| Investing in the stock market is incredibly difficult under | | | | have is to find a good stockbroker who can advise |
| the best of circumstances. Make a few wrong moves | | | | you on how to make a little more money with your |
| and years of hard work and savings can be wiped out | | | | investments. |
| in the blink of an eye. The problem is, most of us don't | | | | You can't afford to switch from stockbroker to |
| have any sort of training or background in finance, | | | | stockbroker in an attempt to find a good one because |
| economics, or investments; and we certainly don't | | | | if you do that; all it takes is one or two bad |
| know anything about portfolio management and the | | | | stockbrokers to wipe out your entire investment |
| high-level math that goes into it. | | | | portfolio. No, you have to be able to determine before |
| The best option is to hire a professional investment | | | | hand whether the stockbroker is any good or not. |
| adviser or money manager to handle all of our | | | | Here are several questions you can ask your |
| investments for us. The problem is, most investment | | | | stockbroker right from the start. |
| advisers won't even take you on as a customer or | | | | What average return can you expect from your |
| client unless you have over $200,000 in assets to | | | | account? If your Stockbroker gives you wildly high |
| invest. Many of us simply don't have that much money | | | | figures than watch out! |
| to invest and therefore we aren't worth the time and | | | | Does your stockbroker invest his or her own money in |
| effort of a professional adviser | | | | the stock market? If so what kind of return do they |
| In that case, the best thing to do is put your money in a | | | | usually get themselves? If your stockbroker doesn't |
| broad stock market index fund like an S&P 500 | | | | invest in the stock market, then why in the world would |
| index fund. The trick is to make monthly contributions | | | | you give him your money?. |
| to the fund automatically and directly from your pay | | | | Ask what your stockbroker's other clients are like. Do |
| check or bank account. Making monthly automatic | | | | they fit into the same economic ranges as you? Do |
| contributions allows you to take advantage of the law | | | | they have roughly the same amount of money |
| of averages which allows you to buy when the stock | | | | invested as you do? What kind of returns have they |
| market is both down and up. Following the strategy | | | | received in the past? |
| you can expect to receive an investment return of | | | | Finally ask how long your stockbroker has been in |
| between 6% and 8% per year because this is the | | | | business. Experience counts when it comes to the |
| historic average return of the stock market and your | | | | stock market and if your stockbroker is fairly new to |
| broad S&P 500 index fund will mirror the broad | | | | the game then you may want to look elsewhere. |
| stock market. | | | | So there you have several questions to help you |
| The problem with that is that most people won't be | | | | determine whether your stockbroker is worth their salt |
| happy with a mere 6% return. Heck, with inflation | | | | or not. Above all though keep your eyes open and |
| pushing towards 5% per year, that whittles your return | | | | listen to your gut instinct. Many times you can tell just |
| down to a mere 1% which is unacceptable to many | | | | by talking to a stockbroker how serious they are and |
| people. In that case the only other option you really | | | | how committed they are to making you money. |