Investing is a beneficial part of financial planning, but it can be overwhelming to know where to begin. Before you jump into the investing world, there are a few key things to consider. The following tips will help you get started on the right foot and set yourself up for success.
Eight tips to consider before you start investing are:
1. Establish Your Financial Goals
Before you start investing, having a clear idea of your goals is necessary. Are you saving for retirement, a house, a college education for your children, or an emergency fund? Whatever the reason, knowing what you’re saving for will help you determine the best way to invest your money.
2. Research Different Investments
Once you have established your investment goals, it is time to research different types of investments. Several options are available, such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and real estate. Each has different features and associated risks, so you must first understand what you are investing in before doing so.
3. Set a Budget
Having a budget is essential when investing. You should determine the amount of money you are willing to invest each month and stick to that budget. A budget will help ensure you don’t overspend and take on more risk than you can handle.
4. Create and Maintain an Emergency Fund
If an unexpected event occurs, such as sudden unemployment, having up to six months of your income in a savings account is extremely beneficial. Creating and maintaining an emergency fund will confirm that the money will be there for you if you need it. This doesn’t mean you can’t invest at all if you don’t have savings, but you should keep this in mind when creating an investment plan.
5. Diversify Your Investments
Diversification is also important when investing. Diversification means investing in a variety of investments to spread out your risk. Doing this will help ensure that if one type of investment performs poorly, you won’t be at a total loss.
6. Understand the Risks
It is critical to understand the risks associated with each specific investment before you make it. Some investment options are riskier than others, so you must understand the potential rewards and risks associated with each before investing.
7. Start Small
When you first start investing, it’s best to start small. Starting small will help you get a feel for the market and learn how to make well-educated investments. As you gain more experience, you can gradually increase your investments.
8. Monitor Your Investments
Once you have invested your money, regularly monitoring your investments is crucial. Keeping an eye on them will help you stay on top of any changes in the market and verify that they are performing as expected.
Professional Investment Advising at Wellspring
If you are feeling overwhelmed about diving into the investing world, Wellspring Financial Partners can help. Our team of financial advisors will assist you in considering your wealth goals, ideals, and risk tolerance as we help you build a long-term plan for strategic investing. We can make the complex simple.
Contact us today to schedule an appointment with one of our financial advisors.
Wellspring Financial Partners, LLC does not provide tax or legal advice. The information presented here is not specific to any individual’s personal circumstances. To the extent that this material concerns tax matters, it is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, by a taxpayer for the purpose of avoiding penalties that may be imposed by law. Each taxpayer should seek independent advice from a tax professional based on his or her individual circumstances. These materials are provided for general information and educational purposes based upon publicly available information from sources believed to be reliable—we cannot assure the accuracy or completeness of these materials. The information in these materials may change at any time and without notice.
