Investment opportunities

[SMOKEU]

I've got just over $1K lying around and I'd like to invest it (legally!). I was thinking of investing in the stock market (not the one with farm animals, the other one), but what will give me the best return without a very high risk of losing it all? How do I go about buying shares? I've got a bit of time on my hands so I don't mind looking into various opportunities, but I just don't know where to start!

[slofox]

Go see a stockbroker I suppose..?

He'll probably ask you where the other $99,000 dollars is though...

[pzkpfw]

If it were that easy to make money with little risk, everyone'd be doing it.

Stick it in a (big) bank if you are worried about losing it.

[unstuck]

Only a grand, better off putting it in bonus bonds and waiting for a win.:yes:

[Banditbandit]

I've got just over $1K lying around and I'd like to invest it (legally!). I was thinking of investing in the stock market (not the one with farm animals, the other one), but what will give me the best return without a very high risk of losing it all? How do I go about buying shares? I've got a bit of time on my hands so I don't mind looking into various opportunities, but I just don't know where to start!

Put it in the bank and earn interest - it'll pay a couple of speeding tickets ... and you get to keep the interest)

(Or maybe have a chat to your nasty mates currently sheltering in Brazil .. I'm sure there's a nice little fascist revolution they'd like you to support ...)

[Crasherfromwayback]

Bet on Stoner to win the next GP. You'll at least double your money. IF he wins!

[mashman]

hit the casino... always bet on black :)

[Str8 Jacket]

That aint alot of money mate. One weeks wages for some of us.....

[jim.cox]

but what will give me the best return without a very high risk of losing it all?

Gold

The price has been going through the roof recently

[Scoobydoo]

Buy apple shares.

Youll be able to buy 3.:gob:

[SMOKEU]

Gold

The price has been going through the roof recently

I have been looking into it. Gold is around $1800 an ounce these days.



I do have one of those "high interest" online saver accounts with Westpac. Maybe I should stick to that.

[Banditbandit]

Buy apple shares.

Youll be able to buy 3.:gob:

SHIT!!! Is food getting cheaper then?

[Scoobydoo]

Or how about 2 Google shares.

[cbfb]

Buy apple shares.

Youll be able to buy 3.:gob:

:scratch:

I've got a 10kg bag of Granny Smiths you can share for a grand

[cbfb]

Seriously though a grand is fuck all, by the time you've paid brokers fees etc you'll just about have change for a couple of beers.

Stick to the bank.

[Virago]

To be honest, $1,000 isn't much to be dabbling in the stock market with - any potential gains will likely be swallowed up by broker fees. Also, the stock market is unlikely to give you any short-term returns - if you want your money back again in a few months, you're wasting your time.

As has been pointed out, there's no low-risk investment options giving high returns. The news reports almost every night are filled with wailing punters who, blinded with greed, have put too many eggs in one basket, and are outraged when the basket is dropped.

If you want to lock that money in for a while, talk to a couple of banks about options. Otherwise put it into Bonus Bonds - you might get lucky...

[Bald Eagle]

I've got just over $1K lying around and I'd like to invest it (legally!). I was thinking of investing in the stock market (not the one with farm animals, the other one), but what will give me the best return without a very high risk of losing it all? How do I go about buying shares? I've got a bit of time on my hands so I don't mind looking into various opportunities, but I just don't know where to start!

buy Telecom shares. They have a monopoly and they have the govt by the short hairs. With todays UBF announcement the two for one share deal likely to come out of the company split will be a good return.

[p.dath]

I've got just over $1K lying around and I'd like to invest it (legally!). I was thinking of investing in the stock market (not the one with farm animals, the other one), but what will give me the best return without a very high risk of losing it all? How do I go about buying shares? I've got a bit of time on my hands so I don't mind looking into various opportunities, but I just don't know where to start!

If you want low risk, stick with a simple term deposit.

[Virago]

buy Telecom shares. They have a monopoly and they have the govt by the short hairs. With todays UBF announcement the two for one share deal likely to come out of the company split will be a good return.

Yeah, but that's no sure thing. I'm sure those who bought Telecom shares four years ago thought their money was safe too:

http://www.nzx.com/markets/nzsx/TEL/price-history

(Or those who bought a few years earlier when the price was over $8... :facepalm: )

[unstuck]

Bonus bonds.:yes:

[White trash]

Greenplan if you want longish term investment that's fairly easy to expect a reasonable return. May need a little more than a grand though.

[jim.cox]

I have been looking into it. Gold is around $1800 an ounce these days.


Yup, and at present you ought to be able to pick up a couple of sovereigns - or four halves - for that grand of yours

[avgas]

If you have a grand and don't mind adding to it (say $20 week) I recommend a unit trust account (or at least thats what I think they are called these days).

You basically pick a risk level and they pool your money with everyone else in that category and invest it for you picking the various shares etc.

Last time I worked it out mine has doubled in value which is pretty good considering I froze the payments into it before the crash. Works out roughly about 10-20% p/a.

Downside is the same as any investment - money is locked up and takes a few weeks to get out. But most banks run these now (Mine is with Westpac)

What ever you do, don't buy currency right now - its like buying "hot rocks"......sure they might be scolding hot right now, but will be pretty useless when they cool.

[avgas]

Greenplan if you want longish term investment that's fairly easy to expect a reasonable return. May need a little more than a grand though.
$4500 last time I checked.

[Maha]

Pity you dont live in Wellington, you could spend it on some pink paint to tart up the new welcome mat...:rockon:

[Hoon]

$1000 isn't much...take a risk - Bitcoins (http://blogs.computerworld.com/18335/bitcoin_miners_busted_police_confuse_bitcoin_power _usage_for_pot_farm?source=rss_blogs). They were US$1 a month ago...now up to US$7 (http://bitcoincharts.com/markets/)

[Brett]

Sorry mate, high returns and low risk are exclusive of one another. IF you want to have a crack at the sharemarket, you would be best to set up your own trading account with ASB and look for an emerging oil and gas company in Western Australia that stands a good chance of hitting pay day. ASB charge $25 per transaction for the smaller trades (ie under $50k I think).
It is not unreasonable to find a share worth 0.5cents that finds a good resource and the share goes up to 2 or 3 cents. EGO (stock code) Empire Oil and Gas is one such company, it was as high as 4.5cents but has since eased back to 2.5cents. BUT, if you had bought at 0.5cents and sold at 4.5cents, you would have made a cool $8k.

Just remember, not all are winners, I personally lost money initially on EGO (long term still going to deliver big returns, just not short term via day trading).
Do your own research, there are plenty of day traders etc out there who will feed out their opinions to ramp up or drive down demand for a share.

Perhaps another idea...find a product you can buy wholesale and sell individually on likes of trademe. Made plenty of money like this as a kid on trademe/trade and exchange.

[imdying]

Good set of lights and fans, carbon filter, tent.... you know the way forward if you really wanna make some money bro :yes:

[Usarka]

How do I go about buying shares? I've got a bit of time on my hands so I don't mind looking into various opportunities, but I just don't know where to start!

If you're an ASB customer then a real easy way is to use ASB Securities online. But if you don't know what you're doing you should only dabble if you're ok with losing some money. Shares are a long term investment.


I have been looking into it. Gold is around $1800 an ounce these days.


When they start advertising investments on TV it's time to run.

[short-circuit]

Gold

The price has been going through the roof recently

This thread is Gold - thanks for the laugh

[unstuck]

Did anyone mention BONUS BONDS.:yes:

[Genestho]

$1000 aint much bud, you need to be able to spread investments out - the old saying don't put all your eggs in one basket is true with investing, so when one drops here...over there is covering the loss.

You also need a plan, if a stock drops in value, will you panic sell at a certain price or hold on and hope the Market bounces back up.

Will you daytrade, or long term trade, day trading is riskier but quicker returns if you get it right (or losses if you get it wrong!), or are you a long term investor?

directbroking.co.nz allows you to buy and sell your own shares I think each trade is 29.95 upto $5000, past that it's a % of the trade, I think there's 20 min delay though. There's pamphlets you can request to be sent out to help you learn terms/definitions and sensible advice.

Here you can watch the market, a broker is good, more costly though and they still follow your instrutions which means you still need to research what's going on globally and locally.

Even more betterer is trading software which is in realtime.

Do not use banks as brokers.

Study the 'trendlines' over a week, months and years - it's not foolproof but there's indicators.
Some good stocks are a little more expensive, but usually steady and safer (although this is a risky game at the mo).
If I told you which ones to buy - I'd have to kill ya...

[Brett]

$1000 aint much bud, you need to be able to spread investments out - the old saying don't put all your eggs in one basket is true with investing, so when one drops there...over there is covering the loss.
.

Some trading experts would disagree with this. the whole diversity for risk management thing is certainly true, but if you want big returns from small dough, then chuck all your cash into one basket and hope the bastard performs.
The Zurich Axioms is a very interesting read on investing principles, written by a legend.

[nosebleed]

Did anyone mention BONUS BONDS.:yes:

Ok, now you've been blung.

[Genestho]

Some trading experts would disagree with this. the whole diversity for risk management thing is certainly true, but if you want big returns from small dough, then chuck all your cash into one basket and hope the bastard performs.
The Zurich Axioms is a very interesting read on investing principles, written by a legend.

True! You can diversify it or not, how ever you like it, personally I don't like hoping, less so when the climate is how it is. Then again the climate is perfect if your eye is on the ball at all times.

I guess the quick way of still diversifying it out is to day-trade, but keep the eye on the ball, realtime soft ware and a broker, is where it's at for that one IMO.
At end of the day it's the individuals risk and choice I guess :)

[Ricardo S]

got a mate in Australia that has been investing quite a bit of $ on silver. its a long term investment thou. good think is that you can buy silver bullions and keep it with you so even if the something happens with the global economy - worse case scenary - you will still have something that might be worth more than a piece of paper

[NinjaNanna]

Do a budget work out all of your regular expenses for a year (rego, maintainence, tyres, insurance, phone, electricity, clothes, holiday, unexepected expenses fund).

If you are paid monthly work out what you need to put away every month to cover these expenses that you know are coming, if you get paid fortnightly work out the fortnightly amount.

Setup a seperate bill account with your bank, put this $1000 in it and make the necessary deposit each and every pay. The financial security and freedom that you'll achieve knowing that you DEFINATELY HAVE the money needed to pay those bills will far outweigh any small gain you might get on the stock market and also help you stay clear of credit card debt.

On that note too, if you have credit card debt use the $1000 to pay that off, that's a garanteed 20% return on your investment.

[Str8 Jacket]

got a mate in australia that has been investing quite a bit of $ on silver. Its a long term investment thou. Good think is that you can buy silver bullions and keep it with you so even if the something happens with the global economy - worse case scenary - you will still have something that might be worth more than a piece of paper

wellywood!

<ftw!>

[onearmedbandit]

$1000 aint much bud

You're right, but it's enough if he bought it at the right rate to make $600 back on his initial investment, probably within a week. Reinvest that $1600 back into more....oh wait.......you were calling him 'bud'.:facepalm:

[YellowDog]

Seriously though a grand is fuck all, by the time you've paid brokers fees etc you'll just about have change for a couple of beers.

Stick to the bank.

Yep, you could buy your $1000 worth of shares today and sell them tomorrow.

By the time you've paid the buying and selling premium and stock brokers fees; as well as losing out on the differential between buying and selling price: With a bit of luck you could have as much as $650 left :facepalm:

[doc]

First you should buy a workshop manual for your bike .:innocent: Fellow KB'rs would agree.

[marty]

I have been looking into it. Gold is around $1800 an ounce these days.
.

it's NZ$1907/oz right now.

[doc]

I do have one of those "high interest" online saver accounts with Westpac. Maybe I should stick to that.

The conservative approach is "its not the rate that is offered its the rate of return."

[Pussy]

Spend most of it on women and beer... and then just squander the rest

[Grasshopperus]

Like someone else mentioned; silver. Make sure you take physical delivery of it though, don't just buy bits of paper. :yes:

Not sure how it's done since they started hyping it a couple of years ago. Be pretty easy to find out though.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AxSm4bycPJk

[Winston001]

Most amusing guys and I agree with most of you. :D

Smokeu: gold is very high because the $US has devalued massively. I remember when gold was $US350/oz not long ago (ok a few years). Personally I'd steer clear.

Your safest bet is an index fund. There are many of these and the benefit is they have low management fees. A fund like the MOZY.NZ follows the second tier of Australian shares on the rationale that the biggest companies in any sharemarket can't grow much larger. Otherwise they'd own the world and that simply doesn't happen. Currently $5.80 and was $7.80 in 2007.

You can buy world indexes, US indexes, Dow 100 indexes, NZX indexes - whatever takes your fancy. They go up and down like everything else but are as safe and straight forward as you could want.

Unit trusts are actively managed with higher fees so you take a punt on the management. Most fund managers do not beat the index.

But if you want some fun, mining stocks are for you. Lose the lot, make sod all, or the big win. I can sell you some OZ mining shares from 1990 if you like...:facepalm:

Or...buy stuff and sell it on Trademe. I know a guy who does this as a sideline and most of the time makes money. He goes to garage sales, cleans things up, and writes a good description. Seriously, its fun, not much money needed, low level of risk, and chances of success.

[scracha]

ASB charge $25 per transaction for the smaller trades (ie under $50k I think).


$25....is that for real time trading? I think SMOKEU is more interested in saving. Some of the UK banks charge just 2 pounds per transaction for bulk orders (mid-market over-night price or summit). I used to just pick a stock at random and bung 2 hundred quid a month on one. Is there anything like that or low commission share shave schemes over here?

SMOKEU: Ignore folks who say a grand is a waste of time....you've got to start somewhere.

Wouldn't waste your money on managed funds or any of that bollox. They fund managers take a whopping big commission and rarely perform better than the stockmarket average.

Basic rules of investment :
1) Only take advice from those without a vested interest in where you invest your money.
2) Lower your risk as you get older (you're young...have a flutter on the riskier shares on the stock market)
3) Don't put all your eggs in one basket. Have a mix of different types of investment. Bricks and mortar, shares, cash, Bonds, classic motorcycles :innocent: etc
4) If you lose money, don't be tempted to sell shares (or houses for that matter) quickly. Buy low, sell high.
5) Pay off debt first....start with the highest.
6) Don't gamble what you can't afford to lose.

There's loads more.

[Winston001]

Yep loads more. Japanese candlesticks, moving averages, stop-losses (very important), 50 day tends, 200 day trends, stochastics, Elliot Wave Principle, Fibonacci Trading Strategy...

There are thousands (millions) of people who struggle with this stuff every minute of every day. For most of us though, understanding stop-loss and watching 50 day (or 200 day) trends should be enough. Life is too short to be glued to a computer screen. Get the bike out!!

[IdunBrokdItAgin]

Basic rules of investment :
1) Only take advice from those without a vested interest in where you invest your money.
2) Lower your risk as you get older (you're young...have a flutter on the riskier shares on the stock market)
3) Don't put all your eggs in one basket (taking note of rule 2). Have a mix of different types of investment. Bricks and mortar, shares, cash, Bonds, classic motorcycles :innocent: etc
4) If you lose money, don't be tempted to sell shares (or houses for that matter) quickly. Buy low, sell high.
5) Pay off debt first....start with the highest.
6) Don't gamble what you can't afford to lose.

There's loads more.

There's not really, what scracha has said (with my one addendum) is about as good advice as you are going to get.

I've worked in the field (worked, not speculated) for nearly 20 years and this is the best advice I have seen in this thread.

$1,000 is not much, in investment terms, but this is why unit trusts (mutual funds) were set up - "to allow lower value investors to invest without incurring direct investment fees".

Above all else remember:
All possible capital investment gain (or loss) is versus the risk of your initial capital investment. Choose your "risk" and "accept" your capital gain (or loss). Income is, generally, guaranteed - but at far lower returns.

If you struggle to understand that last paragraph then you may want to seek expert advice.

[tri boy]

One way ticket to west Oz.
Will set you up for a comfortable life.
You'll have to work though.

[Brett]

$25....is that for real time trading? I think SMOKEU is more interested in saving. Some of the UK banks charge just 2 pounds per transaction for bulk orders (mid-market over-night price or summit). I used to just pick a stock at random and bung 2 hundred quid a month on one. Is there anything like that or low commission share shave schemes over here?


Yep, that is real time share buying and selling, although it takes up to 2 days or so for the funds to make their way back into your account after selling a stock. This is the cheapest commission rate that I have come across here.

[avgas]

Oh and someone has not mentioned yet.
DO NO BUY OPTIONS!

Yes they can make good money.....but when you think about it you are buying something completely imaginary.

Shares you own a part of a company. Options you are placing a bet on if someone decides something.
Imagine placing a bet on if you will have beer or not? How much money would you invest on that?

I had one friend who bought a mixture of short and long options. He lost it all when the company didn't play ball with what the market said it would. He lost out and the options became dust. Scary shit. Note the company still exists - but because he didn't actually buy shares he didn't have a claim to anything.

[Hoon]

$1000 isn't much...take a risk - Bitcoins (http://blogs.computerworld.com/18335/bitcoin_miners_busted_police_confuse_bitcoin_power _usage_for_pot_farm?source=rss_blogs). They were US$1 a month ago...now up to US$7 (http://bitcoincharts.com/markets/)

Grrr wish I took my own advice. Bitcoins now at US$156. In 2009 people were paying 10,000 bitcoins for a couple pizzas. Thats US$1.5M today.

[SMOKEU]

Grrr wish I took my own advice. Bitcoins now at US$156. In 2009 people were paying 10,000 bitcoins for a couple pizzas. Thats US$1.5M today.

I've got about 15 BTC saved up in my wallet that I mined myself. I regret not buying any when they were cheap.

[doc]

it's NZ$1907/oz right now.

I think this is a good example of " The bigger fool theory ".

[Zedder]

Nah, Mighty River Power shares are the way to go. I mean, would JK have us on?

Oh, and don't worry about the Labour/Green party proposal regarding electricity, nothing but political manoeuvring...

[Brett]

I'm just pissed I missed Xero. I picked it as a winner and never go onboard early enough. Still might have long legs though.

[Edbear]

Nah, Mighty River Power shares are the way to go. I mean, would JK have us on?

Oh, and don't worry about the Labour/Green party proposal regarding electricity, nothing but political manoeuvring...

A cynical move to torpedo the share price and get at the Govt. Might have a short knee-jerk affect.

[mashman]

I've got about 15 BTC saved up in my wallet that I mined myself. I regret not buying any when they were cheap.

How do you mine bitcoins? Does it require human intervention?

[Swoop]

Did anyone mention BONUS BONDS.:yes:

A very good investment if you are dealing in meth or a gang member...
Very easy to launder the money and potential returns on your ill-gotten gains, with the added advantage of being cashed in easily!

Commonly called a win-win situation for criminal activity*.





* Can also be used for legal investment purposes.

[Zedder]

A cynical move to torpedo the share price and get at the Govt. Might have a short knee-jerk affect.

Time will tell.

[Edbear]

Time will tell.

Yeah it's all dirty politics until the public sort through the garbage and settle on a figure.

[sootie]

I read this post with interest, and some sadness. You see, I have operated a share portfolio for over 20 years, and only wish I had started sooner! (I now have a Gold Card.) Most of my income over the last 10 years has been from shares - Dividends & Capital Gain. (I earned an above average salary for the first 3 or 4 of those years.) Share Investment is a way of life for me, so yes, I would recommend getting involved as early as possible in life.

If anyone is interested, I can offer a lot of advice, and I am sure it will not all be good!! (Like most investment advice!)

One thing I will say here - successful investing is more about attitude than anything else.

cheers :) :)

[Brett]

I read this post with interest, and some sadness. You see, I have operated a share portfolio for over 20 years, and only wish I had started sooner! (I now have a Gold Card.) Most of my income over the last 10 years has been from shares - Dividends & Capital Gain. (I earned an above average salary for the first 3 or 4 of those years.) Share Investment is a way of life for me, so yes, I would recommend getting involved as early as possible in life.

If anyone is interested, I can offer a lot of advice, and I am sure it will not all be good!! (Like most investment advice!)

One thing I will say here - successful investing is more about attitude than anything else.

cheers :) :)

Always interested in hearing advice mate. Don't have to take it, but costs little to listen...so feel free to speak!

[Edbear]

Always interested in hearing advice mate. Don't have to take it, but costs little to listen...so feel free to speak!

Yup! Always listen to success, and if sootie is making consistent money he must have some idea of what to do and what to avoid.

[sootie]

Yup! Always listen to success, and if sootie is making consistent money he must have some idea of what to do and what to avoid.

OK, I will hang in here for a couple of rounds.

First off, I AM NOT A WEALTHY MAN!
I might have been, but we had a big GFC at the wrong time for me.
No, it did not wipe me out, but I did get hurt. My finances are now recovering slowly.
Many of you probably own more valuable properties, cars & bikes than I do, but I do enjoy life!

I might start with a few simple tips:

1. Be extremely wary of all professional investment advice, particularly in small economies like NZ.
It is usually guided by commission incentives to individuals or companies, and the incentives exist
because a company has issues. The best investments usually fly very quietly & under the radar.

2. When an investment appears just too good to be true, it probably is.
Big returns do happen, but like Lotto wins - not often.
If it is really so good why is someone promoting it so heavily rather than investing quietly themselves?

3. Start off with the Business Pages of your local paper. Look for companies with a low P/E ratio (<18)
and a good gross dividend yield (>7%). Go and check with the local library papers that this
situation has remained fairly static for at least 2 years.
(Yes you can go online to do this, and like anything else it just gives a few useful starting points.)

Enough to start with! :) :)