A Sample $500 10-Stock Portfolio
Made up of DRIP Stocks
Imagine being able to start your investing career with stock in 10 different companies--each one of which is a high-quality dividend-paying company. Well, virtually everyone can afford to do that. That is, they can afford to do that if they start out with a single share of stock in each company.
You may think that a single share of stock is relatively worthless. In a brokerage account it would be.
But that single share held in a company direct investment plan (DRIP) is a great foundation for your future wealth.
I’ll explain: Some of the finest companies in America offer a benefit that allows the shareholder to invest directly in the company without going through a broker. Many of these companies do not charge any fees or commissions for each investment.
That means that you can start out with a single share of stock and build your holdings over a number of years. This strategy not only reduces risk but it also allows you to start out with next to nothing. You can “save” in stock and not save up in the bank to get enough money to invest in stock.
How do you get started?
We’ve picked 10 stocks in 10 different industries (see the listing at the left), but you can search our proprietary DRIP database to find the company that you like best in a variety of industries.
You need not worry about the current price of the stock and whether this is the right time to make an investment. NOW is always the right time to get started as a DRIP investor. Markets move up and down. DRIP investors build wealth over a period of time by investing the same amount on a regular basis. This strategy is dollar-cost averaging, a strategy for which DRIPs are ideally suited.
Temper of the Times enrollment service will get that single share for you (or more shares if you wish) and get an account open for you in the company direct investment plan.
After that, you can send money to your account and the plan administrator will use the money to buy shares or portions of shares to add to your holdings
You can expect to receive a statement from the company after each optional cash purchase. The bottom of the statement will have a return form for you to use the next time you want to invest money in that company.
Look in your mailbox for annual reports and quarterly statements.