Waiting for the Crash: Why "Buying the Dip" could quietly make you poorer?
Last Update Date: 05-10-2026
Published by freefincal
Abhishek Kumar's role: Wrote this article
Abhishek Kumar wrote this guest article for freefincal, arguing that a steady, automated SIP removes the need to time the market, and that putting a windfall to work during a real correction should be a side strategy, not the core plan.
What Abhishek Kumar said
What is wrong with holding cash and waiting for a market crash to invest?
The cost is cash drag. Every rupee held back for a dip is a rupee that is not compounding. In a growing economy the market spends far more time rising than falling, so keeping cash aside is a bet against its natural direction: you are wagering that a fall arrives before the gains you miss outweigh the discount you hope to catch. It feels careful and disciplined, but in my experience it is one of the more expensive mistakes a long-term investor can make.
If a correction does come, won't the dip buyer get the better price?
Not necessarily. Suppose the market climbs for most of the year and then gives back part of the gain. It is still well above where it started, so the cash finally deployed goes in at prices higher than were available months earlier; the discount is an illusion. Meanwhile the SIP investor bought before the rally, during it and through the correction, spreading the cost across every phase. There is also the nerve problem: when a real crash comes the mood is fear, and most would-be dip buyers keep waiting for a lower low.
What should I do with a bonus or windfall if markets are in a correction?
I would treat it as the side dish, not the main course. For anyone with a regular monthly income, the core should be a steady, automated SIP, because it takes away the need to be clever and spares you the strain of sitting on cash and doubting each decision. If a bonus, inheritance or other lump sum arrives while the market is going through a genuine correction, spreading that surplus over several months is a reasonable move. Discipline first, opportunism as a garnish, and the strategy boring by design.
In our words, from what he said in the piece. General information, not personal advice.
More of Abhishek's views on money management
This guest post looks at why many investors keep cash aside while waiting for a market fall, a habit reinforced by the sharp rebound after March 2020. It explains cash drag, compares a monthly SIP with waiting for a 10% correction in two scenarios, and discusses why dip buying is hard to carry out in practice.
Publisher source
Waiting for the Crash: Why "Buying the Dip" could quietly make you poorer?