Investing · Module 4 of 11
Actually starting
Open the account, start small, invest a set amount on a schedule, and keep an eye on fees.
Key terms in Actually starting
- Brokerage account
A brokerage account is an account with a licensed firm that lets a person buy and sell investments such as stocks, bonds, and funds. It is separate from a bank deposit account. Firms generally offer it in two forms, a cash account and a margin account, which differ in whether the customer may borrow to pay for purchases.
- Cash account
A cash account is a type of brokerage account in which each purchase must be paid for in full with the customer's own money. No borrowing from the broker is involved. Despite the name, it can hold many kinds of securities, including stocks, bonds, and funds, along with cash itself.
- Dollar-cost averaging
Dollar-cost averaging is a method of investing equal portions of money at regular intervals, regardless of what markets are doing. Because the amount stays fixed, more shares are bought when prices are low and fewer when they are high. Workplace retirement plans use the same pattern when each paycheck contribution is invested automatically.
Source: FINRA, The Benefits and Limitations of Dollar-Cost Averaging
Every term on Lever is in the money glossary.
About this module
Actually starting is part of Investing, one of 15 subjects in Lever. It’s a short run of 7 lessons, about 18 minutes in all, so you can finish it in one sitting.
Every lesson takes one idea at a time. You read it with the math worked out step by step, answer a question that puts it to use, then see why the right answer is right and why the others aren’t.
It’s for anyone who was never taught this, and you don’t need to know anything first. Every lesson is free. Lever works out what you already know, so you can start here or let your path bring you to it.
More in Investing
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1
Why money cannot sit still
Why cash slowly loses value, what it means to put money to work, and which money shouldn’t be invested at all.
7 lessons -
2
What risk actually is
What risk really means, why higher returns come with bigger swings, and how much ups and downs you can live with.
9 lessons -
3
What you can actually own
Stocks, bonds, funds and index funds explained, plus the yearly fee that never sends you a bill.
10 lessons -
5
The days you cannot pick
Why staying invested usually beats trying to time the market, and why the latest news is a poor guide.
5 lessons -
6
The account with a tax break
Retirement accounts with tax breaks, free money from an employer match, and paying tax now or later.
5 lessons -
7
Limits, locks and deadlines
How much you can put into tax-advantaged accounts, the cost of taking money out early, and the deadlines to know.
6 lessons -
8
Moving it and naming it
What happens to your retirement account when you change jobs, and accounts meant for one specific purpose.
5 lessons -
9
Spending what you saved
How much you can take out each year in retirement without running out, and why the order of good and bad years matters.
5 lessons -
10
The mix that shifts
Choosing your mix of investments, rebalancing when it drifts, and all-in-one funds that do it for you.
7 lessons -
11
Choosing where it goes
Which account to fill first, which investments to keep where, and how to do it all if you work for yourself.
6 lessons
Try this module
It’s part of Investing. Lever will bring it to you when you’re ready, or you can go straight there.