IF I WAS 18...

IF I WAS 18... 4 Accounts I'd Open at 18 This will get you ahead. if I wanted to get ahead of my peers. First, a Roth IRA. At 18, your advantage is not money, it's time. And a Roth IRA allows your money to grow tax-free for retirement. And the earlier you start, the more time that compound interest does the heavy lifting. Even a small contribution investment in your Roth IRA today can snowball into more money than most people realize. Second, a credit card. But only if you use it like a debit card. Only spend what you have, pay it off every single month and never carry the goal is to build your credit score to help you with leases, insurance, and maybe even a mortgage. Third, a HYSA. A regular savings account pays you basically nothing while an HYSA allows your emergency and other short-term savings to earn around 3-4% right now. So if your money is stored anywhere else, you're probably missing out. To see the one I use, HYSA, and I'll send it to you. And fourth, a brokerage account. Once your Roth IRA is maxed, this is where you can keep investing. There's no contribution, no access restrictions, but the money is not tax-advantaged. So if you want to invest for goals before retirement age or invest outside of retirement accounts, this is the next bucket.