Starting a Roth IRA....please help

[BrianJone]

I will be starting a Roth IRA for the first time, can anyone offer suggestions as to where I should be placing that money? I will likely retire in about 35 years. If you need more information please ask. Thank you

[bjl584]

Do you know anything about investing?

There are thousands of options out there. If you don't really know what you are doing, then a target fund may suit your needs. Check out Vanguard or Fidelity.

[BrianJone]

Do you know anything about investing?

There are thousands of options out there. If you don't really know what you are doing, then a target fund may suit your needs. Check out Vanguard or Fidelity.

what does the "target" part mean in target fund? and i dont really know what i am doing

[bjl584]

It's kind of like a set it and forget it type of investment. The target is your retirement date, i.e. 35 years from now. So you just buy into a fund that has your year of retirement as its target date. The fund slowly becomes more conservative over time as you near retirement. You don't have to worry about asset allocation or market risk. The fund adjusts for you automatically. Caution: that doesn't mean that you don't have to do anything at all. It's still a good practice to actively monitor your investments.

Here is a link to get you started:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Target_date_fund

[BrianJone]

It's kind of like a set it and forget it type of investment. The target is your retirement date, i.e. 35 years from now. So you just buy into a fund that has your year of retirement as its target date. The fund slowly becomes more conservative over time as you near retirement. You don't have to worry about asset allocation or market risk. The fund adjusts for you automatically. Caution: that doesn't mean that you don't have to do anything at all. It's still a good practice to actively monitor your investments.

What fund or funds do you suggest?

[Slug]

Open your account through Fidelity, Schwab, TD Ameritrade, or some other discount broker that has lots of ETF's that trade commission-free. For a simple portfolio, take your age minus 10 and put that % in their standard bond ETF. Put the rest in their S&P 500 ETF. Reinvest dividends. Then, go read a few investment books from the library when you had some time. In the meantime, you'll probably be fine.

[jpg7n16]

What fund or funds do you suggest?

Target date funds ARE the funds he's suggesting. They are a type of fund. Most major companies have their own version.

What firm will you be at?
What year do you currently plan to begin retirement?

Then search at your firm for the target date fund that most closely matches your expected retirement date. Go with that.

For example:

https://www.fidelity.com/mutual-funds/asset-allocation-funds/freedom-funds/overview

https://personal.vanguard.com/us/funds/vanguard/TargetRetirementList

The ETF portfolio is simple, but ignores international exposure, small cap stocks, real estate, etc. -- most target date funds do not ignore these. And if you buy at your firm, there should be no commission either.