Starting my FIRE journey at 25: Should I focus on stocks or property?

Hello,

It’s great to hear that you’re exploring the FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) movement and considering your investment options carefully. Each of the options you’ve listed has its own merits and potential role in a FIRE strategy. Let’s explore each one:

A) Invest in stocks (e.g., 100% VDHG)
Investing in a diversified ETF like VDHG (Vanguard Diversified High Growth) can be a solid choice for building wealth over the long term through compound interest. This ETF provides broad exposure to a range of asset classes, primarily focusing on equities, which historically offer higher returns compared to other investment types. This approach is relatively hands-off and can generate both capital gains and dividend income.

B) Save for a deposit for a property
Investing in property can also be a viable path to financial independence, especially if you’re considering a strategy like rentvesting—where you continue to rent while owning investment properties. This can potentially provide you with both capital growth and rental income. However, property investment requires a significant initial capital outlay and comes with ongoing maintenance costs and potential vacancy risks.

C) Split my savings between A and B
Splitting your savings between stock investments and saving for a property deposit can offer a balanced approach, providing both the growth potential of equities and the stability and potential income from property. The exact split would depend on your personal risk tolerance, investment timeline, and financial goals. A common approach might be a ⁵⁰⁄₅₀ or ⁷⁰⁄₃₀ split, depending on which asset class you feel more strongly about or which aligns better with your long-term objectives.

D) Consider another asset class
Other asset classes to consider might include bonds, which can offer stability and regular income, or more niche investme

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Hey Mia, welcome!

The problem is, there is no ‘best’ way. You can ask 10 people and they’ll give you different answers.

You can invest in property, or shares, or both. It’s an annoying answer, but that’s just the reality. How do you figure out what’s best for you?

Ask yourself some questions…

— How do you feel about debt? If it’s something you don’t like, then maybe shares are a better fit.

— How important is home ownership to you? If it matters a lot, then maybe saving for a deposit first makes the most sense. Then you can decide whether to invest in shares or more property after that. If you don’t mind waiting until your mid 30s or later, then you can equally just invest and build a share portfolio while you enjoy the flexibility and simplicity of renting.

— Personally, I think focusing on one thing at a time is the most effective. So think about the home ownership thing first, and that should guide your decision.

Hope that gives you some stuff to think about.
Dave

p.s. The following two podcasts may be useful in thinking about property vs shares and where each of them fits in your journey.

How important is housing to FIRE?: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4bTC0Oq27Ia4...

Are shares the best path to FIRE?: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2xUzoYlmbG8K...