# Investing Tips



## cazetofamo (Mar 18, 2012)

Im about to start investing in silver in order to build up my college funds. Dont worry, ill keep at least half of all silver i buy incase SHTF but the other half, i intend to sell. Does anyone have any pointers for investing?? Also, im planning on getting mostly half and quarter ounce coins. Just had to throw that last bit in...


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

I think that investing in PM is a a great thing be it for TEOTWAWKI or for retirement. How you go about investing is as personal as the soap you use in the shower.

Because of my budget and PM is not on the top of my list of preps I buy a little at a time and stick to junk silver. I'd love to drop a grand on silver rounds and bars but I see food and clothes for Roo as more important.

Buying PM can be addicting so watch your wallet.


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## cazetofamo (Mar 18, 2012)

Im only fifteen, so my parents will be monitoring my spending. And i use irish spring body wash, just sayin...


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

cazetofamo said:


> Im only fifteen, so my parents will be monitoring my spending. And i use irish spring body wash, just sayin...


LOL! Either way...

Maybe ask family to gift you with silver eagles for holidays and birthdays.


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## cazetofamo (Mar 18, 2012)

Grimm said:


> LOL! Either way...
> 
> Maybe ask family to gift you with silver eagles for holidays and birthdays.


Genius!!!!!!!!!!! will definitely do that!!!!!!


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

cazetofamo said:


> Genius!!!!!!!!!!! will definitely do that!!!!!!


OT But Roo is named after the Dr.'s wife.


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## cazetofamo (Mar 18, 2012)

Doctor Who???


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

cazetofamo said:


> Doctor Who???


Just the Doctor.


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## cazetofamo (Mar 18, 2012)

She's named after River Song???


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

cazetofamo said:


> She's named after River Song???


Bingo. And River Tam from Firefly.


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## cazetofamo (Mar 18, 2012)

That's amazing. For that, i love you!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

Most people think she's named after River Phoenix. 

Not that I don't like what little acting he did but I named my daughter after 2 bada** scifi chicks!


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## cazetofamo (Mar 18, 2012)

yes, yes you did


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## Marcus (May 13, 2012)

Given the differing premiums for bars and junk bags, I suggest going with the bars for now since the premium is half of what it is on the pre-64 silver coin bags.


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## cazetofamo (Mar 18, 2012)

i might try that, but i may just go with silver eagles and what not.


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## partdeux (Aug 3, 2011)

could be fun to start collecting silver eagles for for every year you're alive


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## Immolatus (Feb 20, 2011)

First off, dont take any investment advice from random internet nutjobs like us!
That said, heres my advice.
On one hand I'm partial to ASE's even if I think theyre overpriced for the purpose of just buying silver. They are denominated in our own currency and easily recognizable. The same could be said for junk, even if they are not as recognizable for what they are by the average person, which is irrelevant for investing but important for prepping. They carry a premium for a reason, and that premium should always be there (discounting collapse. huh?) and theoretically would grow as they get older if you could keep them for 50 years.
That said, for pure investment purposes, why pay a premium at all? Buy the cheapest silver you can, which should be rounds and junk. The problem with buying in small amounts is that you get screwed by fees, whether its shipping, taxes, whatever. In MD you have to buy over a certain amount to get around paying sales tax. If you are subject to this kind of mess then its worth saving up to get around this, but since the price is always changing you are risking paying more later on, but you could also be paying less. If you are planning this for the long term, then this would be the way to go about it as long as there is no collapse and you are left out in the cold.
Good luck!
Find your local store if you have one, and talk to them about the tax situation. If there isnt one (a tax situation) then buy when you can. If you dont have a local store then do the same thing, because youre paying the shipping no matter what.


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## cazetofamo (Mar 18, 2012)

Yea, im gonna be using this silver for both prepping and investment. There are a couple shops local, so ill look into those


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## Cabowabo (Nov 6, 2012)

cazetofamo said:


> Im about to start investing in silver in order to build up my college funds. Dont worry, ill keep at least half of all silver i buy incase SHTF but the other half, i intend to sell. Does anyone have any pointers for investing?? Also, im planning on getting mostly half and quarter ounce coins. Just had to throw that last bit in...


1) My suggestion is to avoid PM's for college saving. If you want to buy a little silver occasionally then that's your choice but I personally wouldn't use it for my college saving. 
2) I'd start listening to Dave Ramsey (http://www.daveramsey.com/home/) He has a radio show on money. But he talks about the old fashioned way of handling money, something most here probably do anyway.
3) Go to Community College before heading to a 4 year school. You can save money by going there, credit hours are cheaper, and you can get the basics done.
4) Consider whether you are really ready for college. Its something you won't know for sure until your there. But most people just aren't ready to go to school right after high school. They aren't used to living without mommy and daddy telling them what to do. That's why the college drop out rate is so high.
4A) If you aren't ready for college and you discover that when you get there, or you realize that before. I might recommend a 4 year hitch with the military. Anything less than 3 and you don't get the GI Bill (Free School). You learn a skill, discipline, have the opportunity to save plenty of money , and you'll understand what Freedom really cost. Another plus is that you'll meet people from across the United States, I can go to England, or Germany, Italy, Most states in the United States and know someone that I can call and be like hey I'm going to be in town on X date can I camp in your living room or do you wanna hang. 
5) Start knocking out credits in high school. By taking AP classes and studying and taking the AP test at the end of the year you can knock out needed basic credit hours while your in high school.

I'm gonna close by saying if your serious about saving and investing for school. Don't combine school saving with prepping. :eyebulge: Consider that when you may be buying Silver when its at a high, and when you need it you may be selling it at a low because you'll need it for school. Consider all methods of avoiding debt to get your degree. Working while your in school won't kill ya. And if you work a part time job, you should be able to cash flow paying for school.

thats my .02 take it or leave it.


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## partdeux (Aug 3, 2011)

Cabowabo said:


> Consider all methods of avoiding debt to get your degree. Working while your in school won't kill ya. And if you work a part time job, you should be able to cash flow paying for school.


Kind of hard to avoid debt at school, BUT, many kids are not being smart about how much debt they are taking on, and even better getting totally useless degrees.


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## ras1219como (Jan 15, 2013)

Also do as well as you can with your studies now. Good grades and test scores (although test scores aren't everything) could mean a good scholarship or even multiple scholarships. Also try getting a job at the school you choose. My last couple years in school I worked full time as a campus security guard and got free tuition. Many schools have programs where employees get discounted or free tuition. It can drastically reduce your overall costs. I left with a BS degree and under 4,000 in loans....way way less than the national average.


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## invision (Aug 14, 2012)

I am one of the odd balls mentioned in a previous post.

1) PMs for preps, PMs not for investing for college. PMs are a commodities and thus are only a hedge against inflation, however the can be extremely volatile. So find another savings device for you college fund. Making your money work for you will be hard, but I am going to go more traditional safe ways - educational IRAs or even CDs... 

2) if your not in AP classes, do what ever it takes to get in them. My daughter is going into high school next year. She has never been in advanced classes - but this year in 8th grade she woke up and in her own opinion anything lower than an A is not acceptable. Her last quarter of 8th grade, 1- grade 89 and rest in the 90s... Going into high school she will be in Spanish 2, Honors Math, Honors Science, and taking an Engineering Track. By her Senior year - she will have her first year of college credits for Math, Science, Spanish, and her engineering track counts some how at both Georgia and Georgia Tech...

3) if your not good enough to get a sports scholarship - and don't worry many aren't. Look at scholarships now. There are thousands out there... Knowing what some qualifications are now can give you time to qualify.

4) practice those entrance tests... 

Now, I also like the comment about military...

But also realize something, college is a way for most people to get ahead - several like my wife and I go and we both quit for a variety of reasons (I was bored and couldn't stand it) - even without the paper you can become successful financially - it is very hard to do, but it can be done. So if you do go, be smart - work your butt off, get the best grades possible, and choose a major that will have a future... Not something like historical underwater basket weaving in the 14th century studies.


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## cazetofamo (Mar 18, 2012)

Don't worry, everybody. I am in AP classes, i already have a couple scholarships down, have a college fund that ive been adding to since i was born. Im gonna put fifty or sixty dollors of what ive earned working this summer and thats all the money i ever plan on investing in this (til im legally an adult and can do with my money as i wish, don't worry i wont waste much of it) anyway, what i buy with that, when silver prices increase, i will sell it and wait for them to decrease, and buy more. I will do this until i am getting about 20 oz at a time ( once o get past ten at a time i will keep one more from each. Unch i buy and add that to the prep pile. Anyway, once i hit 20 or so at a te, all profits will go to college fund. If it doesnt work, i only lost like, fifty dollars (technically speeking) as opposed to 500+ dollars. Ive put some thought into it. Some people invest as a living, why don't i do it as a hobby? And commodities are more stable than buisinesses. They can't go out of buisiness.


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## invision (Aug 14, 2012)

cazetofamo said:


> Don't worry, everybody. I am in AP classes, i already have a couple scholarships down, have a college fund that ive been adding to since i was born. Im gonna put fifty or sixty dollors of what ive earned working this summer and thats all the money i ever plan on investing in this (til im legally an adult and can do with my money as i wish, don't worry i wont waste much of it) anyway, what i buy with that, when silver prices increase, i will sell it and wait for them to decrease, and buy more. I will do this until i am getting about 20 oz at a time ( once o get past ten at a time i will keep one more from each. Unch i buy and add that to the prep pile. Anyway, once i hit 20 or so at a te, all profits will go to college fund. If it doesnt work, i only lost like, fifty dollars (technically speeking) as opposed to 500+ dollars. Ive put some thought into it. Some people invest as a living, why don't i do it as a hobby? And commodities are more stable than buisinesses. They can't go out of buisiness.


It's true business can go out of business, but as you get older you need to invest broader than just PMs. There are a lot of strong business in the equity world that pay very good dividends and thus your making money on them without having to buy/sell all the time.

Additionally, I like your plan, however, if you look at silver last 3 days it is down 40 cents, yes over a longer period of time it is up down and very volatile - down from almost $28 in last 60 days... Last 6 months even more... So where is it going over the next 3, 30, 60 days? Will it suddenly zoom up +3 or down -3... What you buy today at $22.35 maybe $17 in 60 days... So theoretically there maybe more risk factors in your short term buy/sell plan than you think.

I buy for long term hold, as a hedge against inflation and for prepping. Also, as stated on here before, I can't play in the markets because I have clients (own my own consulting firm) who can dictated a buy or sell order, and when there is more than one client it is a pain to get them all to agree...

$50 or $60 will get you 1-2 ASEs depending upon where you buy - based on current spot price.

If this was a few years ago, I would say throw $500 into a year CD when they were actually earning a decent %, unfortunately though today a 1 yr CD at $500 will earn you maybe $9 over the year... This is due to the fed reserve keeping interest rates low on purpose to drive people to the equities market.

Glad to hear your AP class work, keep up the good work.


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

Congrats on the AP classes. Remember colleges like to see activities on your application on top of your advanced class load and beautiful GPA. They want to see you can maintain the grades while being social. It shows you can be "normal" and not volcano of stress waiting to explode. 

Not sure what activities you are involved in. You mentioned 4H in another thread which is a good start but look in to other activities like art club or the school newspaper.


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## Cabowabo (Nov 6, 2012)

cazetofamo said:


> Don't worry, everybody. I am in AP classes, i already have a couple scholarships down, have a college fund that ive been adding to since i was born. Im gonna put fifty or sixty dollors of what ive earned working this summer and thats all the money i ever plan on investing in this (til im legally an adult and can do with my money as i wish, don't worry i wont waste much of it) anyway, what i buy with that, when silver prices increase, i will sell it and wait for them to decrease, and buy more. I will do this until i am getting about 20 oz at a time ( once o get past ten at a time i will keep one more from each. Unch i buy and add that to the prep pile. Anyway, once i hit 20 or so at a te, all profits will go to college fund. If it doesnt work, i only lost like, fifty dollars (technically speeking) as opposed to 500+ dollars. Ive put some thought into it. Some people invest as a living, why don't i do it as a hobby? And commodities are more stable than buisinesses. They can't go out of buisiness.


Listen man you need to start spelling and using grammar correctly. If your in AP classes their is no reason for miss spelling Dollars, Speaking, and forgetting apostrophes.

I'd also keep in mind that you can't sell commodities like you can stocks. The person you sell to will buy wholesale, and they will sell at retail. So to make money on it you would have to wait for a very large swing in the upward direction. If your trying to play the market read 
The Money answer book by Dave Ramsey
Stop Acting Rich by Thomas J. Stanley
Use the News by Maria Bartiromo
How to Ruin your Financial Life by Ben Stein

As far as investing goes. You need to have a tough gut for watching it go up and down. I put my first thousand dollars into a mutual fund when I was 18 years old early summer of 2008. In the Fall I watched it drop from $1000 to $750 in mutual funds. The interesting thing is a year later it came back and I hadn't lost a dime. You need to realize that their is paper losses and then their are real losses. If you take your money out because your scared when the market drops those are real losses. But if you keep your money in and ride it out those are just paper losses.

Again I wouldn't use PM for short term investing like that. I personally don't own any Precious Metals. But I'm considering buying some Junk Silver as a hedge, and put it in a safe and that's it. And it won't be much silver at that maybe $50-60 face value when I do it. But If your saving for something in less than 5 years, a savings account. You won't make any money but its not a long term savings goal either. If its longer then 5 years Mutual Fund is where I would put my money. I don't try to play the market. Right now I'm not doing any investing, but I'm trying to meet short term goals. Truck, Large down payment on a house/piece of land.

Precious Metals aren't an investment. Investments if they are good ones make money. Precious metals are a hedge against inflation. Investments are Roth IRA's, Mutual Funds, Stocks, Bonds. Though I wouldn't play the Bond market, and if you have the stomach for Stocks more power to you. Personally again I have both a Roth and a Mutual fund. Their are benefits to both one long term one shorter term.

Now If you don't believe me fine, but compare what a Good Growth Stock Mutual Fund has traditionally made which is about 12% a year compared to Silver or Gold. Mutual Funds are an investment Silver isn't. Silver is a hedge only. Don't play commodities.

.02 take it or leave it. But Good luck.


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## cqp33 (Apr 2, 2012)

All great advice, someone here mentioned thinking about the military for a 4 year hitch to pay for your college!

I am getting ready to retire this summer from the US Navy after 20 years. I am 38 years old and will draw a retirement check around $2,000 a year for the rest of my life starting the month after I retire, not bad! 

Now onto college for military! Look at "Post 9/11 GI Bill" what an awesome program! You get paid BAH (Basic Allowance for Housing) for the area you are going to school in, along with your tuition being paid up to a certain amount. Also while you are in the Navy has what is called "TA" (Tuition Assistance), I have used this over the years to take classes and the only thing that wasn't covered under TA was books which you can find used for cheap. So you could go to school while you are in and knock out the basics (Math,english, etc..) and then use your Post 9/11 GI Bill for anything else you want too. I have watched a lot of young sailors use this and make out big time, good for them too! You will also learn self discipline, learn a skill and travel too! All bonuses! Most young adults that go to college right out of high school end up paying a college bill for 10 years, the military asks for 4 years of service to get this benefit, not a bad trade off!

Good luck to you!


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## ras1219como (Jan 15, 2013)

Well said Cabo. Everything Cabo said is correct. And on a side note work on building your credit once you hit 18. No credit is just as bad a low credit score. And in today's society it's important to have credit. True it won't matter post SHTF but you should still build it up.


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## invision (Aug 14, 2012)

I want to give ya some praise... From the sounds of it your 15 or 16 and your already thinking about the future - not only being prepared, but also looking forward to your future - aka college, a professional life.

Your also not smarting off like some of the wanna be mall ninjas who have shown up too. There is a lot of good people on here, sometimes we all don't agree, but we do all have one thing in common and that is the drive to be prepared - whether it is from surviving a natural disaster or something more long term. Keep taking the advice from everyone on here, keep learning, and keep pushing yourself.

Glad to see you on here, and wish more your age would be as responsible as you seem!


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## beckham2592 (Jun 4, 2013)

So I just got this app and this will be the first thing I write on here, so I hope I don't sound like a complete moron. First of all, thinking about your immediate and long term future already at your age is awesome-good job! Second, being in my mid-30's and going through this investing long term and short term thing, the advice you are getting on here is great. Investing in PM's is a great thing, but as noted, not the best option for short term investing or saving for college. Playing the market is the starriest thing in the world, but if you're smart and look at companies and their history, would be the best option for short term investment and building a flow for college. I collect in silver also. American eagles are great and for silver value are probably a good bet. I also buy into silver dollars (peace and Morgan's). eBay is a great place to go for buying and selling of these. Just beware of the frauds and to good to be true deals. Good luck in your endeavors.


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## cazetofamo (Mar 18, 2012)

Thank you all for your help and support over this past year+. I really appreciate all you have taught me and shown me. You guys rock!!!!!!!


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