DOW 20k!!! - the investing thread

Really it isolates China; the export 90% of products because their population is older and few kids. One child policy of 80s are now 45. Everyone with kids knows when you have them need stuff

 

So true. Those of us that don't have a pile of cash laying around for something to do, need to go with investing not trying to time the market. Timing can pay off, but they also say not to play with money you can't stand to lose. So, I go in for the long term and try to ignore the noise.

 

You're OLD !!!!

I try not to think about 2008. I lost a lot of money then. What I didn't lose was my long term investments.
So yeah, ignore the day traders and hedgers freaking out when they freak out.

 

I didn't even start a job where a 401k was available until 1988. Prior to that I had been working minimum wage jobs, mostly 2 jobs at a time and trying to survive. In the 1980's and 90's (and even later) it was very common not to be able to actually start a 401k until you had been employed at a place for a year. I had one job that you didn't get to start a 401k until you had been there a year plus the start of the next quarter. I started in early April (the beginning of a quarter), so wasn't eligible for 401k until July of the following year.

My how times have changed, where dang near every place starts benefits from day one, even small businesses. And some of them automatically enroll you in a 401k unless you specifically opt out.

 

Pigs get fat Hogs get slaughtered. Sit back, relax, do not sell, it will come back just like the last 30 years.

 

I was in high school also; it recovered in less than 90 days or did she sell at bottom?

 

You are both so young - So, Heidi, you can ignore the comment from billb3

 

Twas a good year

 

I'm 71, she's still a "kid "


What I want to know is how all these people who claim to have lost everything in the last few months are invested, because the S and P is up 11% over the last 12 months and even the DOW is up year over year. Maybe not by very much, but still up. A tiny bit of hyperbole must be involved.

 

No doubt. That's the year I got my RM80!

 

Although I have a couple of risky things I bought in 2022, (NVIDIA is still up by over 500% and way covers the other two plus a bunch), most of my roll over IRA is in mid to low risk. bonds have been in the toilet for a while now and a few weeks ago didn't help. On May 1, 2025m my portfolio was under what it was at last year - not by much, granted, but still down 12% over what it was in December and January . The bounce back in the last couple of days is nice to see.



Me, I'm still working and contributing to a 401k, so I can weather this storm - although it is possible that it will put off my planned retirement by a bit (it's a wait ans see game). However, those that are retired are between a rock and a hard place - especially those that have RMDs they have to take out (or have to take out to cover their monthly), they don't have a bunch of time to wait for the prices to come back.

I will agree that if someone claims to have lost everything, they were playing the wrong games with the wrong assets.

 

If retired, or close to it, absolutely!

 

The broker I use lets me take out my RMD's and transfer them to my taxable account. If they were down in my IRA, I still have them with the odds of having them go back up.

 

The only problem is taxes. The whole reason the government makes you take RMDs. You'll have to pay the tax from somewhere so not all will be reinvested.

 

You are right. One must allow for taxes. My point was, if you like the investment and don't need the money and can cover the taxes, it is an option to keep the investment, whether it is individual stocks or mutual funds, just in a taxable account. I do recognize that everyone is in a different financial situation, so what works for me or you, may not work for others. It is nice to have options.