What to do with $18K?

[Mecisteus]

do you plan to further your studies and excel in your career?

if yes, then my advice is go ahead. invest/trade early with a portion of that 18k. it is alright to lose a few k in the beginning so that you can learn and make more money in the future. and i believe you can easily recover all your losses if you have a good career in the future.

 

[-Jian-]

Diversification is the key!

 

[antonpoh]

i personally feel that books can only teach strategy, and those books are probably written in like 2001. but i wanna know what the people who are investing for a while what's their inputs.

After reading nine rules of wealth, I believe in passive investment. the big Q now is which stock/etf/index fund to spread my 18k

For 18k i would put it all into this. For every share of FragranceGp (Now 25cent), will get 8cent of GPHL shares. If i'm reading this correctly.

http://infopub.sgx.com/Apps?A=COW_CorpAnnouncement_Content&B=AnnouncementLast3Months&F=BWOTZVIZD4G28QU4&fileId=Announcement_DIS_Cir_Despatch.pdf

 

[neolaw]

Education is important. However, for some people, going education is just a waste of money and time. I AM NOT ENCOURAGING YOU TO DISMISS YOUR EDUCATION. Just pointing out.

If I were you, I would not put all my eggs in a single basket. I agree that passive investment is very effective and every day trying to decide is a day wasted. However, I would rather put a bit in bond, a bit in investment plan from company A and a bit in company B. Also property is also a viable option if you have a trusted partners (i.e. your parents).

 

[Nyan]

So I was very politely asked to contribute to this thread, and I'm more than happy to.

Basically there's a couple of things you can do:

1) Set up an emergency fund - just enough to cover your expenses for six months, so that if anything untoward happens you've got a buffer;
3) Once you've done that, then, assuming you don't have any other debts, you should basically dump the money into the STI ETF and leave it there.

At your age, you'll want your investment funds to be roughly 90% in stocks (the STI ETF) and 10% in bonds (the ABF bond ETF).

Generally though: you've got the right idea! You're buying low-cost index ETFs instead of high-cost mutual funds; you're allocating your assets between stocks and bonds (don't forget to rebalance once a year!); and you have a LONG time horizon.

You're going to put yourself on a great footing for long-term success with this. Well done mate. Keep it up.

By dumping in the sti ETF, do i really put the whole lump at one shot, or do a $1k per month.

as quote from your previous thread '' Three Great Tips For Your Portfolio In 2014 ''

''If you're a Singapore-based investor, you'll want to diversify 10-30% of your portfolio into overseas stocks. For younger investors, 15% SPY and 15% VEA is a good idea ''

Do you think i should get 15% spy and 15% VEA, 70% STI G3B? - Total 90% stock, 10% ABF BONDS.

If yes, then the qns again, whole lump sum in, or passively over a year. For the spy and vea, does it need daily checking, or buying for the long run?


Thanks for the reply my friend

 

[Nyan]

do you plan to further your studies and excel in your career?

if yes, then my advice is go ahead. invest/trade early with a portion of that 18k. it is alright to lose a few k in the beginning so that you can learn and make more money in the future. and i believe you can easily recover all your losses if you have a good career in the future.

Yes i plan to further my studies so to excel in my career. They always say when you're young, fall so hard because you can take it. Fall and i shall learn right.

 

[Mr_Leo_WG]

I'm going into national service soon. so i don't want the money to be sitting there for nothing for 2 years.







any books to recommend?


I also wish for the money to grow, instead of a fixed deposit. i don't mind put and hold long tterm for 30-50 years.

Read this book: Fooled by Randomness by Nicholas Nassim Taleb.
It is a must read before reading any other investment books.
Changed the way I view investing.

 

[John.D Rockefeller]

Yes i plan to further my studies so to excel in my career. They always say when you're young, fall so hard because you can take it. Fall and i shall learn right.

If you don't have to fall, don't.

 

[archcherub]

So I was very politely asked to contribute to this thread, and I'm more than happy to.

Basically there's a couple of things you can do:

1) Set up an emergency fund - just enough to cover your expenses for six months, so that if anything untoward happens you've got a buffer;
3) Once you've done that, then, assuming you don't have any other debts, you should basically dump the money into the STI ETF and leave it there.

At your age, you'll want your investment funds to be roughly 90% in stocks (the STI ETF) and 10% in bonds (the ABF bond ETF).

Generally though: you've got the right idea! You're buying low-cost index ETFs instead of high-cost mutual funds; you're allocating your assets between stocks and bonds (don't forget to rebalance once a year!); and you have a LONG time horizon.

You're going to put yourself on a great footing for long-term success with this. Well done mate. Keep it up.

wish i got shiny thing when i was young.
if shiny thing works as a real financial advisor, singaporeans would be richer....

 

[Shiny Things]

By dumping in the sti ETF, do i really put the whole lump at one shot, or do a $1k per month.

Nah, do it in one shot - or if you're worried about buying high, split it into two or three monthly clips.

''If you're a Singapore-based investor, you'll want to diversify 10-30% of your portfolio into overseas stocks. For younger investors, 15% SPY and 15% VEA is a good idea ''

Do you think i should get 15% spy and 15% VEA, 70% STI G3B? - Total 90% stock, 10% ABF BONDS.

Your numbers are a bit off - 15% SPY, 15% VEA, 60% G3B, 10% A35. But otherwise yeah. Those four ETFs right there are pretty much all the diversification you'll ever need.

If yes, then the qns again, whole lump sum in, or passively over a year. For the spy and vea, does it need daily checking, or buying for the long run?

Same answer - with your $18k, buy it in one shot, then SIT ON IT - this is the key bit. Sit on it all for thirty years. This is not for trading; this is for investment.

 

[Shiny Things]

Yes i plan to further my studies so to excel in my career. They always say when you're young, fall so hard because you can take it. Fall and i shall learn right.

Oh, and I forgot to add: this is a great way to think.

I'm sitting here in SF, looking out my window at the South of Market district, which is pretty much startup central. There are firms starting here every day - and firms that are failing every day. People pick themselves up, dust themselves off, and come up with another great idea. There's absolutely no shame in failing, and that's why the SF bay area is such a vibrant business community.

People who say "if you don't have to fail, don't" or "there's a chance you could fail, so never try" are... sort of sad.

 

[Bedokian]

Oh, and I forgot to add: this is a great way to think.

I'm sitting here in SF, looking out my window at the South of Market district, which is pretty much startup central. There are firms starting here every day - and firms that are failing every day. People pick themselves up, dust themselves off, and come up with another great idea. There's absolutely no shame in failing, and that's why the SF bay area is such a vibrant business community.

People who say "if you don't have to fail, don't" or "there's a chance you could fail, so never try" are... sort of sad.

Unfortunately, in this part of the world, failure is often viewed as not an option, even though one tries to pick themselves up, the stigma is usually there.

So in a way, most of us here are sort of sad.

 

[Nyan]

i have gotten my answer.


thanks everyone especially shiny things and bedokian for your genuine input.

 

[neanea]

What does SF means?

Oh, and I forgot to add: this is a great way to think.

I'm sitting here in SF, looking out my window at the South of Market district, which is pretty much startup central. There are firms starting here every day - and firms that are failing every day. People pick themselves up, dust themselves off, and come up with another great idea. There's absolutely no shame in failing, and that's why the SF bay area is such a vibrant business community.

People who say "if you don't have to fail, don't" or "there's a chance you could fail, so never try" are... sort of sad.

 

[Dividends Warrior]

What does SF means?

San Francisco, USA.

Bro Shiny Things is there.

 

[Lasogette]

Read this book: Fooled by Randomness by Nicholas Nassim Taleb.
It is a must read before reading any other investment books.
Changed the way I view investing.

Great book . If u have more time go read his other 2 books black swan and antifragile.

 

[Nyan]

San Francisco, USA.

Bro Shiny Things is there.

hey dw, would love your input as well.

do you recommend using the 18k to purchase some stocks and chase the dividends or the 18k in the index etf fund?

 

[neanea]

Why shiny go SF?

 

[Dividends Warrior]

Why shiny go SF?

Enjoying life.

Smelling the roses.

 

[neanea]

Enjoying life.

Smelling the roses.

Singapore cannot enjoy life? Hahahaha