Paid Services for Investing

[amastewa93]

I would suggest books written for and geared twoards women as they are simple to understand, compared to many books written and geared towards men which can talk about all sorts of complicated ways to invest.

This is a really interesting point and something I've noticed as well! Thank you for the advice... Do you have any specific books you'd recommend?

[TexasHusker]

I would suggest books written for and geared towards women as they are simple to understand, compared to many books written and geared towards men which can talk about all sorts of complicated ways to invest.

Oh my gosh if a man had written that, the board would be in nuclear meltdown right now.

[amastewa93]

Oh my gosh if a man had written that, the board would be in nuclear meltdown right now.

Lol - Only for some. I think having different educational tools is important because men and women just don't think (or learn) in the same way. That's an entirely different discussion though... haha.

[Like2Plan]

I have to go with TexasHusker on this one. LOL

The answer to your question is -No, I don't use any paid service for picking stocks. I know this is not the answer you are looking for.... because it seems so simple--just pick winning stocks and no losers......

Of course, if it was so simple then Warren Buffet wouldn't have won his bet.

I started investing about 32 years ago. I invested in individual blue chip stocks. My strategy was buy and hold DRIP stock over a wide variety of sectors using dollar cost averaging.

A couple of things that happened that were unintended consequences: 1. Over time I had quite a bit of accounting to do to track the basis. 2. I had quite a bit of paperwork with the statements (supporting evidence for the basis in case I ever got audited). Now-a-days it is a little simpler because the company is supposed to tell you what the basis is (but, you still have to track it to make sure they don't make a mistake).

I do think the advice Bogleheads give is pretty sound for the stock portion of a portfolio. Invest in the total stock market (or TSM plus international) and keep any ownership in individual stock below 10% of the value of your portfolio. Especially if you are just starting out.

[disneysteve]

A couple of things that happened that were unintended consequences: 1. Over time I had quite a bit of accounting to do to track the basis. 2. I had quite a bit of paperwork with the statements (supporting evidence for the basis in case I ever got audited). .

Another option is to confine your stock investing to your Roth where you don't have to worry about that. You won't be taxed on gains. Of course, that also means you don't get to deduct losses.

[Like2Plan]

Another option is to confine your stock investing to your Roth where you don't have to worry about that. You won't be taxed on gains. Of course, that also means you don't get to deduct losses.

Yes--A Roth would have simplified the tax accounting a lot. We did have one stock in a Roth (thankfully that one stock wasn't a loser), but we wanted to invest more than what the Roth contribution limits were, so we were stuck.

[disneysteve]

we wanted to invest more than what the Roth contribution limits were, so we were stuck.

Yeah, it wouldn't work early in your career. I've got 6 figures in my Roth now so if I wanted to dabble in stocks, I have the funds to do so. I actually have done that in my SEP-IRA a bit.

[Gailete]

I have read plenty of books on investing, and my comment was not to cause a nuclear meltdown here, but as a statement of fact from what I have seen. Most investment books written by women, for women, are generally much more understandable. I've picked up books that are supposedly for beginner investors written by men, that it is like you have no idea what they are talking about as they jump in and and start blasting information at you with no definitions of anything that they are talking about. There are many books written by men that do explain personal finances fairly simply, but because statistic say that most women aren't as involved with finances, when they get divorced or widowed, they are in a fix and need a quick course on how to handle their money now.

My husband was astonished when we got married that I could go from A-Z in a thought process in a flash while he was still going the ABCD.... route. Could be partly my training as an RN since I had to observe a problem get to the bottom of it and call for the doctor in spilt seconds or a patient would die. Women (as much as many of them want to deny it) are different than men and in many areas we think differently.

One current author that is usually easy to understand is Suze Ormond. Another book I read a few years back that was the first one that helped me to understand what a Roth IRA was all about called Saving for Retirement By Gail Marks Jarvis https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0132963035 There are others as well, just can't think of them off the top of my head. Hope those give you some direction.

[TexasHusker]

I have read plenty of books on investing, and my comment was not to cause a nuclear meltdown here, but as a statement of fact from what I have seen. Most investment books written by women, for women, are generally much more understandable. I've picked up books that are supposedly for beginner investors written by men, that it is like you have no idea what they are talking about as they jump in and and start blasting information at you with no definitions of anything that they are talking about. There are many books written by men that do explain personal finances fairly simply, but because statistic say that most women aren't as involved with finances, when they get divorced or widowed, they are in a fix and need a quick course on how to handle their money now.

My husband was astonished when we got married that I could go from A-Z in a thought process in a flash while he was still going the ABCD.... route. Could be partly my training as an RN since I had to observe a problem get to the bottom of it and call for the doctor in spilt seconds or a patient would die. Women (as much as many of them want to deny it) are different than men and in many areas we think differently.

One current author that is usually easy to understand is Suze Ormond. Another book I read a few years back that was the first one that helped me to understand what a Roth IRA was all about called Saving for Retirement By Gail Marks Jarvis https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0132963035 There are others as well, just can't think of them off the top of my head. Hope those give you some direction.

What about all those books for dumasses? Surely there’s also an investment guide for dumasses, I’d surely be interested.

[Gailete]

What about all those books for dumasses? Surely there’s also an investment guide for dumasses, I’d surely be interested.

I refuse to read any book for dummies. Nor would I recommend them to anyone. A person having difficulty understanding something doesn't need to be told they are dummies, they feel bad enough as it is. Some people have undiagnosed learning disabilities that makes it difficult to understand things by traditional methods, and I doubt dummies books would be sensitive to that.

[disneysteve]

I refuse to read any book for dummies.

That's a shame. The "for Dummies" series is an excellent line of books that explain all sorts of topics and activities in a way that everyone can understand. They do it with a lot of humor as well, which is nice. We have bought quite a few of these books over the years. I've got an HTML for Dummies book on the shelf right next to me at the moment. It's how I learned the coding I needed to build my website years ago.

These books assume that the reader is starting from scratch and they fully explain every term and concept in easy to understand language, which is exactly what you said you look for in a book.

[james.hendrickson]

In fact, while we are on the subject of the "Dummies" series, I highly recommend Eric Tyson's Personal Finance For Dummies, 3rd Edition. Its a good basic text for people who need to learn the fundamentals.

For example, Tyson argues you should:

1. Take charge of your finances: Don't procrastinate or wait for a major crisis.

2. Don't buy consumer items that lose value over time on credit.

3. Avoid financial products that carry high commissions and expenses.

etc. etc.

[Like2Plan]

I agree, I think the book title of "for Dummies" is cringe worthy--I've never liked the title...

On the other hand, I have purchased a couple of the books and they were pretty good. This goes back to before I was retired, so ancient history ... My employer had a computer with an old operating system and a limited storage capability for which I was tasked to do file cleanup. I just needed to find out what the basic commands were to do stuff. (My main job didn't have anything to do with computers, so.... ) The book helped a lot.

[disneysteve]

I agree, I think the book title of "for Dummies" is cringe worthy--I've never liked the title...

That's funny but I never gave the title a thought. I always took it as tongue in cheek, as intended. I have often heard people say, "I'm a smart person but I'm a dummy when it comes to XYZ." They just capitalized on that and built a very successful business on it.

[Gailete]

That's a shame. The "for Dummies" series is an excellent line of books that explain all sorts of topics and activities in a way that everyone can understand. They do it with a lot of humor as well, which is nice. We have bought quite a few of these books over the years. I've got an HTML for Dummies book on the shelf right next to me at the moment. It's how I learned the coding I needed to build my website years ago.

These books assume that the reader is starting from scratch and they fully explain every term and concept in easy to understand language, which is exactly what you said you look for in a book.

For me Dummies is just a word that I don't particularly like to hear. I did once pick up a Quilting for Dummies and as a long-term quilter, I felt that it was useless especially since there were no color illustrations that I can remember, and I think if I remember correctly, they spouted out inaccurate information. One of the problems with vintage needle work and quilting books is the lack of color when needed to illustrate a point.

I just looked at the bookshelf that I cleared some books out of yesterday and noticed I have an excel for Dummies (I suspect I picked it up at a library book sale). Yet again that didn't meet my needs or how I wanted to use excel. Had to figure it out myself. I think it depends on the topic and the author of that particular Dummies book. Besides not liking the word, in my experience from trying to glean any information out of them, I didn't find them to be helpful. BTW, it is still on the shelf as before I was done sorting all the books, I had to sit down or fall down so I chose to sit.

Everyone is welcome to their own opinions on the topic. Just my personal opinion.