a joke, right?

[darrell2525]

Originally Posted by KrazeeKrewe

You should not get interested in investing in a soaring market that everyone is bragging about. The time to get in is when everyone is cursing the market & swearing that they will never invest again.

I went all into the market at 7200. I got out at 11400. I have been buying houses & gold until New Years when I started selling gold. The Fed, Presidents Working Group (Plunge Protection Team) pumped $9 Trillion into the stock market & banks during the bail-out. Not the measly $700 Billion you were told about. So remember, you are playing against the super computers that can flash-crash & the US Government Federal Reserve. Good Luck to you when they decide to cash-out.

Here is a list of the few we know got bailed-out.

• Goldman Sachs received nearly $600 billion
• Morgan Stanley received nearly $2 trillion
• Citigroup received $1.8 trillion
• Bear Stearns received nearly $1 trillion
• Merrill Lynch received some $1.5 trillion
• Deutsche Bank, a German lender, sold the Fed more than $290 billion worth of mortgage securities
• Credit Suisse, a Swiss bank, sold the Fed more than $287 billion in mortgage bonds
• General Electric
• McDonald's
• Caterpillar
• Harley Davidson
• Toyota
• Verizon

Why the heck is GS on the list? LOL. They just gave $500 million to facebook.