Live data from Hacker News

Ask HN: Where do you all invest your money?

news.ycombinator.com

21–30 of 38 posts

Re: Ask HN: Where do you all invest your money?

#21
Mostly real estate (90%?) and then the rest mostly pension (like your 401k I guess)

Not rich though. If I were to get say a lottery win or startup exit type thing I wouldn’t necessarily buy real estate. Indexes are much easier (no tenants or building maintenance!)

Re: Ask HN: Where do you all invest your money?

#22

Currently based on the state of the world I have been investing in freeze dried foods. They will only increase in value and can be traded / bartered for other things should monetary systems temporarily fail. I can always eat what I don't trade. They are officially rated to have 97% of their nutritional value and flavor for 25 years but in all probability may last for hundreds of years. My favorite item is the freeze…

> Currently based on the state of the world I have been investing in freeze dried foods. They will only increase in value and can be traded / bartered for other things should monetary systems temporarily fail.

This is where Bitcoin excels. You don't need storage rooms or containers for bitcoin. Invest in bitcoin and when the monetary system collapses, you will be rich. People will be lining up to buy bitcoins from you.

Re: Ask HN: Where do you all invest your money?

#23
post #18

Really recommend Ramit Sethi's I Will Teach You to be Rich . When I was a freshly graduated 22-year-old entering grad school, I didn't know the first thing about finance, but this book taught me all of the fundamentals. You'll learn about how to pay off debt, how credit scores work, how to use credit cards, how to invest for retirement, how to save for large expenses like weddings and homes, etc. By the end of the bo…

Don't waste money on books. No new knowledge will be learnt from those.

Re: Ask HN: Where do you all invest your money?

#24
Please begin your journey here & ignore all "financial news"

Bogleheads Wiki: Getting Started

https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Getting_started

This wiki is one of the best resources in USA for simple, straightforward, no-nonsense personal finance strategy which has been battle-tested over multiple decades.

Also, there is a very insightful and concise personal finance course at Stanford:

CS007 Personal Finance for Engineers

https://cs007.blog/

The course notes/slides are very recently updated (Oct 2023)

Re: Ask HN: Where do you all invest your money?

#25
Funny how nobody here seems to invest in startups…

Seriously: nobody picks up shares in unlisted companies, the ones that have the largest (potential) upside, via crowdfunding sites or by buying shares from employees? I’m not enough of an expert, so I will refrain from saying one should allocate x % in this type of investing, but I’m surprised that nobody is even talking about it.

Re: Ask HN: Where do you all invest your money?

#26
Invest in yourself, especially in your education when you are young and able to devote yourself fully to education. All the money you invest in education will pay off by opening up new possibilities and paths in life, better employment and earning opportunities.

Re: Ask HN: Where do you all invest your money?

#27
post #25

Funny how nobody here seems to invest in startups… Seriously: nobody picks up shares in unlisted companies, the ones that have the largest (potential) upside, via crowdfunding sites or by buying shares from employees? I’m not enough of an expert, so I will refrain from saying one should allocate x % in this type of investing, but I’m surprised that nobody is even talking about it.

It's because you'll never have enough information to make an informed investment unless you know the founders. I would recommend no one invest in this way, especially via the 'crowdfund' websites, you're getting the most dilutable shares possible for no voting control, etc.

Re: Ask HN: Where do you all invest your money?

#28

Currently based on the state of the world I have been investing in freeze dried foods. They will only increase in value and can be traded / bartered for other things should monetary systems temporarily fail. I can always eat what I don't trade. They are officially rated to have 97% of their nutritional value and flavor for 25 years but in all probability may last for hundreds of years. My favorite item is the freeze…

> Currently based on the state of the world I have been investing in freeze dried foods. They will only increase in value and can be traded / bartered for other things should monetary systems temporarily fail. This is where Bitcoin excels. You don't need storage rooms or containers for bitcoin. Invest in bitcoin and when the monetary system collapses, you will be rich. People will be lining up to buy bitcoins from yo…

> People will be lining up to buy bitcoins from you.

Except there hasn't been a single historical example pointing to people doing this after the collapse (partial or otherwise) of civilization.

After the fall of Rome, people used the currency (both bullion and as a measure of value) for a few decades after. If the US dollar collapses, you've got a litany of more pressing issues than "how can I pay for goods" and history shows that you'll probably just end up relying on social credit with people in your immediate community.

tl;dr invest in being a social-able person first, then learn how to grow your own food instead

Re: Ask HN: Where do you all invest your money?

#29
post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Also, equally important, you get one life to live. You are young, you have energy. When you are old, you will have more responsibilities, less energy, and your genetics could cause you to start having more health issues. Do all the stuff that you want to do in life now, even if it costs money that you feel like you should be saving, and you will be 100% glad that you did it. It is much easier to settle down into a…

The thing is, we're not guaranteed to wake up tomorrow. I think most people don't truly believe they're going to die. Or, at the very least, they think they're guaranteed and deserving of a long life. Death is just something that comes when you're 80+ years old, eh? I just got back last week from Thailand. Last year, I went to an island in the Caribbean. I'm 27. I've no idea if I'll make it to 40 years; I'm not going…

That's what actuarial tables are for. Assuming you're a 27 year old male living in the US, your chances of making it till you're 40 year old are around 97%. This number is based on population averages, so, if e.g. you don't do heavy drugs, your chances are way higher (given that overdose is a leading cause of death in young people).

Re: Ask HN: Where do you all invest your money?

#30
post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Also, equally important, you get one life to live. You are young, you have energy. When you are old, you will have more responsibilities, less energy, and your genetics could cause you to start having more health issues. Do all the stuff that you want to do in life now, even if it costs money that you feel like you should be saving, and you will be 100% glad that you did it. It is much easier to settle down into a…

Granted that this is a generally "office job" focused form, most people will transition into senior positions in their later years which are way higher salary/actual hour worked, with lower stress and a lot more job security. Most people also will have runways in the form of house equity, dual income, e.t.c. You don't have to grind in your 40s at all. The bigger issue with your view is that in your case, your retirem…

I think we're in agreement. I wasn't arguing for becoming a no-life who is giving 100% of his twenties and thirties to his career. I was just arguing against quitting a career and "running away with a circus" (going on a multi-year travel spree around the world etc.), under the assumption that one can settle into a career in their fourties.
Post reply on HN