Let's talk about investing.

[Scipio2009]

What is Tesla and what is Tesla's competitive advantage?

Don't mean to hijack your thread OP but what do you guys think about Tesla?

Been saving up some dough to drop about 5k on them specifically to start with. I really think they're paving the way towards the future man, have a good feeling about Musk.

The answer to your question will largely derive from your answer to the title question.

If the idea is that they'll takeover the car business, I'd probably keep the money in my pocket.

[Scipio2009]

Thanks man, great pointers. So what i'm getting from you, and mostly everything else I've been reading, is to always play the long game? Also, how much is a good sum to start off with (I don't have an expendable 10k to play with)?

Thoughts on S&P 500 low-cost index fund?

There's too much inherent risk in playing the short-term/day trading game that I'd simply say to duck it. Find good companies, build in your positions, be disciplined with your objectives, and don't be afraid to take profits (in chunks).

In terms of starting capital, I'd say start with whatever you can save beyond whatever rainy day fund you have set aside. If it's even $500, as long as you're setting aside money as you go, you should be okay. Time is key, though

[Hype job]

Don't mean to hijack your thread OP but what do you guys think about Tesla?

Been saving up some dough to drop about 5k on them specifically to start with. I really think they're paving the way towards the future man, have a good feeling about Musk.

[Sugar Adam Ali]

How old are you and what is your timeline for retirement?

[LomaLovkin]

Context? Don't get it.

[billeau2]

There are many ways of investing. We live in a society where people are told to save and there are so many vehicles pushed to save, yet investing is given short shift. If you are a smart guy who has a mind for complexity you can learn options...Options can hedge risk, magnify profit and, create tremendous leverage. The only problem being that you need activity, ups and downs, to really make money with Options.

I started out reading all the usual suspects, Buffet, the Merry Fools, etc... I found out much to my chagrin that a lot of what we are told is exactly what rich people, people who make money do not do!

For example:

Mortgaging your property to the hilt gives you a great mortgage deduction, and it gives you capital to work with instead of giving it to the bank. Why pay interest to the mortgage company, take the money on interest only payments, that would go to pay down the mortgage, put it in an interest bearing account now you get the interest! If you must pay the mortgage off, then you can still do so with the account you started.

Life Insurance contracts. You can actually do this with certain annuities as well: put money in that is tax deferred forever! It just keeps passing down, and you can borrow against it. Yet we are told that life insurance is for insurance purposes...rich people use these contracts to shield money from taxes. When you do the actual research cash research policies are actually a godsend...yet we are told they are a waste of money.

Trusts. Trusts help shield money and liability as well, I put all my **** in trusts and own nothing in my name.

Stock strategies: They did a study and let monkeys throw **** at a board, kids pick stocks, an index fund and professional stock pickers...the monkeys kicked azz! There are some great ways to work with stocks and bonds that people don't use. bonds can be used to stack against a mortgage so in 30 years, you can pay a mortgage down for a fraction of the cost.

Finally get in quick if you find a niche! I used tax liens for years, averaged very high, about 12% until all the banks put together syndicates that buy these in bulk now. Crypto is next, the illuminati tried to break it and they couldn't there is a chance to make a fortune in the next year but after that? the big boys will jump in.

Good luck. I remember talking to Sugar and he knows his ****.

[Eff Pandas]

The answer to your question will largely derive from your answer to the title question.

If the idea is that they'll takeover the car business, I'd probably keep the money in my pocket.

F#ck cars. I think Musk is more likely to take over the lithium battery market & thats where the real money is at anyway cuz everyone is gonna be in hybrid or electric cars sooner or later & Musk will likely be selling all those companies batteries.

Tesla is FOR SURE a good investment & I'd bet it'll triple up to $1k/share within the next few years. Long long term, who ever really f#cking knows cuz sh^t can change quicker today than ever + Musk is a crazy mfer who's been close to broke more than once. I won't be shocked if he does eventually go broke cuz he's a big risk taker & his long term goal is f#cking dying on Mars which is gonna be a big gamble if he ever makes a serious attempt at that. Randomly his biography is a good read too.

[BostonGuy]

My investing philosophy is, invest in companies that you think that will be around in the next 50 -100 years. Obviously, no one can predict out that far, but pick companies that are sufficiently diversified, are leaders in their respective industries, are innovators, etc.

The last several years I have been investing in Google, Amazon, Apple and Twitter. I sold all my shares (for a loss) of Twitter earlier this year as the company is stagnating and the stock has underperformed since I bought it.

I've also been investing in Pfizer for the last 8 or so years. It's a stable company that posts very modest gains, but pays a nice dividend that I (auto) reinvest every quarter. My long term goal with this stock is to keep reinvesting and grow it so I receive around $50K a year in dividends (I currently receive 7K).

[Scipio2009]

F#ck cars. I think Musk is more likely to take over the lithium battery market & thats where the real money is at anyway cuz everyone is gonna be in hybrid or electric cars sooner or later & Musk will likely be selling all those companies batteries.

Tesla is FOR SURE a good investment & I'd bet it'll triple up to $1k/share within the next few years. Long long term, who ever really f#cking knows cuz sh^t can change quicker today than ever + Musk is a crazy mfer who's been close to broke more than once. I won't be shocked if he does eventually go broke cuz he's a big risk taker & his long term goal is f#cking dying on Mars which is gonna be a big gamble if he ever makes a serious attempt at that. Randomly his biography is a good read too.

I think the battery is the competitive advantage too (particular as it results to storage for the industrial use of solar power), but that's a hell of a business, with a ton of variables that have jack **** to do with anything that Musk could actually do.

The scary part, which is why I've kept my money out of Tesla, is that I'm not sure that that sense (that the company is more about the battery and power delivery than it is about actually manufacturing cars) is what is actually driving the stock.

Some folks see Tesla as a consumer vehicle company who's cars will literally lead to the end of Toyota, Ford, and GM, which is delusional.

Not going to see if I can short the stock, but definitely will watch the story unfold.

[Scipio2009]

Random question

My investing philosophy is, invest in companies that you think that will be around in the next 50 -100 years. Obviously, no one can predict out that far, but pick companies that are sufficiently diversified, are leaders in their respective industries, are innovators, etc.

The last several years I have been investing in Google, Amazon, Apple and Twitter. I sold all my shares (for a loss) of Twitter earlier this year as the company is stagnating and the stock has underperformed since I bought it.

I've also been investing in Pfizer for the last 8 or so years. It's a stable company that posts very modest gains, but pays a nice dividend that I (auto) reinvest every quarter. My long term goal with this stock is to keep reinvesting and grow it so I receive around $50K a year in dividends (I currently receive 7K).

I definitely missed the boat on Google (had $2k in hand to buy the stock at around $150, but couldn't make sense of how their business worked before things exploded), but what was it about Twitter that made/makes you think that it'd be around in 50 years, nevermind another 10?

Google and Facebook have figured out ways to monetize their traffic, but Twitter has yet to really find that formula.