Time to quit investing?

[Rod]

I've been getting all the paperwork together for the accountant and noticed that every one of my accounts has lost between 30 and 40% of their value in the last year. I just received a report from my wife's annuity that shows we put 200 dollars in it and lost 160 dollars in two months. The stock brokers we are with said to ride out the storm, others say the same thing. With the Dow dropping below 8000, the porkulus package a guaranteed thing, and the other indicators showing the economy tanking in short order; I'm thinking seriously of closing out EVERY account I have except our savings and checking and just putting the money in the backyard (figuratively speaking).

The question I have is, what could I do to make sure the money's safe and fairly easily accessible? I'm sure as hell NOT "investing in America" right now. and no, I'm NOT spending a fortune on more guns and ammo...I've already got a plan set aside for that.

[chrisb]

You can buy gold coins if you are so inclined.

[Mike OTDP]

Frankly, your best bet is to ride it out. You haven't lost a dime until you sell.

The real question is what to do for the time being. My own advice would be to squirrel money into a money market fund for six months to a year as a temporary measure...then dump it into a S&P 500 index fund. The way I figure it, the stock market is going to continue to decline for about that time, then stagnate until after the 2010 elections...which I anticipate to go for the Republicans. At that point, the market will start to improve.

Do not just put your cash into savings for the long term. You'll lose your shirt that way. I think we're looking at a significant inflation in the next few years. Stocks and gold will hold value or increase, cash won't.

[Weetabix]

[FWIW warning]

What's your total asset timeline? That is, how old are you?

If you're pretty well set, and have kids, I'd be inclined to let the things that suffered the largest losses ride. You've probably taken the largest hit already, and if you pull things out now, you guarantee your losses. If you can let it ride for 10 years, it will probably come back. Don't put any new money into those things.

If you're set, have no kids, and just feel pissed off at the whole thing, you could pull everything and say to hell with the market. You could put it in bank CD's - they'll hold their nominal value and return a percent or two a year. I say nominal value, because I think the "stimulus" package is bound to cause inflation as they print money to cover the spending.

You could put money into things you're going to need that you expect the price to go up on. I've always thought doing a 1-year food storage thing with foods you actually like would be interesting and fun. Plus you'd be eating for last year's prices.

I've never quite reconciled myself to the gold thing. The price does fluctuate. OTOH, you know the price would never go to zero. It's not incredibly liquid, though. I think you pay a fee when you sell it, too.

[Steamforger]

I keep telling people I was set up perfectly for this thing. Since I have zero savings, I lost exactly nothing. I realize this isn't an option with many members here, but it worked well for me.

OTOH, I am sitting on a small fortune of 7.62x51 and .40S&W. Adding Puma in .357 might be a wise move with the tax refund. Between those three calibers I could keep myself in Venison for a very, very long time.

As for riding it out, I can't say. I do know my folks are pulling their under-performing accounts and rolling them over into IRA's for the duration of this thing. The market will recover. The only real questions I see are how long will that take and is riding it out going to be worth the time and cost for the time period you're considering.

Best of luck no matter what you decide.

[Rod]

Wife and I are both retired. I'm pretty sure the military retirement and our Texas Teacher's retirements aren't going to disappear but I'm a little unsettled to see our other accounts go to zero.

[Jered]

Do you have an IRA?

I'm pretty sure it's just a matter of time until the feds come for that. That makes me real motivated to save money.

[ZeroGravitas]

The market is at a low or near-to-low. If you have another 10-15 years before cashing out, I believe that it is a good time to be buying.

[arctictom]

Lots of folks are beginning to see the train in the tunnel. I have most of my money in things other than equity's (for a few years ), you might like what Doug Casey has to say , or some predictors of the last most recent mess, to help you stay away from an over reaction.
The more the Feds interfere the worse it is going to get , the big porker wont really get rolling until mid 2010.

[1991A1]

Do you have an IRA?

I have trust fund. I trust that I'll have the funds when I need them.