Got only $20 to put away right now?
It may not sound like much, but you can use it to buy shares in Intel. Or Johnson & Johnson. Or Harley-Davidson (you rebel). And those are just a few of more than 1,000 options available. What if you've got $100 -- or $1,000? Your options are even greater.
We're not here to tell you where to invest your money.
We won't lay out a handful of stocks on a "buy" list. But what we can tell you is how you can invest your money -- the mechanics of investing small, large, and medium amounts of cash. We can even help you choose a broker.
Let's start with $20. We're going to assume that you've already paid off any high-interest debt and that you have some money stashed in a safe place (like a savings or money market account) that you can get to quickly in case of an emergency expense. Now you find yourself with a little extra dough, and you want to begin investing for your future. Is it even worth it to invest such a pittance? Heck yeah it is! One of the best ways to invest small amounts of money cheaply is through Dividend Reinvestment Plans (DRPs), also known as Drips.
They and their cousins, Direct Stock Purchase Plans (DSPs), allow you to bypass brokers (and their commissions) by buying stock directly from the companies or their agents. More than 1,000 major corporations offer these types of stock plans, many of them free, or with fees low enough to make it worthwhile to invest as little as $20 or $30 at a time. Drips are ideal for those who are starting out with small amounts to invest and want to make frequent purchases (dollar-cost averaging).
Once you're in the plan, you can set up an automatic payment plan, and you don't even have to buy a full share each time you make a contribution. Drips may be one of the surest, steadiest ways to build wealth over your lifetime (just make sure you keep good records for tax purposes).
We won't lay out a handful of stocks on a "buy" list. But what we can tell you is how you can invest your money -- the mechanics of investing small, large, and medium amounts of cash. We can even help you choose a broker.
How to invest $20
Let's start with $20. We're going to assume that you've already paid off any high-interest debt and that you have some money stashed in a safe place (like a savings or money market account) that you can get to quickly in case of an emergency expense. Now you find yourself with a little extra dough, and you want to begin investing for your future. Is it even worth it to invest such a pittance? Heck yeah it is! One of the best ways to invest small amounts of money cheaply is through Dividend Reinvestment Plans (DRPs), also known as Drips.
They and their cousins, Direct Stock Purchase Plans (DSPs), allow you to bypass brokers (and their commissions) by buying stock directly from the companies or their agents. More than 1,000 major corporations offer these types of stock plans, many of them free, or with fees low enough to make it worthwhile to invest as little as $20 or $30 at a time. Drips are ideal for those who are starting out with small amounts to invest and want to make frequent purchases (dollar-cost averaging).
Once you're in the plan, you can set up an automatic payment plan, and you don't even have to buy a full share each time you make a contribution. Drips may be one of the surest, steadiest ways to build wealth over your lifetime (just make sure you keep good records for tax purposes).
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