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If you were inheriting a considerable amount of money, how would you invest it?

Last year we lost $12,000 in an investment that went bad, however, one time we quadrupled. Since I'm inheriting this money, I don't want to risk losing it. My husband has a farm equipment painting and restoring business, that he kind of just keeps on the side, while he works for a very successful company...He's the best around in his business, but turns down customers all the time, cause it's run by him and his brothers, and they are limited in time. Being detailed work, it's hard to find good help. We have the acreage for this, should I possibly look into this? I was wondering about real estate. We have 8 1/2 acres, possibly adding some rental units?

Public Comments

1. Put it into a mutual fund with low expenses and impressive track records. For example, FAIRX and WWNPX.
2. your question was detailed yet kind of confusing. are you saying you want to invest in your husbands business? if so, if he's already making a profit, why not?
3. I'd invest it into a mutual fund. You'll get safe returns and a decent interest rate.
4. Since the business seems to have potential, I would compromise and put half of it there and the other half in stock and bond mutual funds.
5. Your money needs to earn money for you with minimum effort from you. Buy real estate. Either units to rent out or land that other people rent from you. That way you keep the initial asset and it still works for.
6. How are your assets allocated now? If you have the majority of your savings tied up in your husband's company, you may not want to invest more in that. In that case, mutual funds may be the best route. Also, how old are you? How soon do you think you'll need this money? The longer you can keep you money invested, the more aggressive you should be when it comes to investing.
7. I would invest a lot in real estate, like apartments, 5% in CD's, TIP (TIIS) bonds, money market accounts, or some other savings account paying at least 4.5% interest and the rest in stocks. To avoid losing $12K, I would subscribe to an investor newsletter and invest in about 5-10 of their top picks, which might take a few months if they highlight 2 a month. I would intend on buying to hold for at least a year but would sell whenever the newsletter recommended it. If I got too busy or sick of bad advice from the newsletter, I would buy the top 10 mutual fund performers over the last 5 years. Since you are cautious, you might want to put more in bonds, particularly TIPS and other tax advantaged bonds or bond funds if you are in a very high tax bracket. I personally would not invest in your husband's business. He has a good job and it would be very risky for him to quit his job to devote all his time to the family run business. He might be kept busy on weekends now and be turning down enough work to work 2-3 days a week earning less than he is now. Therefore it would be smarter to hire somebody for less than what your husband is making and have them work full time in the business. Keep in mind that hired employees will not be as good as your husband and his brothers that have ownership in the business. Also, it would be very risky to put all your eggs in one basket. If you invest in that business, try to make it no more than 50% and then be very conservative with the rest, such as putting 25% in an S&P 500 index fund and 25% in some TIPS (TIIS) or other tax advantage bonds or tax advantage bond funds for stability and because it sounds like you are in a high tax bracket.
8. I would pay off some debts and also help a couple of people in need that I really knew well and try to help them out and put some aside and save save save.
9. I am also heading towards rental properties and rehab investments. I strongly suggest rental as a long term residual income. Make sure the properties are secured by asset protection. Under LLC company setup. I am building in the midwest where the money goes alot further. You might look into other area's to maximize your returns. Your husbands business would only be a consideration if he planned to take it full time and you were definally never planning on leaving. Never place your ability in secure income with someone elses talent that you could not run yourself if you had to. That type of specialty business usually only has one owner who runs all. Think in terms of being able to support yourself in your investment if it was all left to you to run. (Rentals can have contracted property managers) you could manage that. Long term planning is how you need to do all your business affairs.