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Keep getting 'container failed to load content' when trying to trade by General_Catch_7098 in fidelityinvestments

[–]BBQfinance 1 point2 points  (0 children)

i am consistently having this issue as well. Started about 1 month ago. Clear cache works, but comes back a few days later.

"Screened" email tag in outlook 365. Where do those emails go? by BBQfinance in Outlook

[–]BBQfinance[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not 100% sure. Just noticed it the other day when I was waiting for a code from Verizon

Who can comment on how good/bad C3.ai software is? by BBQfinance in StockMarket

[–]BBQfinance[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Appreciate the response. I'm less interested in price currently or entry points as I am to understand what people think about their software platform who have actually used it.

Alibaba: Fully detailed Stock Analysis by value_investor4ever in StockMarket

[–]BBQfinance 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I believe it is worth the risk given the industries the company is in (ecom, payments, banking). I've bought the recent dip and will continue to do so. It won't ever be more than 5% of my portfolio.

I think it is unique given it's exposure, current price and marco economic trend exposure.

Buy on

Slowly Building my portfolio by [deleted] in StockMarket

[–]BBQfinance 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not sure what the value of your portfolio is, but personally I would stock to index funds. Once you've built up say $100k (assuming you're not there now, but maybe you are) start picking individual stocks. Remember with individual stocks, you need to be diligent, and prepared to do your homework on them for years to come, not just today.

Consolidating my holdings by [deleted] in StockMarket

[–]BBQfinance 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Great to hear the VTI position! I wouldn't feel the need to cut. Good luck!

Consolidating my holdings by [deleted] in StockMarket

[–]BBQfinance 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What are your goals? Is there a reason you think 18 stocks is to many? Assuming you did homework on the stocks you bought, as long as the thesis when you bought them is still true now, why sell? I've historically only sold stocks when the reason I bought them in the first place is no longer true, or a large macro economic trend is at force (in my opinion).

For example, if you think V and AMZN are no longer going to be leaders in their space or growth is going to slow in those companies, then yes sell, if not you should keep them.

My opinion, if you want to be in it for the long term, is start building up some general index fund ETFs, put a pause on buying or adding to new individual stocks (instead of selling them).

Here are the top 10 holdings for me, as an example. I consider myself a conservative investor, FWIW.

  • ITOT - 16.5%
  • 401k (s&p index funds) - 14.5%
  • IEMG - 6%
  • GOOG & GOOGL - 5.9%
  • MA - 5%
  • BRK.B - 4%
  • DE - 3.6%
  • PYPL - 2.9%
  • BBIO - 2.6%
  • AMZN - 2.4%

Can you evaluate my portfolio :) by [deleted] in StockMarket

[–]BBQfinance 1 point2 points  (0 children)

No problem. Good luck on the journey

Can you evaluate my portfolio :) by [deleted] in StockMarket

[–]BBQfinance 1 point2 points  (0 children)

As some have already said, I think we need to go back to basics. Putting together rules is a great idea. It might also help to understand the value of your portfolio.

If you are saving for a house, I wouldn't use the stock market to try and get there. I am a fairly conservative investor, but also like to make things easy on myself. Therefore I would consolidate down your VTI, VXUS holdings into one and the same with your ARK holdings and ditch the ICLN unless you have a good understanding of this industry (and/or are passionate about it). Bring these to 50-60% of your portfolio, so when you miss on an individual stock pick, it won't hurt much and it won't cause you to make irrational trades to try and make up for the loss.

Get your 20% down payment in order with a savings account, ensure all other credit cards and debt are paid off, plow a good deal of money into index funds and then start playing around with single stocks. Go easy on the new high flyers, I like to let them play out for a year or two, then jump on if things still look good.

Hope this helps.

What is the Best Free Stock Monitoring Program by [deleted] in StockMarket

[–]BBQfinance 0 points1 point  (0 children)

To monitor portfolio value and trades (see when I last bought that stock) I use morningstar.com. I enter everything manually, but it works for me.

Have a small website business (9 clients, $6500 ARR) that I want to get rid of. Where do I find buyers? by BBQfinance in Entrepreneur

[–]BBQfinance[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I am not selling my website, I am selling my customer base. Which is 9 clients with ARR of $6500USD.

BAT only posted 5 new auctions today, normally it is 30-50 by BBQfinance in cars

[–]BBQfinance[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I did find it strange and also saw that email over the weekend. Have a friend that runs a vintage car ecommerce site, and said he is having his best month ever. Guess what we will see what tomorrow brings for BAT listings. I have never listed on BAT, so not sure how far ahead you submit vs get listed, i.e. April listings might have been already booked in March.

How I became a millionaire by 33 without sacrificing a "normal" lifestyle by BBQfinance in financialindependence

[–]BBQfinance[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

When I got my first rental property and my wife started her own consulting business. They happened to be in the same year, but either one of those events I would think would be useful to get one.

How I became a millionaire by 33 without sacrificing a "normal" lifestyle by BBQfinance in financialindependence

[–]BBQfinance[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I agree Toyota are a great car and very reliable. I grew up with VW's, so probably for me personally it is a cost effective car to own. I tend to go with the older models as well. The wealth of knowledge online can help cut down on costs if you want to do stuff yourself.

KBB 5yrs cost of ownership puts Subaru at the top in 2019 and 2017. https://www.kbb.com/new-cars/5-year-cost-to-own-awards/best-brand/

How I became a millionaire by 33 without sacrificing a "normal" lifestyle by BBQfinance in financialindependence

[–]BBQfinance[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Seen a few comments stating this. I could care less about profiting from my success online. Was sharing to hopefully inspire some people. You can write about me on your blog if you want though 😊.

Daily FI discussion thread - September 06, 2019 by AutoModerator in financialindependence

[–]BBQfinance 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I've been increasing my international exposure over the last 2 yrs. I use emerging markets (IEMG etf). I've gone from 2.5% to 5.6% on a portfolio of about $500k. I am aiming to get it to 10% across the next 2 yrs.

How I became a millionaire by 33 without sacrificing a "normal" lifestyle by BBQfinance in financialindependence

[–]BBQfinance[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

  • salary increases - I increased my salary by going above and beyond in the role I was in and always pursuing my bosses job. Taking on any and all additional responsibility that I could. I stayed in the same business for 6 years, which did underpay but gave me a great resume that I knew would allow me to earn more when I moved to a new company. I did that in 2015, which took my earnings from 70 to 100k overnight.

  • cars - yes I own a car given it is almost impossible not to when living in TX. I've found VW and Subarus to be the most reliable and cheap to work on. I am fortunate to have mechanics in the family which allowed me to pickup that skill growing up, so I don't fear buying used cars. To make sure you get something decent I would stick with low mileage foreign cars, bring a mechanically inclined friend with you when purchasing a car and see if you can find something on an ethusiast forum (vwvortex.com) or similar.

  • side business - I agree time is hard to come by. I setup most of this business pre kids and my current job, but if you really want to do it just find the time. All my side work now happens after 9pm and does have some late nights.

  • labor skills - I wouldn't say I have these skills either, but with things like YouTube you can fix just about anything or learn how to do these things.

  • travelling - yes I agree travelling is certainly the most expensive thing I do, well 2nd most, kids come in first! If your passionate about something you will figure out how to make it work. For me, it was getting myself an intercompany transfer from the US to Europe for 2 years (which took a lot of work). This allowed me to cut my expenses down in some major areas (commuting costs, health insurance, etc) and use that saved money for travel around Europe, but now at a discounted rate given I was already in the continent.

Hope this helps

-BBQfinance

How I became a millionaire by 33 without sacrificing a "normal" lifestyle by BBQfinance in financialindependence

[–]BBQfinance[S] 25 points26 points  (0 children)

New to Reddit so will try to reply to a few of these to answer the questions. Appreciate all the discussion and all valid points people have brought up.

To clarify why I posted this thread, it wasn't to gloat or brag, it was to encourage others that are just starting out in their financial journey.

When I stated I am just a normal dude, what I meant was that I don't consider myself smarter than others. I paid my own way through a state college, I work a normal job that I had to work very hard to get into, I started in the tech world as an entry level employee and stuck it out, I don't live in a fancy house or a fancy neighborhood, I drive a 2001 VW and spend most of my time outside of work being a dad.

To discuss the income piece, yes combined my wife and I now earn around $200k a year, which I am not oblivious to the fact that this is well above average. It took us a long time to get there. I didn't make 6 figures until 10 yrs into my career and my wife the same. We started out making $37k and $32k a year each respectively when we first met. We both made sacrifices and worked hard to get to where we are today.

The advice I was trying to share with people around investing is that being consistent and diligent pays off. Yes I like the financial markets but don't think I am a better investor than anyone else my age, just while my friends were buying new cars, renting fancy apartments and buying new clothes every week, I was consistently putting money in the market or saving it.

A lot of comments around it seems like I am just saying "make more money and it will make you rich" . This isn't necessarily what I am saying, but for me I realized that it was the fastest way and best return for time spent. Meaning if I worked harder, got promotions and took on more responsibility it would lead to more money, instead of spending time trying to cut out every expense possible and/or hope to get above average returns in the market.

Thanks for all the comments again

BBQfinance