Which fund to invest in? (2015, 401k, average, profit)

[star80]

Hi all I am not very knowledgeable in investing, I basically have to select funds to allocate $$ into, I do not know which fund to select, can anyone with experience in investing help me out, would be much appreciated:


BALANCED

AMERICAN FUNDS AM BALANCD R2 RLBBX
VANGUARD TARGET RET 2010 INV VTENX
VANGUARD TARGET RET 2015 INV VTXVX
VANGUARD TARGET RET 2020 INV VTWNX
VANGUARD TARGET RET 2025 INV VTTVX
VANGUARD TARGET RET 2030 INV VTHRX
VANGUARD TARGET RET 2035 INV VTTHX
VANGUARD TARGET RET 2040 INV VFORX
VANGUARD TARGET RET 2045 INV VTIVX
VANGUARD TARGET RET 2050 INV VFIFX
VANGUARD TARGET RTRMNT INC INV VTINX
VANGUARD WELLINGTON INV VWELX

CASH EQUIVALENT
TIAA-CREF INSTL MONEY MARKET R TIEXX

EQUITY
AMERICAN FUNDS CAPWLD G&I R2 RWIBX
AMERICAN FUNDS EUROPACFIC R2 RERBX 0
AMERICAN FUNDS GROWTH FND R2 RGABX 0
AMERICAN FUNDS NEW WORLD R2 RNWBX 0
AMERICAN FUNDS SMALLCAP R2 RSLBX 0
FRANK SMALL CAP GROWTH II A FSGRX 0
OPP GLOBAL A OPPAX 0
TIAA-CREF EQTY INDX RETIREMENT TIQRX 0
TIAA-CREF MID CAP VALUE RETIRE TRVRX 0
TIAA-CREF SOCIAL CHOICE EQ RET TICRX 0
VANGUARD 500 INDEX INV VFINX 0
FIXED INCOME
AMERICAN FUNDS CAP WLD BD R RCWBX 0
AMERICAN FUNDS INTR BD FD R2 RBOBX 0
FIDELITY ADV STRATEGIC INCOM A FSTAX 0
FRANKLIN US GOVT SECURITIES A FKUSX 0
TIAA-CREF INFLTON LINK BD RETI TIKRX 0
TIAA-CREF INST BOND TIORX 0
TIAA-CREF SHORT-TERM BOND R TISRX 0
T ROWE PRICE HIGH YIELD A PRHYX 0
VANGUARD INTRMTERM US TRES INV VFITX

[Rambler123]

You want my honest opinion?

Stick your money - whatever share of it you can afford to miss for a while - into the lowest cost index fund you can find. You can dig around online, but very few managed funds perform better than index funds over the long haul, and they all typically have higher expenses.

That being said, given the horrible state of the world economy, the high chance of yet another Recession (inside the larger Depression), and the heavily manipulated and inflated nature of the stock market thanks to the crooked games played by the Federal Reserve and other such banks, you might want to hold off and wait for the next huge correction before you invest heavily. If that's not to your liking, then dollar cost average into a fund over time.

Good luck.

[313Weather]

Just giving my uneducated opinion on investing, but if you have a fair sum of money, such as $10,000, I would say create a Scottrade Brokage account and purchase stock options.

That's probably the easiest and safest way to make quick "big" money. At worst (other than the small fee), you'll lose what you invested, nothing more. The thing is, you must make at least a 2% profit to cover the small fees Scottrade will impose on you (at $7 per trade, you figure you buy and sell your stock option if you invest all of your $10,000 in one stock option, so you'll pay them $14 in fees).

I would invest the remainder of your money in a high-yield interest-bearing account (I use American Express), and in US treasury bonds.

All of that said, you may receive some better help from more knowledgeable in the Investing forum of C-D...

https://www.city-data.com/forum/investing/

[Pivot Point]

I suggest you go to the Investing forum. People there are more likely to be familiar with the funds you've listed.

[nctecchie]

This is apparently for a 401k - at the top of the list are VANGUARD TARGET RETIREMENT FUNDS - these funds will allocate your money across recommended investment types based on the year of your retirement (i.e. high/low risk stocks, bonds, etc) and adjust the ratio's as you age.

If you don't know anything about investing, I'd suggest you use these funds. Select the fund that is closest to your retirement year (i.e. if you are going to retire in 2034, select VANGUARD TARGET RET 2035 INV VTTHX).

Good Luck.