QUESTION:
I want to get started investing, but the issue I am facing is my financial inability to pay a portfolio manager to start investing. I don’t have the minimum capital required by an investment bank. Is there a possible gateway to the industry for a capital of less than $10,000?
You can absolutely start investing with less than $10k AND have access to high-quality strategies. There is nothing magical about the products that firms with minimums use. It’s simply about the fee generation (or lack thereof with smaller accounts). By simply investing in 2 or 3 Vanguard index funds with discipline for the long run, your odds of investment success will probably be as good as with any of the strategies that are touted by the portfolio managers and investment banks.
To determine your risk tolerance (which will suggest your asset allocation, ie the ratio of stocks to bonds in your portfolio), start with Vanguard’s questionnaire here, https://personal.vanguard.com/us/FundsInvQuestionnaire, or Dan Solin’s here, https://danielsolin.com/asset-allocation-questionnaire/. Then, remember to stick with your investment plan throughout the market dips and swings. Getting out when the markets get turbulent is one of the biggest mistakes that investors make. Finally, ignore the financial news media and the financial news headlines. You’ll be much better off. If you are not comfortable investing on your own, there are fee-only fiduciary advisors that don’t have minimums (and they don’t have to be local), or consider one of the roboadvisors that use low-management fee index funds in their portfolios. Some of these roboadvisors actually rely on Vanguard funds or etfs. Make sure their management fees are reasonable. Good luck.