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Old 11-12-2008, 05:19 PM   #21
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Last Thursday a 70-year-old friend, who has been retired about 15 years, told me he's getting out of stocks. If his current investments earn NO future interest, he and wife can maintain their current lifestyle for another 10 years. Plus, they have a small rental house that can be sold some day. He's worried that the market will be dead longer than he will be alive.
My take is, "possible but not likely". OTOH, if he's right...
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Old 11-12-2008, 05:26 PM   #22
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Last Thursday a 70-year-old friend, who has been retired about 15 years, told me he's getting out of stocks. If his current investments earn NO future interest, he and wife can maintain their current lifestyle for another 10 years. Plus, they have a small rental house that can be sold some day. He's worried that the market will be dead longer than he will be alive.
My take is, "possible but not likely". OTOH, if he's right...
I don't understand why he would use the scenario of no interest at all? Paltry though it may be, isn't 3 or 4% still something that would make his investments last longer than the 10 years he feels they will last with no interest?
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Old 11-12-2008, 05:39 PM   #23
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...and hearing more people who had previously been committed to buying and holding, people who were committed to hang on to eventually get their losses back, throwing in the towel and surrendering?

Seems like everywhere I turn, I'm starting to hear a lot more of that. I wasn't hearing that as recently as two weeks ago. But since last Tuesday, the incessant water torture decline seems to be setting many people over the brink. I think many of them sense it will be a terrible long-term decision...but they just can't take it any more.
That is a good sign, but the problem for you guys is I'm still in the market. The market will do nothing as long as I'm holding. That's just the way it is. After all, I am the born loser. So anyone expecting to recoup their losses while I'm still alive, your SOL. Now, where is my nightly medicine?
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Old 11-12-2008, 05:39 PM   #24
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. hearing more people who had previously been committed to buying and holding, people who were committed to hang on to eventually get their losses back, throwing in the towel and surrendering?
No.

This forum is the only place where I can get my "financial fix". Most people I know simply do not talk about investments or their portfolios. When I attempt to discuss current financial issues, their eyes glaze over. I just let it go....
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Old 11-12-2008, 05:41 PM   #25
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So anyone expecting to recoup their losses while I'm still alive, your SOL. Now, where is my nightly medicine?
Hey, there's always hope you will drink yourself to...uh, our recovery.
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Old 11-12-2008, 05:48 PM   #26
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I see it on internet boards like this- people bailing left and right. I work odd hours (1-10pm) so I don't interact with real people to know what the masses are doing.
My wife tells me about co-workers which are bailing.

We just keep buying and pray we stay employed long enough (another 18 years?) to be able to leave on our own terms.
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Old 11-12-2008, 05:49 PM   #27
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Hey, there's always hope you will drink yourself to...uh, our recovery.
A slower process than the traditional bullet to the head, but a more pleasurable one.
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Old 11-12-2008, 05:54 PM   #28
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No clue. We are apparently the only people we know who both invest and are willing to talk about it. So the only "bailing" I've been hearing about is from this board.

Not calling anyone a wimp, of course.
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Old 11-12-2008, 05:58 PM   #29
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No clue. We are apparently the only people we know who both invest and are willing to talk about it. So the only "bailing" I've been hearing about is from this board.

Not calling anyone a wimp, of course.
Urchina, I've mostly noticed the same thing---not finding people who invest AND want to talk about it. Do you think that most people just don't have enough investments to care? Or don't really follow what's going on (like some people who are clueless until they get a monthly/quarterly statement)? It can't be that old adage that money isn't a polite thing to talk about---in today's world, I thought just about anything was okay to discuss!
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Old 11-12-2008, 06:01 PM   #30
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Ooops! My bad.

At least I left myself a little wiggle room...
All righty old timer - what were you doing back in 02 the last little bottom - bailing or buying?

Hmmmmm?

heh heh heh -
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Old 11-12-2008, 06:13 PM   #31
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All righty old timer - what were you doing back in 02 the last little bottom - bailing or buying?
Buying (not tech stocks, thank you) - with both my 401k contribution and my employer's....
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Old 11-12-2008, 06:29 PM   #32
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I can't say more people are bailing, but I have noticed a disinterest in family/friends who are not experienced investors. I think they are just tired of hearing about the stock market and tired of bad news.

The temptation of bailing is (in the short term) to have a nest egg that doesn't go down week after week. I did sell a small position to harvest some losses, but 90% of my equities I've left alone. We have plenty of short and mid-term cash already, and I can't ER if I don't get market returns! Maybe there are opportunities elsewhere, but this is the game I know best. So I continue to buy every week or two, and trust this "buying opportunity of the century" bears fruit before I'm too old to enjoy it....
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Old 11-12-2008, 06:34 PM   #33
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Personally I bought equities in 2001 & 2002 at the same rate as before the drop, and I am buying now, $120,000 in the past two weeks (rebalancing, not new money). However, I do not plan on buying more equities until I believe things are stable (i.e. past the bottom, and moving upward). I have another $200,000 I plan to invest then (rebalancing again). I am thinking things will become clear in the next 3-6 months. Generally, I figure things are stable when financial problems have not been front page fodder for a month or so.

I do now several people who have bailed 100% to cash, at least that is what they are telling me.
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Old 11-12-2008, 06:38 PM   #34
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. . . (like some people who are clueless until they get a monthly/quarterly statement)? . . .
It may be more lack of interest than cluelessness. Most of this financial stuff is intangible, and many people are not interested in things they cannot see, touch, feel, smell, etc. A smaller number of people are interested but refuse to talk about it. An even smaller number will "talk" about it here anonymously, and yet a much smaller group will show you their statements.

I suspect that many consider themselves novices at this, and therefore do not discuss it. Thanks to the posts on this board, I am aware that we are somewhere in the middle of the pack (at least we are not far outliers) and we have not screwed up in a major way. Little comfort in recent times, but it is nice to know that we are not alone. Thanks to those who post.
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Old 11-12-2008, 06:47 PM   #35
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I have noticed more people either throwing the towel or starting to doubt their strategy. I have seen it on various message boards but I have also seen friends and family members pulling the plug.

But with headlines like: "the death of buy and hold", "the death of dividend investing", "the lost decade", "the death of equities", etc... who can blame them?

I have to admit that if I didn't hang around this board, I'd probably be selling, not buying, right now.
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Old 11-12-2008, 06:50 PM   #36
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That is a good sign, but the problem for you guys is I'm still in the market. The market will do nothing as long as I'm holding. That's just the way it is. After all, I am the born loser. So anyone expecting to recoup their losses while I'm still alive, your SOL. Now, where is my nightly medicine?
Somebody takes the bottle away from Dawg... We'll see how long it takes for him to sell out without his nightly medecine...
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Old 11-12-2008, 06:56 PM   #37
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The few people I talk with about investing have not bailed yet, nor have I.
But my buying of equities to rebalance is at a, shall we say, timid pace.
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Old 11-12-2008, 07:04 PM   #38
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But with headlines like: "the death of buy and hold", "the death of dividend investing", "the lost decade", "the death of equities", etc... who can blame them?

I have to admit that if I didn't hang around this board, I'd probably be selling, not buying, right now.
I often wonder how much inflluence that the TV news organizations have on this entire meltdown. If they can't find anything bad to report each day then they invent something. I remember a while back when the DOW went up 800 points the nightly news commentator had something bad to say about it. It just seems to me that all of the news organizations have quit reporting the news and started to just give their opinions about things instead. Ok, rant off!
Back on topic,,,I am also buying and staying in.
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Old 11-12-2008, 07:18 PM   #39
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I've mostly noticed the same thing---not finding people who invest AND want to talk about it. Do you think that most people just don't have enough investments to care? Or don't really follow what's going on (like some people who are clueless until they get a monthly/quarterly statement)? It can't be that old adage that money isn't a polite thing to talk about
That's funny. 10 years ago you couldn't shut them up about Rhythms Net Connections or some other great investment they tripled their money on. Three years ago you couldn't shut them up about the condo market. 6 months ago you couldn't shut them up about gold or oil.

Maybe it's me, but I'm enjoying the quiet.
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Old 11-12-2008, 07:24 PM   #40
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That's funny. 10 years ago you couldn't shut them up about Rhythms Net Connections or some other great investment they tripled their money on. Three years ago you couldn't shut them up about the condo market. 6 months ago you couldn't shut them up about gold or oil.

Maybe it's me, but I'm enjoying the quiet.


So true!

When people ask me what's new, I sum it up with, Obama's the new president and the economy still sucks (not that these are related--the sucking would be still occurring no matter who was elected imho). Pretty much covers it all.
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