Nest step in my investments

[islefan39]

I am a fairly new investor and was wondering if anyone out there can give me some ideas as to what I should expand into next with my investments.
I am currently setting aside a small amount each month and am investing through sharebuilder's automatic investing in each of the select spdr etf's. I figure for the long term this kind of covers a lot of the market and is well diversified. I was wondering what would be some good ideas for my next step, Should I go with getting into some bonds? Some mutual funds? Individual stocks? Any input will be greatly appreciated.
Also if anyone has any opinions about the slect spdr etf's I like to hear them as well.

[Petunia 100]

I am a fairly new investor and was wondering if anyone out there can give me some ideas as to what I should expand into next with my investments.
I am currently setting aside a small amount each month and am investing through sharebuilder's automatic investing in each of the select spdr etf's. I figure for the long term this kind of covers a lot of the market and is well diversified. I was wondering what would be some good ideas for my next step, Should I go with getting into some bonds? Some mutual funds? Individual stocks? Any input will be greatly appreciated.
Also if anyone has any opinions about the slect spdr etf's I like to hear them as well.

I think your next step should be to learn about asset allocation and develop an investment plan. It's an important step, don't skip it.

[islefan39]

Well the way I was thinking of going was to do 60% stocks, 20% bonds and 20% into something else not sure what. That would be besides what I already have in savings and in my sharebuilder account.

[thesmartnickel]

I would look at segmenting your asset allocation in domestic and international bonds. Also, you want to make sure you have an emergency fund of liquid cash which can also be considered an investment (try to get 3-6 months worth of income). Aside from stocks and bonds though, there aren't many other classes unless you want to invest in foreign exchange or derivatives (which are based on stocks/bonds).

[snafu]

Only buy bonds whether government, business, international, long term, short term, ETF Bond or Mutual Fund fully understanding all of the risks. Bonds react inversely to interest rates. If interest rates go down, bond values go up. If interest rates go up, bond values go down. Where do you believe interest rates will go - up or down?

2nd look at the time frame of any bonds you are considering. The longer the term, the higher the risk to holders. Short term, the gov't has promised to keep interest rates low. If inflation ramps up higher than the gov't finds acceptable, their lever of control relies on increasing interest rates. What is your guess for interest rates in 2017 & 2022?

Consider the ratings of any bond, ETF or bond fund you are considering. Do you know that Bond holders of Greece's debt had about a 70% reduction in value when Greece was unable to pay it's debt. I read that Brazil is paying around 15% but how much risk is involved? What is your 'sleep at nigh' factor?

[jpg7n16]

Well the way I was thinking of going was to do 60% stocks, 20% bonds and 20% into something else not sure what. That would be besides what I already have in savings and in my sharebuilder account.

And how did you come up with those figures?

What are you saving towards?

[Slug]

Why would you expose yourself to higher fees by buying a basket of select spider ETF's when you could buy 1 total stock market ETF and 1 bond ETF?

[Kooshiball]

I want to ask you what's your focus on your investment? It is highly recommended that you should form exit strategy. You should ask.

- Why you are investing in certain stocks or ETF. What makes you to invest in certain stocks or ETF you choose to invest?
- Based on the exit strategy, should you add some more asset classes to your portfolio?

Especially, it is recommended for you to understand why you are investing or want to invest in bond, mutual fund, or stocks of your choice. You should have good reasons or justifications of why you want to invest in that particular investments (Perhaps, you have market knowledge of that particular stocks). If this is just the feeling of this fund might go up, then it is pretty much a speculation and recommend you to study the market by reading books or listening investment podcasts etc.

I hope this will help.

[tan fish]

If you haven't already done so, I'd recommend spending a few weeks at least familiarizing yourself with stock charts and getting at least a basic understanding of fundamentals. Though that will ultimately take you towards trading individual stocks, something that you may be averse too. Another route may be to study dividends or just dividend ETFs, and other instruments that might lead to stable income. Personally, I have a couple of dividend ETF and bond funds I use for regular income. Heck of a lot better in my opinion than riding the waves of risk that individual stocks have been on recently.