has anyone else pulled out of the stock market?

[Deleted]

I'm going to preface this by saying that I'm a very casual trader. I havve been known to buy stocks based on fun ticker symbols and my feelings towards the company with minimal research. In previous years I did ok.

I've lost so much money lately that its just making me sick (I'm talking about personal investments not 401k and iras) and I'm half thinking about dumping all of my stocks.

Technically, the money we have invested in stocks is "fun" money, so I don't really need it. But its not fun when all I see is red.

Thoughts?

[niq]

The only individual stock I own is for Berkshire-Hathaway (Warren Buffet's company), which is a big holding company so it's already sort of diversified, and I got mostly for the GEICO discount and to go to Woodstock for Capitalists. Everything else is all in boring low-fee index funds; read the best investment advice you'll never get for why. My idea of a "fun" investment is an emerging market index fund rather than an OECD market.

My personal advice would be to put the money in index funds and use the savings (about 1-2% of assets and sometimes a chunk of profits as well) to go to an actual casino once a year. At least there you get free drinks. But you should probably talk to somebody who (a) does this for a living, but (b) doesn't also want to sell you on some high-fee mutual funds or stock trading .

[emyinpink]

we do index funds instead of individual stocks (this was the advice given to us by our good friends who work in the financial industry). we've been quite happy with our investments. but in general, I don't bother to check them. I just leave them be .

[jennlin]

while we are more intense than "casual trading", we are not pros by any means and hold our stock for slightly longer terms (few months at a time). but yeah, looking at the red is super depressing, but it'll get better. not like we'd be earning much if it were in a savings account anyway.

[tacocat]

You don't lose money until you se right? I am trying to hold on to everything and hope it gets better.

[FrozenSunshine]

DH plays around a bit, but to us it's fun money. I know several people who have pulled out and started buying silver and gold...

[libbride]

No, because when the market is down my money buys more shares and eventually when the shares go up, I make more money! It's hard when the market is down though (and I have mutual funds).

[jennlin]

May 23, 2012 10:25:36 GMT -5 libbride said:

No, because when the market is down my money buys more shares and eventually when the shares go up, I make more money! It's hard when the market is down though (and I have mutual funds).

lol, my h calls it a "sale".... he'll say "oh XYZ is on sale today, so i bought some".

[Kahala]

most of stock money is in cash in my account. my mom has been a day trader for 20 years and has managed my account. i would say find good long term companies and don't think about it for ten years. this is no market for short term investment.

on a side note, i found out recently that Chipotle opened at $18 in '96 and is now $350!!!ish who knew!