Investing is probably never easy, and there’s always some risk to it, but it’s crucial if you want to gather some money for your retirement or another life goal that requires financing. It’s impossible to avoid risk (the higher the risk, the higher the possible profit), but it’s essential to understand it and make a good investment plan.
Not everything, but many things can still be predicted if you see the bigger picture, or you cant at least protect yourself from any major repercussions. You need to make sure that you are aware of your risk tolerance, to set yourself time horizon and establish clear and fixed goals. Then you can explore different styles of investment – see what you can choose from and what suits you best. What are some of the ways to invest and actually make some money?
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Forex
This is the way of investing money that has been growing in popularity these days. Forex trading (foreign exchange or FX trading) is the process of converting one currency into another. Forex (the foreign exchange market or the currency market) is the largest financial market in the world. There’s no central location for it, so it’s working 24 hours a day.
It’s run by a global network of banks with significant trading points in different time zones: London, Tokyo, Sydney and New York. There are different ways to invest in forex, but it is all about buying and selling various currencies. You trade them in pairs by betting which one will go up and which will go down. You don’t have to guess (in fact, you shouldn’t) – it’s essential to follow the news and trends, be able to see patterns and come to conclusions.
You can decide on various strategies here, but you have to always be attentive and observant, plus, it’s vital to choose a good forex broker who will provide you with a platform to trade. To research different brokers to be sure you’re picking the right one, check out EngineForex.
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Mutual Funds
It’s the type of investment where your money is pooled with the money of other investors. Then, there are fund’s managers who use the whole amount to buy securities for your group. Many experts recommend this type of investing if you’re completely new to the field – it’s better to start with mutual funds or exchange-traded funds than individual stocks and bonds.
This way, while investing in broader sets instead of doing everything by yourself, you can slowly learn how everything works. In this case, the investments are more diversified, therefore safer and often less expensive. The downside is that fund managers always charge you a percentage based fee.
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The Stock Market
Putting the money in the stock market is probably the most frequently chosen way to invest it; some even say that it’s the most profitable way as well. Buying a stock means that you basically acquire a small part of the company that it belongs to.
When they make some profit, they may pay you these profits in dividends accordingly to how much you own. If the overall value of the company raises, so does the worth of all the shares, including yours – you can sell them later for a higher price.
You can invest money short-term and long-term. If you decide on the first option, you will need a little bit more luck than in the case of long-term investments, especially if you’re relatively new to the field.
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Bonds
When you buy a bond, you give (or loan, to be precise) your money to either a private company or the government (if you’re from the USA, you will probably buy US government’s bond, although it’s possible to buy foreign bonds too).
As long as the bond lasts, the company or the government will pay you the interest on the loan. Bonds are much safer to invest in than the stock market but, logically, they are also a little bit less profitable. Buying bond from the government is the safest option here.
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Savings Accounts
This is the safest way to invest your money, but, as always, low risk means low returns. You can put your money in a savings account and basically forget all about them – they will be lying there collecting some interest.
However, the profit won’t be too high (if any), so if you really want to multiply your money, you should consider different investment styles. However, you can still use savings accounts to stockpile the cash that you saved or made on other investments.
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Retirement accounts
An Individual Retirement Account (IRA) provides you with an account where you can save up for your retirement. There are some tax advantages, but also the limits as to how much money you can put there yearly and when you can withdraw it. Different types of retirement accounts include:
- 401(k) – it’s best when you have this account with an employer match. They will fund your account by matching everything that you contribute. If you’ve got a lot of money in that account, it’s better to use a robo-advisor which will manage it for you. Blooom is recommended, as it doesn’t actually touch your money.
- Traditional IRA – with this account, your savings may qualify for a deduction with your tax return. There’s a possibility that your earnings will grow tax-deferred until the actual time of your retirement.
- Roth IRA – here your contributions are after-tax so they can grow tax-free. If you meet all the account’s conditions, it will be tax-free for you to withdraw the money when the retirement comes.
- Rollover IRA – you get this account by rolling over another one. For example, if you have 401(k) with an employer, you can transfer that money into Rollover account when you leave your job.
It’s important to remember that investing and making a profit, that’s usually a long process, so you will need patience. Your wealth is growing gradually, though often slowly. You don’t need a lot to get started; the exact required amount depends on the investment style, but you can always find something suitable for yourself.
The stock market seems to be the most profitable option here but make sure you know what you’re doing. In any case, you will need a good strategy.
