First of all, welcome to the board, great to see someone starting out so young. I was too busy partying and buying toys when I was your age.
My recommendation is to not spread yourself too thin. If a home purchase is high on your list I would take care of that first as it can be a stressful time and being a homeowner can be more expensive than people realize when they first start out.
I don't know where you are located and what the situation is there as far as mortgages go, but I would recommend saving at least 10% to put down and taking no longer than a 15 year mortgage that takes no more than 25% of your monthly income for the payment.
If you have the down payment taken care of and still have money to invest I would agree with Alex that you want to take your time building the portfolio. There are always stocks at reasonable valuations, set aside $500 or $1000 per month, or whatever you can afford, and find a stock at a value and make your purchase.
This serves two purposes, first it lets you learn as you go so you don't make as many mistakes as you would if you bought all at once. Secondly it gives you opportunities to buy certain stocks when they go on sale with market pullbacks.
I would then recommend building a solid core of blue chip stocks with the occasional higher growth names thrown in.
Hope this helps!
I forgot to mention if you have any non-tax advantaged debt pay that off first. Car loans, personal loans, credit cards, etc.
I would also recommend paying off school loans as quick as possible unless you have very low interest rates on them.
Being debt free frees up your cash flow and provides safety should you ever become unemployed.
You can always stop investing if you lose your job, but its much tougher to tell the bank to wait a few months before they take your car if you still owe money on it.
My recommendation is to not spread yourself too thin. If a home purchase is high on your list I would take care of that first as it can be a stressful time and being a homeowner can be more expensive than people realize when they first start out.
I don't know where you are located and what the situation is there as far as mortgages go, but I would recommend saving at least 10% to put down and taking no longer than a 15 year mortgage that takes no more than 25% of your monthly income for the payment.
If you have the down payment taken care of and still have money to invest I would agree with Alex that you want to take your time building the portfolio. There are always stocks at reasonable valuations, set aside $500 or $1000 per month, or whatever you can afford, and find a stock at a value and make your purchase.
This serves two purposes, first it lets you learn as you go so you don't make as many mistakes as you would if you bought all at once. Secondly it gives you opportunities to buy certain stocks when they go on sale with market pullbacks.
I would then recommend building a solid core of blue chip stocks with the occasional higher growth names thrown in.
Hope this helps!
I forgot to mention if you have any non-tax advantaged debt pay that off first. Car loans, personal loans, credit cards, etc.
I would also recommend paying off school loans as quick as possible unless you have very low interest rates on them.
Being debt free frees up your cash flow and provides safety should you ever become unemployed.
You can always stop investing if you lose your job, but its much tougher to tell the bank to wait a few months before they take your car if you still owe money on it.