Posted on Wednesday, 2nd June 2010 by

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The TSP and markets in general have been on another roller coaster ride AGAIN this past month or so.  I fortunately shifted all of my TSP account to the G Fund several weeks ago feeling that the market was overdue for a correction.  I discussed my intention to switch to the G Fund in my March article. The icing on the cake, that convinced me to move to safety, was the Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain (PIGS) blowout, and the BP oil spill. Just too many negatives converging at one time and when you add government’s out of control spending, it just made sense to seek higher ground and avoid insanity for another round.  Only time will tell if I made the right move but either way, the G Fund is guaranteed to never decrease in value and it still pays a hefty yield compared to CDs and Money Market accounts.  After the market recovers I’ll reallocate my funds back into stocks. Explore your TSP options to better understand how to manage your account.  As always, I don’t recommend anyone changing their TSP allocations based on my personal preferences

If you purchased stocks, mutual funds, or ETFs, when the Market hit its low back in 2008 it was time for many to lock in profits. The recent 1000 point drop in the DOW average was a subtle reminder of just how far a market can and will go in freefall.  Small investors often find selling stocks a difficult chore. I use to be that way and have learned over the years that you “can’t always get what you want,” especially when it comes to market highs. About 4 or five weeks ago the market culminated a long run up and it had pretty much gone straight up over the last year, a very unusual path for a market to take without a breather.  Many were talking about a V shaped recovery and few considered a double dip recession. How fast things change.  The jury is still out and only time will tell, but the long and short of it for the small investor is to take your profits when you have them because they can easily disappear in short notice.  It is a hard decision to sell for a number of reasons.

Many small Investors are optimists and buy and hold, loosing interim profits along the way. If you have a 25, 40, 100 or 400% profit I belief it makes sense to take them and look for other attractive investments especially when you think they are getting overprices. You can always buy them back 30 days later, often at a lower price. Look at Ford (F), it sold for as little as $1.87 in January of 2009. In April of 2010 it hit a high of $14.57 a share.  When it hit $14 many investors that purchased at less than $2 were holding on believing it was going to $20. When the market started its fall last month and the stock hit $11 the hard liners said they weren’t selling until it returned to $14 or more, why sell, I’m losing money they would say.  Even at $11, if they sold, their profits were in the 580% range!  GREED kills profits.  Just like the gambler that hits a jackpot and then plays and looses everything he won.

Retiree Job Options

If you are looking to retire but still want to stay in the game or you are retired trying to keep your head above water, there are many job options available for workers with federal government experience. Our jobs board continues to grow and Money Magazine recently listed four “Best Jobs for Retirees“ in their May issue . Here is a partial listings of jobs or services that welcome retirees and older workers:

  • Energy Auditor – Inspect homes for energy efficiency, Salary $42,000 to $66,000. Visit www.aeecenter.org for more information.
  • Patient Advocate – help clients with prescriptions, file paperwork, and arrange transportation. Salary from $36,000 to $52,000. Visit www.nahac.memberlodge.com for more information.
  • Nonprofit Manager – Transfer your federal management skills to the private nonprofit arena. Salary from $40,000 to $69,000. Visit www.bridgestar.org for more information.
  • Public School Teacher – Sciences and math teachers needed. Salary $47,000 to $52,000. Visit www.teach-now.org for more information.
  • The US 2010 Census – Part time work. Call their national jobs hotline at 1-866-861-2010 or apply online at http://www.census.gov/hrd/www/index.html.  The pay is good and the hours are flexible.
  • Private Sector job search, all occupations – Visit http://searchfedjobs.com/joblistings.htm to find jobs for all occupations nationwide and overseas.

Learn more about your benefits, employment, and financial planning issues on our site and visit our Blog frequently at https://fedretire.net to read all forum articles.

Visit our other informative sites

The information provided may not cover all aspect of unique or special circumstances, federal regulations, and financial information is subject to change. To ensure the accuracy of this information, contact your benefits coordinator and ask them to review your official personnel file and circumstances concerning this issue. Retirees can contact the OPM retirement center. Our artilces are not intended nor should they be considered investment advice. Our reply is time sensitive. Over time, various dynamic economic factors relied upon as a basis for this article may change.”

Last 5 posts by Dennis Damp

Posted in BENEFITS / INSURANCE, EMPLOYMENT OPTIONS, FINANCE / TIP, LIFESTYLE / TRAVEL, RETIREMENT CONCERNS | Comments (0)


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