12 Comments

  1. Great story! I personally believe timing the market cannot be done with skill, only with luck. There will be winners, just as there are winners in the lottery or in blackjack. But it is simply gambling and bad gambling at that, since the odds are against you.

    In 2014, I will make it a small goal to learn more about a self-directed IRA. I’m curious, though I’m a pretty boring investor and just stick to index funds. I’m not sure I’d get a lot out of this other IRA.

    • Jim says:

      Hey Done by, nothing wrong with index funds, they are pretty safe. In fact after writing this post I have reflected on the fact that since I have virtually been out of the market these last couple years, I have missed out on some pretty substantial gains. Guess it could have been the opposite though, maybe at some point I will wade back into wall street products.

      • I have the same thoughts, Jim. We threw about $100k at our mortgage between 2010 and 2013 instead of putting into the markets. We missed out on a lot of gains during that time.

        Opportunity costs are inevitable, I figure. You can’t always put your money in what, in retrospect, was the optimal place. I love your advice to buy what you know or, at least, what you understand.

        • Jim says:

          Thanks Done By, well at least you paid your mortgage down, so when you pay it off 10-15 years early the capital you would have spent on a mortgage can be invested. Hopefully then, the market will have corrected and you can perhaps find some bargains, cause right now there are none!

  2. Way to kick it on the mortgage, DB40!!! I”m with you guys – trying to time the market is a key to financial failure, IMHO. When we pay off the debt a bit more, we’re sticking with index funds and dividend funds that feature “what we know” companies. Our tummies, too, are way too sensitive to lose too much in the market. 🙂

  3. Buying penny stocks and then timing their purchase and sale is not my cup of tea. I lost plenty of money thinking I could time the market back in 2000. It took quite a few years to repair the damage I did to our portfolio. I am very happy with the returns we now get from low-cost passive index fund investing.

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