Millennials Struggling to Invest Wisely

Several recent studies have found that millennials are struggling to manage their investments. According to bankrate.com, 69% of individuals currently under age 30 haven’t started a retirement savings account. This is due to numerous reasons including unemployment, student-loans and recessions. However, Business Insider has pointed out that “You don’t have to choose between saving for retirement and paying down your debt.” If you start early and utilize the value of compound interest over time, your retirement is almost certain to be pleasant.

Greg McBride of the Wall Street Journal has another piece of advice for young professionals. For those who have already started a retirement account, he encourages an aggressive investment strategy. He argues that while safe investments can provide a sense of immediate security, they are often quite risky down the road. This is because they don’t provide a sufficient rate of return to grow a retirement nest egg. In McBride’s opinion, the long term focus of most millennials allows them to sail smoothly through market contractions and the increased returns are an added benefit. Because of this, he recommends that millennials move away from a portfolio of completely safe and invest in riskier options.