Talking to a Financial Advisor

[TeenInvestor2688]

I am interested in talking to a financial advisor about my investments but because I am only 18 and have just under $10k, I realize that not many would want to deal with me becase of my small amount of assets. Does anyone have any ideas? Thanks.

[34saving]

They'll talk to you. Just get recommendations from some people that use them and be sure to talk to more than one.

[autoxer]

I have a financial advisor that manages my Roth/Brokerage account, which isn't a whole lot of money. He makes suggestions each time I deposit money, which makes some of the decisions easier, but it isn't all that necessary. My own research has been far more useful than the advice I got from my financial advisor. If you do find one, make sure you know how they get paid. If they work off the commission from selling shares, then they may not have your best interests in mind.

Here is a few articles on the topic, and they link to a bunch more.
http://www.freemoneyfinance.com/2006..._on_selec.html
http://www.freemoneyfinance.com/2006...ure_your_.html
http://www.freemoneyfinance.com/2005...eaks_my_t.html

And this one's kind of funny - "Why I don't go to a fat doctor"
http://www.freemoneyfinance.com/2005...eaks_my_t.html
http://www.freemoneyfinance.com/2005...ts_fmf_sp.html

[Broken Arrow]

Hello again!

But, why would you need to talk to a financial advisor? I find that it is best to try to figure things out on your own, and then, if you still have very specific questions that you know will require professional assistance, then I would turn to one.

10k, for example, isn't difficult to figure out what you should do with it. Some if not most should be sitting in a High Interest Savings account as your emergency fund. The rest can be in an IRA (such as Vanguard's Target Retirement Fund 2050) or simply save up in CDs to buy a car up front!

When you get to a point where you can articulate exactly why you need to talk to a financial advisor, I recommend searching for a fee-based one near you. http://www.napfa.org/ might be a good place to check out.

[Ima saver]

What helped me a lot was just reading books and magazines on the subject of money, saving and investing. Then you can learn to do your own investing and not pay anyone. There are some pretty good experts on this forum that will give you advice for free. If you are earning income, I would suggest you open up a Roth Ira in a vanguard Index fund. That is a good place to put $4000. I would put the rest in an emergency fund earning the highest interest you can find, around 5% would be good!!

[TeenInvestor2688]

can I put $4000 in a Roth if I havent made it ALL yet this year but I know that I will make the $4000?

[Ima saver]

If you are sure that you will make the $4000, yes you can open a roth IRa for $4000. I suggest using vanguard because they are no low, and very low fees. I have my ira's in the Index 500 fund! They have other good funds as well, some with specific retirement dates for your age group!!

[Ima saver]

You will be a rich person (man?) someday if you start this in your teen years!!

[TeenInvestor2688]

should I open it in my scottrade account or open a vanguard account? thanks

[Ima saver]

I would open a vanguard account.

[TeenInvestor2688]

just curious as to why?

[Ima saver]

I have only dealth with Vanguard directly, I am not sure what Scottrade is? I thought something that you use to buy stocks? Vanguard is a mutual fund made up of many stocks.

[sweeps]

You can buy Vanguard mutual funds through just about any broker, but you'll have to pay commissions and possibly other fees as well. If you like Vanguard's funds, it's better to open an account directly with them because you can move in and out of their funds without commissions and generally without trading fees.

Scottrade is great in my opinion, but I would use it more for trading individual stocks and ETFs.

[Ima saver]

Thanks sweeps, I am not familar with scottrade although I have heard of it! It is usually better to do things directly.

[TeenInvestor2688]

ok, thanks everyone

[autoxer]

By the way, you can get the rules for an IRA from the IRS website:
http://www.irs.gov/publications/p590/index.html

There is even a section 'What if I contribute too much?', it says you have to take the money out by the time you file your tax return.