rigs
First Time Poster
Cash: $ 0.25
Posts: 1
Joined: 14 May 2011
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| need help investing TSP |
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I'm pretty much an investing rookie so I don't know alot about the types of accounts and types of investing. I'm just looking at whats best for us (my wife and I are 34 and 32) for long term investing and retirement probably 30 years down the road.
I'd prefer to just not worry about my portfolio on a day to day basis...how is the best way to allocate our money and how should I invest it?
Right now 100% of it is in "G Fund Government Securities" and every month our contributions go into this. Im not even sure what a G Fund even is.
Any tips on how to set up our TSP? Again we would prefer not to have to think about it on a daily basis and we are probably 30 years from retirement.
Thanks!
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Sat May 14, 2011 2:13 am |
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jfurnish
Contributing Member
Cash: $ 7.00
Posts: 35
Joined: 01 Jul 2011
Location: CA
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G fund is like investing in treasuries this is low risk which is why it is the default
c fund is like an index fund that closely matches the s&p 500.
I would encourage you to read up on investing in your spare time. You will be surprised how much you can learn at the library.
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Fri Jul 01, 2011 6:50 pm |
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casperd
New Member
Cash: $ 1.00
Posts: 5
Joined: 09 Jul 2011
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Yes probably an investing library will help you..To learn more..
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Sun Jul 10, 2011 3:21 am |
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SirGeist
New Member
Cash: $ 1.05
Posts: 5
Joined: 31 Jul 2011
Location: Oregon
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rigs, if you're still around and looking for information, the best place I can point you is to the TSP website. It's got alot of great information on it.
More specifically, you should read through this overview publication by the TSP: https://www.tsp.gov/PDF/formspubs/tspbk08.pdf
It's got alot of info about the TSP overall, and on pages 8-10, they talk about the different funds available.
I personally love using the TSP. Very simple, great expense ratios, and since all the funds follow various indexes, they follow the market fairly well.
You should set up which funds you use based on your personal risk tolerances and goals. Each fund (C, S, I, F, G) represents a different portion of the market, so each of them should have a place in your retirement savings. Only having the G-Fund is extremely restrictive, and since it only invests in treasury bills, it's not going to perform as well for you as, say, the C, S, or I funds. Balance your holdings in all of them.
If you have questions, just ask! 
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Sun Jul 31, 2011 2:49 am |
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SweatyGirl
Full Member
Cash: $ 15.60
Posts: 76
Joined: 04 Jan 2011
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Instead of buying stocks, many investors in TSP nowadays have been selling. And, when they turned into buyers instead of sellers, they sold at the worst time to do so by selling when the market was down and buying after it went up.
But, while TSP investors are conservative in their investments, there are still attempts to time the market or predict the market as the figures about moving money into and out of TSP funds demonstrates. Some investors are also using financial advisers to help them with their investment strategy by tailoring their investments to their specific situation.
Hope, it helps
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Thu Apr 12, 2012 6:28 pm |
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Pro48
New Member
Cash: $ 0.80
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Joined: 08 Mar 2012
Location: Midwest
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| TSP |
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Based on what you said and your plans, I would invest only 10% in the G fund. The remaining 90% I would split up among the other 3 stock funds with a little more in the I fund than the other 2. If you want to get the most out of the TSP you'll need to watch the trends. I run to the G fund when there is an overall 3% drop in the market to conserve capital.
During the 2008 meltdown there were people that were frozen and afraid to move into the G fund. Some lost as much as $80,000 because of no action on their part. The next major downturn in the market will cause the loss of 50 to 60% of the current market . I expect the first leg down in the DOW will be to around 9,400 with the possibility of going down to around 7000!.
I hope you are investing at least 5% to get the 5% match (Civil Service personnel) Make paying yourself 1st priority!
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Thu May 10, 2012 2:16 pm |
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Actonbarr
New Member
Cash: $ 0.80
Posts: 4
Joined: 04 Jun 2012
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| Hello!!! |
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New to investing money need some advice?
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Mon Jun 04, 2012 6:16 am |
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debedwards
Preferred Member
Cash: $ 21.70
Posts: 106
Joined: 19 Aug 2011
Location: Connecticut
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You can start by estimating a part of your current income in one year that can sustain your daily needs during your retirement years. After that you should determine the period or amount of time you'll rely on your thrift savings plan as your income. You can make your TSP as your main income or you can also resort to pension, social security payments and others.
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Fri Aug 03, 2012 1:01 pm |
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Folio Explorer
New Member
Cash: $ 1.40
Posts: 7
Joined: 12 May 2013
Location: Philadelphia, PA
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TSP has several good investment options. The G fund is the most conservative fund, so you probably want a more agressive fund given your young age. For an investing "rookie", I'd suggest you start with the TSP target date funds for your approximate retirement year. The target date funds adjust allocations from aggressive stocks to conservative bonds as you approach retirement. With target date funds, you can invest and forget. Good luck!
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Sun May 26, 2013 10:33 pm |
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