What is the best plan of investment?

Hey, I have recently inherited some money and am curious as to how to use it. I am 19 and really unsure what to best plan would be. I have been told to start a Roth IRA but i would like to have to ability to have money availiable within the next ten years for big purchases like a house. My father uses a Vangaurd Fund, but i know little about it. Would breaking up to money between an IRA and something else be a smart move? Thanks for your time

I indicate the pension plans. They are the best plans of investment.

First of all, I'd like to say that I'm glad to hear that you want to invest rather than spend, spend, spend. At 19, most people would do the latter.

The person that mentioned Roth IRA was slightly on track. You are able to use an IRA as a savings tool. However, you would only be able to put $4,000 in it per year. All additional money is taxed an additional 6% excise for excessive contributions and you still have to remove it.

If you have a job that allows for 401(k) contributions, put some in there. The maximum allowed for 401(k) is $15,500. On top of that, you can contribute $4,000 to the Roth IRA or Roth portion of your 401(k). If you are eligible for the 401(k), you are ineligible for the traditional IRA so that's out.

If you still have money leftover or don't have a job that has the 401(k), talk to a financial planner (CFP or ChFC designated) and they will direct you toward mutual funds. Using these, you can reduce your taxes to capital gains tax (if you hold onto them for more than 12 months) and capital gains tax is only a max of 15%.

Ron, ChFC

There are many great places to put your money, and if you want to grow it by investing, then there are a lot of options. Mutual funds like Vanguard are fine, but becuase they hold many investments, you miss out on the high returns of a few of the investments in the group. You can isolate the high performers to make the most money through sites like economicinvest.com which provides investment theory and great returning investment picks.