Ask Me Help Desk - Investing. What do I need to know, Where to start, Who to Trust

Hi Everyone,

I am 25 yrs old and wanted to start investing. I have 2,500 to start. What could I do that would double or triple my money within a year and a half. How do I go about investing in stocks, bonds, etc.. I know everyone says real estate is a sure shot, is there anyone out there that I could contact, regarding investing in a condo development, mall, etc. etc, or do I have to have a huge amount of money to start. I really want to get into investing, just want to know the basics and who to contact for different things (i.e stocks, bonds, cds, real estate investing, etc.) If some one could help me out I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks,

ThrowDropeBack

Quote:

Originally Posted by ThrowDropeBack

What could I do that would double or triple my money within a year and a half.

Even the low end of your range here amounts to an annual return of 66.7%. This is a completely unrealistic expectation for a return on a legitimate investment. A fundamental principle of successful investing is "Don't get greedy". Historical annual return on a diversified portfolio of stocks is in the 10% to 12% range. For bonds, it's 5% to 7%.

Quote:

I know everyone says real estate is a sure shot, is there anyone out there that I could contact, regarding investing in a condo development, mall, etc. etc, or do I have to have a huge amount of money to start.

The first thing you need to learn about investing is that whatever "everyone says" is a sure thing, isn't.

Quote:

I really want to get into investing, just want to know the basics and who to contact for different things (i.e stocks, bonds, cds, real estate investing, etc.)

Google "basic principles of investing" and start reading. Here's a good starting point. Basic Investing Principles

Yes, double or tripling your money, well if you want to take a big risk that will most likely loose all of it, it can happen.

I have been holding about 18 percent till last year and was holding about 12 till I had to cash in most this year due to a lot of other losses,
That was in some higher risk mutal funds that I had fairly well spread out.

If you have enough to invest in some real estate, if you are good at that, fliping homes may earn you a good investment.

But realisticly no you may luck out and find 20 percent on your money, but most likely about 6 to 8 percent is about as much asyou are going to get with that amount, on a safe investment and that 12 percent on a slightly higher risk.

before you invest in real estate call about 10 mortgage brokers or realtors and ask them... Hey how are you doing? The market may not have hit bottom yet. What's scary is if you invest in housing now and more forclosures happen around your investment, that could bring your property value DOWWWN

You may want to start as a real estate bird dog. As a bird dog you will make a lot of money but not have to invest in anything. It is a way to get a real estate investing mentor without paying for one. You may want to check out Real Estate Investor Bird Dog

I would just go to your local casino and put it all down on the black jack table, because anyone that gives you advice for doubling or tripling your money in a year or two is basically telling you to gamble with your money.

If I had my emergency fund built up, 401K fully funded, no debt and no short or long term savings goals AND I was willing to lose this $2500 on a hunch I might do it. The problem is you don't even have a hunch, your asking us for one.

If I were you I would put that $2500 in a nice no load growth fund and add to it every month. At 25, if your start doing this now you will be smiling when your 40 or 50. Who knows you may end up coming up with that "hunch" or maybe even a good investment idea. By then you'll have more than $2500 to play with.

BTW, You might check with your local community coillege, they typically have some good continuing education classes on investing.

Here are some good reads.

The Wall Street Journal Complete Money and Investing Guidebook
Wall Street Journal Guide to Understanding Money and Investing
Common Sense Investing by Lyle Allen

I am not sure what your level of experience is but based on the information your provided I have concluded that you are a beginner. KCDave has sound advice to get you started in investing. I recommend getting started in a no/ low load mutual fund and start reading about personal finance and then read some more; when you think you are getting the hang of it read something else, then take a class, and read something else. Don't act too quickly on any deal. That's how good investors become great investors.

Check out the free features on Morningtar. If you subscribe to Morningstar ($18 a month) you can play around with the tools on it. There are a lot of interesting tools and you can search and a seemingly infinate number of stocks. You can build mock porfolios and track those "sure things" to see how they really perform. There are also a regular articles and videos to get you acquainted with the language of investing.
Google also has great information.
Subscribe to Money magazine (a great reference for beginning investors).

Do you want to gamble the money? Or are you saving for a specific goal? This needs to be taken into consideration when you make a decision to purchase a security.