With zero information on your situation, it’s difficult to say. If you have debt, paying that down/off is generally priority one. If you are debt-free, then you have options. Your age, stability, goals, and other factors would generally dictate what type of action to take. Were it me (early 40s, very low interest rate home loan), I’d put it into an index fund where I’ve already got some investments. In my case, I’m investing for retirement in about 25-30 years (as if I’ll be able to do that, but one can hope).
Pay down your debts first.
Venmo me
But how do we know that you are use it for drugs and hookers and not just some nonsense?
Damn you got me I was gonna be an idiot and put it in an IRA
yeah that’s not good, may get you prosecuted under “material support” laws
Buy 10 Babies in Arkansas.
it’s cheaper than surrogacy.
Does beer come with that?
There is already some good advise, so I will add some of dubious value that might make sense for some people. Buy a better car (or get a motorcycle). I live in the US, so having private transportation is a necessity. I have a car, but mostly I share it with my parents. I do use a motorcycle as my main commute and it is cheaper than a car’s running costs. Just saying that $10k + sale of your current car could fetch you just about any other car. It is kind of hard to do a whole lot of life changing things with only $10k. Perhaps dental work if you need any.
Don’t disagree about stuffing it in VTI… But, be aware that things can go up and down, so don’t obsess over the value one you put it in. It’s long term so it should go up over long term, but they’re can be months sheets it goes down and even a year where it doesn’t do well
Bees.
Beads?
Peas.
I do enjoy beekeeping vlogs but I’m more of a gardener.
Beads?
Vanguard S&P 500 fund.
This. Alternatively, 401K depending on a variety of factors.
I’ll reply without knowing your situation fully. If you don’t have an emergency fund that would cover several months worth of expenses that is probably the single most impactful thing you can do with $10k. A few high yield savings account offer rates around 4%, some of them have strings attached, so read how it works carefully. Think of this as insurance against unforseen expenses that you might otherwise have to put on a card and consequently pay interest for. Pick a number and always make sure you keep that account at that number.
If you already have an emergency fund, you have lots of options. Personally, I am onboard with the folks recommending index funds. I have an ETF that tracks the DOW and it has outperformed most of my individual stocks significantly over time.
Most importantly, strangers on the internet are likely not financial advisors and may not even know what they are doing. Take everything with a grain of salt and if you talk to any investment companies make sure you understand the difference and overlap between a financial advisor and a fiduciary.
So from what I’ve read after viewing this thread, I make a vanguard account, either get a money market fund or a brokered CD, put the money in, let it sit for awhile, and then profit years down the line?
Money market or CD is going to have terrible return. You will be lucky to match inflation. Get a low overhead SP 500 index fund. By low overhead I’m taking .15% or less. You should be able to find .125% with a bit of poking around.
5% is terrible? I have 13k in a 9 month CD at 5%
Almost a year and I get like $600, doesn’t seem so great to me but there’s no risk either I guess :/
Then that compunds year after year.
SPY returns an average 12%
Low risk but inflation is above 3% so you are looking at less than 2% effective granted it’s a fairly safe investment.
Passive global technology index tracking fund
I’m going to need this dumbed down so I can understand
They have low cost to you
Global means they have stock in all markets, so if us is going bad is not necessarily bad for you
Technology means they mostly have stock in technology
Index funds follow the market. They have stock on everything in a segment or general so if market does well, you du well.
I got a 7k bonus 20 years ago in the military. I seriously considered investing it in the Vangard total stock market index fund. In '04 it was trading at $54 per share, today $282. Had I invested that $7,000 I would have $365,555 today. Instead I “invested” it at the strip club because I was a young dumb E-3 in Pensacola and New Orleans was only a weekend pass away. Long story short, index funds are the way to go.
I was considering spending this $10K on an extravagant, international vacation but am trying to make a smarter investment.
There is no universally good investment - it all depends on your priorities, risk appetite and timeframe.
Hmmm I see a distinct lack of CDs on here…
(Now I’m considering not renewing my 5% 9 month investment) Lol
I just looked up what a CD is. It seems easier to understand than some of the other suggestions that have been made. I do not understand what a roth ira is or if it’s right for me.
Roth grows tax-free and has more long term flexibility compared to traditional IRA. The tradeoff is that it doesn’t reduce your taxes in the year you contribute. It’s the better option for most.
Does a Roth mean I tell my employer to put the money into the account or do I put it in myself after I get paid?
The latter, for Roth IRA.A If you haven’t set one up before, it’s pretty straightforward.B
A: There is such a thing as a Roth 401(k) which if offered should definitely be your top priority up to employer contribution match.
B: Vanguard is often recommended for simplicity and low fees. You can pick your funds when contributing. Typical starting funds are VTI and VOO (or the mutual fund equivalents with slightly lower fees, VTSAX and VFIAX).
great this is helpful
If you don’t have an emergency fund, I would put some or all of it into something like a money market account. It won’t grow very much, but it’s safe and is quick and easy to withdraw when needed.
Otherwise depends on your age and situation, but an index fund (S&P 500) is almost always the right choice. It’s flexible, doesn’t usually lock you in, and will generally do very well in the mid-to-long term. If we hit a recession you might get stuck holding the shares for several months to a few years. The last thing you want to do is panic sell in that situation.
If you have any debt, paying that down is a very smart move, especially if the debt is charging more interest than your investment can earn. Future you will thank you.
Index fund, most definitely. And find one that has low administrative fees, I know that Vanguard has at least a few that are super low.
I have my emergency fund, and no debt. If I were to lose this $10K, it wouldn’t impact my life. I’m comfortable with taking $10K out of my bank account and doing something with it but I don’t know how to go about that. I don’t know how to open an index fund or money market account.
I’m going to second (third, fourth, fifth) the Roth IRA recommendation. You can set it up with Schwab or whoever and can make recurring contributions too (set it and forget it) there are income limits so if you are really raking it in one year you can’t contribute that year but whatever you put in there is still (usually) going to grow in value. If you have an emergency situation and need the money you can withdraw contributions, not earnings, ahead of retirement, so it’s not lost to you, but working for you and much easier at tax time, no worries about how to report it.
I like roboinvester accounts. You put money in, it automatically invests in stocks for you based on your current age and risk tolerance (which you can change whenever you like). I particularly like Wealthfront, and their app/website are really good. They’ll manage $10-15k for free, and then above that you pay a small fee out of your earnings for their service. If you use someone’s sign-up link, they’ll bump your managed amount by $5k. Comment back if you’re interested and I can share mine. Good luck with your investment, whatever you choose!
