7 Tips For New Investors

While self-directed IRAs offer a wealth of investment possibilities, getting started with investing can be a daunting task for new investors.

While we do not make any recommendations about investments, for six years Mountain West IRA has been showing individuals and small businesses why they should take advantage of self-directed retirement plans.

Experienced investors have a wealth of investment information to offer, including these 7 tips:

1. Quality over quantity—when new investors first begin investing, many of them go for every opportunity that comes their way, whether it is because of excitement or to meet a perceived target. Seasoned investors instead sit back and wait for solid investments to come along. While new investors may not have the resources to wait for deals, many experienced investors would recommend doing one quality deal rather than a multitude of average deals.
2. Put your goals on paper—if you don’t develop a concrete goal for where you want to be in a year, it will be difficult to make any smart investments happen. Seasoned investment professionals often instruct neophytes to put together a plan before they even start investing. And while realistic goals are important to your investment success, it can be difficult to determine how to set those. Speaking with experienced investors in your field and asking them their honest opinions regarding profits per deal and average amount of time required to complete the deal can help you forge realistic goals. Real estate investment (REI) clubs are a good place to start for mentorship. Then, based on the information you learn and the amount of cash and credit you have on hand, create a framework for your long-term goals. Fill in short-term goals in between these long-term goals.
3. Don’t limit your profits—just because you got a great deal doesn’t mean you have to pass along all of your savings to the buyer. While most investors wouldn’t recommend you gouging people, reaping profits is part of business. At some point, your profit margin may not be as large as expected, so taking advantage of large profits when they come can help secure your finances.
4. Hang on to your full-time job—while it may be tempting for some investors to drop their day jobs and fully commit to investing, experienced investors recommend establishing oneself with banks and credit card companies before branching out on one’s own. Jobs provide a safety net while new investors learn the ropes of good investing.
5. Start investing as early as possible—the longer investments have been established, the more growth can be obtained. So the sooner investors begin investing, the more wealth their investments build. Many experienced investors say they wish they’d gotten in the game sooner.
6. Use investing partners wisely—there are plenty of eager investors out there, but smart investors choose an investing partner that complements them. This complement may be expertise, knowledge, connections, or money. However, seasoned investors would recommend against choosing a partner with little in common besides a dream or goal. If there is nothing complementary or beneficial about the partnership, it may be wise to steer clear. Again, this is business.
7. Dare to dream—it’s difficult to achieve anything without dedication and perseverance. Willpower can overcome even difficult objective conditions like poor credit or little cash. If you have a dream, it’s time to enact it. Contact Mountain West IRA about setting up your self-directed IRA to achieve your dream.