new to board

[cardoc]

Hi to all. I'm new to this site and it seems like a great place to learn and chat.I've been a long term investor for several years in ret. accounts and a "mad-money" account on the side.I recently decided to trade with a small portion of the side account ($1000).I started in May, and have had 5 decent trades netting from 15%to 40%,but had two losses- one around 30% and one at 20%. Also had one I sold at break-even.
overall I'm still ahead 35% if I had sold it all yesterday. If I can turn 60-70% net per year I"ll be satisfied.
I have one question: If a person is able to trade for a living (quits day job)-can you still contribute to a ROTH IRA,or are you considerd "retired",without earned income,and thus not allowed further contributions? Sorry for the long post and thanks.
Mark.

[LongArm]

No, you need to have earned income to contribute to an IRA and trading income is not considered earned income, even if you trade for a living. The exception to this is if you trade under an entity, like an LLC.

On a side note, you might want to be careful about deeming yourself ready for full-time trading after just a few trades in a (mostly) rising market. Traders are often fooled into thinking they're better than they are because of favorable market conditions and/or a streak of good fortune. Then reality sets in after things change.

Good luck and welcome to the forum. :)

[cardoc]

Thanks Longarm. I'm not putting alot of money toward my trading yet- just learning and having a little fun. I enjoy staying in the game.

Good luck.