Check what to invest in during the crisis so as not to lose

Many people wonder what to invest in during a crisis. Some people have doubts about whether it is worth doing it at all. If you want to start investing, you first need to prepare for it. From this article you will learn what is worth investing in and how you can assess the investment risk. You will also learn proven investment principles that will be helpful for beginner investors.

Investing in a crisis – is it worth the risk?

It can be said that since the pandemic, crisis follows crisis. The situation is constantly getting worse. In recent months, we have been troubled primarily by the high inflation rate. In October 2022, it was at its highest level in 25 years. It fell only in December and – so far – remains at a similar level.

High inflation leads to an increase in the prices of goods, and this applies to virtually all categories. Not only consumer products and services, but also energy and fuel. Poles complain that some prices change literally from day to day. As if that wasn’t enough, there is still a war going on in Ukraine. Let us remember, however, that the current crisis covers not only Poland, but basically the entire world.

The norm is that people are most willing to invest when favorable conditions exist. What does it mean? Contrary to appearances, it is not just about having funds to invest. We are talking about a situation in which the condition of the global economy can be called good. This is directly related to the fact that in such a case the prices of individual shares increase.

Can the current global economic condition be described as optimal? Not really, but there will still be people willing to take the risk. That’s why we created the article below.

Investing principles – how to start investing?

Are you eyeing your first investment? That’s great, but you have to remember that investing is not fun. You shouldn’t make such a decision too hastily or on impulse. It is not enough to wake up in the morning and decide that today you will invest your savings and then use a calculation to make your choice. This must be done carefully.

That’s why we have prepared a set of rules for beginner investors. It is worth sticking to them, especially if you lack experience in this aspect.

1. Learn the basics of investing. The acquired knowledge will make it much easier for you to operate in a foreign area.
2. Check what mistakes are most often made by novices. You can avoid them by paying close attention to them.
3. Get to know the specifics of the market in which you plan to invest.
4. Don’t invest all your savings or money you need for everyday expenses. Allocate for this purpose the selected amount that you are ready to lose – keep the rest as a financial cushion. You need to be prepared for every eventuality, and such protection certainly won’t hurt.
5. Think about what you care about – concentration or diversification of investments? We will make it clear right away that concentration is about choosing a few specific investments that seem to be the best. Diversification, in turn, means dividing financial resources between a number of different investment options.

Diversification is a type of insurance – it reduces the risk associated with the investment. In short, this distribution of funds means that you will feel less any loss.

What to invest in during the crisis?

Some experts believe that it is better to invest in a crisis than to keep your savings in cash. The point is that during every economic crisis, the Polish zloty loses value, and this is definitely a negative phenomenon.

So we have prepared some investment suggestions that may interest you. Remember that these are only selected possibilities. Generally, there are many more of them, but not all of them are relatively safe in these uncertain times.

Precious metals

Metals are characterized primarily by the fact that their value remains constant. Thanks to this, they are resistant to inflation. Moreover, the demand for precious metals continues at all times. The reason is that they are used in industry as well as jewelry.

Gold and silver are examples of the most popular precious metals that are worth investing in also during the crisis. It is not without reason that gold is said to be a kind of safe haven. If you want to invest your savings in them, you can choose either coins or bars. There are many sizes of these metals on the market, so you don’t have to buy a huge bar right away. This allows them to be purchased also by people with less capital.

Another important point is that gold is easily tradable. Therefore, you will not have major problems with selling if you decide to do so.

Deposits

Deposits are among the safest types of investments, so they are perfect in times of crisis. You’ve probably heard many times that saving is an investment in the future. Placing capital in a bank ensures not only the safety of these funds, but also their multiplication. Term deposits are the most popular and therefore the most frequently chosen. They are valid for a specific period of time, e.g. several months or years.

They are characterized by the fact that at the end of the deposit period you receive interest, which is a certain percentage of the amount deposited. It will depend on the interest rate applicable to a given deposit. This interest rate may be fixed or variable. If it is fixed, you can easily calculate the amount of interest, even before depositing the money. This way you will check whether it will be profitable for you.

The end of the deposit period is the moment when the contract with the bank ceases to be valid. You then have two options – either choose the money or decide to extend the deposit.

However, you should bear in mind that when you open a deposit, you deposit these funds once. It is worth considering this carefully, because it is not possible to increase this amount while depositing it. However, if for some reason you decide to withdraw it before the end of the deposit period, you will lose this interest.

Some banks impose additional penalties for early withdrawal of funds. Therefore, remember to read the contract carefully before you sign it.

Real estate

Real estate has been considered one of the safest investments for years. Although, of course, it cannot be said that they do not involve risks. You don’t have to be an experienced entrepreneur to start investing in them. However, you must have certain financial capabilities and knowledge.

Remember that if you want to invest your funds in apartments, you will face many challenges. First, you need to consider whether you are sure about this decision. Then define your motivation – why do you really want to do this? This type of investment is a long-term commitment, so you cannot suddenly change your mind.

Don’t make decisions too hastily, and base each of them on previous analysis. Careful research will help you minimize the associated risks. First of all, check the prices of apartments in your area and the popularity of the location. Then, pay attention to the demand for the space you are interested in. Before any investment, calculate the rate of return to know what profit to expect. This will also tell you whether such an investment will be profitable at all.

You certainly realize that in smaller cities you will be able to find cheaper premises. This way you will further reduce the investment risk. It will be easiest to find people interested in the square footage that is the most popular. The last thing is to choose the investment method – how do you want to earn money on this apartment? Would you like to rent it out or live in it yourself and then sell it for a profit?

Treasury bonds

In Poland State Treasury bonds are a very simple investment method that guarantees capital growth and savings. They will also prove useful in times of crisis.

In short, bonds are a type of securities sold by the Minister of Finance. How it’s working? During the sale, he borrows a specific amount from the buyer (i.e. you), which he undertakes to pay back with interest. Of course this is timed so you know when you will receive it.

If you want to save on treasury bonds, you have many options to choose from. They are divided into 3 types: short-term, medium-term and long-term. Currently, the shortest ones last 3 months and the longest ones last 12 years.

Many people choose this way of saving because you do not need to have experience in investing. Moreover, you don’t have to have large sums of money to start – amounts start from PLN 100. You can see that this is basically a solution for everyone.

Investment risk assessment

What is investment risk? We can thus name the uncertainty regarding the loss or profit that may result from our investment. The general rule here is that the higher the rate of return, the higher the risk you have to bear. What does this mean in practice?

If you are thinking about making a very risky investment, you must take into account that it may bring huge losses. The second possibility is to achieve profits that you did not expect – in a positive sense.

Any investment activity may involve some risk. As it happens in life, in some cases it will be smaller, and in others – larger. When deciding on an investment, you must assess the risk it involves. The degree of risk largely depends on the type of investment.

How can you calculate the risk of an investment? By doing it yourself (however, it is not easy) or by outsourcing this task to a rating agency. There are many of them on the market, and their main tasks include investment advice and the above-mentioned investment risk analysis.

Would you like to test investing without risk? We have a solution – the CashPlay game will help you learn the basics of investing without worrying about losing your funds. Thanks to it, you can try different options, e.g. putting aside capital for a deposit, investing in the real estate market, or even playing on the stock exchange. Remember to keep your finger on the pulse and monitor your investments at all times. Sound intriguing? Click to register for CashPlay.

Investing for beginners – what is worth remembering?

Many people cannot decide what to invest in. Especially in the case of your first investment. If you belong to this group, you must know that no one can make decisions for you. So what can you do in such a situation?

When preparing to invest the funds you have saved, you can at most take into account the advice of others. In this case, it would be best if you talked to an experienced investor. This may help you dispel the doubts that are bothering you. The second issue concerns looking from a different point of view and learning about the difficulties he himself encountered along the way as an aspiring investor.

Moreover, you cannot be guided by the opinions of people who have no idea about it. The fundamental principle here is to rely on professional and verified sources of information. After all, it’s about money, you can’t afford to lose because of your own thoughtlessness.

Every investor should, above all, remain calm, you cannot succumb to uncontrolled emotions. What does this mean in practice? If you want to start investing, you should be resistant to the experiences associated with rapid changes that characterize some markets. You can’t react too emotionally to them. Both the euphoria and panic that may result from this are inadvisable. You must know that this most often occurs with beginner investors.

At the beginning of your investing adventure, it would be safest to divide the designated amount into smaller parts. Then start investing them successively, not all at once. Also remember that investing will not be a good choice for everyone. If after making your first investment you feel that it is not for you, there will be nothing wrong with that. Not everyone has to be an investor, just like not everyone has to become an entrepreneur.

Summary

We have presented 4 types of possible investments in times of crisis, when inflation remains high. It is possible that you will like one of them and decide to try it.

During the economic crisis, there is no reliable investment. Looking back, we can only assess that in difficult times, investors made the best use of long-term investments. A long horizon usually also reduces the risk of a given investment. Remember, however, that you cannot strictly rely on historical data – they do not predict the future.

It may be similar in this situation, so we can invest capital in this type of investments relatively safely. Of course, this means that the profit will not appear quickly. If you have the opportunity, it is probably worth waiting for the effect of one of the long-term investments.