<prompt> Human: Im going to make this concise. Lets say Ive been saving for a while and have about 150,000 saved and am adding on about 25,000 a year. What would be my best options for investments? I have helped my dad build 2 entire homes and he said he could help me every step of the way if needed. Would real estate be a good avenue? Like buying cheap foreclosed homes with straight cash and putting some time and money into it and selling it for a profit? What would be the minimum in savings to reach the you should have this in an index fund level?  <response>: Most people here are going to advise you to use index funds because they provide a great return over a long period and take no work, but thats not the only way to wealth. It sounds like you have a career if you can save 25k per year. Do you get a match in a 401k at work? If so definitely do that. Why not do 5500 per year in a Roth IRA and then use the rest for real estate? 