Living on the Bubble

As you work toward becoming a smart investor, you're learning where to put your money to make the most of it. Undoubtedly, you've been told that investing in the company you work for makes sense—and most of the time it does. As the housing bubble bursts, however, there is a lesson to be learned re: putting all your eggs in one basket.

Once prosperous realtors are left floundering, trying to find new jobs or second careers, and they’re struggling just to make ends meet. Thousands have already faced foreclosure and it’s tearing up their professional self-confidence. Imagine telling a client that you yourself have faced foreclosure. It doesn’t make for great sales talk, does it?

Many realtors were investing in the same market they were working in, which financial planners sometimes do advise doing, albeit cautiously. Even if you do invest in your own company or industry, you should create a diverse portfolio so that if one part isn't doing well, the rest will even things out.  Everything these people had was tied up in real estate because that’s where the money was.

Things can change quickly, and not always for the best, but if we’re prepared then we can handle them—no matter what industry we work in.

Are you investing in real estate? Tell us your story. [USA Today]