One thing we all have in common is the need for a roof over our heads. Yet many people debate whether they should rent or buy that roof. How do you know which is right for you?
On one hand, home ownership is a big commitment that can be very expensive. On the other hand, ownership is also an investment that can be less expensive than renting over the long term. So how do you decide?
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Filed under Home, Inflation, Investing, Saving by on Jul 30th, 2010. 4 Comments. 
In the previous post, we briefly mentioned two different types of investors – the defensive investor, and the enterprising investor. Then we defined who a defensive investor was, and looked at how to analyze stocks as a defensive investor.
Now we’ll look at the other perspective – analyzing stocks as an enterprising investor. What makes an enterprising investor different?
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Filed under Investing, Stocks by on Jul 18th, 2010. 2 Comments.
Although I’m not an advocate of picking individual stocks to make up the major part of an investing program, I do have a small amount of money invested in single stocks. With that said, the framework that I used – and continue to use today – to analyze the stocks was primarily influenced by Benjamin Graham’s bestseller, The Intelligent Investor.
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Filed under Investing, Stocks by on Jul 15th, 2010. Comment.
Would you like an easy way to approximate the rate of return or amount of time needed to achieve a financial goal?
The Rule of 72 is a great tool to use for this purpose.
This rule can estimate the time it takes to double your money when the interest rate on your investment is known. Additionally, it can estimate the interest rate needed to double your money if your time horizon is known.
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Filed under Investing, Saving by on Jun 12th, 2010. 8 Comments.
Over the last ten years, the S&P 500 had returns of 26%, -37%, 5%, 16%, 5%, 11%, 29%, -22%, -12%, and -9%.
After seeing this volatility, you might just think twice about putting your hard-earned money in the stock market. Or if you already have money in the market, looking at these fluctuations might cause you to lose sleep at night!
A Different View
Fortunately, if you were able to think about these returns in a different way, you’ll probably feel better about them and be more willing to take on the risks of the stock market.
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Filed under Investing by on May 29th, 2010. 8 Comments.
Today, there are hundreds of thousands of people who call themselves financial planners, advisors or another type of financial professional. Maybe you’ve been wanting to work with one of these people, but you’ve been putting it off because you’re not sure how to go about finding one.
Have you ever asked, “How do I find the right financial planner for me?” If so, ask the following questions, which were obtained from the CFP Board. Use them to search for a planner that you’ll feel comfortable working with, and who can meet your needs.
Filed under Investing by on Apr 25th, 2010. 1 Comment.
Last year, I opened an account with the social lending site Lending Club when they were offering $50 for free to invest with. Since there was no financial obligation on my part and I didn’t have anything to lose, I decided to give it a shot. Each note that you invest in is for a term of three years. However, my loan was paid off early, so I got all $50 of my money back with a bit of interest.
Since I had a pleasant experience investing with them, I recently reinvested the money into two separate notes at $25 each.
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Filed under Free, Investing by on Apr 16th, 2010. Comment.
What would you do if you could retire a decade or two earlier? Would you travel the world? Volunteer for a worthy cause? Develop a hobby?
Just because the government suggests that you work until age 67, it doesn’t mean that you absolutely must follow their suggestion. In this book, Clyatt shows us that with disciplined saving, a detailed examination of your expenses, and the drive to stay focused, semi-retirement can become a reality.
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Filed under Books, Investing, Retirement by on Apr 12th, 2010. 2 Comments.
Inflation is defined as the rise in the general level of prices for goods and services over time. Basically, what this means is that the same stuff we buy today will cost more over time. It’s a real force that we’ve dealt with in the past, and one we’ll likely have to deal with in the future. Fortunately, there are ways to protect yourself from it. The easiest way to do this is to purchase Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities, or TIPS.
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Filed under Inflation, Investing by on Mar 5th, 2010. 5 Comments.
The easiest way to give yourself a raise without having to ask your boss for one is to start contributing to your 401k at work.
Filed under Investing, Saving, Taxes by on Feb 17th, 2010. 2 Comments.
