New Year, New Financial Goals: How to Start Investing in the Stock Market (2024)

FAQs

New Year, New Financial Goals: How to Start Investing in the Stock Market? ›

To trade stocks, you need to set clear investment goals, determine how much you can invest, decide how much risk you can tolerate, pick an account at a broker that matches your trading style, fund your stock account, and start trading. Investing in stocks is a powerful way to grow your wealth over time.

If investing 15% of your income sounds like more than your budget can handle, you can start with a set dollar amount and be consistent about it. Investing even a few dollars each month can sometimes be enough to see a return if you're using the right investment strategy.

Investing can change your life for the better. But many people mistakenly think that unless they have thousands of dollars lying around, there's no good place to put their money. The good news is that's simply not the case. You can start investing with $100 or even less.

$1,000 is enough to consider some solid stock choices. If you have an extra $1,000 sitting in a savings or checking account, one of the best ways to earn a return on that money is to invest in the stock market.

The 50-30-20 rule recommends putting 50% of your money toward needs, 30% toward wants, and 20% toward savings. The savings category also includes money you will need to realize your future goals.

What are 2 things to keep in mind when you start investing money? ›

Rule No.

1 is never lose money. Rule No. 2 is never forget Rule No. 1.” The Oracle of Omaha's advice stresses the importance of avoiding loss in your portfolio.

Like Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), and Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META), Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) is among the best beginner stocks to buy this year.

A stock portfolio focused on dividends can generate $1,000 per month or more in perpetual passive income, Mircea Iosif wrote on Medium. “For example, at a 4% dividend yield, you would need a portfolio worth $300,000.

Making $4,000 a month based on your investments alone is not a small feat. For example, if you have an investment or combination of investments with a 9.5% yield, you would have to invest $500,000 or more potentially. This is a high amount, but could almost guarantee you a $4,000 monthly dividend income.

A fixed annuity typically provides a set rate of return over a determined time period. If you have a fixed annuity with a starting principal of $10,000 and a rate of 5%, you could expect to get around $100 a month for 10 years.

Focus on Blue Chip Stocks

Blue chip stocks refer to shares of large, well-established companies that have a history of performing well. Focusing your beginner portfolio on these types of stocks can provide some key advantages: Stability - Blue chip stocks tend to be less volatile than smaller companies or startups.

You can start investing with relatively small amounts of money, even $500. It is hard to buy a lot of stocks with modest amounts of cash. With as little as $500 you can buy a well-diversified portfolio with this index-based ETF.

Calculating How Much to Invest

A common rule of thumb is the 50-30-20 rule, which suggests allocating 50% of your after-tax income to essentials, 30% to discretionary spending and 20% to savings and investments. Within that 20% allocation, the portion designated for stocks depends on your risk tolerance.

Imagine you wish to amass $3000 monthly from your investments, amounting to $36,000 annually. If you park your funds in a savings account offering a 2% annual interest rate, you'd need to inject roughly $1.8 million into the account.