Newbie TSP Investment Question

[acefrehley]

I have about 8-12 years till retirement with 81000 in TSP ( I know...its not much )...which fund should I put it in???...I hate having it all in C then the market drops like 400-500 points, it really pisses me off...but the G isnt going to make me enough $$$ long term. Any suggestions?

[userque]

I have about 8-12 years till retirement with 81000 in TSP ( I know...its not much )...which fund should I put it in???...I hate having it all in C then the market drops like 400-500 points, it really pisses me off...but the G isnt going to make me enough $$$ long term. Any suggestions?

This is not advice.

Have you considered the L-Funds?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6rRMcgBNCc

More specifically: L 2030?

https://www.tsp.gov/InvestmentFunds/Fun ... L2030.html

"...

For participants who will withdraw their money beginning 2025 through 2034.

..."

[jlozano042]

You have to pay to play my friend. Im about where you are at and Im all in the stocks and will be strong for the next few months, I think. I really dont have a educated answer for you but physiologically, if you are getting pissed off by the market then this may not be a game to play for you.

If you want to make money you better expect to lose some, and your feels will only make it worse. Rough seas make sailors and all that crap. Godspeed!

[1dtrothe]

You can do as you see fit, but I do whatever the guy who runs TheFedTrader.com does.

Check him out.

[evilanne]

I have about 8-12 years till retirement with 81000 in TSP ( I know...its not much )...which fund should I put it in???...I hate having it all in C then the market drops like 400-500 points, it really pisses me off...but the G isnt going to make me enough $$$ long term. Any suggestions?

It really depends on your risk tolerance. There are many different strategies. Take a look at Aitrus' Seasonal Musings 2018: http://tspcenter.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=68314. Another perspective based on business cycles is http://www.tspallocation.com/forums/for ... age-board/ There are also paid services you can subscribe too http://tspcenter.com/professionalTSP.php or you can look at the leader board and follow someone that has historically good returns http://tspcenter.com/listTop.php?mode=ytd No matter what strategy you decide on, there are risks and no guarantee of positive results.

You may want to consider increasing your contributions and/or setting realistic goals after determining how much you need to retire comfortably given your specific situation, such as your estimated FERS annuity, SS and other income. TSP has calculators that are helpful http://tspcenter.com/listTop.php?mode=ytd

Note: If you are in the C fund, you need to be tracking the S&P 500 rather than the DJIA or Dow (30 companies). Although the different indexes often move in the same direction, the largest historical point drop in a day for S&P 500 was $113 back on February 5th this year, but the percentage drop was only around 4% https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_l ... _500_Index

If you have been in the C Fund since the beginning of 2018, year to date you would be +0.17% as of COB today (maybe slightly higher or lower depending on when additional shares were purchased thru your payroll contributions) If you have been in C Fund for last year, you would be up over 15% right now.

[crondanet5]

Start off by playing the Fantasy Game. Use it as a test to better determine where to place your money. watch what the YTD Leader Board leaders are doing. Is this all the money you have saved for retirement?

[ArrieS]

I have about 8-12 years till retirement with 81000 in TSP ( I know...its not much )...which fund should I put it in???...I hate having it all in C then the market drops like 400-500 points, it really pisses me off...but the G isnt going to make me enough $$$ long term. Any suggestions?

This reminds me of a story. A man goes to the doctor and tells the doctor it hurts every time he moves his head too far up. The doctor tells him to stop moving his head so far up.

It's true that watching your money go down is painful. But, depending on how involved you want to be, how about not watching it every day?

Follow Warren Buffets advice of consistently investing in a low-cost ETF (or equivalent) will get you where you want to be and you don't need to eye it every gosh darn day, or even week for that matter.

Stop pissing yourself off.

[mattch45]

There's lots of ways to look at it. You can think "I have to protect at least $X" so put that amount in G. Or you can think "during a crash, my money in C could get potentially get cut in half, and I can afford to lose $X, so I'll put 2 * $X in C and the rest somewhere safe." Or you can get more sophisticated and consider a spectrum of potential outcomes over a time period, assign a percentage likelihood of each outcome adding up to 100%, then invest funds appropriately to balance potential rewards against potential risks and acceptable losses......

...I could go on, but my main point is you don't have to put it all in one fund.

[acefrehley]

I subscribed to the fed trader newsletter and might go for the L fund...thanks.

[TSPsmart]

The G fund will make you money if you sit in it until the C fund drops 40-50-60%, then jump back in. I would say that is the only way to grow your retirement at this point.

You can also take a look at my view on the Best TSP Fund for 2018

Cheers,

[Optimus187]

Buy Low Sell High, When there is blood in the streets and all that jazz

[acefrehley]

@ TSPsmart - I just read your site...good advice!