If you're in an Index market fund history suggests that things will, over time, get better. A sector fund may be quicker or longer depending on the companies represented. If you have invested in individual stocks then the swings can be even bigger, to include the company going bankrupt.

Me, I'm holding.

At this point, the share indexes (reflecting aggregated individual stock values) are about where they were 3 years ago. So you've lost the gain since then, but not more. So far. If you were happy with where you were in 2016 or 2017, then that's where you are now.

The stock gains that have been erased have to do with the performance of the US economy and to a much lesser extent, not much to do with which politicians are or aren't in office. Economic activity is cyclical without outside interference and has been for a long time. Major events such as the current health crisis, wars, other bad news, do effect the stock market. The two drivers have long been described as being the emotions of fear and greed and almost nothing else matters directly.

Fasten your seatbelts boys and girls, it's going to be a bumpy ride.

It's going to get worse before it gets better. But the stock market is a leading indicator, so it will turn before the worst hits the economy which means it will turn up even before the economy bottoms out. I think things will come back fairly quickly as soon as they're allowed to, which hopefully will be a matter of months.

What is your exposure to the market? Our portfolio is 25% exposed. (Unfortunately, it was even less so three months ago, but we finally 'gave in'. HAH!) Those of you younger than we Seniors will see a recovery. Last big fall took ten years to recoup,

I am an eternity away from retirement but that does not make me any less nauseous to see 6 figures vanish from my 401k. I have been advised to relax and wait it out. Relax. Sure Jan.

The only people who get hurt on a roller coaster are the ones who jump off. This quote by Dave Ramsey (Riding out is winning so far).May 17, 2013

See the date on this quote? This question gets asked a lot.

I like what chisue said. Not everyone can afford to wait ten years for a market recovery.

I also like what Elmer said. Were you happy with your portfolio in 2016?

I got out of the stock market in January in order to pay off a mortgage (and avoid some mortgage payments), but I'm not sure that real estate is any better off than the stock market. So far real estate values have not dropped in either neighborhoods where we own houses, but that may change in the near future.

We went through this in 2008. We hung on and recovered, but there was a while there that I chose not to look at our monthly earnings statements. Hubby, on the other hand, seemed compelled to go over them in detail when they came out.

I haven't looked at my TSP since last week. I'm curious and now may have to go look. lol

If you have enough liquidity to last you awhile, you'll be OK.

How would you like to be the owner of a vacation rental condo in Hawaii? Even *I* am discouraging people from traveling there now.

@Nicole -- we decided not to list because it was just too much, too fast to swing a 1031 right now. I can see a sudden increase in long-term rentals on Maui!

I had a feeling back in November that 2020 might have some set backs so I planned to realize the gains made in certain funds and moved assets in January 2. Did an analysis; had I not made that mkve, I would have lost almost 30% of value in those funds. needless to say, there is a loss but it is about 7%.

New money still goes to those other funds because they are good, strong funds. I have a little bit of time before retirement but not enough for a full recovery.

There are only so many things within my control right now. I'm choosing not to stress over the stock market. We made out fine with just a little time to recover the last loss, our funds are invested somewhat conservatively. I'm focusing on my family's and friends health and immediate needs for the time being, I'll worry about the rest if I need to but later when life is more normal.

Thank you to everyone for the reality check. I took the dog for a walk and I feel much better.

I too am a bit nervous about the stock market. I am retired and have been for almost 10 years so what I have is it. All we can do is ride it out. It is not the time to panic.

I too am in the TSP and moved all but 20% into the G fund Wednesday. I also stopped withdrawing my RMD as a monthly draw. As high as the market was December 31 which is what the RMD is calculated from continuing the withdrawal for me would have been foolish. It may be worse in December when I have to be issued the RMD but that is nothing I can do anything about.

If you are holding quality stocks, I expect those will recover once the nation comes out of hiding and gets back to work. You may not get back to the price those were at in January because the market had become over-priced (as measured by the price/earnings ratio) and was in danger of a pull-back, a correction that many of us had expected some time this year. I expect a recovery to a reasonable P/E ratio in a few months; In my humble opinion, it will take 2 yrs to get back to January 2020's overpriced level.

When the market took a dive on Black Monday, every holding I had also dived EXCEPT for Kimberly Clark. It increased a bit (think toilet paper).

I road out the first 2 weeks of the down market in my 401k that was allocated towards my scheduled 2030 full retirement year (~70% equities and 30% bonds). A few weeks ago I moved it all into a 100% bond fund. The bond fund has gone down since then but at less than half the rate as the previous fund. I've saved a little over 40K in losses on paper so far. I plan to move it back into either the same 2030 fund or a S&P indexed fund at some point but not sure when I'll pull the trigger.

Those senators should be investigated by the SEC and run out of town by their constituents. Pretty much insider trading IMO.

I have no faith that anything will come of any investigation.

I looked last night and now wish I hadn't.

>>Last big fall took ten years to recoup,>>

Assume you're referring to the 2008/9 recession? I think it depends on what your AA (asset allocation) was. We went down 20+% but within 2 yrs were back even (not counting deposits in the interim).

That was our third recession, so this is our fourth. The stock market is mostly driven by emotions. That's the whole idea of having a long-term strategy.

Most people have a hard time being honest about their risk profile, until the bad news starts arriving.

Currently our CFP is doing selective tax loss harvesting which should be helpful for us on future tax returns. As Elmer pointed out, if you were happy with where you were in 2016, then let yourself relax.

What goes up, comes down. And vice versa!

Stay healthy, everyone.

Also...how are you invested....mostly stocks, stocks and bonds, more in the Bond Market, etc.? And, are you in for fast growth, more safe growth, and on

and on. Hopefully, you all have put some into safe cash funds the closer

you got to retirement, just for this reason. It's hard...but the worrying about it won't change any of the results,

but can drive you crazy...hang in there...stay cautious...follow all the directions..

stay well.

Anyone holding Costco stock?

No Costco for me but we have WMT. It recorded a 52 week high this week.

A market correction was due anyway. I'm not minimizing the plunge but the up and down cyclicality of economies is a fact and can be seen going back a few centuries and more.

No one, not even the most accomplish pros, ever gets their market timing moves correctly and anyone who suggests they regularly do that is fibbing.

LoneJack, if you moved out of index funds a couple weeks ago you probably left a handsome dividend & capital gains payment on the table.

Stock (and fund) prices anticipate dividend time and rise before and go down afterward so timing probably didn't matter. For established dividend paying companies, as are found in index and other funds, the timing and amounts of dividend payments are well known and pretty predictable.

I am 70 and retired. Don't plan on using the money in my IRA accounts or selling the stocks I have unless I need to move to a nursing home. I am not looking to see what I have left. I don't want to know.

Check with your tax adviser, Rose. He or she should have alerted you to this last year.

The tax law prescribes what's called "required minimum distributions" that must be taken out of IRAs and other qualified retirement plans. You can't keep the balances untouched once you're out of your 60s.

The law was changed last year. It used to be that distributions needed to start when you reached age 70 1/2. If you reached 70 1/2 in 2019, the old law still applies to you and distributions must start now. If you didn't turn 70 1/2 in 2019, then you have until April 1 of the year you turn 72 to begin making distributions in percentage amounts prescribed by law.

The rules are complicated and as above, check with your tax adviser.

Elmer, I have until I an 72 before I must make a rmd. Born after July 1, 1949.

Good. You comment about not touching the money in IRAs until later years suggested you didn't know that you don't have such a choice.

I know I have to take it out, but I'll probably just put it in a savings account.

Rose: You need to put your cash in a better paying account than a savings account. Typical bank savings accounts, these days, are paying less than the inflation rate. Its ok to have a pad of ready cash to meet certain events. Some folks keep 3 years of living expenses in cash with the remainder held in relatively safe income producers. Municipal bonds is a possibility. Consult with your planner.

Consult with your planner.

End of thread.

End of thread.

Uh, no.

Michael - I am well aware of the fact that it was nearing time for dividends and CGs. As Elmer noted it is already figured into the fund price. As of Friday closing if I had moved back to the 2030 fund from the current bond fund I would have increased my number of shares by 3,742 by my calculations. So far I would say I made the right move.

I am also aware that bonds aren't exactly a safe haven like in normal times especially municipal bonds that may be in danger of default due to the downturn.

I just want to go sit in my fishing boat and ride out the storm!!!

I'm keeping my 6 month emergency cash in a No Penalty CD at 1.55% until this flies away.

Get some stocks on sale!

Many bargains - 30% off recent prices!

Plus bonus: higher annual rate of return!

As in regular shopping: evaluate carefully seeking quality! When buying a suit, one needs to check carefully to be sure that one isn't paying top price but getting a shoddy product.

ole joyful

Looks like another downer market today due to congress bickering over the relief bills.

Now futures are up a little. We'll see what happens in 45 minutes.

I'm within a few years of retirement, although I have a good job and could keep working if necessary.

Before this chaos I was comfortable with the balance in my portfolio.

Despite knowing in my head I shouldn't panic and do anything stupid, it is so hard for me not to move it all into something "safer." It's hard watching ~40% of your savings disappear (on paper)....

When this health storm has passed, values will recover. If it doesn't pass, then it doesn't matter. ;-)

Sorry for being funereal but I think it is true.

Yep, that's pretty much true, Elmer. AnnieG, try not to look at your portfolio, if possible.

Thanks Elmer. I know that is true, in my head. It's weird, even in 2007/2008 I never "panicked", never touched my stocks - but it's different for me this time for some reason.

I'm trying to stay the course.

Probably a good time to review beneficiaries. Make sure name, address, contact # is correct.

How much of an improvement on the DJ would make you decide to sell? How much would you sell? (Just kicking ourselves for not staying the course with LESS exposure before inVesting more in early January... Talk about 'timing'!)

Along with beneficiaries as Michael suggested write down a list of people that you would like contacted if you become ill and put it in a conspicuous place. When this is over you can turn it to the wall or place in a drawer. This is especially important at times like this. You may know what button to push on your phone but the paramedics and doctors have to follow privacy rules and have no time for guessing who to contact. Not certain if a wallet or phone would even be allowed on an ambulance unless it is in your pocket even if you live alone.

May I suggest that you keep things in perspective, folks?

If you spent years in post-secondary education and had some interim jobs before getting on career track and really hot (I thought that I wrote "got") going at 30, and now at 60 are looking at retirement, whether voluntarily or forced ... you've had a 30 year career.

Take it from this guy who was 90 last year ... you may be retired as long as you worked!

Have you heard which segment of life has been the fastest growing, in our part of the world, in recent years?

The folks over 100! (Granted ... the calculation started from a not-large base).

The early years of retirement are expensive, what with all of that pent-up energy being released in kicking up your heels, running around and having fun ... then come the middle somewhat quieter, more relaxed (thus somewhat less expensive) years. Possibly somewhat enhanced, finance-wise, by downsizing from major house to more modest digs, thus freeing up some meaningful assets for investment.

Usually there are substantial costs associated with the latter years of our lives, living in a retirement home, then assisted care, and then nursing homes ... and while one can sing while there, if one chooses - you don't get to stay there for a song!

Many advisors suggest that a substantial portion of money which you don't expect to need for about ten years or more can well be invested in qualty eguities.

Eating my own cooking, as I do - well over two thirds of my investments are equity-based.

Most of the mutual funds, most held for a number of years, charge about 2% a year as management fees. ETF fees are substantially lower.

Over half of my portfolio is in individual stocks owned directly.

One that I bought over 50 years ago for $4,25 a share, paying 10 or 12 cents a year dividend, was (supposedly) "worth" $107. in 3007, paying $3.08 dividend.

I don't know what "worth" is - what I mean is that that is the price for which I could have sold it at that time.

The price available in 2008 dropped to $40., as that company was heavily involved in the financial fiasco operational at the time. Should have had the courage to buy more (at what precise time, pray tell?) ... but didn't.

Some said they'd cut dividends: they didn't, but there was no increase for 4 years.

Share prices grew to around $120. a few months ago, payng $5.76 annual dividend - recent offer is about $68. Estimate cost in a year just over $100.

Over those 50+ years of ownership - haven't paid a nickel to any manager's fee.

May invest some soon, some more later: no one knows where the bottom will be. In what I think to be a more valuable company for the price.

Many advisors suggest to invest equal number of dollars on a regular interval, called "dollar cost averaging": one gets fewer shares when prices are high, more when prices are low.

Good wishes for making wise use of your dollars in a long-term plan.

Better to have dollars left at the end of the years ... than years left at the end of the dollars!

Who'll then pay for the funeral/plot/headstone?

ole joyful

" Most of the mutual funds, most held for a number of years, charge about 2% a year as management fees. "

I suspect you are only familiar with Canadian mutual funds, which are smaller, likely less efficiently run as a result, and charge high fees.

In the American mutual fund world, actively managed funds rarely charge more than 1% and many are available in the .5 to 1% range. At the low end, index funds are often .2% or less. That's two-tenths of one percent, 90% lower than the number you cite for Canadian funds.