What could go wrong with that???
I'd love to hear your views, dear friends!
I am clueless, dear Betty, and am too poor to do anything. But, I love to read about all this stuff.
If I had any spare CASH, I would be buying (and taking personal possession of) silver coins, in various sizes. Probably what is commonly called “junk” silver, which you can buy in bags.
Obviously, you need to keep “fiat” paper on hand to pay bills, etc., but the rest - something that has true value.
vtinx 70%
vwinx 20%
vbilx 10%
What could go wrong with all cash?
One word; inflation.
If I could I’d do some metals; however all my assets are in a 401k which does not have that option....
>>I’m going ALL CASH by year’s end???
What could go wrong with that???
I’d love to hear your views, dear friends!<<
If by that you mean precious metals, you probably have a good plan. But, as always, diversify.
Just cash and bonds aren’t making squat.
Pay off all debts, such as your home mortgage and credit card debt. This has a guaranteed rate of return equal to the interest rate you were paying.
You could diversify by buying nearby real estate to rent out. Real estate prices I expect will plunge in January when the Medicare surtax and higher income taxes kick in.
Stocking up has some value. A cache of canned meat, bottled water and valuable trade goods that you too will consume is invaluable, since it is both a form of savings and protection against disaster.
I know people investing in lead (bullets / guns), but I don’t know if that is a bubble about to burst.
in a total economic collapse the most valuable commodity will be ammunition, not food, not gold, not guns , not nothing else.
the police will not be any help and civilization will disentegrate into chaos
What could go wrong with that???
Investment-wise, seems to me we baby boomers will make certain businesses solid for the next 20-30 years: retirement homes, assisted living homes, skilled nursing facilities and funeral homes.
I’m buying me a ‘Brown Coat’.
Ten years ago, in addition to our home, we had about 50% of our savings in stocks, 40% in money markets and other bank accounts, and 10% in precious metals. Today we have purchased a small piece of farmland with some of those funds (representing 20% of our savings), we have 10% in stocks (in IRAs), 20% in money market funds, and the remainder (about 50%) in precious metals -- gold, silver and platinum. Years ago, I would have thought that allocation foolish, even radical. I no longer do.
The mere fact that the Dow is at roughly the same level that it was five years ago, before the economic meltdown, and before the amassing of the Obama administration’s trillions in additional debt, the fact that the tax climate for business and manufacturing is more bearish than it has been in decades, and the fact that our energy and natural resource sectors are being handcuffed by regulation, tells me that being in the market at all at this point is very dangerous. The ‘irrational exuberance’ of several years ago was nothing compared to the unrealistic levels of the markets today.
In addition, we are spending some of our savings in order to become more 'independent'. We upgraded our generator system, installed another 1,000 gallon underground propane tank, installed a hand pump on our well, installed a wood-burning stove in the basement, and, this spring, will be installing a geo-thermal heating/cooling system.
In addition to protecting one's life savings, we believe it is also important to become as 'independent' as possible as regards energy and natural resource allocation.
When we sit on our porch and look at our home and land, and consider the forty-plus years we have worked and sacrificed, it angers us more than words can describe to realize that our own government covets all that we have sacrificed to attain, and they not only seek to confiscate much of it, but they also believe they have the moral right to force us to share it with others whom they (not we) deem to be deserving to benefit from the fruits of our lifetime of labor.
Most conservatives feel the same way -- and I am sure there are many others who will be hit much harder than we. The bottom line is that the evil that is represented by this government is unprecedented in the history of our republic. And the fact that that evil is sending good, decent, hard working patriots scrambling in order to be able to hang onto at least a portion of the material results of a lifetime of honest work is despicable beyond description.
Best to you and yours, dear betty. There are troubling times ahead ...
~ joanie