For someone with no investment exp. What steps are suggested for first time investers with $5000. or less.?

Answer 1

I would go down to a Book store like Barns and Nobles and buy yourself a Book. Even one for Dummies and do some reading.
There are a lot of Online Resources to help you understand how to invest money so you have a good understanding of what the process is. This will help you out a lot so you dont end up tossing $5000.00 dollers down the drain.

Here is a link that might help you too if you dont have the time to read or buy book.

Answer 2

1. Open up a brokerage account with E-trade, TDAmeritrade etc.
2. Put your money in the money market account (to get that 5%/yr) until you learn the basics of the investing.
3. Go to a book store and get some good books (on search online).
3. Start with $500 investment only (or that you won't feel much pain losing). Buy two stocks with $250 each. See how your stocks perform.
4. Experience emotional roller coasters as you see the stock sinking.

If this experience scares you, then trading is not for you. Invest rest of your money wisely 50% into mutual funds and 50% into bonds.

Good luck!.

Answer 3

Before you think about where you're going to invest your dollars, you need to know a few things about yourself first:

1. What's my overall goal for investing? You need to understand that investing is a means to an end. What do you want to accomplish? No one invests simply to make money; money is merely the vehicle with which we accomplish other goals.

2. Is my investment capital actual risk capital? You need to know if this is money you can afford to lose -- that is, if you lost this capital, would it vastly affect your lifestyle? Your investment choices will be very different depending on if this is mortgage money or if this is play money.

3. Am I extremely averse to risk? If you don't like the idea that you could lose this money in a high-yield/high-risk investment, then you need to stick to very safe vehicles.

4. Do I understand the choices available? There are innumerable ways to invest your money: stocks, bonds, money markets, CDs, REITs, IRAs, mutual funds, hedge funds, real estate, forex, futures and commodities, etc. Do you understand what these are so you can have a serious conversation with a financial planner or broker?

5. What's my investment plan? You need to have a goal in mind, benchmarks toward that goal and rules to follow. Without this plan, no one's advice will be of any use to you, no matter how credible they may be as an adviser.

These are basic questions to which any investor should have the answer.

Good luck!

Answer 4

Most likely your very first step should be mutual funds through someone like E-trade...and at least half of that should be your first IRA.
Read up on mutual funds and investing on yahoo/finance or msn/cnbc sites....It will look confusing at first, but if you take your time , play around a little with the "research" sites...you'll come to a decent understanding of it all in as little as a couple of nights or a weekend ( not too much, when your whole future is a stake)
To see how little you have to "give up " now to have a better future click on this:
http://finishrich.com/free_resources/lattecalculator.php

Answer 5

I suggest mutual funds. You can open an account for as little as $2,500. Right now, there are more mutual funds to pick from, than there are stocks.
Probably the safest choice is an index fund that mirrors the S & P 500. The fees are the lowest. S & P continuously monitors their five hundred stocks. So the portfolio gets updated periodically. I recently saw a report which stated that only about 30% of mutual fund managers beat the S & P index.

Answer 6

I'd suggest a CD. If you don't know what you are doing, I'd suggest you learn before you spend. Go to school, become familiar with the subject by studying finacial websites and publications. There are also radio and tv shows that can help you become more familiar.

Investing is an art and sometimes luck. It involves a more than average comprehension of math and a lot of homework on your part.

Answer 7

It really depends on your investment goals. The two questions you should ask yourself are:
-how liquid of an investment do you want? stocks can be sold very fast, but CD accounts can't be touched for a fixed ammount of time
-am i willing to risk this money? stocks have a higher potential for a bigger return, but if you can't stand to lose the money, put it in a CD

Answer 8

I would recommend to invest in currency trading.You can really make good money provided you know which currency to buy and when to sell. Check the website below where the top forex trading programs have been reviewed.
Hope it helps

http://money-review-site.com/investment.html

Answer 9

invest in the middle east stock market.

Answer 10

Well id look for a brokrage company or invest in bonds they make lots of money!