Consider to invest in coins instead of mining.
Buy all type not only BTC.
Where do you purchase your altcoin?
You can buy altcoins from various websites, like BTC-E.com and Crypto-Trade.com : PPC, NMC, XPM, FTC
You can convert these altcoins to BTC too. I think for others (eg.: TRC or DOGE) you must have mining gear, because I don't found any website that trade them for fiat (=real money).