Author Topic: First Time Investor - Help?  (Read 2879 times)

Bootsy26

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First Time Investor - Help?
« on: August 11, 2016, 09:36:09 AM »
I am about to open my first Vanguard account and am curious as to which fund to choose. Would anyone have any recommendations? Would it be better to go into one in Admiral Shares, or tow different ones?

Interest Compound

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Re: First Time Investor - Help?
« Reply #1 on: August 11, 2016, 09:52:34 AM »
I'd recommend one of two options:

1. "I want Vanguard's experts to do everything for me. I'll just tell them my age and they'll put it in the appropriate Target Retirement Fund"

2. "I want Vanguard's experts to do everything for me. I'll just tell them how much risk I want, and they'll put it in the appropriate LifeStrategy Fund"

Enjoy!

ooeei

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Re: First Time Investor - Help?
« Reply #2 on: August 11, 2016, 01:30:57 PM »
http://jlcollinsnh.com/stock-series/

I'd recommend you read that.  The above advice is also good.

gggggg

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Re: First Time Investor - Help?
« Reply #3 on: August 11, 2016, 05:55:18 PM »
That's kind of a loaded question. Do you want bonds?; if so, how much of a percent of your portfolio? Do you want international stock? Would you rather have money automated in from your bank account every month, if so, then you need a traditional fund. If you want to diy, you can go with etf's or traditional. Is it going to be a taxable account, or a tax advantaged account (ira)? You may want to go through their advice & guidance section on the top of the main page to get some idea of your options.

TheAnonOne

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Re: First Time Investor - Help?
« Reply #4 on: August 17, 2016, 02:36:21 PM »
Just buy VTI - total stock market index ETF.  It's nearly identical to VTSAX with no investment minimums.

This- pretty much.

VTSAX is really the MAIN vehicle most here use (in it's various forms)

VTI/VTSAX is really the "US Stock Market".

I started going into VTSAX for the first two years before I really started researching other options but I still consider VTSAX to be my main investment vehicle. (my only at this time, with $225,000 sitting in it... looking at adding international now)

R S

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Re: First Time Investor - Help?
« Reply #5 on: August 24, 2016, 07:24:45 PM »
So why VTSAX and not VTSMX?

seattlecyclone

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Re: First Time Investor - Help?
« Reply #6 on: August 24, 2016, 07:27:49 PM »
VTSMX invests in the exact same stocks in the exact same ratios as VTSAX. The only differences between the funds are the minimum investment ($3,000 for VTSMX, $10,000 for VTSAX) and the expense ratios (0.16% for VTSMX, 0.05% for VTSAX). Therefore if you have at least $10k you wish to invest in US stocks you should prefer VTSAX over VTSMX, and would only buy VTSMX if you have less than $10k.

R S

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Re: First Time Investor - Help?
« Reply #7 on: August 25, 2016, 06:05:16 AM »
That clears it up.  Thanks.    So If I only had 4K to throw in and get started would I be better off with VTI at at a lower expense ratio than VTSMX?   I'll basically just put in on aut-deposit and make monthly deposits into the account.

seattlecyclone

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Re: First Time Investor - Help?
« Reply #8 on: August 25, 2016, 08:11:13 AM »
That clears it up.  Thanks.    So If I only had 4K to throw in and get started would I be better off with VTI at at a lower expense ratio than VTSMX?   I'll basically just put in on aut-deposit and make monthly deposits into the account.

Assuming you plan to grow your investment to more than $10k within a couple of years, I would suggest choosing between ETF and mutual fund versions based more on which type of investment you prefer to hold rather than the expense ratio. On a $4k investment, the difference in expense ratios between VTI and VTSMX amounts to $4.40 per year.