Post Bad Financial Advice You've Heard

[Singuy]

“Max out your 401K.”

Worst advice ever, on many levels.

Here's a bad advice:

"You should quit everything you do and follow in my footsteps because I made it"

[corn18]

“Max out your 401K.”

Worst advice ever, on many levels.

There are a lot of millionaires on bogleheads.org that prove this wrong. Me included.

[bjl584]

There are a lot of millionaires on bogleheads.org that prove this wrong. Me included.

The theory behind this is that money will serve you better when you have control over it and you keep it close to you.

Sending your money off to Wall Street and forgoing control over it until you are 59 1/2 creates too much distance and time between you and it.

Entrepreneurs want and need their money close to them and easily accessible so they can invest in businesses, real estate, etc.

It's a different way of thinking about money than most are used to.

[Singuy]

Every success business owner who is a multi-millionaire will tell you 401k is a waste of time and the only way to live the life of mine is to invest your money into a business....

[corn18]

The theory behind this is that money will serve you better when you have control over it and you keep it close to you.

Sending your money off to Wall Street and forgoing control over it until you are 59 1/2 creates too much distance and time between you and it.

Entrepreneurs want and need their money close to them and easily accessible so they can invest in businesses, real estate, etc.

It's a different way of thinking about money than most are used to.

I agree with you completely. I completely disagree with TH that maxing a 401k is the worst advice ever. If it were rephrased as maxing out your 401k is not always the best advice, I would agree wholeheartedly.

Money is fungible. And there are many roads to Dublin.

[Tabs]

“Max out your 401K.”

Worst advice ever, on many levels.

I'm going to need an explanation for this one.

It could be bad, depending on the terms and your situation, but to say it's the WORST? Color me confuddled.

(Edit: I realize others have offered likely explanations, but I'd like to hear this straight from Husker.)

[LivingAlmostLarge]

keep tossing bad money after good.

[scfr]

Every success business owner who is a multi-millionaire will tell you 401k is a waste of time

Not necessarily. 401ks and business ownership are not an either/or proposition. You CAN do both.

[corn18]

Not necessarily. 401ks and business ownership are not an either/or proposition. You CAN do both.

And not every millionaire is a successful business owner.

[TexasHusker]

I'm going to need an explanation for this one.

It could be bad, depending on the terms and your situation, but to say it's the WORST? Color me confuddled.

(Edit: I realize others have offered likely explanations, but I'd like to hear this straight from Husker.)

401K plans are seemingly the holy grail of all investments. After all, you get a company match and the earnings are tax deferred!

What are some of the other benefits? Chirp, Chirp. Nothing but crickets.

Truth is, those are the ONLY two benefits to 401K plans.

Here are the minuses:

1. Often, the bulk of your investments are concentrated throughout your career on the last 10 to 20 years of your life. That is a lot of wealth being tucked away that isn't being used to build wealth for today.

2. In the world of investments and financial opportunities, your options are limited to the little brochure of mutual funds that your employer chooses to offer. Want gold? Forget it. Silver? Real estate? Hahaha! How about natural resources? Oil? Foreign currency? Natural Gas? Coal? Raw land?
Palladium? Fine Art? Collector cars? Collector Coins? Cotton futures? A share of a business? Persian rugs? Options? Futures contracts? Viatical settlements?

No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, and no.

Instead, your financial future is in the hands of your XYZ Target 2030 Fund. And whether or not that fund returns zero percent or 12 percent annually between now and the time you're elderly, you're going to pay income tax on every single dime you withdraw.

In terms of acceptable investment returns, the vast majority of mutual funds are complete junk. You're banking on picking the outlier. You're also banking on not having a 2008 correction right before you start taking withdrawals.

Who cares if you get a match if you're buying junk? A one time 50 percent match is little consolation.

I'm a believer in paying my taxes, and investing dollars in stuff that can actually change my world, right now. There are so many good investment options out there that beat the pants off of mutual funds. It's sad to see so much wealth tied up. People will spend years of their life researching cars, boats, quilts, ancestory, watching movies, watching sports - but they are perfectly content to put 10 percent of their earnings in some fund they found in a leaflet. Amazing!

I have been working with my kids on HOW to invest for years now. The first rule is, when your employer offers a 401K, don't walk away, RUN. Let the herd do all of that - they'll still be working for the man at age 60, hoping like heck there will be enough in the kitty to live on. If you invest your money TODAY, on investments that are relevant and worthy TODAY, you very well might be living off of your investments by age 40.

Had I figured this out at 30 instead of 40, I would have walked away from corporate America at 36 instead of 46.

That's my take.

[disneysteve]

In terms of acceptable investment returns, the vast majority of mutual funds are complete junk.

What do you consider an acceptable return?

[corn18]

401K plans are seemingly the holy grail of all investments. After all, you get a company match and the earnings are tax deferred!

What are some of the other benefits? Chirp, Chirp. Nothing but crickets.

Truth is, those are the ONLY two benefits to 401K plans.

Here are the minuses:

1. Often, the bulk of your investments are concentrated throughout your career on the last 10 to 20 years of your life. That is a lot of wealth being tucked away that isn't being used to build wealth for today.

2. In the world of investments and financial opportunities, your options are limited to the little brochure of mutual funds that your employer chooses to offer. Want gold? Forget it. Silver? Real estate? Hahaha! How about natural resources? Oil? Foreign currency? Natural Gas? Coal? Raw land?
Palladium? Fine Art? Collector cars? Collector Coins? Cotton futures? A share of a business? Persian rugs? Options? Futures contracts? Viatical settlements?

No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, and no.

Instead, your financial future is in the hands of your XYZ Target 2030 Fund. And whether or not that fund returns zero percent or 12 percent annually between now and the time you're elderly, you're going to pay income tax on every single dime you withdraw.

In terms of acceptable investment returns, the vast majority of mutual funds are complete junk. You're banking on picking the outlier. You're also banking on not having a 2008 correction right before you start taking withdrawals.

Who cares if you get a match if you're buying junk? A one time 50 percent match is little consolation.

I'm a believer in paying my taxes, and investing dollars in stuff that can actually change my world, right now. There are so many good investment options out there that beat the pants off of mutual funds. It's sad to see so much wealth tied up. People will spend years of their life researching cars, boats, quilts, ancestory, watching movies, watching sports - but they are perfectly content to put 10 percent of their earnings in some fund they found in a leaflet. Amazing!

I have been working with my kids on HOW to invest for years now. The first rule is, when your employer offers a 401K, don't walk away, RUN. Let the herd do all of that - they'll still be working for the man at age 60, hoping like heck there will be enough in the kitty to live on. If you invest your money TODAY, on investments that are relevant and worthy TODAY, you very well might be living off of your investments by age 40.

Had I figured this out at 30 instead of 40, I would have walked away from corporate America at 36 instead of 46.

That's my take.

I really wish you would stop by bogleheads.org and tell this to all the millionaires that are retiring at age 50 so they can stop being stupid. I hate your attitude and it offends me. But I don’t care. I just like calling you a pompous arse.

[TexasHusker]

What do you consider an acceptable return?

I want 18-20% minimum or it’s not worth even a look.

[TexasHusker]

I really wish you would stop by bogleheads.org and tell this to all the millionaires that are retiring at age 50 so they can stop being stupid. I hate your attitude and it offends me. But I don’t care. I just like calling you a pompous arse.

I was just answering a question my friend.

[corn18]

I was just answering a question my friend.

If you say so.