A Working Mom’s Guide To First-Time Investing

Providing for your family’s financial needs is one of the biggest priorities of parents – no one would want their child to go without. You’ve probably heard that investing in the stock market is a great way to make your money grow and you’d love to be involved, but you’re unsure how to start. Working Mom talked to independent financial experts to help clarify and direct you on your road to financial freedom through investing. 

Get your finances and your saving habit in place. 

Pay your credit card debts, give in that tuition fee money, and make sure you have an emergency fund in place. If you don’t have excess money for your investment capital, you will need to examine your spending and see what’s burning a hole in your pocket. Invest only when you have the extra money to do so. 

Set your goals.

Traveling the world, or in need of tuition? “Goals make the sacrifice of regularly setting aside money more meaningful. After which, ask yourself what your timetable is for each investment goal. That will determine what kind of investment is suitable for the fund,” says Rose Fres Fausto, a behavioral economist, owner of FQMom.com and a member of IFE (Investing for Everyone) Mgt. Advisers, Inc. And remember, the earlier you start, the better your chances of reaching your goal. 

Research, research, research.

Chances are your fear in making investments comes with the fact that you lack the know-how, but that can be readily solved. Fausto says, “The greater fear should really be in not investing. Just learn the basics of how to run them. Investing is always better started with an end goal in mind—what are you investing for?”  Aya Laraya, MBA, CIS, CSR, and a registered financial planner, says, “Go online and spend time reading. That’s the most reliable way. Most people you talk to will claim to give you unbiased advice, but they are incentivized to push a particular product or industry. You can also watch my show, “Pesos and Sense” on YouTube, which is an industry and product- agnostic way to get started. But, here’s something I need to say: Only invest in anything if you have these three—time, money, and knowledge.” 

Get your hands on some un-risky business.

Fausto suggests that in order to save for something on a short-term basis, say, something you need in a year’s time, a time deposit account would suffice. 

Laraya suggests that for your long-term goals, like your child’s education, health concerns, or retirement fund, consider a product linked to the PSE Index. “Get Index Mutual Funds, which means you invest your money in listed companies that belong to the PSE Index and are performing well. You can also get Index UITF, which stands for Unit Investment Trust Fund, wherein you give a certain amount of money to a bank to invest and manage your funds.” 

Investing in the stock market is made less daunting when you’re armed with enough know-how to get the ball running. Do your research, get your finances in order, and you might find yourself diversifying your portfolio in no time. 

This article was originally published in Working Mom December 2017-January 2018 issue.