hi there, a couple tips/ideas - almost all brokers are not investors, they get a commission when they sell you investment products - keep that in mind. - probab

hi there, a couple tips/ideas - almost all brokers are not investors, they get a commission when they sell you investment products - keep that in mind. - probably invest 80% in stuff that retains value/grows steadily and 20% in high risk/return stuff. - real estate is probably a good investment now. I would aim for places where a large amount of cash and ability to close quickly gives you a pricing advantage (ie vs a lot of small deals where other people bid up the price) - within real estate, restaurants are poor credit risks (being hit driven), commercial real estate is down right now, and residential is down except in select areas like SF. - residential real estate is counter cyclical, ie in a boom, its bid up, in a bust, people turn to renting, so it is a solid investment (assuming the surround location is a stable economy) - US stock market in aggregate is going to be flat, due to a structural issues. - areas of growth include tech, so buy what you know or emerging markets, so buy a multinational with solid exposure there. - other possibilities include ETFs (like mutual funds) are more liquid, but be careful not all ETFs follow the intended basket of investments that closely. good luck, max, mba