That's a small price to pay for a piece of the biggest names in Wall Street, and built-in diversification to boot.ДЄnd considering the fund has nearly $180 billion in assets, you'd be in good company if you invest in this index fund! This index fund charges a mere 0.945% in fees annually - or less than a measly dollar for each $1,000 you invest. companies, such as Apple (AAPL), Walmart (WMT) and McDonald's (MCD). The SPY fund is tied to the S&P 500 index, meaning it's comprised of 500 of the largest U.S. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) is the most popular index fund out there. And since you're effectively buying the entire stock market this way, you can have confidence your performance will mirror this. Some years are better than others, obviously, but that's what's typical in the long term.

Research shows that while individual companies may vary widely in performance, the stock market as a whole marches steadily higher over time - to the tune of about 7% annual returns on average. And as such, these funds are extremely transparent because the list of stocks in the portfolio is fixed, and because of their immense popularity their providers can charge extremely low management fees and still turn a profit. What is an index fund? Simply put, it's a pool of investments aligned to a major stock market benchmark like the S&P 500 or the Nasdaq-100. If you're a bit more impatient and don't want to wait until your 60s to access investment profits, consider opening up a taxable investing account and buying an index fund with your $1,000. And admittedly, 401(k)s only offer a short list of investment options for your money.Д«ut for the typical investor, putting your cash in a diversified mutual fund offered via your 401(k) and allowing it to grow steadily over many years is a powerful way to save and plan for retirement. The tax man will get paid eventually, of course, and will even charge penalties if you withdraw funds from a 401(k) before age 59ВЅ. That's because you're reducing your taxable income by making this contribution to your 401(k) before Uncle Sam takes his cut. The maximum you can contribute to a 401(k) plan in 2015 is $18,000 if you're under age 50 - so unless you're making a ton of cash, chances are you have plenty of headroom to increase your contribution another $1,000 if you're already making a contribution of some kind.ДЄlso, because these are pre-tax dollars, you likely will see your take-home pay decrease by much less than that $1,000 over the course of the year. That's a big reward for saving, especially considering it's something you should be doing anyway. More generous companies even match you dollar-for-dollar. There are a host of reasons why you should make good use of your 401(k) if you have one through your employer - or if you're not maxed out yet, increase your contribution to that plan.ДЇor starters, many employers offer a 'match' of some kind, where they put, say, 50 cents into your retirement account for every dollar that you put in. Increase your 401(k) contribution (or start contributing if you're not already) If you've recently found your financial footing and have a small sum that you're looking to invest, even if it's only $1,000 or so, here are five simple ways to get started:ДЎ. After all, if the financial crisis and Great Recession taught us anything, it's the importance of a safety net.Д«ut after you've covered yourself with a rainy day fund, where should you turn next to invest that money, putting it to work and making it grow?

The first place to look is at your savings account, which should have three to six months of your salary saved up for unexpected hardship. And as a result, many Americans are finally getting their finances back in order.Д«ut what should they do with that extra cash cushion? The unemployment rate continues to drift steadily lower, gas prices remain cheap relative to years past and the stock market continues to bump up against all-time highs.

Ways to invest money