Is now a good time to invest in a fund? Where can I get guidance?

Is now a good time to invest in a fund?

I'm a novice at investing direct in companies, is this a better way to invest? Where can I get guidance?

Hi Danny,

Thank you for your question.

When you're starting out investing, there are several things to think about.

1. How long? Investing money into stock markets is a long-term game. You should look to invest money for 5 years minimum. Any shorter and potentially you haven't given the funds enough time to grow.

2. Risk - This refers to volatility risk. How much do your funds increase and decrease in any one year? Generally, the US stock market, which makes up 60% of global markets, will move 14% up/down in an average year.

3. Is now a good time to invest? The best time to invest was 20 years ago. the second-best time to invest now. Don't think about when to invest, other than when you have the funds and you're ready to commit long-term. You should never try to time the markets. time IN the markets, not TIMING the markets. That said, now is a far better time to invest than 6 months ago, as markets are a lot lower.

4. Regular contributions - If you can save regularly this will be beneficial.

5. Funds - Unless you have a lot of time and expertise, you're better off investing in funds rather than picking stocks. A well-diversified global equity fund is generally a good place to start.

Check out our blog at www.engagewm.co.uk/blog for loads of great content. Our latest blog below provides some tips on successful investing:
https://engagewm.co.uk/successful-investing-3-simple-steps-you-can-follow-to-achieve-investment-success/
There is also lots of guidance on this website - boringmoney.co.uk

For podcasts, try Maven Money podcast - incredibly useful for ongoing guidance and reassurance

Also, have a look at Meaningful Money - podcast and youtube videos. They will certainly have a video on first-time investing.

I hope that helps for now.

Oliver McDonald