Investment questions

So now I'm thinking that it'd be best to max out my 401k.

If I were to go get a mutual fund, what benefit would it provide that my 401k wouldn't? Seems I'd rather have the pre-tax beneift of the 401k.

Edit: Or even if I got a ETF or Index fund. Do those outperform mutual funds by enough to outweigh the benefits of the 401k?
 
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wonko80 said:
So now I'm thinking that it'd be best to max out my 401k.

If I were to go get a mutual fund, what benefit would it provide that my 401k wouldn't? Seems I'd rather have the pre-tax beneift of the 401k.
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Different funds provide different returns over time.
 
wonko80 said:
So now I'm thinking that it'd be best to max out my 401k.

If I were to go get a mutual fund, what benefit would it provide that my 401k wouldn't? Seems I'd rather have the pre-tax beneift of the 401k.
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No no no. I don't get the big deal of a pre-tax benefit. You will get taxed if you take out from the 401k (when you retire). I think its good to have mutual funds and savings stashed away so that if for some reason you NEED the money you can get to it without having to pay out the ass for the 401k.
 
wonko80 said:
So now I'm thinking that it'd be best to max out my 401k.

If I were to go get a mutual fund, what benefit would it provide that my 401k wouldn't? Seems I'd rather have the pre-tax beneift of the 401k.

Edit: Or even if I got a ETF or Index fund. Do those outperform mutual funds by enough to outweigh the benefits of the 401k?
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Do you know how all this stuff works to start with? Do you mean a mutual fund through a tax deferred account or straight up taxed?

I mean, depending on what you purchased and how, any of these could outdo the other. There is no one way to do it right.

If you want to have money stashed where you can get it fast then ETFs in a normal taxed account would be better than having it (the money) in a tax deferred account...

Edit: If you are afraid of the collapse of the fiat money system, gold would be better. o_O What are you attempting to do specifically.
 
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Dharma1521 said:
No no no. I don't get the big deal of a pre-tax benefit. You will get taxed if you take out from the 401k (when you retire). I think its good to have mutual funds and savings stashed away so that if for some reason you NEED the money you can get to it without having to pay out the ass for the 401k.
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You can borrow against a 401k without the 10% penalty.

By doing pre-tax, I get to save 28% of my money.n.
 
FlamingGlory said:
Do you know how all this stuff works to start with? Do you mean a mutual fund through a tax deferred account or straight up taxed?

I mean, depending on what you purchased and how, any of these could outdo the other. There is no one way to do it right.

If you want to have money stashed where you can get it fast then ETFs in a normal taxed account would be better than having it (the money) in a tax deferred account...

Edit: If you are afraid of the collapse of the fiat money system, gold would be better. o_O What are you attempting to do specifically.
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I was asking about getting a mutual fund outside of my 401k. If you read the thread, I'm asking about long term investment for retirement, not something I can get to fast.
 
Definitely go through the 401k, you want the pre-tax benefits. If you were older it may be different. You can still diversify (or at least I hope so) by putting your 401k money in different funds. I have my 401k split up between stocks, real estate, and foreign funds.
 
Fat Burger said:
Definitely go through the 401k, you want the pre-tax benefits. If you were older it may be different. You can still diversify (or at least I hope so) by putting your 401k money in different funds. I have my 401k split up between stocks, real estate, and foreign funds.
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You are just limited on how much diversification you can have through a 401k though. =\ My company... Ya we have only a handful to choose from.
 
April23 said:
You are just limited on how much diversification you can have through a 401k though. =\ My company... Ya we have only a handful to choose from.
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I was looking through the ones that can be added to our plan, and they have some index funds. I think I'm gonna get one or two of those added to our choices.
 
wonko80 said:
I was looking through the ones that can be added to our plan, and they have some index funds. I think I'm gonna get one or two of those added to our choices.
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Max out your 401k obviously first, then get into IRA.

Mutual funds are a scam for the fund managers to get richer on the average idiot investor. Over the long haul, its next to impossible for them to beat a good S&P 500 index fund.

And finally, wtf you make over $166k a year? Jesus that must be nice. What percentage of your income are you planning on using for retirement?
 
fly said:
Max out your 401k obviously first, then get into IRA.

Mutual funds are a scam for the fund managers to get richer on the average idiot investor. Over the long haul, its next to impossible for them to beat a good S&P 500 index fund.
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So what about the mutual funds that my 401k uses?

And finally, wtf you make over $166k a year? Jesus that must be nice. What percentage of your income are you planning on using for retirement?
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1%. The rest is used on anal lube.
 
wonko80 said:
So what about the mutual funds that my 401k uses?


1%. The rest is used on anal lube.
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I'll consistently recommend an index fund over anything else. When I started my Roth, Vanguard had the lowest fees for an S&P 500 index fund. Check the prospectus or post the name of the index funds here. I'm still learning myself and would love to help.

Seriously tho, what is your percentage? Any idea? Cause 15,500 is the limit this year for 401ks. Are you planning on going beyond that???
 
fly said:
I'll consistently recommend an index fund over anything else. When I started my Roth, Vanguard had the lowest fees for an S&P 500 index fund. Check the prospectus or post the name of the index funds here. I'm still learning myself and would love to help.

Seriously tho, what is your percentage? Any idea? Cause 15,500 is the limit this year for 401ks. Are you planning on going beyond that???
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I'll post them when I get back to work monday.

No, I probably won't go beyond that. I might not even max it out for sure. I wanted to get opinions on the concept of that though.
 
wonko80 said:
I'll post them when I get back to work monday.

No, I probably won't go beyond that. I might not even max it out for sure. I wanted to get opinions on the concept of that though.
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Ya, I'd say sock it all away in your 401k. Since you can't do a Roth, everything else is pissing into the wind.
 
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