Down and it's fantastic.

Afraid to look !!

quote:

Originally posted by ensigmatic:

quote:

Originally posted by Schmelby:
I took a pretty bad hit last quarter, I'll bet next quarter
won't be any better. I think I need to find a financial planner.

Not certain it will matter.

We're with a guy who's very good. But, when things turn this bad, there's not much that can be done.

I have to agree that going with a good financial planner isn't going to make a difference. Because they aim to create a portfolio that supposedly will weather the ups and downs of the market.

I was with Fisher Investments and despite their marketing of how they called 5 of the last bear markets correctly, they're not more dynamic or forward looking for my liking. For example, with inflation talks that started last year, it would have been a no brainer for them to get out long term bonds. They've also remained tech heavy in late April when I fired them.

Going to a financial planner that will promise you to be more dynamic however has its own risks. So after I fired Fisher, I cashed out of all my positions save a handful of stocks. I plan on managing all of my portfolio myself using broad market ETFs, managing the equity / fixed income allocation for each time horizon, and giving myself rules to follow depending on what the current market conditions are.

I went to cash for a portion of my portfolio back in January 13 then I went to 98% cash last week of April so I think I'm doing pretty good compared to if I had stayed in the market.

I changed jobs end of last year and had to rollover my 401k to an IRA. IRA is -4% YTD but my new 401k is -10% YTD.

Not super worried because I have another 10-12 years before I retire and like others that have a few more years before retirement, am looking at this as good opportunity to dollar-cost average.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: lkdr1989,

I'm down 80k, don't know about the wife. We're both on a defined benefit retirement plan and the funds are just supplemental. I don't have to start taking withdrawals for 7 years.

I've been investing for about 40 years, and it seems every four years or so the market is a loser. This year is a bit worse, but I'll weather the storm.

I hope.

quote:

Originally posted by Fredward:
I'm down 80k, don't know about the wife. We're both on a defined benefit retirement plan and the funds are just supplemental. I don't have to start taking withdrawals for 7 years.

I've been investing for about 40 years, and it seems every four years or so the market is a loser. This year is a bit worse, but I'll weather the storm.

I hope.

I've been doing RMDs for a few years and fortunately or unfortunately, RMDs use your balance on December 31 of the prior year to calculate your withdrawal.

I'll remind everyone that the best market upturns have historically followed the down turns.

My accounts are down about $250,000 in the past 6 months but they were up like $400,000 in the previous 18 months. The ridiculous gains of the past 2 years did seem a little out of line to me, and I think I questioned on this board perhaps 6 months ago if we were not heading into a correction soon.

Mine is a 401A. I guess it is basically the same as a 401K but, for public sector employees. I have lost right around $55,000. It hurts. Planned on retiring in 10 years.

Not a 401K, but when I retired I rolled over a large lump sum from my pension into a conservative risk investment fund.

It showed a steady slow bleed during the Obama years, losing 7%, then a 38% gain in just the four years Trump was in office.

So far this year it's down a little over 14%.

My wife rolled over her 401K into a lower risk fund when she retired & she's had almost the same results.

But this is all Donald's fault. Or is it because of covid, or Putin? Hell I lose track.

As of today, my fund's value is dead-even with its value in March of 2021.

quote:

Originally posted by vthoky:
As of today, my fund's value is dead-even with its value in March of 2021.

That's pretty much where I am right now. I retired last year, so I'm no longer contributing to it.
I hope it comes back before I have to start taking distributions in about five years.

I don't even look at retirement accounts at my age. What I'm really, really, really down on is crypto. I made about the stupidest moves possible on Coinbase stock, options, and various crypto. I'm embarrassed to say how much I lost, but it was enough to buy a car, and I don't have the ability to risk money of that scale.

Most expensive life lesson ever learned. First I'm not able to spend the time to play crypto or individual stocks. Second don't throw good money after bad. Third if you're going to play with risky ass shit do it with pennies, not Dollars.

quote:

Originally posted by Skins2881:
I don't even look at retirement accounts at my age. What I'm really, really, really down on is crypto. I made about the stupidest moves possible on Coinbase stock, options, and various crypto. I'm embarrassed to say how much I lost, but it was enough to buy a car, and I don't have the ability to risk money of that scale.

Most expensive life lesson ever learned. First I'm not able to spend the time to play crypto or individual stocks. Second don't throw good money after bad. Third if you're going to play with risky ass shit do it with pennies, not Dollars.

Playing these things in that manner is essentially gambling. Some people get lucky and make trading work, but it's luck. When even hedge funds full of full time professional analysts can't consistently pick winners, the chances of a single individual having better success are lower.

I'm more of a buy and hold type. I'll happily accept the lower risk and reasonable return this strategy has historically yielded.

quote:

I'm more of a buy and hold type. I'll happily accept the lower risk and reasonable return this strategy has historically yielded.

Same. I should have sold in this instance, then I kept doubling down. The option money is gone, but the stock I will hold long term, probably same with crypto. There is no part of what I did that was wise. I'm writing the entirety of the money off and will just check back down the road on the crypto.

Lessons learned.

I manage my own retirement funds. My accounts are down about 9% this year so far. I have gone from 20% cash to 40% cash.

So now I have dry powder to buy Google and Microsoft, which are each down over 20% YTD. They may well be going lower. The market is dealing with a lot of stress at the moment.

There were a lot of overpriced stocks that have come down to earth this year, like Disney, Pelaton, Beyond Meat, Netflix and Facebook. But there are a lot of really good stocks that are now much more reasonably priced - I think. I hope.

I’m down, way down. It hurts, but I’m keeping a cool head.

I have 10-15 years before I plan to retire, so I’m hoping that the economy rebounds with a vengeance. Right now, I’m viewing it as I’m buying discount index funds.

down about 13% several hundred k. Markets have a tendency to bounce big. I'm sitting tight

We are now in year 7 of retirement. Not yet relying on the investments for income, but it has been depressing to watch the portfolio decline rapidly in value.

Soon to experience the Required Minimum Distributions rule, so we will actually be taking some income. Unfortunately, it looks like we will be spending principal instead of drawing on earnings.

Oh well, it has always been a crap shoot. Better to have a declining pile of money than to not have any money to worry about.

In 2009 when Obama was president, I lost $35K. This year with president BoBo, I lost about $25K. However my losses could have been higher. I usually have it on high risk funds and with Trump it made $$$$ but when BoBo became president I changed it all to conservative. God Bless

Most of my money are in VanGuard low cost funds (VOO, VTWO, VUG, among others) so they are down this year. I'm not really a "stock picker", but I do have a few, and they are doing great!

Lockheed (LMT) is UP 24.28% YTD. I started buying this regularly starting in 2011 when it ~$80, now at $440.
Exxon Mobil is UP 36% YTD. I am especially proud of this one, I bought it at $35 just after pandemic started, currently at $86.
Chevron and Conoco Philips are up YTD, but I bought these back in 2015 or so when oil dipped below $50 per barrel. They traded sideways for YEARS, real dogs, and I lots out on other opportunities. I contemplated selling them last year, glad I didn't.

I also have about 25% in cash as my wife transferred jobs right before the pandemic and we moved her 401k into a self directed IRA. It went into money markets and I didnt move it once the pandemic hit. If I was smart I would've moved this into equities after March 2020, when I bought XOM at $35. I'll try to pick up some bargains in the next few weeks. Most likely more VanGuard funds.

While the S&P500 is down 18% YTD, its trading where it was in late March 2021. In the big picture, you've only "lost" 14 months of gains.