long story short. im doing ok financially ( i know thats spelled wrong, i just cant think rite now), but i wudnt mind being a little more stable. i know the stock market can be dangerous, and u shud never invest wat u cant afford to lose. i want to try doing a little investing, but i just dont know where to get started. advice?

 

edgumakate yourself with some spelling lessons first.

 

How old are you, when do you want access to the money? 1 year, 6 years, 35 years? How much do you plan on investing? what are your goals, both long and short term? Are you in debt, other then car payment?

 

cut me a little slack. im from a town called goose creek for christ's sake. jk. ne way im 20 years old, i have about $2-3,000 debt (other than my car), i plan on putting up a couple hundred to start with, and as far as my goals go, im really not sure. i dont really knoe whats fesable. sure i wudnt mind living off of the money, but i dont expect that. im sorry if i sound like i dont know what im talking about, but right now im just trying to learn what the stock markets all about. oh btw i make about $25-30,000 p/y. thanks

 

well, financially speaking...it would be best to pay off that debt, especially if the debt is at a high interest rate.

but, there's no harm in dabbling in stocks just to learn. if you're thinking long term/retirement, please consider starting up a ROTH IRA, or contributing to your company's 401(k) plan if they have one...especially if they match. if you have money left over, then go ahead and open up a brokerage account at scottrade.com, tdameritrade.com, or somewhere equivalent.

 

Your not going to make money while still paying interest else where, its a wash if your lucky, chances are your investing will actually cost you money - you'll have to pay capital gains on anything you make. Focus on eliminating your debt, create a budget with how much you can afford to pay your debt off with, when the debt is gone, continue that same approach, only this time invest it. I wouldn't worry about how your going to do that at this point, the first step is to get rid of the debt - then start saving.

It takes a big mind shift to be serious about long term planning, most people are either scared of it or lack the dicsapline.

Everyone has to start someplace, at your age you can make more then enough to live off in the future, but you've got to get started sooner then later. I honestly would recommend staying clear of the stock market as a noob, stick to mutual funds. When you have the debt taken care of, post and then we can discuss the direction you should go.

 

What do you mean by capital gains?

As far as investing, check if your local college has any groups/clubs. Also, there are a few good books that you can read through at barnes and nobles or other booksellers to get you started so that you can set yourself a goal and have a clearer view of what you want to invest in.

 

captial gains...buy stock for $10, stock appreciates to $15, you sell stock for $15...capital gain.

 

Capital gains is the tax placed on interest earned at the time of the sale, due by the end of the tax year when you mail your taxes to the IRS. For most people it is 28%. An example, to keep things simple, you purchase a stock for $35.00 it shoots up to $135.00 you will owe the government $28/share bought and sold leaving your net profit at $72/share less associated fees to buy/sell the stock. There are ways around it in some cases using 1031's(for real estate), 1039's(for life insurance), I also believe there is a 1035. There is also talk(or it may even be approved by now) for a one time capital gains waiver. Another benefit of capital gains is that it does not count as income, instead of getting a W-2 come tax time, you get a 1099 - in my case I make next to nothing in terms of income(under $30k) and make up for it with capital gains and other ways of using my businesses to my advantage - but the rules/laws when doing stuff like this get tricky. The main reason I like it, is with out capital gains I wouldn't be allowed to contribute to a ROTH, I would make to much, but because capital gains doesn't count as income, I am in the clear to contribute to it.

In other words anytime you purchase something for a price and sell it for a higher price, you owe capital gains. That's why "holding the note" is a good thing for some people, it will reduce the amount they see every year. The higher amount you make, the percentages go up in some cases.

This is another reason why accounts like a ROTH, 401k and whole life insurance are so great, you don't owe that if you follow the regulations set with in them.