[ds968]

And here I was thinking diversification would shield me from, or at least, mitigate market volatility... so my 401K money is allocated to more than twenty different funds / investments categories with a very balanced mix of stocks, bonds, blended, yada, yada, none of which are too aggressive and none speculative ( as far as I can tell anyway ) . Yet checking balances today - WHY DO I KEEP DOING THAT DAMMIT, WILL I EVER LEARN ?! <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/dry.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> - I'm staring at a negative 11% "return" from Jan 1 08 to date. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/mad.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/mad.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />



Sure the market is cyclical and over a long term that loss will eventually bounce back, but it sure seems as if what you lose in six months takes six years to regain <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/dry.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/unsure.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> , so absent another "bubble" between now and the time I retire, that retirement will have to be postponed until I'm 90 ! <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/ohmy.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/tongue.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />



How is everyone else doing, or am I opening up a sore subject here ?

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[968Syncro]

My 401Ks are down also.



I am trying to think of another legal drug and make a business out of it like Starbuck's did. Adrenalin comes to mind -- oh wait, how silly, that one is already taken ==> called the sports car business. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/laugh.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> (Side note, I once worked on a deal with an investment banker; Starbuck's in their very early stages brought their business to this guy and he turned them down). <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/ohmy.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />



Roland

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[Mark]

My 401K is at least 90% in an interest bearing cash account, I forgot to reallocate when the company got bought and we rolled the 401k 18 months ago. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/smile.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> Personal investments are doing OK, I actually timed a market for once in my life.

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[Cloud9...68]

Ditto here. But remember that the market was up six years in a row before 2008, so we've been long overdue for a correction. In the long run, stocks outperform any other type of investment, so I wouldn't worry about a one-year downward blip.



In fact, not to open up another can of worms, but I believe the relatively poor recent performance of stocks (along with bonds, and real estate) is partially responsible for the upward trend we've seen in oil (and natural gas, gold, copper, and other commodity) prices over the same timeframe. Not having anything else very promising to invest in, "speculators" (and other "sophisticated" investors) have until recently been pouring money into commidities, helping drive their prices up.

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[Chris Vais]

I did what ds968 did, diversified my 401K. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/smile.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> I stopped looking at it when the market started jumping around. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/ohmy.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> I'm down about 6% on the year. Day trading on your 401K doesn't make any sense and it is a long (relatively speaking, as I am 60 years old) investment.



Between the goofy market and a child who is an addict, although after 10 years and $650,000 <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/mad.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> he is clean and sober, I will probably never be financially secure enough to completely retire. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/huh.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> I am fortunate to work in a profession where age and experience are actually considered to be valuable <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/tongue.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> , so working until I have a massive coronary at my desk is a realistic alternative retirement strategy. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/laugh.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />



Seriously, I started back to school with the goal of earning a degree in Enology and Viticulture with the idea that I would like to retire from current job into one where I am a winemaker either for myself or someone else. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/tongue.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> I've been making wine for a long time, as have my brothers, so creating a family winery isn't out of the question. I doubt that I would ever fully retire even if I had the money.

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[ds968]

I suppose I could have bought an entire fleet of 968s with the amount of money which I "lost" , albeit we can only hope temporarily so, and that would have made me feel a lot better just sitting there and admiring tem all <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/smile.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/rolleyes.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> but at the rate our cars' market value is dropping <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/dry.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> I would have ended up with a not too dissimilar investment result <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/tongue.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />

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[PorscheG96]

You haven't technically lost any money unless you're no longer invested, likewise you haven't made any money until you've cashed out. I think that 10 years from now your 401k will be doing just fine. In an economy like this where consumers are being pinched from every which way [high unemployment, high living costs, lack of credit, declining home values, etc], the impact is very broad because people aren't buying as much 'stuff' so it's no surprise that you're down regardless of how well you're diversified. 11% down YTD isn't too bad considering that the major indexes are down nearly 20% [bear market territory]..! Imagine if you weren't diversified and held mostly financial stocks!

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[ds968]

[quote name='PorscheG96' post='58474' date='Aug 27 2008, 09:37 PM']You haven't technically lost any money unless you're no longer invested, likewise you haven't made any money until you've cashed out.[/quote]



Very true, and "technically" I know that, but when you've grown accustomed to seeing only a consistent accumulation of gains ( some large, some small, but gains nonetheless .. ) , "emotionally" seeing a drop,

still causes disappointment and few moments of cynical outlook for the future...

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[redbaron]

For those close to retirement, I recomend purchase of an Immediate Annuity not a Variable Annuity. I retired 9 years ago and our 7.5 percent return Immediate Annuity is perfect. Fixed income for life (my wife and I), 20 years certain (our 3 children split the monthly amount if the wife and I pass on within the first 20 years of the Annuity). Disadvantage: you have to put in a large upfront payment to generate the monthly checks plus getting your money out is very difficult or even not possible. I do not know what percent return is out there now, but if you are close to retirement, check it out.

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