What is the best financial investment I could make?

Question

With the economy the way it is right now, what is the best financial investment I could make? I heard on the radio that now is the time to invest in gold? If money wasn't an issue what would be the smartest investment.

Answer 1

Based on your question I would invest in some common sense.

Answer 2

I would think buying foreclosed homes and flipping them.

Answer 3

Debt Instruments, Gold is always solid, and keep tweaking your IRA and Mutual Fund accts.

Answer 4

I disagree with CaromCap for some of this one - buy and hold has always been a key to success. That is, as long as you are not going to throw in a big chunk of cash right now, and as long as you are truly in it for the long run (years and years) Dollar-cost averaging, investing smaller amounts over a period of time, will more than make up for fluctuations in investments, once again, over years and years. I agree with CaromCap as far as gold goes - it has seen it's peak for now. Put your dough in incremental CD's, and as they mature, invest a steady and consistient amount in managed investment vehicles (Mutual funds, etc...) unless you use some of the money, as others have suggested, to buy yourself more of an education on investment vehicles or on anything else to improve your income.

Answer 5

Invest in yourself.  Get an degree or a certification that will allow you to earn more money in the future.

If you already believe that you cannot improve your earnings power I would focus on learning about investing before that I threw money at any investment.

Learn about equities(stocks), bonds, commodities and real estate.  Know the benefits and the drawbacks of each of these investment vehicles.  Based on what you learn, apply that knowledge to your own investment style and or beliefs.

When you make a mistake (we all do) figure out what you did wrong and try to not repeat the mistake.  If you do not have the time or the interest to learn about these things (I find them fascinating) you should see a professional who has a focus on Capital Preservation.

Good luck!

Answer 6

Buying a home.With any extra money pay down the principal.

Answer 7

If you are taking financial advice from a radio show plugging gold, then the best financial investment you can make is probably (1) a subscription to the Economist magazine, (2) a subscription to Barron's or Financial Times (or both), (3) several trips to the local library to get some books to read on investing:  Peter Lynch, Warren Buffett, Ken Fisher, Ben Graham...

Answer 8

if money was NO issue, the smartest investment u could make would be to bet some one how long it will take charles barkley to file bankruptcy.  Then you bet on 1 month or less, and sit back, until u collect.

Answer 9

printing press

and plates

Answer 10

Depends on your financial situation.  Don't listen to radio ads or tips from friends; educate yourself about investing and about your money.  Read guides on websites like the Motley Fool and Yahoo finance.  Don't listen to anybody who says "Go buy X"; you should educate yourself so you are able to research it yourself and know what is good or not.

Answer 11

As long as there is uncertainty, gold still retains a touch (not fully, anymore) of value as a refuge of last resort for money held by people adverse to risk. The question is whether the industrial (electronics and some chemical processes) and commercial retail (jewelry) demand remains strong. In the Middle East and much of Asia, there is quite a bit of each of these at play, so even without the uncertainties of military and political posturing there is reason for gold to stay at or even rise above the current prices (don't forget, for those of us in the US, we are also pricing in the diminished value of the dollar, so gold prices get a little squirrely when demand abroad rises but an increase in dollar value would cause the dollar price to actually fall a bit, so watch that dynamic too).

The easiest safe way is the Ishares ETF that actually holds gold in a vault: IAU (see: http://www.ishares.com/product_info/fund...

Also, you might want to look at silver: http://www.ishares.com/product_info/fund...

Platinum and palladium are very valuable metals with strong industrial uses, but I don't know a safe way to buy into them. Mining stocks perhaps, but I've had some bad experiences in mining stocks. As Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) once said (he was also famous for making bad investments): "A gold mine is just a hole in the ground surrounded by liars." I'm being slightly hypocritical when I say this (because I have some money in a preproduction mining operation, yet they are about to start digging this year), try to stay with proven producers. I lost some good money in an operation that staked out scads of mining claims, saying they were after gold because it was part of the same geologic feature as a working mine nearby, but they seem to have found the winters too difficult and decided to scout for uranium in Arizona instead. Last I heard, despite tons of press releases, they have yet to dig for more than rock samples several years later. So you might leave the would-be miners alone for now.

Answer 12

Actually, I would disagree, stocks are NOT on sale, as many in the media, etc. suggest. Stock investing is not like buying a shirt, just because it is cheaper doesn't make it better. Stock history tells us that stocks with superior earnings, profitability, etc. will be priced higher, and PE actually has very little to do with stock price action.

And gold looks like it is in a flat to down trending pattern and would avoid any recommendations you hear on the radio.

Having said that, in the current market, taking long positions in the market is not advised. Sure, the market could bounce higher, but there is currently no leadership and all the indexes are trading well below their 200day moving average and who knows where the bottom is. I don't think the concern should be a little more downside, look at the prices of many of the socalled 'bargain' stocks. Have they dropped a little in the last few weeks? No. They have dropped 10-20-40% in a few weeks, when the market has dropped 5% or so. Therefore, a little downside risk is not the concern, a major downside risk is.

Therefore, in this market, if you are experienced, shorting is one option. Option 2, at least minimized major downside risk buy buying an index ETF, such as QQQQ(nasdaq), SPY(S&P500), or DIA (DOW), if you feel strongly that a bottom is in and you are a quote 'long term' investor. Whatever that means, which frankly to me means, you're just want to take a buy and hope approach to investing. True, over the long term the market does rise, but that doesn't mean you won't suffer thru some major 20-40% declines in your portfolio. Are you read for that? Most people aren't.

So, if you want to go long, wait for the market to show some signs of stock leadership, wait for the indexes to at least recover to their 200 day moving average, which is a major point of support in EVERY bull market.