Money Novice

[Mystery]

So I have saved up a decent amount of money over the past couple of years (approximately $70k) and it is all sitting in a savings account acquiring bugger all interest.

I feel as though I should start becoming a little smarter with my money but the problem is I know next to nothing about what to do. I don't think I am in a position to purchase a property and deal with a mortgage, which leaves the share market.

Is this a good option? Are there any good resources online that can elaborate in layman's terms some good advice on the share market?

 

[superfraser]

So I have saved up a decent amount of money over the past couple of years (approximately $70k) and it is all sitting in a savings account acquiring bugger all interest.

I feel as though I should start becoming a little smarter with my money but the problem is I know next to nothing about what to do. I don't think I am in a position to purchase a property and deal with a mortgage, which leaves the share market.

Is this a good option? Are there any good resources online that can elaborate in layman's terms some good advice on the share market?

I'd suggest reading material from The Barefoot Investor. I pay for his subscription.

Looks like you're a good saver, with good income and you're reasonably risk averse -- totally fall into his target market.

Based on his philosophy:
- keep three months living expenses in a high interest savings account
- invest a significant portion in an ETF like AFIC or ARGO (buy AFIC on the Australian Stock Exchange under the code AFI) and turn on the DRP (Dividend Reinvestment Program)
- invest the remaining in other high quality shares that are trading at a discount, think: Woolworths (WOW), ANZ (ANZ) and Rio Tinto (RIO)

I've been subscribing to the Barefoot subscription service since January and I'll definitely renew my subscription for next year.

^^All a long term strategy. Won't get you MEGA-RICH. But will lead you to a very comfortable life without ever needing to worry about money.

 

[Long Live HFC]

good advice, but a complete novice could use a bit of help with some of the terms i would suspect, such as the differences between LiCs and ETFs (argo is actually a LiC but i've never really examined the difference) etc.

for my 2c, $70K is a lot of money (for me at least!) so if you're going the sharemarket route, make sure you have the correct temperament. ie could you cope with "losing", say, 10% of your invesment in a short amount of time? i am currently sitting on an 8% loss with ARG for example. i'm not worried though as i don't need the cash and am looking at a 5-10 year timeframe if not longer.

if you're looking longer term, don't need to pull any money out for emergencies and won't feel the urge to panic sell, then shares are a good option. and as superfraser suggested, i hear great things about the barefoot investor.

 

[Deliverance]

So I have saved up a decent amount of money over the past couple of years (approximately $70k) and it is all sitting in a savings account acquiring bugger all interest.

I feel as though I should start becoming a little smarter with my money but the problem is I know next to nothing about what to do. I don't think I am in a position to purchase a property and deal with a mortgage, which leaves the share market.

Is this a good option? Are there any good resources online that can elaborate in layman's terms some good advice on the share market?

Load up on the next few days.