Resources for saving for early retirement and investing for a total noob?

sugarpieinthesky · 2021-06-19T22:58:36+00:00

Few tips that I've used over the years:

Invest in your 401k and open a Roth IRA, if you qualify for one, or a traditional IRA if you don't. No matter what you do, you should always max out tax-advantaged investment vehicles FIRST, before you do anything else. From the MGTOW perspective, taking money away from the government has to be #1, and tax advantaged investment vehicles are a huge step towards that. I max out my contribution to my Roth IRA every year on the first day of the new year, and it's worked wonderfully for me. The order is:

401k - this is the motherload, since it's automatic from your paycheck, you get a tax break for putting money in, and you often get an employer match. If you aren't at least putting in enough to get the maximum match, you're throwing money away. Max you can contribute to get the tax breaks: $19,500 a year. Never contribute a penny over that number.

Roth IRA - this is #2, you have to pay taxes on the investment up front, but you can let it grow, tax-free, for decades before tapping it. Max yearly contribution: $6,000.

Traditional IRA - this is a 401k for tax purposes, but without the automatic contributions right from your pay check and the employer match. Max yearly contribution: $6,000.

You can have both a traditional IRA and a Roth IRA, but the combined contributions to both cannot exceed $6,000 in any year.

Take care of this stuff first, before you attempt anything more complex than this.

One other comment, but, if you are working 64+ hours per week, you might want to change jobs. Now is a great time to do so, as there are so many more open positions than people to fill them.

The problem with those obscene work hours is that you do not have any downtime to actually grow. At the start of the pandemic, for example, I dumped so much of my time into understanding options investing, which can be a very tricky subject. I spent 8 months devouring everything I could read or watch on youtube on the subject. In February of this year, I opened an account on TD Ameritrade to trade options, and I put $3,000 into the account. $3,000 is an amount of money small enough that if I lost all of it, I wouldn't lose any sleep over it.

I've traded options for the last 5 months and have made about $1,500, and have the account up to $4,500. Options trading is a tricky skill that requires a lot of time, research, patience and practice to get good at, but if you can master it, you can create another income stream off of it.

You don't have the time, or the energy, to undertake projects like this if you're working 64+ hours per week, you're basically just a worker mule at that point, and that's no kind of life.

I didn't dump several tens of thousands of dollars into that options account off the jump, and try to get rich quick, because I understand that even with all the research I did before I made my first trade, I don't have the background to be good at this. I needed to get reps, do a bunch of trades and figure out the mechanics first, before putting up more money. If you work 64+ hours a week, you might not have the time to be patient.

MeanMathematician505 · 2021-06-19T22:44:57+00:00

Read bachelor pad economics!

I just finished it after someone recommended it on here. It's not the most detailed investment book, but it's life advice for MGTOW and covers the bases on a lot of topics that also (indirectly) have to do with your finances.

Groundbreaking_the2 · 2021-06-19T22:26:35+00:00

For starters, take full advantage of that 401k/company match... that is where you start. Next, a simple choice, is a Roth IRA. It grows, but you can take out what you've deposited in a pinch... just don't touch the interest and you'll be fine... better yet, don't touch it at all.

After that, advice changes based on what you want. After my 401k/Roth I buy precious metals and dividend stocks.

But for now, pump up that 401k!

Most_Insane_F2P · 2021-06-21T00:18:33+00:00

You're already doing great. No debts is underrated imo.

Day trading is a losing game. Don't do it.

Invest longterm in things you believe in. Can be companies, real estate, land, whatever.

The more you focus on assets (things that generate money) versus expenses (things that lose money) the more you win longterm.

Me: +/-30yrs, mortgage half paid, 100k in stocks.

Note, it doesn't have to be this extreme. Start lightly. Never over-commit.

Glittering-Meat3088 · 2021-06-20T03:27:56+00:00

A 401K and Roth IRA, like many folks here are telling you, are good ideas. But if you want to learn how to invest, like day trading and playing the market, that's a whole other ball game.

I've been dabbling in the market for a while, with some success, but didn't really find anything that I felt comfortable with and got me consistent results until recently. Playing the market comes with varying levels of risk, but if you can manage that risk, you can do pretty well. I'd suggest you start doing some research, you can start navigating the Options, Stocks, Investing, and even WallStreetBets subreddits, pick or create a strategy, and then open an account with a small amount of money you're ok with losing and go from there. If all that seems a bit much, that's ok too. You can always start by just using the major ETFs that consistently grow 10% a year, like VTI and SPY. Watch them for a while before you do though, so you can get a feel for the ebb and flow. I'd suggest doing that for at least a few months before putting any serious money in.

Remember that this isn't something that you're going to achieve overnight. And if you get lucky with some moves and make a bunch of money, do not let that get to your head. Be cautious, even if that costs you some opportunities, but also don't be afraid when you've done your due diligence and need to pull the trigger on something.

Bitcoin_Bastard · 2021-06-20T05:09:29+00:00

Paul Tudor Jones among other hedge fund managers are putting 5% allocation in BTC so...

gnackered · 2021-06-21T12:11:08+00:00

My portfolio is 100% in index funds. VTI & VXUS.

Getting rich is mostly about a savings rate. If you save it, wait, it will compound and off you go.

In terms of savings vehicles you have a 401(k), a HSA, a Roth IRA and a taxable account. I fund the first three and I can put in about $75K (middle aged, married). So I have zero in my taxable accounts (I do both the backdoor and the mega-backdoor Roth IRAs). Just as well, keeps the government's hands off it.

You can read the "flowchart" over on personal finance and its pretty comprehensive https://i.imgur.com/lSoUQr2.png

In terms of investment choices, options, meme stocks, gold, bitcoin, rental real estate, side hustles - Do them if you want, but there are no called strikes in investing. I personally do none of them. Focus on your savings rate first is my advice.

In terms of MGTOW, there are no special rules for men for investing. Don't get married (like me).

Title	Resources for saving for early retirement and investing for a total noob?
Author	PebbleYote
Upvotes	12
Comments	11
Date	June 19, 2021 10:02 PM UTC (3 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/MGTOW
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/MGTOW/comments/o3qy5f/resources_for_saving_for_early_retirement_and/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/MGTOW/resources-for-saving-for-early-retirement-and.785397 https://theredarchive.com/post/785397