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Personal Finance: 20 Dos & Don'ts for 2009

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Craz Dec 18, 2008 9:11 PM GMT FBEye, you've got a point there, killer : )
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dw Dec 18, 2008 8:30 PM GMT why would you invest internationally? its down more than the us. and how do we know we have hit bottom? or that it will go up much in the next few years? it could do what it did in the 70s. which is not much. so why invest in a money loosing asset?
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Dante Dec 18, 2008 7:42 PM GMT Investing in bonds is the worst piece of investment advice floating around right now. Interest are at historic lows. So you want to buy bonds and watch your value disappear as rates go back up? As to the nitwits who would spout: it's ok if you hold it to maturity. Yeah, right, hold a 3% bond for 30-75 years.
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FBEye Dec 18, 2008 6:35 PM GMT There's only one "DON'T" that everyone should follow: DON'T EVER TRUST ANYONE IN AMERICA AGAIN!!!!!!!! America is a land filled with LIES & LIARS!!!!!!!! You should only watch what people "DO", and make up your mind from there!!!!!! "DO" believe that you are a target by someone who wants your MONEY!!!!!!
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GT Dec 18, 2008 4:47 PM GMT @ Alex - see #10, #19, #20
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Justin Dec 18, 2008 4:45 PM GMT Alex - while past performance is no guarantee for future returns, stocks have consistently outperformed real estate in the long term as a pure investment. owning real estate as an investment only makes sense as part of a diversified portfolio. also, real estate does not offer risk-free return, real estate can go down in value. ask anyone who is trying to sell a house in this market.if you plan on putting in some sweat equity and make some improvements then that's a little different, but still you ave to consider the cost of your time and opportunity costs.you are 22 and its a down market. if I were in your shoes, I would be pumping as much as I could into a Roth 401(k) and investing that in equity index funds
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alex Dec 18, 2008 2:49 PM GMT I'm 22, working, and have the option to start a 401k. Seems tempting, but what about saving that 3-5K/year towards a down payment on property or other entrepreneurial paths. I've seen my parents' 401k disappear. Why shouldn't such a drop happen again to stocks by the time I'm 65? Yes, historically the stock market has always grown, but why risk it. Property in the right location seems like a less volatile investment, and would require only 5-10 years of saving. Any thoughts?
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Don't Pay That Car Loan Dec 18, 2008 2:08 PM GMT Call your auto lender before paying it off. Many car loans are set up in a way that paying more per month will only reduce the principal, not the interest. If that is the case you are better off investing your extra cash (assuming you have already maxed out your 401k match at work)
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Tom Brosnahan Dec 18, 2008 12:48 PM GMT "Don't try to predict the future." Balderdash! Two years ago, smart people were saying that disaster was in the future, so I got out of the stock market. I missed a substantial part of the final run-up, but I also missed all of the disaster. My investments are up 10% this year.What's the future now? After less than a year of deflation, rampant inflation. Governments are printing more money than has ever been printed before. Soon it will be time to get out of cash. Think TIPS and real estate.
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Thiru Dec 18, 2008 9:57 AM GMT Really impressive guidelines to manage this financial crisis for coming new year. These are very simple and effective way to implement and future planning.Thank you for a nice article on financial crisis -future plans
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