Posted on 01/29/2023 12:46:23 PM PST by Tacrolimus1mg
I recently started a job as a pharmacy tech, and this job comes with a 401k, unionization, and health insurance - none of which I have ever had through a job before. I just got the booklet detailing the basics of my 401k, and I was a little alarmed. Three guesses who it's managed by. Rhymes with, "Lock stock".
As I live in a leftist state (for now) which I know won't bar the practice, I want to make sure that they aren't investing MY money for ESG purposes and claiming that it's for my benefit.
How do Freepers suggest I handle this?
The best way to approach a 401k is to invest as much as you have to to get a matching contribution. It’s free money. There is no scenario where opting to keep the contribution because you need a little more money for expenses and leisure is better than utilizing the 401kbto the most that you need to get a matching contribution from your employer. I say this because I am a random poster on a political forum website and that makes me a financial expert.
In Tennessee you can buy Ivermectin OTC.
I’m assuming you don’t want your investment in ESG companies or funds. If that’s the case, look at funds, look at their performance and pick the one you think will do well.
Put the maximum in that you can. As a minimum, put in enough to max your company match.
Put 100% in stock funds. Index funds are OK. You can't go wrong with an S & P 500 index fund.
Avoid bond funds.
Don't try to time the market. If the market is going down, you are buying more stocks each payday.
Go for the max match.
Go for a low fee index fund.
Every 401k is different, so general advice isn’t too useful. The main general tip is to make sure you contribute enough to get any company matching contributions.
“look at their performance and pick the one you think will do well.”
Using past performance to pick mutual funds is a terrible idea.
“Companies have become more resistant to number 2. People lost too much money doing their own thing.”
Maybe so but I suspect the reason is not because of concern about employees doing their own thing but rather to simplify and keep their costs down.
I had the ability to invest up half my 401k in a self-directed brokerage account. It was nice. But such a brokerage ability is not critical.
One will do OK if they simply invest it all in a proxy for the overall stock market and just leave it alone for decades.
Yes. Or even an index fund that represents the total stock market including small and large caps.
A 401K doesn’t have to necessarily be complicated to be effective.
The maximum matching of most companies is pretty low. It is free money but not much. My company matches up to3.5%.
Learn how to self direct your money.........That's what I did...over 25 years ago,
Better yet....learn how to trade.
I will call BS on that advice.........
Learn to DO it yourself...
“ Using past performance to pick mutual funds is a terrible idea.”
Agree. It’s just another data point to analysis. In the end, whether you do it or someone else makes the decision, it’s still a guess.
IMHO, the most important advice is: Don't try to time the market. Dollar Cost Averaging.
The second most important advice is: Avoid bond funds.
In all seriousness, at minimum put in up to what your employer matches and invest in a single index or target date fund - they are cheap and at least you are more likely to match the market.
If you are young and healthy, put 100% of your funds in the most aggressive tech stock investments available.
If they offer a Nasdaq 100 ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) like QQQ, go all in, and hold it until you retire.
After age 45, you may want to adjust your investment strategy every 3-5 years to be more conservative.
Be on the lookout for iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (stock symbol HYG).
HYG is a high yield bond fund sponsored by BlackRock.
HYG currently has a 33% short interest, which is the highest short interest I have ever seen in a bond ETF.
The huge short interest could reflect an aggressive play on future interest rates.
On the other hand...
It could mean that short sellers think HYG has many high risk bonds that are going to default.
Do not buy HYG until the issue is clarified.
If there is a match then put in what ever they will match up to.
What is your age?
Is there a match?
What are the options for investing?
If you are young, max a Roth Account and then put as much as you can stand into the 401K in a high growth account.
I’m 64 and looking at WAY too much in a 401k. If I had been doing a Roth, I would be in high cotton
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