For most of us in the world today, we’re all still virtually in lockdown. Mrs. Money and I have been sheltering in place for about a month and a half now. I recognize that these are difficult financial times for many of us, and that there are plenty of folks that have los their jobs or have had hours/pay cut. For others, we’ve approached this as a time to hunker down and make sure our finances stay in order. Whether it’s controlling expenses and cutting out extras where we can, now seems like a good time to have cash on hand.

For some of us now with lots of free time on our hands, we may be looking to invest some of our money. Whether we sense a long-term advantage because we think the market is low now, or even because we’d love to supplement our income, if it all possible. Side hustles (even socially distant ones) are always a great bet, but you might want to consider the right investment possibilities. I know a few friends that have been reading, discussing, speculating a lot on investments, and thought I’d help you explore a few options that you might have if you’re looking!

Stock Market

The first and most obvious place that young professionals will look to invest will likely be the stock market. When companies get large, they will start selling ownership stakes in themselves via shares to the general public. Sometimes it a way to raise additional money for the business, or other times it’s a way to let existing owners sell shares more quickly.

The stock market is easy to get into and has proven to be a consistent investment over time. While it’s very possible and common to trade individual stocks (i.e. shares in Apple, Tesla or Coca-Cola), it’s considered risky to buy individual companies, as they’ll go up and down sometime without any logical reason. My favorite way in investing in the stock market is through index funds. Index funds are a type of mutual fund that invests broadly in the whole market. So, your $1,000 investment will buy a few shares in Apple, Tesla and Coca-Cola, amongst hundreds of others. Instead of betting on one stock, you bet on the market as a whole. Yes there will be winners and losers, but on the whole things have held up and performed pretty well over the years.

You’ll need to have a brokerage account to trade stocks and mutual/index funds out of. Make sure it’s one with a good reputation and also one with low fees to trade!

Real Estate

Investing in real estate will take money, and more than the $1,000 you might be investing in the stock market. However, depending on your lender, they might not require as big of a down payment as you think. I see two types of real estate investment options – and both are benefiting right now from the very low interest rates (we just locked in 3.3% for a 30 year mortgage). The first is investing in your own house, your primary residence. If you’re renting and have been looking at buying a house, I’d say generally speaking owning a home tends to be a good long-term investment. The other option is to invest in a property that you’ll be renting out or flipping. Of course, if you find the right house, then you could get it at the low, fix it up and sell it on, i.e. flipping. If you’re fairly handy and enjoy renovation work, it could be a good move for you. Mrs. Money and I on the other hand have chosen to be landlords, and have a house that didn’t require lots of renovation.

Another option you might not be thinking of is investing in your own house via updates or upgrades. Whether it’s a big project like finishing a basement, painting cabinets or something smaller like painting a room or cleaning up, your house is likely your biggest asset and it’s good to protect and invest in it!

Investing in yourself

I realize that these might be scary times right now, and for many of us, you may just want to keep your money a bit safer and keep any excess money that you have in a savings account. I think that this is a worthy investment if that’s what you’re most comfortable with. Always invest up to your comfort level, and if that’s just a savings account, go for it! Be sure that you’re keeping your money in a bank that pays high interest – there are lots of good online banks (i.e. Ally, CapitalOne etc) that pay 10x more interest than your regular bank. Put your money to work where it’ll work the hardest!

Another avenue of investment is investing in yourself by expanding your knowledge base. With so much time on your hands, it could be a great time to learn a new skill, take a class, or practice something new. There are tons of educational options out there for you, many of which are free! Always be learning!

Cryptocurrency

I call out cryptocurrency because it’s still a fairly hot topic amongst young professionals and something that gets brought up from time to time. Do I think it’s a worthy investment? No. But to my earlier point about learning, it could be something cool for you to dive into. Oddly enough, when the coronavirus pandemic first began, the majority of investments and currency took a nosedive. For the most part, crypto remained stable. So, how easy is it to get involved with this investment option? While you are a little late to the game, it’s easy to find out how to buy and sell bitcoin (the most popular cryptocurrency) here. You also need to look for new crypto on the market because this will be affordable before climbing in value. Once again, I wouldn’t call this an ‘investment’ but there are some cool underlying financial principles that come with it, and learning how to trade currency is a skill for sure.

Summary

Investing should always be part of your financial strategy, both in a good market and a bad market. What it actually looks like will depend on the overall market and your own investment strategy and goals, but it’s wise to always be thinking! We hope this helps you understand that there are various investment opportunities that are far easier to access than you might realize. 

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