PROVO, Utah — Utah Valley University’s Money Success Center has some advice when it comes to protecting your money when the stock market is down.
That includes what not to do.
“We don’t want you to panic and sell all your stocks and convert it to gold and go hide in the hills like a hermit,” said UVU Professor of Financial Planning Luke Dean. “We want you to stick to whatever your previous investment approach philosophy is. Just keep being systematic and stick to it.”
According to Dean, your best course of action is to stay the course.
If you happen to not be invested in any way, there are other ways to protect and grow your funds.
“If you’re afraid of putting money in the stock market, you can go find high-yield savings accounts at a local credit union,” said Dean. “Some online banks are offering 4.2% that’s risk-free, FDIC or NCUA-protected. That’s a great way to safely grow your money if you’re afraid of entering the market.”
Historically, the best route for growing your money has been to stay invested in the stock market while making sure you have a diverse portfolio across several asset classes.
Wait and see or panic? Utahns differ how to handle on stock market stumble:
Not just stocks, but bonds, commodities and real estate.
“The good news is everything just went on sale,” said Dean. “It’s a great time to buy. We don’t know how far things can go, but if you just stick to every month buy a little more and more, the dollar costs averages out and it will work itself out in the long run. We’re talking five, 10-20 years, not five months, not five weeks.”
If you’re not invested in the market through your place of work, there are many ways to start investing.
You could hire a professional to help you or turn to companies that help do-it-yourself investors.
If you’re still not convinced, Dean said to think of things this way:
“When I’m on a plane and there’s turbulence and I am panicking, I look at the flight crew and I notice that they haven’t skipped a beat, they’re still having their conversations that they’ve been having for the last 20 flights,” he said. “When you look at investment professionals that know what they’re doing, they’re continuing to stay the course, they’re not jumping out of the plane, they’re riding through the turbulence and in fact, some are even investing more when things go on sale.”
To celebrate Financial Literacy Month, UVU’s Financial Planning degree program is hosting a FREE 4.01k Fun Run “Race to Retirement” to educate Utahns to max their 401k match at work.
Coaches from UVU’s Money Success Center and corporate sponsor Fidelity will be there to offer free advice on how to max your 401k benefits and invest the money safely.
If you’d like to attend, the details are below:
- WHEN: Saturday, April 12; 8:30 am kids race, 9:00 a.m. Adult Fun Run
- WHERE: Mountain View High School “Bruin Bowl” in Orem, UT
- COST: FREE
