We are becoming a renters nation - Since 2006, in 22 of the largest U.S. cities renters became majority

[mathjak107]

Originally Posted by carmenn

I just think that without investing your money in something smart, it's really hard to be able to save enough to feel financially comfortable.
One guy told me he has enough money saved, so that if something happens with his job, he can comfortably live with his family for 1 year without work. I thought that's an amazing plan, but it's not that easy to get there...

something smart can be as simple as an s&p 500 index fund , or a total market fund . you can be right up here with the smartest investors . maybe even smarter

[mathjak107]

Originally Posted by carmenn

I think it's a good idea to keep an eye on trends rather than wait until the crash actually happens; there might be some good opportunities there. It's like with hair loss, it's better to notice that your hair is falling and take some action, rather than waiting to get bold to do something about it

this rarely works . trends are undone as we just saw in a heart beat by programmed machine selling that can span thousands of points in a few minutes .

if you are a long term investor trying to mitigate temporary dips is crazy . more money has been lost or given up in anticipation of or planning for the next down turn than has been lost in any downturn unless you exhibit poor investor behavior .

when you think about some of the things people do that hurts the growth of their money it is mind boggling .

you see those with decades to go holding bonds because someone told them it is a good idea .

it is never a wise thing as a long term investor to try to mitigate temporary short term dips and permanently hurt your long term gains . it has zero logic to it .

you could argue that it cuts volatility , but the reality is those that have decades to go and are gun shy and holding bonds just have lower trigger points where they exhibit bad investor behavior regardless of a lower allocation .

[jacqueg]

Many older people - like me - prefer renting. Owning ties you down. That's fine if you want to stay in one place the rest of your life, but what if you don't? That may be one factor in the growth of people who rent - the aging population.