Curiously I beat Buffet by a day on this idea with this column in Marketwatch. Of course none of this matters when G.W. Bush comes out and spreads more fear about the market.
Warren Buffett wants the world to know that it’s time to get greedy right now, as fear sends stock prices plunging across the globe.
Using the widely-read opinion pages of The New York Times, Buffett writes that he’s been buying U.S. stocks for his personal account, picking up a “slice of America’s future at a marked-down price.”
Besides his Berkshire Hathaway shares, Buffett reveals that he used to own nothing but U.S. bonds. Now, he writes, “If prices keep looking attractive, my non-Berkshire net worth will soon be 100 percent” in American stocks. Remember, he’s talking about his own holdings, not the billions of dollars of stock owned by Berkshire Hathaway itself.
“A simple rule dictates my buying: Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful. And most certainly, fear is now widespread, gripping even seasoned investors.”
If I had a little extra money, I would be buying like crazy right now. As it stands, this is where my regular bi-weekly mutual fund purchases for my retirement plan and dollar cost averaging is going to increase my portfolio’s value with out too much pain, though it does hurt to have seen how much I’ve “lost” in the last few weeks.
Would you expect him to say anything else…
wow, can i have all of warren’s money to buy some stocks with??
🙂
could i just have some money! :O
I was also told right now is a GREAT time to buy a car…here’s our Financial 9/11…time to BUY, BUY, BUY!
Fear or greed have nothing to do with it. They are emotions. It is knowing when it is a smart time to invest / divest. When the value of the stock is less than the value of the company, obviously you buy and now appears a good time to buy. Selling when it is worth less than what you owe on it is never a bright idea.
No shit. If only I had more disposable income.
I bet Bill Gates is buying stuff up too.
Stocks are the only thing that go on sale and no one wants them.
The total value of all stocks was 17 trillion at the high. Now they are worth 10 trillion.
I have never seen such low PE in my life.
If you have some cash in T bills. Get it out and buy some stocks. In 10 years, you can tell your kids how smart you were to buy.
Maybe these stocks are going to prices they need to stay at for the next 20 years? Because their value was over-hyped for years? Should small investors put money into a second home right now as a best investment?
Of course it’s a good time to buy… the question is, what do you buy?
You can buy a ton of any specific company, but you may buy the one company that doesn’t bounce back. Then your $¢rewed!
It goes to show you why some are wealthy or is at a case because “when you are rich people think that your really know”
Its not just a simple case of going against the herd or buying when everyone is selling
The currency was seriously adulterated or lessened by these bad debts which were then paid off by printing money out of nowhere
Who knows and who wants to take such risks
Is it investing or gambling ?
Who knows ?
It is a great time to buy and I just hope my financial advisor at UBS is doing just that.
Buffet is a well known, trusted American investment genius. I hope he comes out soon reminding people that he is on the Obama economic advisory team. Perhaps alongside Colin Powell? Who knows.
Unfortunately, Palin is on McCain’s financial advisory team. In her defense, she did use the calculator function on her cellphone to compute a 10% tip once.
#5 Would be interesting to be able to look at all D.C Pol’s portfolio’s & see when selling & shorting started…
“I’ve been buying American stocks. This is my personal account I’m talking about, in which I previously owned nothing but United States government bonds… But fears regarding the long-term prosperity of the nation’s many sound companies make no sense.”
– Warren Buffet, October 16, 2008
“This is the time to buy stocks. This is the time to recall the words of the late J. P. Morgan… that any man who is bearish on America will go broke.” “Many of the low prices as a result of this hysterical selling are not likely to be reached again in many years.”
– R. W. McNeel, October 30, 1929
Wish I could dump money into my ROTH now instead of having to wait until the first of the year.