Stocks and or shares on a tiny budget - how to do? Help and advice sought here.

[cliveshep]

Can I ask the questions here of buying shares - how to do, choosing those likely to rise in value - how to do, choosing a broker - how much does that cost, just how small an investment can be made. 

 

We live on my small UK pension and trust me - it is small but by really scrimping could save 5-10k baht a month assuming no catastrophes happening. My wife was doing that short selling thing as peeps assert they make thousands doing it. I think that is bull's testicles aka "cobblers" and she was practising in $10 investments plus reading loads of books. I confess I don't understand her assertion that if the graph goes down she wins - I think that is more cobblers actually but I was in Construction before and all this is foreign to me. Either way, she lost eventually both times she tried it even after winning a few times eventually the bank won - of course. Thing is if I understand it correctly you win or lose after a fixed time, in her case a ridiculous 1 minute.

 

My thought from a place of ignorance is firstly she needs to choose shares to buy and also secondly be able to choose when to sell or hold on. If I understand this correctly one buys through a broker who charges a fee and calls the broker when desiring to sell. Is that broadly correct?

 

So - how little can she invest etc and answers please to my original question. She is not strong and selling cakes in the market is hardly going to support her later, or indeed selling anything once I am gone and we have little to leave her apart from the house and she'll need to live in that. I'm 79 already.

[Zaphod Priest]

12 hours ago, cliveshep said:

if the graph goes down she wins

 

It sounds like she's not trading in shares, but in some sort of high risk derivative - maybe options or CFDs (contracts for difference)*.  This is totally inappropriate for someone of limited means and experience.

 

It might be safer to wait until the casino is built here and put your entire life savings on "red".

 

She needs to stop this nonsense and channel her energies into finding some small business opportunity that will give her an income.

 

 

* I can't however, square that with "you win or lose after a fixed time, in her case a ridiculous 1 minute." Perhaps she's on some extremely dodgy gambling website, gambling on very short term stock price movements?

[Gsxrnz]

This is how the stock market works. 

 

 

[cliveshep]

Sorry guys, not helpful. 

 

Surely amongst all the members on here there are some who dabble in stocks and shares?

[KhunLA]

Since inexperienced, and little funds, along with poor practice experience, and guessing she tried her luck at 'options', I'd suggest staying away from the market.  

 

May be  bear year or 4 in the future anyway.

 

Practical suggestion ... Can she cook ?  

 

What's her favorite, and best meal that 'she' likes ?  Make and sell that locally.  No investment, from house, and provide local delivery,  from local FB website or other.

 

When selling enough, them maybe make a little stand / stall at front of your house.   Like so many do, with soup, roti, somtam stand or cart.  Or do the stand thing now, if in high traffic area.  Keep overhead as low as possible till profit is realized.

 

Maybe even add a side cart 'kitchen' to the MB, and park in a high traffic area.  Near a 7-11 is a good location 👍

 

Wife's sis has a stand at night market at Udon Thani, and bought 3 houses, cars, MBs, and put 2 kids through Uni from the income.

[Hamus Yaigh]

17 hours ago, cliveshep said:

My wife was doing that short selling thing ....I confess I don't understand her assertion that if the graph goes down she wins -

Short selling is literally what you describe if the item being shorted is a stock, so as you put it the graph goes down she wins.

 

17 hours ago, cliveshep said:

Either way, she lost eventually both times she tried it even after winning a few times eventually the bank won - of course

Directional trading which is what you describe is always a 50-50 gamble where you weigh the risk versus reward expectations before entering the trade with the idea being entering with a higher reward chance than the risk.

[jas007]

She needs to realize the difference between long term investing and trading. 

 

If she's trying to trade the market online and doesn't have a lot of experience doing so, she's playing a game she will lose.  On the other hand, long term investing is just that. Long term. .You accumulate stock positions from time to time and put them on the back burner, so to speak.  The real money is made long term and a stock can take years to pan out.

 

Depending on the broker, buying stock doesn't necessarily have to require a broker's commission.  And, again, depending on the brokerage, you don't even have to buy whole shares.  You can sometimes invest just a dollar amount and they'll accumulate fractional shares in your account.  Find a broker that allows this.

 

Once your wife has that part under control, it's just a matter of picking good stocks with good long term growth potential.  And she probably shouldn't put all her eggs in one basket.  But, long term, the winners usually outnumber the losers. 

[motdaeng]

18 minutes ago, jas007 said:

Once your wife has that part under control, it's just a matter of picking good stocks with good long term growth potential.  And she probably shouldn't put all her eggs in one basket.  But, long term, the winners usually outnumber the losers. 

 

i do agree with "just a matter of picking good stocks", but if you unlucky or inexperienced and choose more bad than good ones, than you belong to the losers ... if you need safe investments, don't do it ...

[jas007]

1 minute ago, motdaeng said:

 

i do agree with "just a matter of picking good stocks", but if you unlucky or inexperienced and choose more bad than good ones, than you belong to the losers ... if you need safe investments, don't do it ...

If you look at it that way, there's almost no such thing as a safe investment.  Even your fiat currency will eventually reduce to its intrinsic value, which is zero.  Gold is real money. Or some other real asset like real estate.

 

Anyway, she wanted stock market investing advice, and I gave the best advice I knew.  

 

[swissie]

On 4/6/2025 at 2:18 PM, cliveshep said:

Can I ask the questions here of buying shares - how to do, choosing those likely to rise in value - how to do, choosing a broker - how much does that cost, just how small an investment can be made. 

 

We live on my small UK pension and trust me - it is small but by really scrimping could save 5-10k baht a month assuming no catastrophes happening. My wife was doing that short selling thing as peeps assert they make thousands doing it. I think that is bull's testicles aka "cobblers" and she was practising in $10 investments plus reading loads of books. I confess I don't understand her assertion that if the graph goes down she wins - I think that is more cobblers actually but I was in Construction before and all this is foreign to me. Either way, she lost eventually both times she tried it even after winning a few times eventually the bank won - of course. Thing is if I understand it correctly you win or lose after a fixed time, in her case a ridiculous 1 minute.

 

My thought from a place of ignorance is firstly she needs to choose shares to buy and also secondly be able to choose when to sell or hold on. If I understand this correctly one buys through a broker who charges a fee and calls the broker when desiring to sell. Is that broadly correct?

 

So - how little can she invest etc and answers please to my original question. She is not strong and selling cakes in the market is hardly going to support her later, or indeed selling anything once I am gone and we have little to leave her apart from the house and she'll need to live in that. I'm 79 already.

First of all, I can understand your situation. You are 79 years old. Unless your wife is 40 years younger, long term benefits can not be reaped. So your wife is condemned to "trading".

 

Unfortunately, most "short-term" traders lose money, as every (transperant) international broker/trading platform will confirm.

 

It can happen, that the "retirement money" does not cover the increasing cost of living as planned. To fill the "gap" by trading the markets resembles going to the casino.

 

Your wife operating with 1000 $. I assume 500 $ profit per month would help your financial situation. Right? If she manages to do this month after month she would dwarf any investement Guru that ever lived in recorded history.

 

Talk to her like a Dutch Uncle. If she is younger than you she may find gainful employement somewhere, increasing your monthly budget in a risk free environement.

 

You and your wife will have to "face the music". As unpleasent as it may be.

[jas007]

8 hours ago, swissie said:

First of all, I can understand your situation. You are 79 years old. Unless your wife is 40 years younger, long term benefits can not be reaped. So your wife is condemned to "trading".

 

Unfortunately, most "short-term" traders lose money, as every (transperant) international broker/trading platform will confirm.

 

It can happen, that the "retirement money" does not cover the increasing cost of living as planned. To fill the "gap" by trading the markets resembles going to the casino.

 

Your wife operating with 1000 $. I assume 500 $ profit per month would help your financial situation. Right? If she manages to do this month after month she would dwarf any investement Guru that ever lived in recorded history.

 

Talk to her like a Dutch Uncle. If she is younger than you she may find gainful employement somewhere, increasing your monthly budget in a risk free environement.

 

You and your wife will have to "face the music". As unpleasent as it may be.

I agree, 100%. especially for a novice trading with little capital.  

 

Is it possible to make money as a novice trader? Sure, especially over the short term.  But it's almost impossible to beat the market and the market makers, long term.  Those guys hedge their bets.  They control the market, but they also can't lose because of how they hedge their bets.  Sort of like the casinos.  The house never pays back 100%, on average.  Take a simple example like a slot machine that pays 98%, over time.  A person can walk into a casino, sit down at a slot machine, and within 10 minutes hit the jackpot.  That can and does happen.  But if that same person sits there long enough, reinvesting those same winnings, it's just a matter of time.  The house will take their money.

 

So, there's nothing wrong with long term investing in a basket oof stocks.  But the key is "long term." even if you don't hit the jackpot, you're likely to still have something, long term.  Better than losing.

[FritsSikkink]

On 4/6/2025 at 7:18 PM, cliveshep said:

Can I ask the questions here of buying shares - how to do, choosing those likely to rise in value - how to do, choosing a broker - how much does that cost, just how small an investment can be made. 

 

We live on my small UK pension and trust me - it is small but by really scrimping could save 5-10k baht a month assuming no catastrophes happening. My wife was doing that short selling thing as peeps assert they make thousands doing it. I think that is bull's testicles aka "cobblers" and she was practising in $10 investments plus reading loads of books. I confess I don't understand her assertion that if the graph goes down she wins - I think that is more cobblers actually but I was in Construction before and all this is foreign to me. Either way, she lost eventually both times she tried it even after winning a few times eventually the bank won - of course. Thing is if I understand it correctly you win or lose after a fixed time, in her case a ridiculous 1 minute.

 

My thought from a place of ignorance is firstly she needs to choose shares to buy and also secondly be able to choose when to sell or hold on. If I understand this correctly one buys through a broker who charges a fee and calls the broker when desiring to sell. Is that broadly correct?

 

So - how little can she invest etc and answers please to my original question. She is not strong and selling cakes in the market is hardly going to support her later, or indeed selling anything once I am gone and we have little to leave her apart from the house and she'll need to live in that. I'm 79 already.

If you don't know what to do, it is best to stay out of it.