Q&A: Investing Money at age 19 while in college and in bad economic times?

Question by Selma: Investing Money at age 19 while in college and in bad economic times?
I am 19 years old and in college. I have little money and some student loans. I want to start investing money with very low amounts for now and maybe moving up to different investments as time goes on. I am hoping to invest money to help me buy a house 10 or more years from now, but also retirement funds. I am looking at this article on MSN: http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Investing/StartInvesting/StartInvestingWithJust100.aspx?page=2. The person who wrote the article says to invest in multiple EFT’s with only $ 100 a month or so. I would like to ask if this is a smart way to do it for someone in my situation. I also am wondering if it is smart to even begin such investments during this bad economic time. What do you think? Please be someone who has experience with these things.
Thanks

Best answer:

Answer by $ so fresh so clean$
Yes, you can start investing now because your money will buy more securities while prices are low. The first thing I would do is to have an emergency account set up (savings, money market, checking, etc.) The next thing I would do would be to study upon different investments and determine if you’re willing to put the amount of risk towards them. I’d purchase some shares of a growth stock fund or index fund if you’re going to be investing for 10 years or more. When you start working, contribute the amount to your employer sponsored retirement plan to get the match. Example, if your employer will match 6% of your paycheck, let them take out 6% before you have to pay taxes. That’s a tax break right there. Next, look into as Roth IRA. Contributions are taxed, but earnings are tax-free and you can begin withdrawals at age 59 1/2, pending you’ve owned it for 5 taxable years. You can also borrow against the principal at any time.

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