Are Investment Apps a Good Fit for You

These days, you can do just about anything with an app. There are apps for dating, for posting pictures, and so much more. Believe it or not, there are even some apps for investing.

People, especially young people, tend to love these apps because they don’t typically have minimum investment requirements, meaning you can invest as much or as little as you like. Some even allow you to invest your spare change!   

However, these apps may not be as wonderful as they seem at first. To start off with, they don’t always offer the type of investing that would be best for a person’s situation, and they also tend to target people who may not really be ready to invest.

Is Investing Really the Right Thing for You?

Most of us are taught, from a young age, that investing our money is a good and smart thing to do. These investing apps also send that message, that there is nothing better you could possibly be doing than investing your money.

And, while it is true that investing is a good thing when you’re prepared to do so, it’s not always the best thing in every situation. If you, for example, have a lot of debt, you’ll likely need to focus on paying that down before you start investing. Likewise, if you don’t have a good savings account or haven’t even started storing up money for retirement, those kinds of things need to take priority over investing.

The best strategy, before you dive into using the newest investment app, is to speak with a financial adviser. Talk about the details of your current financial situation and see what things need to take priority for you right now. You may find that you are ready to invest, and, if so, your adviser can help you to choose the best investment app or other strategy, but, if you’re not ready, you can learn and do all the right things so that you will soon be ready!

Risks and Fees

Another thing to keep in mind is that, sometimes, these investment apps that sound “oh so awesome” can be riddled with risks that you may not want to take or even realize you are taking, as well as hefty fees and charges that can steal away a large chunk of any profit you make from using the app.

Because there is always the chance that you could be getting yourself into something negative by using an app, do all the research possible and read the fine print before you start using any investment app out there.

In fact, it’s a good idea to run new apps by your financial adviser before you start using them. This will keep you from getting scammed!

If you can follow these tips and have a helpful, knowledgeable financial adviser to rely on, then you should be able to steer clear of bad investment apps or bad investment decisions and to invest, whether you use an app or not, in all the right ways.