I know there are a lot of other financial gurus out there on ClutchFans, so I figured I'd ask around. I pretty much manage my own funds as much as a I can without literally putting my retirement into individual stocks/bonds/etc. Anyway, I'm looking for a well-performing managed fund to put my Roth IRA money into, and I'm curious if anyone is happy with what they've got. My 401k has been getting awesome returns since the market turned last year, but my IRA has been pretty disappointing. I think it's just too conservative for my tastes.
Really depends on where you are in life. If you're closer to retirement, you'll want something conservative/large cap, and if you're just a couple years out of college, you can take on more risks with small cap funds. I used VFINX for large cap and VIMSX for small/mid cap. /not a financial guru
Let me be a little more clear. For one thing, I'm definitely familiar enough with the fundamentals/basics of investing to know the "how to invest my money" part. For the record, I'm 31 and still looking to be relatively aggressive on my retirement. I guess I've seen enough conversation in the "Let's talk stocks and investing" thread to assume that there were some others on here who might have some opinions on a good place to go with my IRA since I'm fishing around for a new fund.
If you know the fundamentals, then it should be easy just to pick a no- or low-load fund of the appropriate market cap from your favorite financial institution :grin: If you got the chance to skim through "Little Book of Common Sense Investing" by John Bogle, you wouldn't waste any money on actively managed funds. Cost is king, and the effect of compounding cost will be what makes or breaks your retirement fund in the long run. Also in the book, I believe that only about 0.5% of the actively managed funds consistently beats the market average over the long term (we're talking about decades, which is the scope of retirement), while the rest of the funds managed to break even, lose money, or are no longer existent. As the say "past gains doesn't indicate future performance" goes, I would also avoid trying to find the "winning" fund, and just stick with something below 1% expense ratio. It's not all that bad just being "average" when it comes to investing.
I've been heavily into C (3.20), BAC (14.90), a little GS (167), a small amount in AIG (39) and some in my company's stock UNM (13+). My kid's college funds consisted of F (10), C (3.20) and BAC (14.90). I pulled them out of F completely at it's high and 1/2 out of C and BAC recently. I'm not sure where I should put their money - one is getting ready to grad HS and the other 2 aren't far behind so I may keep that money on the sideline, wait for a pullback or find a new area to jump in (open to ideas to research). I made a killing in energy a few years ago then lost most of it over the past couple of years. I've made it back in financials so I'm finally back to my predrop levels. I know that you don't want individual stocks but if you reseach and watch them closely I think some money in stocks is a good thing.
C NE MDR ATVI CYOU (options) ETFC PNRZX DEFIX SSEMX SSGDX etc. Diversify. Mutual funds are easy for an IRA, especially when you're younger, to diversify. I'm 26 and have had my IRA for 3 years, maxed 5k the past 2 years and 3k my first year. So, it's hard to buy stocks that arnt cheap. Put your money in stuff you think will do well in the long run. Remember, that $9.99 commission is something you wont get back in your retirement, so choose your stocks wisely (and mutual funds too, if they charge commission). If you're just starting, diversify among funds in different countries, sectors, etc. Energy, emerging markets, tech, financial, health care, etc. I would look into Citi, if you dont plan on retiring in the next decade. I bought 2000 shares in the low $3s. If over the next few decades it goes back to $60, that's a pretty nice return.
