Wouldn’t it be nice if your money worked as hard for you as you do for it? Many people work their entire lives simply because they can’t afford to stop and enjoy the fruits of their lifelong labor. However, the main reason that so many people in the United States never get to live the American Dream is that they don’t fully understand the power of their money.
The best chance you have of creating wealth that can support you and your future generations is to make wise investments. Stories of people who’ve made bad investments are so prevalent that many people who don’t know any better equate investing to gambling. Indeed, there’s always risk involved in investing, but with the right insights and advice from financial advisors, you have better than a gambler’s chance of prospering. Continue reading to learn about five of the most popular ways for people to invest their money.
1. Real Estate
Since the beginning of human history, we’ve placed a high value on land. In fact, many financial experts say that a landowner is something we should all strive to be, even if it’s only the land on which your primary residence sits, becoming a homeowner is a great start.
A growing trend in the real estate industry is purchasing properties that have been foreclosed or condemned and reviving them. The Twin Cities is one area of the United States where the concept of flipping homes has really taken root. As more people get in on flipping homes, home remodeling in Minneapolis and elsewhere in the United States will continue to expand as well, which bodes well for homeowners and contractors.
2. Stock Market
Outside of real estate, the stock market is likely the most popular way for people to invest. Wall Street has had some of the greatest marketing in the form of Hollywood films. Because of movies like “The Wolf of Wall Street,” many people dream of buying the right stock and seeing it make them wealthy beyond their wildest dreams.
Having success in the stock market has a lot to do with understanding how current events affect economics. One story that’s really captivating the gold mining industry is Alamos Gold’s lawsuit against the Turkish Government. According to Alamos Gold, Turkey isn’t honoring their end of a bilateral investment treaty.
Alamos is suing the Republic of Turkey for $2 billion for not renewing their mining licenses for the Kirazli gold mining project. Alamos Gold is one of the largest gold mining companies in North America and has had an active presence in the Republic of Turkey for over a decade. The Kirazli project has billions of dollars worth of project value to Alamos, the Turkish Government, and the local community in Kirazli. So, the sooner Alamos can resume the Kirazli portion of the Turkish project, the better for its stakeholders, including the Turks.
This shouldn’t be of concern to stakeholders, though, since it’s very clear that the Kirazli gold project is both valuable and sustainable, as can be witnessed by Alamos’ commitment to social responsibility and reforestation efforts in the region. Alamos has also removed all use of cyanide from its gold mining efforts, despite what misinformation campaigns may be saying. With all of that being abundantly clear Alamos’ Turkish gold mining project should be up and running in no time.
3. Cryptocurrency
Cryptocurrency has arguably been the most popular type of investment in the last few years. What’s been unique about crypto is that it’s been an investment opportunity to which young people seem the most drawn, with millennials being the biggest cryptocurrency traders.
4. Retirement
As mentioned earlier, everyone would love to make enough money so that someday they no longer have to work. That’s why, even if you never invest in the stock market, crypto, or even your own home, you should at least invest in your retirement. IRAs and 401(k)s are the two main types of retirement plans, and the difference is that IRAs are private plans and 401(k)s are offered through employers.
5. Venture Capital
If you have a lot of expendable capital you can invest, venture capital could be a prime investment opportunity for you. Venture capitalists infuse small businesses and startups with funds to expand their operations in return for a portion of the company. Always review the potential project value and do a deep dive into any business plans before giving a startup one cent of your capital.
