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Show HN: In a single HTML file, an app to encourage my children to invest

roberdam.com

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Re: Show HN: In a single HTML file, an app to encourage my children to invest

#141

Post by danielbarla »

triceratops wrote: post #129
ericyd wrote: post #80

Financial literacy is a gift, and absolutely omitted from standard education, which is unfortunate. That said, I don't think knowledge of investment gets you very far if your job pays subsistence wages. I worked for a popular fintech focused on personal investment and their narrative was essentially "financial freedom through investment". I think it's important to understand that even the most sophisticated knowledge…

I don't know what you mean by that. They teach compound interest in every school. Basic economics too. Anything more advanced is going to be lost on most kids, because that's most adults' level of financial literacy too. The problem is many kids don't have much money to save or invest. Or if they do, real banks kinda suck when you only have a kid amount of money ("Here's the 0.2% interest on your $37 balance"). So th…

While I certainly had the _concept_ of compound interest taught to me at some abstract mathematical level, the application to real life practical financial scenarios was definitely not done [1]. Economics as a whole was an optional subject.

I think schools and curriculums could do a whole lot better in representing this important facet of life. More broadly, I often feel that "applying all that math you've learned to real things" is a subject that could be taught.

[1] Seriously, having applied math questions like "Johnny earns X per year, with a cost of living of Y. Assuming inflation of Z and average yearly returns of R, what percentage should he be putting away, starting at age 25, so that at age 50 he essentially gets the equivalent of his own salary each month?" would likely cause some lightbulbs to go off in the kids' heads.

Re: Show HN: In a single HTML file, an app to encourage my children to invest

#142

Post by onli »

sureglymop wrote: post #119
linsomniac wrote: post #102

There's an awful lot of negativity here, but as someone who's 55 and has earned a good wage since I was 17, I really wish I had taken investing more seriously from the very beginning. While I knew of compound interest, I really didn't understand it until like a decade ago. If I'd started putting 5% of my money into a target retirement plan from 17, I'd be retired now. As it is I'm not doing badly, but I really wish I…

You say that now but as a young person with a decent income and no family or many responsibilities it's hard to even know where to start. And I'm not even talking about what to invest in, I'm already confused at which platform/bank/whatever to do it through. The "meta", if you will. I just want to invest the 70% of my salary I don't need every month and not think about it for 40 years but how? Maybe an important deta…

For the plattforms, that also blocked me for a while. But it is easy now. You just get one account at a platform that offers a free broker account and supports buying the etf you want without extra fees.

Typical options in Europe: Trade Republic, scalable, Consors Bank.

Then the usual: Around 10K where you can access it directly, a small amount in an investment with percentage (scalable and trade republic both offer that, limit there is or was 50k), rest in one broad ETF like one that follows the FTSE all world (vanguard or invesco offer that, one is bigger, the other asks for less fees).

No affiliation, and I dont know whether being outside of the EU changes things. And yes, there is the risk that we are in a huge bubble now and it popping would at first significantly lower the money put into the etf. But you certainly do have access to vanguard etc.

Have a look now and at the latest this weekend you have this solved, hopefully forever.

Re: Show HN: In a single HTML file, an app to encourage my children to invest

#143

Post by rkomorn »

nxor wrote: post #112
rkomorn wrote: post #105

Earlier quoted context omitted.

https://www.ngpf.org/blog/advocacy/how-many-states-require-s... It's apparently now 30 states.

Are you from the US? I went to a good high school and even that class was awful. No one wants to teach it and genuinely, you learn more about money in history, english, science, and math. Additionally, you can take it online and over the summer, which kids do so they can take nicer looking classes. Granted, students with a work ethic tend to learn these things on their own.

I graduated high school almost 30 years ago so whether I'm from the US or not isn't particularly relevant. I did live in the US for 25 years though, and up to however many minutes ago, I didn't know these classes were a requirement in any state (let alone 30).

But going from "it's not a requirement" to "the class is awful" would kinda be moving goalposts, no?

Re: Show HN: In a single HTML file, an app to encourage my children to invest

#144

Post by seemaze »

triceratops wrote: post #129
ericyd wrote: post #80

Financial literacy is a gift, and absolutely omitted from standard education, which is unfortunate. That said, I don't think knowledge of investment gets you very far if your job pays subsistence wages. I worked for a popular fintech focused on personal investment and their narrative was essentially "financial freedom through investment". I think it's important to understand that even the most sophisticated knowledge…

I don't know what you mean by that. They teach compound interest in every school. Basic economics too. Anything more advanced is going to be lost on most kids, because that's most adults' level of financial literacy too. The problem is many kids don't have much money to save or invest. Or if they do, real banks kinda suck when you only have a kid amount of money ("Here's the 0.2% interest on your $37 balance"). So th…

> that's most adults' level of financial literacy too.

The vicious cycle! We have to start somewhere..

Re: Show HN: In a single HTML file, an app to encourage my children to invest

#145

Post by recursive »

triceratops wrote: post #129
ericyd wrote: post #80

Financial literacy is a gift, and absolutely omitted from standard education, which is unfortunate. That said, I don't think knowledge of investment gets you very far if your job pays subsistence wages. I worked for a popular fintech focused on personal investment and their narrative was essentially "financial freedom through investment". I think it's important to understand that even the most sophisticated knowledge…

I don't know what you mean by that. They teach compound interest in every school. Basic economics too. Anything more advanced is going to be lost on most kids, because that's most adults' level of financial literacy too. The problem is many kids don't have much money to save or invest. Or if they do, real banks kinda suck when you only have a kid amount of money ("Here's the 0.2% interest on your $37 balance"). So th…

Where do you send your money to invest? What is a stock? This is the type of information missing.

Re: Show HN: In a single HTML file, an app to encourage my children to invest

#146

Post by onli »

koakuma-chan wrote: post #127
sureglymop wrote: post #119

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You say that now but as a young person with a decent income and no family or many responsibilities it's hard to even know where to start. And I'm not even talking about what to invest in, I'm already confused at which platform/bank/whatever to do it through. The "meta", if you will. I just want to invest the 70% of my salary I don't need every month and not think about it for 40 years but how? Maybe an important deta…

Your bank probably has an investment platform, you can just use it, it doesn't matter. My portfolio is 70% XEQT 30% CASH.TO—don't bother with anything else.

Oh, that can be bad advice. It does matter a lot if the bank asks for high fees, which would be the case with all(?) German banks, and I'd be surprised if that's different in Switzerland.

Re: Show HN: In a single HTML file, an app to encourage my children to invest

#147

Post by pton_xd »

koakuma-chan wrote: post #131
whoooboyy wrote: post #128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Incredible HN post. I'm hoping it's because you are from a country where people are generally well taken care of. Yes, there are people who don't invest. Where do they keep their retirement savings? 40-50% of Americans, at least, simply have no retirement savings! Most people in America aren't earning enough to put away a meaningful amount for retirement. It's going to be grim as boomers and millennials hit retiremen…

And it doesn't occur to them that they will need money when they're old and can't work? Incredible.

They're worried about paying for their next trip to the dentist. Not working when they're old is not in the picture.

Re: Show HN: In a single HTML file, an app to encourage my children to invest

#148

Post by david927 »

taude wrote: post #79
johntiror wrote: post #73

There’s an old story about Rothschild getting a haircut when the barber started giving him stock tips. Rothschild thanked him, left the shop, and immediately sold all his holdings. The reason was: “When even the barber is investing, the market’s gone too far.” I might be wrong, but reading this, I couldn’t help but think: if we’ve reached the point where we’re building apps to get our kids into investing, maybe we’re…

The market's are different now. Everyone's 401K plans are automatically investing in them each month (my theory on why equities are so expensive now).

Different as in much worse? It's not that you're wrong but, just to be clear, the problem with investing as the only place to keep up with inflation means that markets will detach from value, and become a giant Ponzi scheme.

There is no such thing as "growth detached from value" lasting forever.

Re: Show HN: In a single HTML file, an app to encourage my children to invest

#149

Post by roberdam »

patapong wrote: post #101
roberdam wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

hopefully, “The first national bank of dad” remains solvent.

And can they take loans with negotiated interest rates and lock-in periods? Or invest in more risky products such as derivatives with a corresponding chance to lose all money? So much potential... ;)

unlimited apps ideas :D

Re: Show HN: In a single HTML file, an app to encourage my children to invest

#150

Post by sd8f9iu »

johntiror wrote: post #73

There’s an old story about Rothschild getting a haircut when the barber started giving him stock tips. Rothschild thanked him, left the shop, and immediately sold all his holdings. The reason was: “When even the barber is investing, the market’s gone too far.” I might be wrong, but reading this, I couldn’t help but think: if we’ve reached the point where we’re building apps to get our kids into investing, maybe we’re…

I think the assumption here is the investment vehicle will be large bundles of diverse stocks, e.g. via a mutual fund or equivalent ETF. That's the standard way to invest 401Ks and other savings, and something for which stock tips are no use.
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