Hi - Brand new to it all

[Andkat]

Good evening all.

I've been a lurker for a few months.

I have to say I'm in way over my head still but I'm trying to learn. I'm 28 so have plenty of time ahead of me still.

The saddest part is I have no money to invest (probably a good thing atm considering my lack of knowledge on the subject) but will be mortgage free in mid 2021 so am trying to learn how to invest without getting burnt from there. I've accumulated a tidy balance in my work run superscheme but otherwise have $75 invested in harmoney. I literally poor all my cash onto that darn mortgage.

At times part of me feels like I should just dump the cash into my Superfund which I can cash out at retirement. Why? Because I can remain ignorant and it returns decent % while sitting exposed to the sharemarkets being a growth fund and all - and I don't have to do anything. But I actually like looking at the forum, and the different shares. I have a natural interest and it seems fun and exicting.

Where do you recommend I start? Right now it feels less important to know about the different shares and what their values are and how you go about calculating these things etc. My basic knowledge of how things work - the share-market, the terminology used and how trades 'happen' is lacking. Is there an instruction manual for dumbarses?

I have time on my hands to learn these things as I am not able to buy anything in the next 12 months sadly as I've been following the hallenstiens/glassons thread with much interest. I stand to win a can of coke off a work mate if the share price hits $6 before end of year. So not all is lost.

Regards

Kat

[Vagabond47]

Since you won't have real money to play with for a while, you could try any of the various Virtual Trading games/platforms to figure out how it all works.

https://virtualtrading.nzx.com/
https://www.asx.com.au/education/sharemarket-game.htm

[peat]

i think some of the important things to start learning are

how to read company accounts, Profit and Loss (Income and Expenditure), Balance Sheet. You dont need to be an accountant just start learning about them.
how shares are created, issued, i.e. capital structures , notions like market capitalisation,
the mechanics of the stockmarket , and debt market (bonds ) how shares are bought and sold , cash/rights issues,
earnings per share , dividend yield , fundamentals of valuation including PEG
reserve banks and how they work and affect the markets and liquidity (another important concept)
the business cycle and why it occurs.


there are heaps of things to learn. these are a few off the top of my head.
oh and probably read KW thread haha.

[fungus pudding]

Certainly keep paying off the mortgage. You can raise a new one at anytime to use should you want to leverage your investments. Raising a new mortgage to invest makes interest payments tax deductible.

[Andkat]

Thanks for the advice!

Kat

[huxley]

Heya,

I quite like Tim Bennett's Videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/MoneyWeekVideos/playlists

The format my not be particularly engaging to everyone (and they have a UK focus), but the whole series uses a basic everyday delivery and seems like an OK staring point.

Chur

[huxley]

Looks like Tim's moved to a new employer featuring higher production standards: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrhRZ6gi1ZrBfLi-peh1d8Q

[Andkat]

Thanks for the links guys - I'll take a look.

[minimoke]

The saddest part is I have no money to invest (probably a good thing atm considering my lack of knowledge on the subject) but will be mortgage free in mid 2021 so am trying to learn how to invest without getting burnt from there. Welcome Kat.

First thing I'd suggest is a change in attitude. Dont be sad. Pat yourself on the back. You do have money to invest and you are putting it into your mortgage. This is giving you about an 8% net return on an investment in property. Being mortgage free by your early thirties would be quite the accomplishment!

Next accept a basic fact in life - you will get burnt. That is what risk and return is all about. If you don't get burnt you simply haven't taken a big enough risk and so your returns will always be low. The trick is to have steps in place to minimise level of burn.

Also recognise that when your shares are going up in value it is fun and exciting. But you need to be prepared for when they fall - as they will inevitably do.

There has been good advice given already. Follow that up and take a leap at any stage. Put your learning into practice - firstly into a virtual market. Or for a real bit of fun find $500 and make your first BUY.

[huxley]

Tax on the owner occupied home is also pretty good :D

9601

[Food4Thought]

Hi Andkat. Good work with the mortgage and house purchase. I would personally start investing ASAP.

Why? $1000 in this year may help you to get a very real feel for when you start to have real cash to invest.

IIMO, I recommend splitting your investments and NOT to put everything into a super fund. (You want to be self managed in the future and not reliant on that scheme). Your choice may vary, depending on your mentality etc)

I personally like term deposits for a rainy day. Long term outlooks with steady, low growth. Watch out for trying to get lucky with those shares that look like they may multiply 10x their value... it generally hasn't worked out like that in my experience.

Your home is an excellent investment with security for you to live in. Nicely done. That's an accomplishment many people can only dream of now in many large cities. It is possible , anything is with a lot of dedication and sacrifices. Luck generally isn't part of that.

Hope it all goes well for you and remember to DYOR. A industry you may have particular insight into are often the easier places to spot opportunities and threats.

Enjoy and make the investing fun

[BeeBop]

I started at 26 with IFT at 50c ($500 total investment) and sold for 75c. Keep the start up and do your reading. I used a book by the Motley Fool blokes (a workbook) and took myself through two or three share choices and learned a lot from that discipline (you can also get Benjamin Graham’s book for free on the internet and that will help you a lot too - more and harder to digest but free). The first 1,000 is the hardest to get but if you downgrade your breakfast cereal to porridge and convert your instant coffee to twice used teabags, plus ask for cash instead of a gift from secret Santa, you should get there within the year. As soon as you have your 1,000 get in and buy your top pick share (just choose one so you can optimize any gain but of course you will maximize your loss).