newbie 401k?

canam450 · 02-27-2008, 11:53 AM

ive been at ups since oct.2004.. ive been in the 401k for about a year n half now.. i just got full time jan.3 2008 and im 22years old..im taking 3% pre tax out of my check and putting 25% of that into bond market index fun, 25% into s&p 500 and 50% into bright horizon 2035. I was wondering if i should just leave it where its at and dont worry about it till i retire or change it around some..i plan on moving up to around 5 or 6 percent when i make top wages.. im pretty new at this so anything helps thanks guy

dannyboy · 02-27-2008, 02:11 PM

At your age, I would diversify, but in more agressive markets. The russel is a good choice. Also, emerging markets funds are dong pretty well and have a good track record.

At your age, you can survive a few market downturns, and still come out on top of your game. Time is on your side. And while sometimes holding on can cost you money, most times, dumping while everyone else is dumping can cost you more.

You are in this for the long term, remember that. Now, when you start getting closer to retirement, your needs will change somewhat, and your investments should reflect that.

d

Fnix · 02-27-2008, 02:32 PM

Well if it fits your budget I would put as much as possible into the 401k. You wont have free money laying around being static or spend. I am putting %10 into russell and S&P

DeputyDip · 02-27-2008, 03:02 PM

All of these are personal opinions so don't come burn our houses down when you loose a bunch of money. In my opinion, at age 22, you shouldn't be much in the bond market. Don't be afraid of stocks. Don't be afraid of a good foreign stock either. It takes a little research, but you should be able to easily (well, maybe not in today's market) get returns of 8% or better on stock funds. Bonds probably won't do you much over 4 or 5%. Again, just my opinion, but at age 22 don't be afraid of stocks. As said earlier, put as much away as you can early. You won't miss the money in your check after a while and as your pay increases, increase your savings also. Rat hole that stuff as aggressively as you can when you are young and if you are lucky you will make out good at a much earlier age.

helenofcalifornia · 02-27-2008, 03:39 PM

Good advice from the above posters. Get out of that bond market, that's for old timers ready to retire. Be more aggressive. Go for the International fund. Access the 401K web site for all their information; it will tell you what the stock has been doing for the last five years or so. And put in as much as you can, you will be amazed at how fast it grows once you have a bit in there. And don't follow the stock market too closely and get worried about it's ups and downs. You will do fine. You got all the time in the world and are asking the right questions at an early age. Good luck!

canam450 · 02-27-2008, 06:24 PM

thanks everyone..ill probably start taking 6 or 7 percent out...so the sp500 and bright horizon are alright to stay in just put the 25% of the bond into a international stock

brownmonster · 02-27-2008, 06:31 PM

I have 25% each in Intl., Midcap, Russ 2000 and SP 500. Boy I wish I could have started at 22 years old. Every time you get a raise bump up your %. By the time you are 50 you'll be fat city. BM

canam450 · 02-27-2008, 06:35 PM

how many stocks should i have in my 401k...would it hurt to have 4 and put 25% in each just like brownmonster... i have 3 now.. just wondering in the long term if having 4 will do anything

Cementups · 02-27-2008, 06:39 PM

If I were you I would stop putting my money into the Teamsters 401k. Why does everyone here keep putting their money into funds that are not matched by either the Teamsters or UPS? You have much better options taking your money to an outside source and investing in Mutual Funds and IRA's. Hook up with a financial advisor, which usually charge $0.00, and invest away.

brownmonster · 02-27-2008, 06:46 PM

Because when it comes off of your check it's easy and you can put alot more tax free in than an IRA. Did I mention it's painless when it comes right off yor check.

browniehound · 02-27-2008, 06:48 PM

My uneducated opinion:

25% in a bond fund is about 25% too much. Ok, at least 20% too much. Get out of bonds immediately. Believe it or not, they can loose money.

We are in a down market and you are 22 years old. Whatever your budget can afford put it you 401k and BUY, BUY, BUY stock funds. S&P 500, 400, Russell 2K, ect.

Have you ever seen a model on dollar cost averaging? Basically it means investing the same amount of money over a long period of time.

With dollar-cost averaging, you benefit in the long term by investing when prices are low (like right now, when you are 22), but don't do as well when the market is rising. As the market drops the same $dollar amount is buying more shares of stock than before. Eventually the market will rebound and you will benefit. It has the opposite effect when the market is rising sharply( you will be buying less shares with the same dollar amount) , but its good overall long-term.

This will probably happen a few times over your lifetime, so again invest in stock funds.

Don't take our word, look at the facts. I think though, there is sound advice here from everyone.

Good luck, KIDO!

IDoLessWorkThanMost · 02-27-2008, 08:17 PM

I started about 1 year 3 months ago with the UPS 401k...I actually lost some money - in S&P 400 and International funds in the last few months since the new year ( as have many), but they seem to perform fairly well and are aggressive.
I would suggest putting all your eggs into one or two baskets rather than have 4-5 funds.
Go with more aggressive funds rather than slow and steady at this point in time, until you have enough to lose that you want a more stable environment for your nest egg.
Also increase/decrease your contributions depending on how the market's looking and the stocks involved. Buy low (now's a good time)..so jack up those contributions to 15% or 17% every so often.
I'm still learning myself!
playing around when you have less to lose is a good learning experience so when you have a nice chunk of change in the future!

Baba gounj · 02-27-2008, 09:00 PM

Pick only 1-2 funds to get that $$ growing .
Later when you have a lot more $$$$ , you can then spread it around.

mountaingoat · 02-28-2008, 03:14 AM

You're 22. Assuming that you'll retire at 65, you have 43 years until you need the money. That's a LONG time horizon. Equities (stocks) over time have consistently returned 9-12%. Yes, there are years when it returns less, but you have to look at the long term.

As far as what percentage, I would have to agree with all the other posters that 25% is too high to acheive a decent return when it's sitting in a bond fund at this stage. REmember, there's that ugly monster out there called inflation which eats about 3% away from your earnings each year. So, if your bond fund pulled in 3% ROI and inflation was 3% that year, you're just even-steven.

A good investment portfolio will have a mix of large-cap domestic stocks, small-cap stocks, international stocks, and bonds. Depending on your age, the percentage that you allocate to each will differ. You might want to go 30% S&P500 (domestic large cap), 30% EAFE (International), 30% Russell 2000 (Small cap), and 10% bonds. You might want to think about setting bonds even lower, and allocating each of the other three at 33%.

Within the UPS 401K, there's a feature that will rebalance all of your funds every 90 days. Take advantage of it. Basically, this means that the 401K will automatically every 90 days sell your highest performing funds and purchase your lower performing fund so that they are all at that equal percentage again. It sounds counterintuitive to sell your top performers and buy your "dogs", but think of it this way. It's forcing you to "sell high" and "buy low" and it's a great way to get your emotion out of the investment.

Look at your 401K at most, once a month. Don't get caught up in the day-to-day management of it. Most of the millionaires next door don't look at their finances more than 10 minutes a day.

upsis · 02-28-2008, 05:16 AM

canam450,
invest as much as you can afford now, you will be thankful years down the line. I started investing in my 401k in 1991 when i was 21 and now i am up to 10% each paycheck. I put the most in the s&p500 over the years and it has done me very good. As it grows, try to invest a little more each year. Read up on each type of investment available and read up on sites like money.com and cnnfn.com

FAVREFAN · 02-28-2008, 09:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cementups

If I were you I would stop putting my money into the Teamsters 401k. Why does everyone here keep putting their money into funds that are not matched by either the Teamsters or UPS? You have much better options taking your money to an outside source and investing in Mutual Funds and IRA's. Hook up with a financial advisor, which usually charge $0.00, and invest away.

Dude, due your research before posting stuff like this. Check some sources. Every year, 80% of mutual funds under perform the S & P 500. This is not fiction but official statistics. It's been that way for as long as I rememeber. Let me guess....you are magical and pick the right 20 percent who equal/outperform the S & P every year?

FAVREFAN · 02-28-2008, 09:54 AM

Alot of good advise in these posts, a little bad too. At your age, I'd say somewhere about 90% stocks sounds good. S&P500/S&P400/Russell 2000 and maybe 10% tops in Stable Value. The Bright Horizon funds suck. Check their fees too, much higher than the previously mentioned index funds. Happy investing! You will be a rich man in 30 years! Good for you starting so early.

canam450 · 02-28-2008, 12:32 PM

favrefan..so i just get out of the bright horizon fund right now.. i was looking at the fund and it seems like it will bring a pretty good percent in 5 years...

canam450 · 02-28-2008, 12:35 PM

this is off the topic but i have alittle over 100 shares of sirius radio (siri)..i bought it at 3.91 does anyone think i should stick with it...i think siri and xm might merger but no word for sure

UpstateNYUPSer · 02-28-2008, 03:01 PM

I bought 2000 at 2.80 in anticipation of the merger. I still think that the merger will take place and will sell if the price goes over 4.20 as a good rule of thumb is to sell if the stock in question goes up 50% or more and to sell if it loses 50% or more.

FAVREFAN · 02-28-2008, 03:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by canam450

this is off the topic but i have alittle over 100 shares of sirius radio (siri)..i bought it at 3.91 does anyone think i should stick with it...i think siri and xm might merger but no word for sure

I don't follow these two so sorry, no advice.

FAVREFAN · 02-28-2008, 03:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by canam450

favrefan..so i just get out of the bright horizon fund right now.. i was looking at the fund and it seems like it will bring a pretty good percent in 5 years...

No, that would be buying high and selling low. Do what you feel comfortable with. If you've been in this 401(k) for a long time, you'll see they are underperformers. Maybe reconsider future allocations.