I have cash. Where does it go?

B

bp

Well-Known Member
I'm nearly halfway through my twenties, and looking for a place to put some cash I've saved up. It looks stupid just sitting in a savings account earning almost no interest.
No debt, and about to finish college, so my expenses are pretty much nil. My cars are paid for, and I don't have any rent because I'm on the road 10 months out of the year (survey life) and just keep my larger possessions at my parents' place.
I can only put a little more in my Roth IRA this year, and have a few grand in a Robinhood account so I can trade (more of a hobby than a serious investment).
I've considered purchasing a duplex, and having my younger brother manage the property for me while I'm away, but I don't really know much about investment properties and the mortgages that go with them.
Basically, if you had between 10 and 15k in cash at my age, what would you do with it?
 
bimmerphile said:
I'm nearly halfway through my twenties, and looking for a place to put some cash I've saved up. It looks stupid just sitting in a savings account earning almost no interest.
No debt, and about to finish college, so my expenses are pretty much nil. My cars are paid for, and I don't have any rent because I'm on the road 10 months out of the year (survey life) and just keep my larger possessions at my parents' place.
I can only put a little more in my Roth IRA this year, and have a few grand in a Robinhood account so I can trade (more of a hobby than a serious investment).
I've considered purchasing a duplex, and having my younger brother manage the property for me while I'm away, but I don't really know much about investment properties and the mortgages that go with them.
Basically, if you had between 10 and 15k in cash at my age, what would you do with it?
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Hookers and blow
 
bimmerphile said:
My Vanguard Roth has VTSMX for the most part, some in a targeted retirement date fund as well Guess I should just open a separate brokerage account for that?
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Yep. I recommend Schwab, but TD Ameritrade, Scottrade, and many other others are fine, too. Most of them have commission free trades on many index ETFs.
 
drunkenbeagle said:
I like S&P indexes myself, but either are fine.
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Value outpaces the broad market over time, so long as it's an index ETF and not an actively managed fund. But I'm not opposed to the S&P. Either will make good money over the long haul.
 
bimmerphile said:
I'm nearly halfway through my twenties, and looking for a place to put some cash I've saved up. It looks stupid just sitting in a savings account earning almost no interest.
No debt, and about to finish college, so my expenses are pretty much nil. My cars are paid for, and I don't have any rent because I'm on the road 10 months out of the year (survey life) and just keep my larger possessions at my parents' place.
I can only put a little more in my Roth IRA this year, and have a few grand in a Robinhood account so I can trade (more of a hobby than a serious investment).
I've considered purchasing a duplex, and having my younger brother manage the property for me while I'm away, but I don't really know much about investment properties and the mortgages that go with them.
Basically, if you had between 10 and 15k in cash at my age, what would you do with it?
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I'll be the contrarian here. I would keep it where it is for now and keep adding to it. You have stated that you are already maxing out your Roth. For your stock market investing just keep doing that, don't put all your eggs in one basket with the masses.

A huge currency war is underway in the world and that is adversely affecting the markets. China just jumped into it two days ago with a combined 3.5% decline in the Renminbi.

At the very least wait a few weeks to see how this turmoil shakes out.


TP
 
No one ever got rich putting their money in cash. It's currently being devalued at a rate of 1.1% per year, and it's usually closer to 3%. Never keep money in cash that you don't need soon.
 
ATN_Pilot said:
No one ever got rich putting their money in cash. It's currently being devalued at a rate of 1.1% per year, and it's usually closer to 3%. Never keep money in cash that you don't need soon.
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Well, I'm not sure how soon I'd need it. I'm assuming I'd need 20% down for a first time home purchase without much of a long term credit history. Wish I knew how long interest rates would stay this low...
 
bimmerphile said:
Well, I'm not sure how soon I'd need it. I'm assuming I'd need 20% down for a first time home purchase without much of a long term credit history. Wish I knew how long interest rates would stay this low...
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Not long. Plan on the Fed raising interest rates in September. It won't be a big raise but it'll be the first raise in maybe eight years.
 
bimmerphile said:
Well, I'm not sure how soon I'd need it. I'm assuming I'd need 20% down for a first time home purchase without much of a long term credit history. Wish I knew how long interest rates would stay this low...
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If you're a first time home buyer, you'll probably be able to qualify for FHA financing and only need a few percent down, unless you're planning on buying a "fixer upper."

And yes, rates about to start heading higher. But not very quickly.
 
ATN_Pilot said:
If you're a first time home buyer, you'll probably be able to qualify for FHA financing and only need a few percent down, unless you're planning on buying a "fixer upper."

And yes, rates about to start heading higher. But not very quickly.
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I was looking at some HUD duplexes that needed work, and maybe look into a 203k loan. I'd be able to live in half the unit and lease the other, while still residing in the unit for three years to keep it from becoming an investment property in the eyes of the Feds.
 
@bimmerphile - I have recently been looking into robo investing. It is a good option for the amount of cash you are talking about, the fees are minimal and there are no penalties for withdrawing at any time.

A good article here.
One of the companies I am planning on using.
 
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NWpiloté said:
@bimmerphile - I have recently been looking into robo investing. It is a good option for the amount of cash you are talking about, the fees are minimal and there are no penalties for withdrawing at any time.

A good article here.
One of the companies I am planning on using.
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Thanks bud! I'll look into that. Working overnights at the B again?
 
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