Roth IRA - Need Help

[Professor S]

Originally Posted by Bond

Vanguard is a good bet. Very solid company.

In addition to a Roth IRA, you should look at investing in some Select Sector SPDRs. http://www.sectorspdr.com/

Can you offer a short description of what these are?

[Acebot44]

So I decided to go with Fidelity as the initial buy in only needed to be $200. Have $500 in the Fidelity Freedom 2050 which is 88% Stocks (24% Foreign), 9% Bonds, and 2% Cash, so pretty aggressive.

The way the 2050 fund works is that it is transformed the closer we get to the year 2050, moving from a more aggressive growth oriented stance to a value focused portfolio as my chosen retirement date gets nearer.

Fidelity isnt as highly regarded as Vanguard and some other investment firms, but I think the experience I will gain by getting involved early will be valuable none the less.

[manasecret]

Originally Posted by Acebot44

Fidelity isnt as highly regarded as Vanguard and some other investment firms, but I think the experience I will gain by getting involved early will be valuable none the less.

Completely agree. I think the most important thing for anyone is to get started right now. An extra year of your money compounding can add tens of thousands of dollars or more to your retirement.

My other regret is that my parents didn't start me a Roth when I was born, or as soon as they were available. Or that I didn't know about them soon enough to start one myself when I was a teen.

[Bond]

Originally Posted by Professor S

Can you offer a short description of what these are?

The SPDRs basically segment the S&P 500 into industries (Financial, Energy, Utilities, etc). I view it as a much safer investment than investing in a single stock, as the funds simply represent a sector of the economy - it's a passive approach to investing.

In any case, when the market tanked I invested in both the Energy and Utilities SPDRs. I won't say how much I invested, but the return so far has been around 25% plus dividends. Not too shabby.

[Professor S]

Originally Posted by Bond

The SPDRs basically segment the S&P 500 into industries (Financial, Energy, Utilities, etc). I view it as a much safer investment than investing in a single stock, as the funds simply represent a sector of the economy - it's a passive approach to investing.

In any case, when the market tanked I invested in both the Energy and Utilities SPDRs. I won't say how much I invested, but the return so far has been around 25% plus dividends. Not too shabby.

No shit. PM me those SPDR's, please.