My Plan for $10k

Why not use that 10K for futures (contract or option) and use the leavrage? unless you are afraid :eek: lol

 

If I were you and were to use your strategy I'd go with 5 stocks @ 2K each.

 

I'd opt out and trade the "mini FX market".

You can manage risk like trading 100 shares of stock.
Not much on the capital gains side.
Great tool to learn how to trade without getting your face completely ripped off.

And if you loose all of your money I can lend you some more capital.

 

It seems to me like you are splitting up your funds for the purpose of diversification. While that isn't necessarily a bad thing with larger amounts of money, I think you'll find that commissions will kill you if you are only trading $1K or so per stock (unless you have a very, very cheap broker).

I you are concerned about diversification, why not just trade ETFs?

 

No you didn't....quit kissing arse!

 

Absolute, I second RJ's opinion. I was going to write it myself but found his post first.

My father has an IRA account that he had with FolioFN, which is great broker for long-term investing. Great customer service, etc. But if you're trading that often, a broker like Interactive Brokers makes a lot of sense. No "inactivity fees" and commissions through the floor.

 

Why not just buy 1/3 spy, 1/3 dia, and 1/3 qqqq ?

 

This is terrible advice. The majority of financial advisors/brokers are clueless. I know this b/c I worked at MER and MWD and believe me, the only skill set they care about is sales ability.

And the advice to put it all in one stock like GOOG , only an idiot would do that.

Breaking $10,000 into 10 or so stocks is reasonable..but I think it really comes down to your money/risk management. Have a set of rules and risk/reward ratio and stick to it. In other words, have a plan.

 

Enjoy yourself! Get off the sidelines and enjoy your investment experiment. Take the time to study your stocks. Plan your moves to the best of your ability, choose your stocks and fire away. If nothing more than getting the experience of being self-responsible with this portfolio, you'll do fine.

I doubt very seriously you'll have to worry too much about cap gains taxes just yet. If you find that becomes an issue with your current investment capital, you've done quite well. Good Luck and good hunting!

 

Hi DCAMan,

A couple of questions after seeing your spreadsheet, as I have no experience in investing in Canadian energy trusts.

--From the calculation in your sheet, the dividend is distributed monthly?

--15% of dividend is automatically withheld to pay to Canadian tax authority and the rest is reinvested in the form of additional shares? Could you take cash payment instead of fractional shares (it is such a headache to calculate the cost basis of the shares bought when accumulated steadily over time on fractional share purchases)?

--It is good for IRA accounts as there are no tax on dividends. So in IRA accounts, is it also tax exempt from Canadian tax authority?

Thanks very much for sharing.

Opra