You're not trading FX for a living. You are eeking out an existence, and currently drawing your account down very rapidly. With $500 rent, you're living expenses must be a little over $1000 in total. This is no way to live. Been there. Done that. My rent is $1200 and my overall living expense are about $2800/mnth, and I save about $1000/mnth. I have zero overall losses in my trading career over a period of over two years. I am ahead. What I am doing is very ccorrect for myself, my wife and my baby. I am gradually building up savings while supporting my family. Now take your judgement and buzz off.
$1000/mnth is not going to the bucketshop. In fact in 2013 a grand total of $1000 has gone to the bucket shop, and the bucketshop still has that same $1000. In the meantime, $8000 in saving and profits have been transferred into long term investments. At my age, I can be in about 75% equity/25% cash. I chose cash not gics/bonds etc. because I need it available for emergencies given that I have a wife and baby. The shelter for forex trading profits does exist indirectly. In Canada it is considered a capital gain. 50% taxable. Losses offset gains.
when I started getting on my feet trading ES, they invented amazon.com and finally I could buy all those trading books that use to be advertised at $320 in Barrons. And then congress let me declare myself as a "professional trader" and write them off at one time I had a world class library of trading books some kid who gets born in the small town where I traded can now get them all for free from the local library now I just file as "unemployed". I always have a little hanky panky going on and I don't need to send up any red flags by filing as a trader just to write off my direct tv bill
I'm sorry, is it my turn now? That was kind of a weak return we are talking about full time forex trading not putting a little of your paycheck from the dayjob into the bucket shop each month
Your turn? Oldtime, you're eeking out an existance barely while losing your money. Lets see: up 60% last year and down 30% this year. Now, let's adjust that to account for the "ET Effect". So actually, you were up 20% last year and you're down 50% this year, right? Now, I'm out 6 days a week, trying to earn a decent living, setting aside a little of that to try and advance my trading skills while taking a little extra income which I save! Go take a long hard look in that mirror, my friiend; you're in no position to be judging me.
when I lost my mind, I just went 50/50 bonds and stocks when I finally came to I figured as long as I could make 6% off that I would be ok But I never anticipated rates would fall this low now I am looking at 4% I was too young to retire and wanted to trade again after failing at wheat corn and beans and energy I found a home in forex keep in mind, the bar for me is very low all I have to do is beat the long bond
Oldtime, you moved into forex while losing on something else. Now, you're losing on forex. I think a little self-evaluation is in order. Beat the long bond? As you lose your money, the demand on what remains increases exponentially. Be careful my friend, if beating the long bond is only paying you $1000/mnth, then you have very little saved and will find yourself in trouble very quickly.
up 68% as of dec 31 2012 and up 78% a few days before that but that trade was a real bitch and ended up down I held over the New Year goddamn what are you, an accountant? When I found out you could trade at ib without a security token I signed up, so it is a real pain to find the card in my dresser and read the numbers, just to find out what my actual return is I kind of already know it at anyrate, except for some income I take from a bond fund to cover mom's in home healthcare, I pay all my bills from forex.