Anyone under the age of 30 can consider themselves a “young” investor. What steps should I young investor take to set themselves up for the future?
There are three steps each young person should take to retire with millions in the bank.
- Make sure your finances are ready to handle investments
Before you can invest your consumer debt should be manageable (meaning credit cards are paid off and there isn’t any significant amount of auto loan or student loans).
2. Set up a Roth IRA and begin automatic contributions
This shouldn’t take longer than 15-30 minutes. To set up bank connection with the brokerage account you need to wait a few days to verify the transfer. I chose to open my Roth IRA with M1Finance but you can set yours up with a number of others like vanguard, fidelity or Charles schwab.
3. Plan for big expenses like college, cars, house or first children
After setting up an automatic deposit of whatever you can afford each month, make sure to plan for major purchases coming up. A typical first house downpayment can range anything from a few thousand to $10k or even $20k.
These steps are only the beginning but for anyone who likes things simplified, this is a good place to start.
Keep in mind the advice contained in this blog is meant to be taken at the reader’s discernment. Talk to your financial planner to see how the advice may or may not apply to you. Ultimately you are fully responsible for you finances so make sure you have someone who is willing to walk with you on your journey.