I was down a lot more than that but used the opportunity to take some paper losses, consolidate those several funds and IRAs under the umbrella of one company, and reinvest all the proceeds in just a few funds and carry on.
We're far better off for it, even being retired, with our net worth being the best it's ever been, (until the last day or two), and no debt.
The message being that it is important to stay disciplined and not allow fear to rule one's decision making.
There's nothing civil about this war.
That's the only way to invest in the market. I was always a buyer, never a seller. Well, actually I did sell some one time to put an addition on our house but that money was invested in our house which we still own so I really never sold, just moved the investment into long term real estate.
I'm now pulling money out as the IRS says I have to. They want the income tax on it before I just give it away to a relative and dodge the inheritance tax.
Cost averaging is the way to go. Don't get spooked by a market crash. If you never sell anything it's just a paper loss and the market always manages to recover. Seen two crashes myself. Scares the hell out of young people.
In the P-F basket of deplorables.
Is it all over reaction, appropriate reaction . . . or something else . . . here is Rush's take on it:
RUSH: Folks, this coronavirus thing, I want to try to put this in perspective for you. It looks like the coronavirus is being weaponized as yet another element to bring down Donald Trump. Now, I want to tell you the truth about the coronavirus. (interruption) You think I’m wrong about this? You think I’m missing it by saying that’s… (interruption) Yeah, I’m dead right on this. The coronavirus is the common cold, folks.
. . .
But the way it’s being used… I believe the way it’s being weaponized is by virtue of the media, and I think that it is an effort to bring down Trump, and one of the ways it’s being used to do this is to scare the investors, to scare people in business. It’s to scare people into not buying Treasury bills at auctions. It’s to scare people into leaving, cashing out of the stock market — and sure enough, as the show began today, the stock market — the Dow Jones Industrial Average — was down about 900 points, supposedly because of the latest news about the spread of the coronavirus. end quote
Just for clarify, I'm being sarcastic but those are Rush's words. I am no fan of his.
“Remember, being healthy is basically just dying as slowly as possible,” Ricky Gervais
Nor am I and I think, of course, that he's just bloviating his usual swill.
The main thing, in my view, for those who fear the markets, is to filter out all the "this time it's different" noise.
Yes, it hurts to watch your investment portfolio drop in value. It's also nice to watch it rise back up even stronger over time. If you need the money in a relatively short period, the market is not the place for those funds. That's what certificates of deposit and bonds are for.
If you're approaching or in retirement, then it may make sense for you to adjust your exposure to equities and up the cash and bonds portion of your portfolio. It's not rocket science but it does take a steady hand on the tiller.
Last edited by blues; 02-25-2020 at 12:59 PM.
There's nothing civil about this war.
That's pretty damn funny, I mean Rush calling it a media stunt to trash Trump's chances. The markets actually operate independently of MSM. The real reason for crashes is programed stop loss sell orders. Guaranteed to sell at a loss or limit ones gains never made a lot of sense to me.
In the P-F basket of deplorables.
I checked the market, and now it’s down over 500points, still,IMO a correction..but if Friday rolls around and we’re still loosing 500-1000points a day, I’d say at that point we’re in meltdown mode..This is the price you pay for depending on one country for all your manufacturing needs, and nobody has a plan “B”..