I don’t have much in terms of investments (401K). I was wondering if there is anything I can do to minimize the impact of the incoming recession on my financial position.
1- What do I do with my 401K? Do I keep it in the same funds or should I look into reinvesting it in different funds? 2- Should I keep an eye out for “the dip” and buy in? What? Market funds? Bond funds? ETF? 3- In terms of stocking up, what’s the best approach? Bottled water obviously, but what else? 4- I am almost done paying off my credit cards. However, I bought a new car last year. Other than looking into refinancing to a lower APR, is there anything else I can do?
Until last year, I never thought much about how to survive the many “once in a lifetime“ shitshows we are seeing and usually rolled with the punches because I mainly didn’t have the financial means to do so.
Now that I am somewhat financially capable –a privilege not many of my fellow countrymen have unfortunately– I want to try and minimize the damage that is incoming.
Any advice/suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.
Betting on US prosperity and growth is going to be a bad decision. If you’re in the US, it makes more sense to join labor orgs.
i joined seiu and my inner pessimist is telling me that they’re not prepared for what’s coming from trump.
Probably not as well as they could be, but better than nothing, for sure.
There’s not really anything you can do for your 401k. Taking out any money before retirement is going to hit you with a lot of taxes. If anything, you could consider increasing your contributions during the dip to maximize gains whenever the economy recover. That is, if you can afford to do that while the cost of living is skyrocketing.
1- What do I do with my 401K?
The same thing you’ve been doing—contribute enough to max out your employer’s match, more if you can afford to.
2- Should I keep an eye out for “the dip” and buy in?
Not unless you have a crystal ball or a time machine and you know what the future holds.
3- In terms of stocking up, what’s the best approach?
We don’t know where you live or what your threat model is, nonetheless consider heading over to the prepper communities for ideas in this category.
4- I am almost done paying off my credit cards.
Congrats!
However, I bought a new car last year. Other than looking into refinancing to a lower APR, is there anything else I can do?
Find a mechanic whom you trust and stick to the recommended service intervals, especially for things like oil changes and tire rotations.
Any advice/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Seeing as you have a 401k and own a car, I assume you’re old enough to remember the beginning of the pandemic. People were dying, everything was closing down, the world was ending. I know of people who panic sold thinking they were protecting their wealth. And then you won’t believe what happened next. Counter to all rational thought, the market bounced back in a very big way. Those who stuck to the plan rode the recovery back up. Guess what happened to all those panic sellers?
German here.
I’m heavily invested in US Stocks. Lots of blue chips, tech stocks and dividend payers. I’m worried the US is heading down a very very bad path right now. But I’m hoping it will at some point recover from this insane administration. If it doesn’t we will have a global crisis. If it does, US stocks will come back. So my bet is the US will come back at some point. So even though I’m now balancing more in favour of other countries, I will continue buying US stocks, because I believe in the companies.
