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If you are saving money, that is great. Keep up the good work. If you are keeping all your savings in a high interest savings account, that is good too, but you could probably do better. You should keep your emergency fund and immediate needs savings liquid, but all other savings that aren’t needed in the near future should you earning you more money through investing.
When you are ready to invest, you need to first choose an investment. There are so many different ways to invest, but the most common are stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and real estate. Next, you will need to find out where to buy your investments. This is different depending on what you buy. You can buy bonds at your local bank, but if you want to buy stocks, you need a brokerage firm.
If your a beginner investor or if you are looking for a low cost way to invest, an online brokerage firm could be right for you. You don’t have to set up any appointments with a broker or make any continuous phone calls. Everything is done right online. It’s so easy, there’s no excuse for not getting started and signed up right away.
My brokerage firm of choice is Sharebuilder.com. I have been with them for about 2 years and have bought and sold stock with them several times. They are perfect for long term investors who buy and sell because orders only cost $4 and trades are only $9.95. If you aren’t looking to buy stock directly, you can invest in mutual funds, too.
It’s quick and easy to sign up for Sharebuilder. To get started, visit the link below. Just click through the link to Sharebuilder and you can start creating your account.
Go through the sign up process and fill out a few forms. You will have to either fax or mail copies of ID and verification. This is a good thing; it adds to the security of your account.
Sharebuilder is a very secure account. You have to log into your account with a password and you need more verification before you can place a trade. Also, they have the padlock in the browser when you’re on the site. Make sure you see this next to the address bar to ensure your safety.
When your account is officially set up and ready, you can begin investing. There are two ways to buy stocks. First, you could pay $4 a trade on every third Tuesday of the month or you can pay $9.95 to trade whenever you like. You also have the choice to set up an automatic investment plan for regular investing.
