Total Newbie - NEED HELP

[HappyGoLucky]

Hi! I am a real newbie to this "game" and really need HELP!!

I have been investing in TSP for over 10 years now and have started to "play" with my contributions some. Unfortunately, I am getting more and more confused and with the recent market downturn, I am in a panic. So much so, that I am in a freeze mode - I haven't changed anything in months, just "riding it out". I have about 21 years until retirement and contribute 10% of my salary.

I am contributing: L2040 20%; C 10%; S 30%; I 40% BUT my allocations are quite different: L2040 50%; S 25%; I 25%

I don't really understand the allocating versus contributing (should they match or should I allocate over to G & F as soon as I earn a respectable amount???) so any insight into that would also be appreciated!

I have lost SO much money in the last 4 months (~$40K). I am completely LOST at this point and don't know what to do - if anything at all.

I appreciate any sound advice (please in LAY terms) as I am going to have a heart attack if I continue to lose money at this pace!!

Thanks to all and Happy Holidays!

 

[JTH]

Nobody here worth their salt is going to advice you on how to invest your own money. As for the L-Funds, they are nothing more than a combination of the GFCSI funds that are rebalanced on a daily basis. Read up on the fund sheets to see what the L-Fund allocations are.

The best advice I can give is the read through the forum to build up your knowledge base. If you're far away from retirement, then I wouldn't sweat it too much, you've already taken the biggest hit, but you have plenty of time to recover.

 

[Birchtree]

Yup, learn before you churn. Keep up your contributions and sit tight while you DCA (dollar cost average).

 

[dannyboy]

Hi! I am a real newbie to this "game" and really need HELP!!

I have been investing in TSP for over 10 years now and have started to "play" with my contributions some. Unfortunately, I am getting more and more confused and with the recent market downturn, I am in a panic. So much so, that I am in a freeze mode - I haven't changed anything in months, just "riding it out". I have about 21 years until retirement and contribute 10% of my salary.

I am contributing: L2040 20%; C 10%; S 30%; I 40% BUT my allocations are quite different: L2040 50%; S 25%; I 25%

I don't really understand the allocating versus contributing (should they match or should I allocate over to G & F as soon as I earn a respectable amount???) so any insight into that would also be appreciated!

I have lost SO much money in the last 4 months (~$40K). I am completely LOST at this point and don't know what to do - if anything at all.

I appreciate any sound advice (please in LAY terms) as I am going to have a heart attack if I continue to lose money at this pace!!

Thanks to all and Happy Holidays!

*****************************************
From another newbie in very similar circumstances,
I'm 20-22 years out and I've been fully vested in the TSP from day 1, over 12 years. What's gone is gone and probably isn't coming back soon. It may be hard to do, but I really keep a watch of the news and when they say finances are plummetting I get into action. ~Everyone lost $1000.00's, me included($18,k), and I was on top of the situation from day 1. With unlimited IFT's(Inter Fund Transfer) some days you'd make $3-4k, others you'd lose the same or possibly twice that. My greed got the better of me and I was a gambler with few worries, always thinking I was getting it back. The limit of IFT limits have changed things, greatly.
Future Contributions means the future deductions that will be coming out of future pay. IFT's are the funds that have already accumulated in your account and are put in whichever fund you have designated your IFT't to go in. Now, I'm scared, I've got to watch the markets pattern, the month's date and the global sentiment, etc. There is a lot of good technical info on this site that you can trust in (sometimes?). This site can guide the way for you to get back some of your losses, if careful? For every expert on this site, there are at least 5 wanna-be's(I'm included) who's advice may work? Do what feels good for you and utilize the data here as best you can. :worried:

 

[HappyGoLucky]

Dannymcm,

Thank you! I am learning alot - but sometimes the lingo really gets me. Can you tell me if my allocations should match the contribution or does that matter?

I was really trying to "gamble" some, too. I started TSP many years ago and just stuck everything in G&F. Then, I had a colleague give me some advice about diversifying some...so I took the plunge. I am desperately hoping that I can make up some ground...but not sure what to do next......

 

[KevinD]

Read the account talk threads. After a while you will learn about the markets and figure out what to do.
Thats what I did and after today I'm sure glad I found TSPTalk!

Welcome and good luck.

 

[Spaf]

HGL

Opinion [Not financial advice]

Consider:
Don't panic, it only makes it worse........
Check out the L-funds at www.tsp.gov

Hold what you've got, till things improve and you are back on a even level.

Get in the appropriate L-fund for your age to retirement, ie L-2030
Change allocation to 100% of the L-fund (2030).
Keep contribution at 5% or more to ensure you get matching funds.
Stay on the message board until you learn how to manage funds in a buy and hold or in a trader mode, which ever you prefer.
Look at the Premium Services available at this site, also see the long term strategy http://www.tsptalk.com/longer_term.html

Things are going to get better............
Take Care
S

Hi! I am a real newbie to this "game" and really need HELP!!

I have been investing in TSP for over 10 years now and have started to "play" with my contributions some. Unfortunately, I am getting more and more confused and with the recent market downturn, I am in a panic. So much so, that I am in a freeze mode - I haven't changed anything in months, just "riding it out". I have about 21 years until retirement and contribute 10% of my salary.

I am contributing: L2040 20%; C 10%; S 30%; I 40% BUT my allocations are quite different: L2040 50%; S 25%; I 25%

I don't really understand the allocating versus contributing (should they match or should I allocate over to G & F as soon as I earn a respectable amount???) so any insight into that would also be appreciated!

I have lost SO much money in the last 4 months (~$40K). I am completely LOST at this point and don't know what to do - if anything at all.

I appreciate any sound advice (please in LAY terms) as I am going to have a heart attack if I continue to lose money at this pace!!

Thanks to all and Happy Holidays!

 

[nnuut]

HappyGoLucky, the majority of us have taken a big hit, but it might be on the turn around trail now. At least that's what some think. Be careful out there.
Welcome to the Message Board
Norman

 

[Show-me]

Welcome and read, read, read. Lots of good stuff here.

 

[Kentucky]

Welcome to the board, and don't feel isolated about losing money in this market. Since october 2007, I have lost about $60K, not counting my contributions over the past year.

I have taken the 'wait and see' attitude that has not worked so well. I watched the market look like it was trying to recover a bit at the end of October, and got back in (only partially) the first of November, then saw it drop dramatically again for the week after the election so I jumped back out (and locked in more losses!). But the sad part is that due to the 2 transactions per month limit, after I got back out the middle of November, then I was locked out for the month and could not get back in to catch the Thanksgiving bounce!

so, the moral of the story, no matter what your strategy is, luck plays a big part due to the timing issues and lack of ability to make more than 2 trades per month.

Well, that's my 2 cents worth, and I will say that you can get a lot of insight on this board.

 

[HappyGoLucky]

Thanks to all for your responses! I have been reading and reading trying to get a handle on this and feverishly taking notes. I am anxious to learn everything that I can!

Since I do have time before retirement, I would like to be aggressive in my investment strategy, but do realize that I have SO much to learn. I like the L funds OK - but am not sure that I have the personality to just stick everything there and wait it out. It looks like now is a good opportunity to buy with everything so low - an opportunity to make up some lost ground.

I do have a question, though...I will keep my contibutions constant but am thinking IFT to get in on the low price on CSI; then if I make up ground, IFT that into my L fund and keep an eye on the market.

Is this a normal way of thinking? Play to make $, then bank what you make in a more safe L, G or F??

Any ideas on this is much appreciated. And, thanks again to all who have given opinions thus far!

 

[nnuut]

You should keep an eye on how the funds are doing before jumping to one for safety. Check out TSP Fund share performance on the TSPTalk Home Page, it's at the bottom of the page, or go to the TSP site. Now which fund would you like to be in when the going gets rough? The "G" is the only fuond that NEVER loses money.

 

[HappyGoLucky]

Thanks! I will definitely keep that in mind!

 

[KevinD]

Go to TSP.gov and click on the big L on the left side of the home page. Then pick the fund you are most likely to want your money in and an animated pie chart will come up. Move the chart to match the month we are in and it will tell you how the fund is allocated between the GFCSI.

Currently the L2040 fund has over 80% in the CSI stock funds. Is this how you would spread out your money among the funds if you were taking care of the allocation yourself?

Just something to think about...

 

[dannyboy]

Dannymcm,

Thank you! I am learning alot - but sometimes the lingo really gets me. Can you tell me if my allocations should match the contribution or does that matter?

I was really trying to "gamble" some, too. I started TSP many years ago and just stuck everything in G&F. Then, I had a colleague give me some advice about diversifying some...so I took the plunge. I am desperately hoping that I can make up some ground...but not sure what to do next......

Hi,
The 'computer' in my '05 Toyota Corolla went bad, yesterday(12-9), leaving me screwed on the roadside and going nowhere. I wasn't able to get back to you til now. I'm an old greasemonkey, who gets in there with wrenches,etc. and I just found out everything is computer programmed, emissions, transmission, carbuerator, steering, wheels, steering, etc. I'm ready to attack with wrenches and what I need is a keyboard and meter reader? Damn Rocket Science, I'm a programmer, too. :embarrest:
"Can you tell me if my allocations should match the contribution or does that matter?"
You may put in whatever you're comfortable with, but as all the "gurus" will say is put the max in that you can and they are right.
I guess that you are non-military(If you're military then you may be able to exceed all others and put everything in?) You wrote 10 years in so I guess that's a few $k (maybe dozens? ). The max amount that you could put in your TSP previous to this maxed out at 15% of your pay, but that is my comfort zone, so I stay there.
There are terms that these MB people throw around DCA? and many others, that If I can't figure out by reading that entire posts and those surrounding it, then I just don't mess with it, if I don't know, it don't matter. Put in the max you can, adjust to this new lifestyle and soon you won't mind for it won't matter. If you can take care of yourself and all others, and never withdraw from your funds! I'm guilty, I've done that and it's very destructive to your future funds.
Future Contributions = funds that will go into your account from future pay
IFT's (Interfund Transfers) these are the funds that you have made to your account, along with interest earned. You have 5 funds to go into, this site tsp.gov tells you about each one.
An easy way that I used to do this, before IFT limits was to go to marketplace.com and if the futures were up then go to tech funds; C,S,I; else go to F,G. Now you need to spend the whole day looking at varying links. Now I watch the TSP leaderboard on TSPTALK.COM and pray, guess?

 

[Rod]

Welcome Buddy.

Personally, I have all of my payday contribution going into the (G) Fund.

Why do I do this?

I do this because I don't want any new money being lost if it happens to be deposited prior to a bad market day.

Once my payday money is deposited, and safe-n-sound in (G), I then move it into the market from there.

I hope this helps.

-Rod

 

[JTH]

Once my payday money is deposited, and safe-n-sound in (G), I then move it into the market from there.

+1 That is sage advice

 

[DrFaustus]

One other thing you might try is to play around with some strategies using "virtual" funds. Once you have a strategy you like, assume you have a starting balance of 10K and use the past market data to test it out. This gives you a chance to see if your ideas are valid without having to put your money at risk to do so.

You can get all of the past market data off of the TSP website if you are patient enough to do so and then just fire up Excel and have a go. Or, if you don't have Excel, try downloading OpenOffice and using the "Calc" spreadsheet program.

Ultimately, you have to do whatever allows you to sleep at night.

 

[KyCards]

Another Newbie!!

Nice to have you here. As for advice, or suggestions, the only one I could think of was to not eat yellow snow.

Regardless, it’s great to have another mind and another perspective on the site.

As for me, I like to read, and learn from everyone’s theories. Personally, my TSP is VERY diverse, but it works for me.
It’s like having heroine under a security blanket. A little rush and still in a comfort zone.

Enjoy the adrenaline and panic.