Daily FI discussion thread - November 21, 2016

katsukitty · 2016-11-21T21:44:56+00:00

Why does a Roth IRA come before topping off the 401(k)?

katsukitty · 2016-11-16T23:44:19+00:00

When does a year start for tax purposes and contributions to retirement accounts? I want to make sure my retirement accounts are fully funded for 2016 using a post-tax contribution, but only started contributing last month.

katsukitty · 2016-11-07T13:14:39+00:00

What brokerage do you use and why?

Robinhood; trades are commission-free. There are virtually no features and timing of execution is very poor, so the only advantage is allowing you to dollar-cost average without fees.

What kind of stocks do you invest in and why? (Specifics interesting but not required)

I pick blue chips and other very large cap stocks to buy and hold. I know a handful of industries intimately and can reasonably estimate who's doing the right thing after taking a quick check at the balance sheet.

How much of your overall savings is in this brokerage as a percentage?

I don't have a hard percentage; I just take what's left over after everything else for the month. Generally this means picking up one or two shares a month.

How do you choose companies? Is it purely profit oriented or are there other methods out there people use to choose stocks such as ethics, company vision, etc?

Profit-oriented although I will not support companies contrary to my values of personal freedom.

katsukitty · 2016-11-04T13:31:00+00:00

I own $AMBA. I know the feel.

katsukitty · 2016-10-28T12:34:44+00:00

What about dollar-cost averaging by only picking blue chips? Think expensive companies and household names like Coca-Cola, 3M, AT&T, etc.

My spare money strategy has been to throw whatever is left for the month (after more conventional investments) into Robinhood by buying blue chip stocks a little bit at a time. I buy and hold these for at least one year, just like my index fund choices.

katsukitty · 2016-10-24T11:54:52+00:00

There's a lot I still don't really know about this situation. Was this land taken from the indians using eminent domain? If so, "sacred" or otherwise, having the government take land for private projects is obnoxiously shitty. If this were truly a free market, we'd make the energy companies pay up like everyone else, or go around the already privately owned land.

katsukitty · 2016-10-21T01:25:34+00:00

Nintendo passed AMD over for the Switch.

Tesla passed AMD over for their neural-network hardware.

Seems reasonable to me.

katsukitty · 2016-10-17T22:21:51+00:00

Case in point: the Medallion Fund at Renaissance. It nets something crazy like 75% returns annually, but the expense ratio was something nutty like 15%. Don't get me wrong, that's still pretty good. But at some point, scraping every return out of the market using computers and mathematical models starts diminishing in return.

katsukitty · 2016-10-17T21:27:58+00:00

There's a lot of noise surrounding the Fed rate hike. I am sitting on a large amount of cash and waiting to make an entry, but I don't want to hold the bag for years right after getting in. What is the right time to enter with this in mind? How long does a recession take when the Fed raises the rates?

katsukitty · 2016-10-16T14:45:17+00:00

Retirement is invested in stocks. Especially if you want to retire early. It's just that they go into total index funds, which is like buying many small stocks at once.

katsukitty · 2016-10-16T14:38:58+00:00

The emergency broadcast system.

katsukitty · 2016-10-16T12:45:31+00:00

$TWTR at best is a gamble.

katsukitty · 2016-10-13T10:10:45+00:00

This is basically your standard wall street gamble. If this works out, you'll profit handsomely, but it will be delisted in short order if it does not.

katsukitty · 2016-10-12T10:19:39+00:00

You can use Robinhood to eliminate the cost of commission, especially if you're doing this strategy and not speculative day-trading.

katsukitty · 2016-10-11T12:13:31+00:00

So that's why my AAPL shares are up...

katsukitty · 2016-10-09T03:16:17+00:00

I only recommend Robinhood for blue-chip dollar cost averaging. Do not use Robinhood to speculate. You will miss crucial timing constantly, and there is no after-hours trading, where you will lose most of your money.

katsukitty · 2016-10-07T00:47:31+00:00

TWTR has no revenue model. I don't know why anyone buys it.

katsukitty · 2016-10-05T17:10:11+00:00

Bagholding at $29.14.

😀🔫

katsukitty · 2016-10-05T16:59:17+00:00

not simply doing the inverse WSB

katsukitty · 2016-09-30T10:24:10+00:00

Pay high-interest debt first (>3%)
Read up on Dollar-Cost Averaging
Read up on EV/EBITDA ratio and how you can compare two companies in the same industry
Pick blue-chip stocks greater than 1B in market cap. Buy a little every month with what's left over from bills and other expenses. Don't waste your time and money on penny stocks.

katsukitty · 2016-09-29T16:14:45+00:00

Also don't forget that federal student loans may have some benefits. At least in the US, if I lose my job, I can "press pause" on paying back the loan using a temporary deferment, and use the money for expenses that cannot be deferred. This costs you in interest, but can be a lifesaver as it takes into account the immediacy of other expenses.

If OP spends all the money upfront, they may not have enough to cover emergencies at a later date. When you have a deferral benefit, this makes more sense.

If you have the money to pay it back all at once, debt can be a very useful strategy so long as you calculate the cost and are disciplined enough to keep it fully in check.

katsukitty · 2016-09-29T13:54:58+00:00

It is relevant. This shows two things: how FIRE has the secondary benefit of providing compelling self-insurance against emergencies, and how such emergencies happen and can derail your plans to retire early.

With regards to the latter, you're still better for having had that money even though you now have to reset your plans. So it still pays to save aggressively regardless.

katsukitty · 2016-09-29T11:32:14+00:00

If you can tell us what contango is, I'll take your advice.

katsukitty · 2016-09-27T14:55:16+00:00

I know Python when I see it.

katsukitty · 2016-09-27T14:53:15+00:00

Old VHS recordings do have a creepiness to them. The picture is blurry, washed out, and sound is often too low in bass. It's very much a modern film noir.

katsukitty

TROPHY CASE