what should i do ( have roth but want to do more stocks)

Quote from bowlofturtle : It seems that since all the stocks are at a all time low it would be nice to jump in the market.

Where are you getting this info? Not true at all.

Quote : Currently i can afford to throw away $5k in the market. I say throw away because this is money i can afford to lose. With $5k i would probably play 2-3 well known stocks and hope they dont burn me.

Go to Vegas. Better odds, free cocktails and plenty of better ways to "throw it away."

For your 401K: If you employeer matches, than only invest that matched amount.

I'd be putting $0 in your ROTH right now. You're better off holding a sizable position of your wealth in something outside the banking system. Pick the hard asset of your choice based on your own risk and timeline. I'm talking land, gold, guns or any other valued resource that's wholly owned by you and only you.

Just an FYI: I sold every equity I owned (some I've had for 10-15 years) right around the Bin Liden peak including everything in my retirement accounts. This, of course, against the "advice" of my FA and every other jackass on CNBC. I've since cashed out one account and plan to cash out another by the end of the year.

Penny stocks are a complete gamble, you probably are better off just going to vegas.

That is a good strategy for your 401K

You are already maxed out on your Roth so forget that, and don't move it over to stocks. You should stay diversified into stable funds and stocks, if you do it right when big drops happen (like last month) you won't get hit as hard. Even after that big drop I am still up 12% this year because I am diversified.

Start a new stock account if you have specific stocks you want to own (assuming you did your research on them). It all depends on what you are aiming for, are you looking for stable gains over several years? If so, invest in some good dividend stocks. If you want something more exciting invest in other stocks, or one of those stocks and one dividend stock.

Taxes would work depending on when you bought and sold the stock (not including IRA accounts). First it depends on when you sell it. If you sell december 31st, 2011 it falls under your 2011 taxes, if you sold on Jan 1 2012 it would fall under 2012 (no matter when you bought it). If you own a stock longer than a year any gains are taxed lower than if you held it less than a year.

Check out sites like www.moneychimp.com or do a search for stocks and there are a ton of threads on basic investing information.

Employer match is up to 6%, how long does it take to vest. Everyone leaves out this detail it seems. Important because if you aren't going to hang around there very long, no point ot assume you'll see any of that match.

As for $5k you can blow, go on a cool vacation and take a book with you to learn about investing.

An IRA is more of an invest-and-forget plan. Stocks require a bit more effort than mutual funds. Just stick with them.

Quote from wes : An IRA is more of an invest-and-forget plan. Stocks require a bit more effort than mutual funds. Just stick with them.

This is just wrong. Anyone who is somewhat in touch with whats going on at a macro scale would realize that invest-and-forget is no longer an investment strategy. It never really was because asset allocation is so important, but if you try it today, you will get raped by the market. I am sort a follower of the efficient market hypothesis, but I think asset allocation (stocks/bonds/REITS/etc) is going to become even more important in the future. Mutual funds definitely have their place, but I honestly think the market is becoming a more volatile arena, and switching in and out of mutual funds shouldn't be used as a strategy. Therefore, I'd say if you're genna pay due diligence to the economy and what's going on in the market then go for individual stocks. My stock picks have easily outperformed my 2050 Retirement fund (with the exception of JASO). What ever you do, don't succumb to fear (especially if you are investing long term). Buy low, sell high.

Quote from CheapinNY : This is just wrong. Anyone who is somewhat in touch with whats going on at a macro scale would realize that invest-and-forget is no longer an investment strategy. It never really was because asset allocation is so important, but if you try it today, you will get raped by the market. I am sort a follower of the efficient market hypothesis, but I think asset allocation (stocks/bonds/REITS/etc) is going to become even more important in the future. Mutual funds definitely have their place, but I honestly think the market is becoming a more volatile arena, and switching in and out of mutual funds shouldn't be used as a strategy. Therefore, I'd say if you're genna pay due diligence to the economy and what's going on in the market then go for individual stocks. My stock picks have easily outperformed my 2050 Retirement fund (with the exception of JASO). What ever you do, don't succumb to fear (especially if you are investing long term). Buy low, sell high.

It is not wrong (the set-it-and-forget-it part). There are some brilliant set-it-and-forget-it choices available in today's market. Choices that didn't even exist 20 years ago. And those choices are target-date retirement funds. You set-it-and-forget-it, meanwhile, a whole team of professionals manages the allocation of your fund and adjusts it as the market changes and as time moves forward.

I don't know how long you've been investing and how much money you have invested. With that said, investing over a relatively short period of time (less than 10 years) with a relatively small amount of money (less than $100,000) is one thing, but successfully investing over the long haul, for 30, 40, 50, and 60+ years with $500,000, $1,000,000, $2,000,000, and $5,000,000+ is a completely different thing.

The vast majority of professionals who have done what you're talking about (buying/selling individual stocks) for 10, 20, and 30 years of their lives and who do what you're talking about every single day of their lives still can't beat a well diversified mix of index funds over the long haul. Anything is possible in the short term (and we love to brag about the positive short term results), but it's the long term that matters. Also, the longer we do it for and the more money we do it with, the more impactful the consequences of our strategy are to us.

Making mistakes with $10,000 is completely different than making mistakes with $1,000,000+. Of course, the opposite is also true: making wins with $1,000,000+ is completely different than making wins with $10,000.

The problem is, the odds of winning consistently enough over time are much lower with individual stocks than with a well diversified mix of index funds.

bowlofturtle, I'd keep doing what you're doing [401(k) with match and maxing out Roth IRA] then take the rest you have available and put it in either your 401(k) up to the max or consider investment properties or both.

Don't confuse activity with effectiveness.

Quote from Brian1 : It is not wrong (the set-it-and-forget-it part). There are some brilliant set-it-and-forget-it choices available in today's market. Choices that didn't even exist 20 years ago. And those choices are target-date retirement funds. You set-it-and-forget-it, meanwhile, a whole team of professionals manages the allocation of your fund and adjusts it as the market changes and as time moves forward. I don't know how long you've been investing and how much money you have invested. With that said, investing over a relatively short period of time (less than 10 years) with a relatively small amount of money (less than $100,000) is one thing, but successfully investing over the long haul, for 30, 40, 50, and 60+ years with $500,000, $1,000,000, $2,000,000, and $5,000,000+ is a completely different thing. The vast majority of professionals who have done what you're talking about (buying/selling individual stocks) for 10, 20, and 30 years of their lives and who do what you're talking about every single day of their lives still can't beat a well diversified mix of index funds over the long haul. Anything is possible in the short term (and we love to brag about the positive short term results), but it's the long term that matters. Also, the longer we do it for and the more money we do it with, the more impactful the consequences of our strategy are to us. Making mistakes with $10,000 is completely different than making mistakes with $1,000,000+. Of course, the opposite is also true: making wins with $1,000,000+ is completely different than making wins with $10,000. The problem is, the odds of winning consistently enough over time are much lower with individual stocks than with a well diversified mix of index funds. bowlofturtle, I'd keep doing what you're doing [401(k) with match and maxing out Roth IRA] then take the rest you have available and put it in either your 401(k) up to the max or consider investment properties or both. Don't confuse activity with effectiveness.

Again, I have to disagree merely because of my view of the global economy. I have money in a target retirement fund, and in theory its a great investment. That being said, too many people look to the past as a guide for the future. If you're a long term investor expecting average returns of 10% a year from the stock market, then you're foolish. This is a totally different landscape. The sovereign debt levels, exacerbated by a demand driven recession, will remain a formidable obstacle to economic growth for years to come. I believe we are about to experience more than just a "lost decade."

I also think this newfound volatility is here to stay, which may favor active investing over passive. Nor do I think you can classify a target retirement fund as an active investment because its "activity" is based on a timeline, not economic movements.

That's why I personally believe that select investments (monitored relatively closely) in more defensive areas are a smarter investment decision than dropping your money in a target retirement fund and expecting long term returns like the past.

Quote from bowlofturtle : Also how would taxes work? My current understand is this. Say i bought APPL stock at $100 and i bought 10 shares for a $1000 total investment. Is APPL stock doubles to $200 in the next 8 months and i sold it like in December. I would pay the taxes for that year. I made a total of $1000 and generally should be treated like my yearly salary so 30% taken away. Which means a total of $700 profit after taxes, minus trading fees and excluding possible dividends. This is more of a general understanding not an exact detail.

To answer this question, the gain on the sale of stock would be taxable in the year they are sold.

If the stock is held for less than a year (short term), any gain is taxed as ordinary income and would vary depending on what your marginal tax rate is. However, if you held the stock for more than one year (long term), the rate is 0% for any gain that falls in the 10% and 15% income tax brackets and then fixed at 15%.

Also, any overall capital loss can be deducted from your income. The maximum that can be deducted is $3K per year with any excess being carried forward and deducted in subsequent years until the loss is fully deducted.