Yahoo Finance This 23-year-old uses an adviser to invest: Here’s what she’s learnt
Rachel Tucker knows it’s fairly uncommon for a 23-year-old investor to turn to an adviser for help investing, but she’s glad that she uses one.
The strategist has access to her financial adviser through her dad, who instilled the values of investing in her from an early age.
When Tucker got her first full-time job at 21, she knew she wanted to begin investing, and she turned to her adviser for support.
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"The way that he helps me is he asked me, ‘What types of patterns do you see in the world?... Where do you see growth in the next five years?’ And I told him, ‘I see growth in electric vehicles, in clean energy, artificial intelligence and health,’” Tucker told Yahoo Finance.
From there, he recommended a few ETFs and individual stocks that aligned with those trends.
“That was really cool, that made me feel like I was having an input but also that my job and my smarts were future-proofing me against failure.”
Her relationship with her adviser is a collaboration, where she will go to him with her own ideas and suggestions and he’ll hone in on them to find the best stock or ETF to meet her goals.
WATCH: Where to invest after COVID-19.
He’ll also check in with her to let her know about the opportunities he’s seeing, to find out if she’s interested.
“I get a lot of value from him, which is great. I don’t know anyone at my age who has access to a financial adviser, so I’m very lucky,” she said.
She believes she’ll maintain the relationship for at least the next decade as she goes to him for advice on her superannuation and property.
What does Rachel invest in and why?
Tucker invests mainly across ETFs, with a few direct shares thrown in.
She’s not alone: according to Stake’s recently released Next Gen Investor Research, stocks and investments remain the most popular form of investment among young people, followed by cryptocurrency and property.
Young women are also less likely to invest in crypto than their male counterparts, but renewable energy is a popular theme for both groups.
She uses CommSec Advisor Services through her adviser, and Stake to access international shares like electric vehicle companies NIO and LI.
When it comes to ETFs, she invests in emerging markets ETF IEM, the S&P500 ETF IVV, European equities ETF ESTX, Nasdaq ETF NDQ, and cannabis fund MJ.
Domestically, she invests in Ansell Limited (ANN), APA Group (APA), Appen (APX), the Commonwealth Bank (CBA), Qantas (QAN), Resmed (RMD), Transurban (TCL).
Most of her shares are long-term buys, with Tucker hoping they’ll deliver significant returns over the long run.
She also invests in Aqua Metals (AQMS), Asana (ASAN), FuelCell Energy (FCEL), Fisker (FSR), Palantir (PLTR) and Bumble (BMBL).
So far, she’s made around 15 per cent in profit, which she’s pleased with.
Best piece of advice
The best thing Tucker has learnt from her adviser is to simply start investing.
“Cash is actually more dangerous to hold than investments. I hate being liquid because I love shopping. I can almost guarantee that that is a common thing for young women who maybe have a healthy income and have lots of money to spend, particularly at the moment when they're not spending it on much else,” she said.
“I think it’s absolutely safer and it works harder for you than when it's tucked away in investments rather than in your bank account or invested in things that really have little value.”
Her second tip she’s picked up from her adviser is an understanding that investing can be fun as it allows her to use her brain in a new way.
“You can use your brain and you can also use your heart which is really cool. If you're really into fitness, or you're really into travel, you can actually actively invest in brands that you know and love.
“I think it's a really great way to train your brain.”
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