Joining in the stock market

I want to start buying and selling stocks... I just want to know how I can start doing this things.

Where could I go and not spend any or at least a lot of money to get started on this?

You are picking one of the worst times to start with stocks.

http://howtobuystocksforbeginners.com/

I actually disagree, but care should still be taken, especially if you are new to this. In my opinion this is one of the better times to "get in" if you are interested in getting some stocks (actually around 6 months ago was the best). Make sure you do your research and don't buy everything in one company. Also avoid penny stocks, go with stocks that you really feel offer something good and will prosper in the long run. When buying stocks it is usually best to buy when things are at their lows, not their highs (unless you are shorting). Stocks are more at their lows right now than their highs. I am the type that is buying stocks when everyone else is panicking and selling theirs. Usually when everybody is happy and things are going well that is the better time to be selling the stocks in general.

You might also consider Mutual Funds or EFTs (exchange traded funds) versus just doing stocks as it will allow you to buy into a market. For example you could buy QQQQ which is basically investing into the NASDAQ as a whole, or maybe a commodity EFT such as natural resources such as oil, natural gas, and other energy products. By going with an EFT you are basically investing into an entire segment which is represented by a portfolio of stocks.

I use TDAmeritrade for stocks and my Roth IRA, they are fairly reasonably priced at around $10 a trade. There are many others as well, I have no particular reason why I use them.

I was told several months ago that the cost of shares in the Royal Bank of Scotland was so low that it was worth investing in there and then. I considered it, but never did anything. A week later they got bailed out by the UK government and reported losses of about £20 billion.

I'm glad i never gave it a serious thought.

I would also like to get into stocks a bit, but would be very careful on what it is i invest in. I also agree that it is probably the best time to invest right now if you are not looking to reclaim back your investment in the immediate future. Shares in reputable companies will be as low as they have been in a long time at the moment, in 6 months they are likely to be better...it all really depends.

Having not invested in anything before i just have this feeling that the best sort of companies to invest in are the likes of technology companies that are constantly releasing new items. All they need to do is release something that's new and fancy and shares will probably bump up just enough for you to gain on your investment.

Solar energy also took a huge beating. I think that would be a good investment as well for the long run. Of course who really knows though, you could easily lose alot of money if you make the wrong choice. That is why mutual funds and EFTs could be a safer bet if you are not wanting to take as high of risks.

I fool around with one of those mutual fund simulation things at a site called Marketocracy. I have been for the last 4 years. Basically you manage a mock mutual fund.

Here's my fund. It's finally recovering from that dive earlier this year, I almost have the top 2/3rds of my positions in the green again.

I bought a little bit of silver a couple years ago, but I messed up big time. I had been watching it for a while, and all of a sudden it started rising sharply. There is a minimum of 50 ounces to buy in most situations, so I bought the 50oz at $20.99 an ounce spending over a thousand bucks on it. Then this is no joke, it dropped like a stone almost immediately after I payed for it. The last couple of weeks it has been steadily rising so I'm hoping to be able to sell soon at a profit soon. It was bad, for a while there I was at a 50% loss on my investment.

So the moral of the story is don't make impulse buys.

Another thing you should keep in mind too, is that with stocks there is always a winner and a loser. There is never a mutual benefit.

The money doesn't just come out of thin air, the only way for you to profit is for someone else to take a loss. For that reason it's tough to trust anyone when it comes to stock advice.

Anyone who manufacturers landmines, always a good bet.

Also now I would think those "Reaper" drones. They sell like hotcakes//

(a little investigation reveals the company is General Atomics and they are traded publicly)

Thanks guys for these awesome advice... I'll most certainly take them into considerations and I would really appreciate more advice, so keep them coming

Also, with all these good advice on what to think about when buying a stock... how about some pointers as to how to actually buy a stock? I'm a beginner who doesn't know anything about this... thanks for your patience

I've never bought stocks either, but I think normal people like us usually use a broker as a middle man. There's always tv commercials for e-Trade and Scott Trade and others, so maybe just research them and see what the fine print says. A lot of times they'll charge you a fee for each individual trade or for the number of stocks being traded, or something like that.

Am I normal people like you?

I don't have T.V.

You're quite normal, in fact I envy you for not having a blasted television set.

Try googling JG Wentworth, Scott Trade, and e-Trade. Those are the first that come to mind. You might even check with your bank, they may be able to broker deals for you. And if there is a community college or something in your area, they may have some sort of "Intro to Investment" class you could do in the evenings.

Not to be cruel, but I've gathered from other posts that you're tight on cash. If the first thing you think when you read that is I can't afford it, then perhaps you should reconsider the idea altogether? It's expensive and risky stuff man.

So is a trip to Vegas, but that never stops people from going hog wild. Me personally, I don't do the stock market thing. It just seems like a legal method of money laundering.

I saw a tv commercial for Charles Schwabb a little while ago, so you might check them out too.