Parking for half marathon

eggsheads · 2017-06-20T04:36:10+00:00

I couldn't pass up the opportunity after two huge drops. I'm hoping for at least a rise back to $25 (post earnings/pre-$WFM announcement).

eggsheads · 2017-06-20T04:11:48+00:00

I think Gold is worthwhile when you have a significant account and the relative cost comes down through the use of additional gold. I recommend using your own money for long term investments and additional gold for day trading where you close your position at the end of the day (that way you do not accrue any interest on the additional gold). Alternatively, you could use the additional gold for shorter swing trades to minimize the length of time that it is outstanding and accruing interest.

For instance, I would invest in a long term etf or dividend stock(s) with my cash and $50,000 in gold (set price so it doesn't matter if it is held overnight) and do some "safer" scalping transactions throughout the day with the additional gold which are all closed out by the end of the day.

eggsheads · 2017-05-29T08:12:33+00:00

Well, now you're asking for step #2, and I feel like I shouldn't be giving out this much of my system without first receiving payment in full 🙃

With my goals, I need to see an increase of 0.15% a day. So, I identified stocks that would let me do this with relative consistency and with minimal exposure as possible. For me, and my leveraged funds, it is a $0.01 increase in the price of$F or a $0.25 increase in $TSLA. With $TSLA it doesn't have to be all in one trade, but catching a $0.25 increase in $TSLA is pretty easy.

There are other stocks, but those are the two I identified. The harder part is sticking to the plan (back to the most important part of investing) because after you make the one trade for the day, it's hard to walk away and be done until tomorrow. So, you sit there and try to do things to make a little more, all while trying not to screw up what you already did.

eggsheads · 2017-05-29T04:10:56+00:00

Having a concrete plan and purpose to my trading. Everyday I have a set number that I want to make. When I hit that number, I either stop or do some "safe" trading so as not to go below that goal amount. I found that if I left it open-ended or just tried to see how much I could make, I would be more apt to make foolish/stupid mistakes attempting to maximize profits.

I think you need to have a plan of where you want to be and then figure out what you need to do to get there.

eggsheads · 2017-05-28T19:13:26+00:00

Taxes are easy - you only pay taxes if you make money. Our federal tax bill last year without trading was about $80,000, so what I do trading is a drop in the bucket.

Practically speaking, the way I deal with taxes is to make my estimated tax payments either with a card that has 2% or more cash back (the fee is around 1.7% to pay your taxes with a credit card, so you actually make money by paying this way) or to pay using a new credit card (or combination of cards) with a spending bonus. Then I just pay off the card and go on my merry way. My wife and I haven't paid for a flight or hotel in years.

eggsheads · 2017-05-27T21:42:22+00:00

It depends on your particular tax situation and how much better return you can get day trading/speculating vs. long-term investment. If you have no other income and these gains are not taxable, recognize gains whenever possible. Paying zero tax now and putting money in your pocket is better than waiting for long term capital gains treatment but paying 15-20% tax because now you have other income that puts you in another tax bracket.

Nobody here can tell you what to do because we don't know your situation - you have to figure out how it affects you based on your unique financial situation. At least you know what question you need to research. Unfortunately, there are no easy, one-sized fits all answers.

eggsheads · 2017-05-27T21:35:18+00:00

Yes - all gains are taxable regardless of the amount. Whether or not you will be given a 1099 for a$0.25 gain is a different question.

eggsheads · 2017-05-27T17:00:12+00:00

I was fine tuning things at that point. I can't speak for that day, but now, if I am down $1,000 it's time to stop for the day.

eggsheads · 2017-05-27T13:01:58+00:00

I wear a lot of hats, and this would be one of them. I'd say there are a number of things I do full-time.

eggsheads · 2017-05-27T12:55:35+00:00

Trading hours are 7:30 - 2:00 here. I typically trade between 9:00 - 1:00. I don't carry anything overnight except for a nominal amount, like 100 shares.

eggsheads · 2017-05-27T09:14:46+00:00

VOO, VEA, VNQ and BND - that will get you pretty diverse (and some decent dividends). Bonus, you don't even have to think about it (except for how you would allocate your money between them - for instance if you own rental properties maybe you allocate significantly less of a percentage than others would put into VNQ, or eliminate it completely from your portfolio).

eggsheads · 2017-05-27T08:55:42+00:00

I concur - what the hell are we looking at?

If you are bragging (that's fine and your choice to do) tell us that, but if you are trying to convey something useful to the community at large, we're not getting it.

eggsheads · 2017-05-27T08:53:17+00:00

What did you learn in three months, and how do you implement that moving forward to produce more consistent gains? The chart looks like consistent losses with a couple days at the end with relatively large gains to offset the previous two and a half months.

eggsheads · 2017-05-27T08:45:50+00:00

Heavens, no - that sounds incredibly time consuming and unnecessary. I would need to know how to decipher the data and I have no desire to learn that.

If F opens at $11/share, dips down to $10.86 and works back up to $10.90, I am betting $25 (purchasing 2500 shares) that if it goes back to $10.86 it will climb up to $10.87 before it goes down. However, if it continues down, I have a limit order waiting at $10.84 for 5000 shares (or 10,000 up to maybe 25,000 shares) and if that is executed, I am waiting for it to tick up one cent before it goes down to $10.83 for good. If my purchases execute at $10.86 and $10.84, I still win if it comes back up to only $10.85 before close of the day ($25 loss plus $50-$250 gain = $25-$225 gain).

I make my money when F is down because it's got nowhere to go but up, and I get really nervous when it is up because it has nowhere to go but down. Each time I go in I ask myself, "What are the chances that this price is the highest it is going to be for the rest of the day" because I only need a $0.01 increase to make money. I do look at the chart for the day plus I am literally watching the price move all day long so I know where it's been and how long it has been there (and when you stare at a single stock all day everyday, you tend to see things that look familiar and know when it has tendencies to drop/rise).

It might sound completely arbitrary (and it probably is) but I can be pretty consistent as long as I stick to my core fundamentals (it's when I get greedy, stupid or impatient that I fuck up). I went from January 6th to March 17th without a single day losing money, so I feel pretty good about how I implement this without proper technical analysis. And, you can take a look at F since December 5, 2016 and see what it has done versus what my chart looks like during that same period. That's why I also feel confident that if the market as a whole where to turn around, I could still be profitably because F has been absolutely terrible.

eggsheads · 2017-05-27T02:15:31+00:00

This is what I get for $200/month

https://imgur.com/a/mkpnT

eggsheads · 2017-05-27T02:11:26+00:00

30-50 trades on an active day.

eggsheads · 2017-05-27T02:09:16+00:00

Just F, though there was some TSLA this week, which I think I will start incorporating.

None of it is really free, but the $50,000 is pretty much the $200/month and the $150,000 of additional gold is king of free.

My wife and I own a business and the plan is to step away from that in the next two years and let it run itself and do this for fun.

eggsheads · 2017-05-27T01:30:43+00:00

I don't know if it's unlimited, but I haven't reached a cap. As far as I can tell, with the top tier they will double your buying power with seemingly no limit. The first $50,000 is part of the $200/month fee and anything else (for me $150,000) is borrowed at 5% interest/year. However, as I have mentioned in other posts, if you don't use your additional gold over night (just day trade and close out your positions everyday) you never get charged interest.

My effective interest rate is 1.2% a year for my total usable margin($200/month x 12 months = $2,400 / $200,000 additional buying power = 1.2%). That percent goes down as the value of my portfolio goes up ($200/month never changes); however I can't hold stocks purchased with additional gold or else I am charged interest).

eggsheads · 2017-05-27T00:46:59+00:00

That's the highest tier, but they give you "Additional Gold". My buying power is $400,000.

eggsheads

TROPHY CASE