40 Money Management Tips from Professionals

When it comes to making financial decisions and managing your money, who do you ask for tips or advice? We think it’s always a good idea to consult with experts, and that’s how we pulled together these bits of financial wisdom. Here are 40 money management tips from experts that you can apply to your own trading, investing, saving, and financial planning:

1. “For each investment you make, you really, really have to understand the risks that you’re taking. Don’t outsource that task to your financial advisor…. If you’re not willing to do that work, you should just keep your money safely in a bank.”

Greg Collett

Formerly COO of Deutsche Bank’s commodity ETF business, currently a lawyer representing defrauded investors.

2. “You must walk to the beat of a different drummer. The same beat that the wealthy hear. If the beat sounds normal, evacuate the dance floor immediately! The goal is to not be normal, because as my radio listeners know, normal is broke.”

Dave Ramsey

Host of the “Dave Ramsey Show” and author of “The Total Money Makeover”

3. “Cut your losses short. The ‘it’ll come back’ mentality is dangerous. One great way to do this is through the use of stop loss orders. Don’t fear them. Use them. They are your best friend.”

Blain Reinkensmeyer

Principal at Reink Media Group, hobby investor, and full-time webpreneur. He is responsible for all equity broker reviews and business development on StockBrokers.com

4. “Be patient and wait for the high probability/low risk trades. They are out there. Be like a predator/lion waiting in the brush and then pounce. You’ll eat for a week.”

Dan Sugar

Instructor at Online Trading Academy

5. “I will tell you how to become rich. Close the doors. Be fearful when others are greedy. Be greedy when others are fearful.”

Warren Buffett

American business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. Widely considered the most successful investor of the 20^th century

6. “A common mistake people are making in retirement planning is failing to diversify their investment strategy from a concentrated stock position. There is no reason why you can’t diversify your risk when it comes to the stock market.”

Clark Kendall

CFA, CFP®, AEP, President and Founder of Kendall Capital Management

7. “No one ever achieved financial security by being weak and scared. Confidence is contagious; it will bring more into your life.”

Suze Orman

American author, financial advisor, motivational speaker, and television host

8. “Check your credit report for errors! One simple mistake can cost you money. If you are not looking at your credit report to protect it against errors, who is? 15 minutes, twice a year is easy for anyone.”

Jeanne Kelly

Credit Coach.

9. “Wall St. is playing games with your money. Many investors do not know it is a game or know the rules! The first rule of trading is to know you are in a game.”

John O’Donnell

Chief Knowledge Officer, Online Trading Academy

10. “Frugality isn’t about cutting your spending on everything. That approach wouldn’t last two days. Frugality, quite simply, is about choosing the things you love enough to spend extravagantly on—and then cutting costs mercilessly on the things you don’t love.”

Ramit Sethi

Author of I Will Teach You To Be Rich

11. “Comparison shop when it comes to choosing a primary financial institution. It’s a very basic concept, but one that many people fail to grasp. The big banks are often the default choice, yet smaller and institutions like community banks and credit unions are considerably overlooked.”

John Gower

Analyst for NerdWallet, a personal finance website

12. “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.”

Benjamin Franklin

One of the Founding Fathers of the United States. Author, politician, scientist

13. “Professionals look at a trade and ask ‘what is my risk?’ first. Novices ask ‘what can I make on this trade?’ first and don’t understand the risks.”

Chris Muldoon

Instructor at Online Trading Academy

14. “You don’t have to start big…small steps over a lifetime really add up. Start funding your emergency fund with $10 a month, start investing with $50 a month. It is more important to get going than to wait for the big amounts of cash!”

Andrea Travillian

Personal finance expert specializing in money management basics and beginner investing.

15. “In investing, what is comfortable is rarely profitable.”

Robert Arnott

American entrepreneur, investor, editor and writer

16. “Individual traders must manage their trading just like a business. In other words – keep expenses low, focus on improving profit margins, develop several streams of income, and build large cash reserves.”

Charles Kirk

Full-time, independent trader, creator of The Kirk Report

17. “Warren Buffet said: ‘When you combine ignorance and leverage, you get some pretty interesting results.’ We have seen this statement become fact in the last 7 years. However, leverage used correctly when investing in real estate can create long term wealth and great ROI.”

Diana Hill

Instructor at Online Trading Academy – OTA Real Estate

18. “Live under your means. Know exactly what you earn each month and spend less. That’s a step beyond living within your means. Take responsibility and choose where your money goes, instead of being influenced by whims, advertising, habits or peer pressure.”

Kevin Gallegos

National consumer finance expert, vice president of Freedom Financial Network

19. “The individual investor should act consistently as an investor and not as a speculator.”

Ben Graham

Economist and professional investor. Graham is considered the first proponent of value investing

20. “One of the biggest mistakes I see people making is investing based on emotion rather than a disciplined, systematic process. In particular, I think people need a disciplined plan for risk management as mitigating large draw-downs in your investment portfolio has the potential to add more value over time than maximizing every ounce of upside in the bull markets.”

David Houle

Co-Founder and Portfolio Manager at Season Investments

21. “Know you want it, then wait for wholesale!”

Joann Farley

Instructor at Online Trading Academy

22. “My top tip for traders is to look at each of their trading positions each day as if they didn’t have it and ask themselves if they would open it. If the answer is “no”, then the position is no longer justified, and therefore should be closed. This simple mechanism allows traders to trick their biggest enemy (emotionality in trading) and stay objective.”

Przemyslaw Radomski

Chartered financial analyst and owner/editor-in-chief of Sunshine Profits, website dedicated to gold and silver investments

23. “Everyone has the brainpower to follow the stock market. If you made it through fifth-grade math, you can do it.”

Peter Lynch

American businessman and stock investor, research consultant at Fidelity Investments

24. “The most impactful approach to money management is spending less than you owe… By establishing a structured spending plan, which accounts for all expenses, you can focus on eliminating unnecessary expenses and commit your disposable income to building wealth.”

Thom Fox

Community Outreach Director at Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp

25. “Saving at least $1,000 in emergency savings should be a non-negotiable part of your overall money management plan. This holds true regardless of any existing debt you’re trying to pay down. Why? Because should an unforeseen financial crisis hit your front door, without a savings safety net, you’ll only fall deeper into debt; preparedness means everything when it comes to financial success.”

Jennifer Calonia

Editor for GoBankingRates.com, an online personal finance resource

 26. “Invest in yourself. Your career is the engine of your wealth.”

Paul Clitheroe

Australian television presenter, financial analyst and financial advisor

27. “Wealth building is simple and can be fully explained in just one sentence: Spend less than you earn and invest the difference wisely. If you get that right you will be wealthy. Everything else is just details.”

Todd Tresidder

Money Coach at FinancialMentor.com

28. “People should take every opportunity they can to save money because it really adds up, and the best way I know to do that is to make your savings automatic.”

David Bach

American financial author, TV personality, founder of FinishRich.com

29. “Never enter into a trade or investment without having a thorough plan first. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail! That is the best money tip I can give you.”

Merlin Rothfeld

Instructor and Host of Power Trading Radio, Online Trading Academy

30. “Run your household like a business and manage your finances like a bank! The lack of money is not our problem it’s the mismanagement of life holding us back from maximizing our earning potential.”

Mark A. Wingo

Author of Wingonomics, Creator of Get Your PhD in Wingonomics and President and CEO of New Beginning Financial Group, LLC

31. “Success is not in the quality of the winning trade but in the quality of the losing trade.”

Mike Mc Mahon

Instructor at Online Trading Academy

32. “To have a successful and secure financial future, it is important to adopt the mindset of saving before spending. If you set aside funds for the future each pay cycle, you are sure to have plenty of money in your retirement account and any other long-terms savings account.”

Gyutae Park

Co-owner of Money Crashers Personal Finance

33. “When buying shares, ask yourself, would you buy the whole company?”

Rene Rivkin

Australian entrepreneur, investor, investment adviser, and stockbroker

34. “Set aside an hour twice a month to update your budget and make sure your accounts are balancing. It’s much easier to keep spending under control if you stay on top of things and catch yourself before you are too far over budget.”

Kathryn Garrison

CFP® and senior financial advisor from Moss Adams Wealth Advisors

35. “It’s not how much money you make, but how much money you keep, how hard it works for you, and how many generations you keep it for.”

Robert Kiyosaki

36. “Trade what you see…not what you think.”

Steve Moses

Instructor at Online Trading Academy

37. “Keep it simple, understand what you own and why.”

Gary M. Shor

MBA, CFP®, VP Financial and Estate Planning, AEPG® Wealth Strategies

38. “The four most dangerous words in investing are: ‘this time it’s different.’”

American-born British stock investor, businessman and philanthropist

Sir John Templeton

39. “Set it and forget it. Manage big planning items (retirement, saving for college, vacation planning, etc.) easily by making them automatic.”

Carla Blair-Gamblian

Loan Consultant and credit expert at Veterans United Home Loans

40. “How you spend your money is how you vote on what exists in the world.”

Vicki Robin

Co-author of Your Money or Your Life and Yourmoneyoryourlife.info

Retirement Planning Tips that Truly Matter

As each New Year begins, we see a deluge of effective recommendations on how to improve financial planning.

If there is anything worth mentioning in the past two decades that we have been dispensing retirement planning advice to numerous people, it is the fact that those who take a proactive stance have achieved positive results while those who failed to protect themselves with sufficient safeguards encountered disastrous results.

With 2017 here, we focus on a few recommendations we consider essential in coming up with an efficient retirement planning strategy.

Essential Planning Tip #1: A Retirement Plan

Seek the help of a professional financial adviser to create a retirement plan for you.

A retirement plan is essential in charting your course on the right path for a secure retirement future, to avoid scams and put your hard earned money into waste. If you are not a professional financial practitioner, do not do it yourself in order to avoid committing errors or overlooking crucial aspects.

A retirement strategy must incorporate your income sources: Social Security, CSRS or FERS annuity, FERS retirement supplement and others (rental income, military pension, etc.).

You must never take this advice for granted. Do whatever you can to rev up your potential to earn. If you work as a federal employee, determine what you need to do to avail all the benefits to which you are entitled and discuss with a financial expert who can help you maximize your benefits. Having a highly knowledgeable financial adviser, however, may not be sufficient; because a few have given bad advice to federal employees who made wrong decisions that could not be corrected.

One vital step to take involves evaluating your specific income sources and analyzing how each one affects the others, determining how all of them can be made to work in synergy.

Take this case, for instance: In general, retirement planning advisers recommend putting off availing of Social Security benefits until one reaches the full retirement age (FRA) in order to gain a higher pension amount. For those born from 1943 to 1954, the stipulated FRA is 66 and it gradually goes up to 67 for those born in 1960 or after. For those opting to retire earlier, benefits are provided for those individuals who reach 62 and 1 month at a fixed reduced amount which is 75% of the full amount of expected benefit. It is crucial for those wishing to retire early to consider it if they are better off postponing Social Security benefits for a few years and getting bigger withdrawals from their TSP and other savings. This can often be a viable choice; but does not guarantee a positive result at all times. Find out if the withdrawals from your savings will eventually eat up your savings in just a short time; in which case, you might need to avail of your Social Security benefit earlier to secure your savings. This is why you have to assess all aspects of your plan.

Compute accurately what your expected net monthly income goal will be. This involves determining your actual expenses, like your taxes, insurance, utilities, car payments, etc.

At this stage, ponder what you plan to do when you reach retirement age: visiting places, learning to play music, dining, sailing, cooking, gardening, playing golf and others. Make sure you attach a figure to each activity so you will know what your expenses will be.

A good retirement plan will tell you if you are on track to support your targeted goals. You can adjust your savings target accordingly, especially if you have to contribute more to TSP or other savings plan to reach that target.

Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) must be part of a retirement plan to maintain your buying capacity in the future. As a married individual, you will also have to consider the survivor needs of your spouse which is a vital aspect of the plan. In case of the death of one of the spouses, the survivor might lose not just a part of the of the Social Security benefits received but basically half of the deceased spouse’s pension or federal retirement annuity, as it may apply.

An effective retirement plan has several components; and when everything is in place, you will easily recognize lapses or realize when you must adjust your plan along the way. A yearly evaluation of your plan is recommended in order to assess your progress and to make necessary changes according to your goals and needs.

The biggest mistake most people make, especially the young, is to procrastinate planning for one’s retirement. They feel that working with a financial advisor requires a big investment which they cannot afford and that doing it early enough is a waste of opportunity.

Initially, a lot of financial advisors offer a no-obligation consultation to find out what your financial situation and needs are. After that, they can quote a price for making a retirement plan for you. In fact, many people talk to several financial advisors before deciding who to work with in the end.

Planning for the future has no fixed-age requirement before you must do it. We can say that the earliest bird catches the biggest worm. With people having different needs, knowing you are on target as to your own goals can provide lasting peace and satisfaction.

Essential Planning Tip #2: Prepare a long-term healthcare plan

Provide for your and your family’s healthcare needs, especially for long-term medical care.

Even if you have a sound plan for your retirement years with a secure retirement income target in place may not be sufficient. Considering enhanced healthcare nowadays and the improved life expectancy among Americans, it is also a vital need to prepare for a more comfortable senior-year life through having a long-term healthcare plan.

LTC or Long-term care is a valuable protection for those who need care due to such conditions as physical injury, chronic illness, frailty or cognitive impairment. In general, the care provided is custodial care, not rehabilitative or intensive care. Based on the Department of Health and Human Services studies, 7 out of 10 people who reach 65 will require some kind of LTC. Depending on certain conditions, the care will vary in terms of cost based on the kind and length of care required, the care provider and the location of residence.

How do you pay for a long-term care need?

First is by the traditional LTC policy which is available through the Federal Government’s tie-up with John Hancock. An individual chooses the amount of daily benefit needed, the benefit duration and the inflation coverage. Perhaps, this is the least expensive way to acquire a LTC plan; nevertheless, the two main disadvantages pointed out are: (1) No guarantee on the premium given and rates have increased a few times. The most recent rate increase was in 2016 at 83% on the average, although beneficiaries’ premiums doubled. (2) In case you will not require a LTC, the insurer will not return all your premiums.

The Hybrid Life/LTC policy offers an option that has been attracting many individuals. In essence, the policy is a Universal Life insurance coverage which provides a chronic-care clause. Many of the providers channel 2% of the death benefit toward long-term care needs. For instance, if your plan stipulates a death benefit of $500,000 and you need LTC, you will receive a benefit of $10,000 monthly for LTC. In case you will not need LTC, your beneficiaries will receive $500,000 upon your death.

For those who have neglected the task of preparing sufficiently, self-insuring is the only choice. The rich, on the other hand, can opt for self-insurance without affecting their finances. Read this Forbes article: Can You Self-Insure for Long-Term Care?

An alternative plan is to buy into a Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRCs) which provide different services in the locality as well as enhanced quality of care according to the changing needs. Nevertheless, CCRC’s charge high entrance fees and monthly charges, ranging from $100,000 to $1 million entrance fees and from $3,000 to $5,000 monthly changes which may increase with time.

You final choice is to avail of Medicaid. To qualify, you should have limited income and resources which may require spending down majority of your assets. Likewise, Medicaid might not satisfy some costs of your long‐term care needs; hence, preventing you from getting the quality of life you aim for.

Long-Term Care Requirements will Impact Family Relationships

Planning for long-term care will not only affect a family’s financial resources but also cause emotional and physical stress for family members who must assist overworked caregivers. With children in the picture as well, an individual may have to set his or her life on hold. Hence, not only is the caregiver affected but also the spouse and the children. When care is not equally shared among members, conflicts and squabbles may arise, sometimes even leading to estrangement. In short, LTC may have the potential to shatter families.

Essential Planning Tip #3: Avoid Splurging Your Money in Retirement

Many get into the trap of splurging away their money once they retire.

Having a sound budget in retirement helps prevent a person to commit the worst mistake ever – spending too much money too soon.

Overspending is a kiss of death for retirees. Prepare a list all of your monthly, quarterly or annual needs and divide into two classes: (1) Needs – such as food, rental or mortgage, transportation and healthcare. Account for any increase in healthcare cost. (2) Wants – such as hobbies, travel, sports and social affiliations.

For those who have been used to exorbitant payments for car and house obligations, changing your lifestyle may be only the solution. The key is to accept the realities of retirement life and then resolve to reduce your fixed expenses to free more funds for the things you truly enjoy.

Avoid the temptation to unnecessarily support the needs and wants of grown-up children and grandchildren. This happens so often to so many people in retirement.

Take the case of a lady who had taken a pension buyout from a private company. With her sizeable IRA, she felt she could adequately provide for her children. Thus, she overspent on her daughter’s wedding and kept saving her son from his financial straits. In short, before realizing it, she had spent too much too soon. Although we all feel we need to go out on a limb to help out our children, we should do so without endangering our own essential needs. Rarely, if ever, are there second chances in retirement.

Becoming More Savvy in Personal Finance

With the year 2017’s entry, we find ourselves pondering upon what we attained in 2016 and, more importantly, what we need to do in 2017 in preparation for the years ahead of us. Breaking it down into its simplest ideas, our efforts must be toward achieving three essential things: Becoming healthier, wiser and wealthier. The steps needed to build our wealth are as follows:

Separate insurance from investment

Majority of people often put off planning their tax and investment requirements until the last few weeks of the financial year. And usually, they try to simplify their difficult problems by getting insurance. They may end up saving on their taxes; however, they can benefit more from wiser investing. Besides, the common endowment insurance policy provides minimal income and will provide the highest potential for creating enduring wealth. Moreover, the death benefits you get from insurance are not sufficient to address long-term financial needs of your dependents. The better solution is to separate your investment needs from your insurance.

Engage in monthly Investing

You need not equate Investing with getting insurance. Financial experts generally believe that the most effective way to create long-term wealth is through investing in equity, mutual funds, gold, real estate and small savings accounts, such as PPF and Sukanya Samriddhi Scheme. It does not matter how big or small the amount involved or what the investing objective, engage in monthly investing. If you have a couple of thousand rupees or more to invest monthly, do it as early as you can. For instance, invest Rs 4,500 in a mutual fund Systematic Investment Plan which will grow 10% yearly for 30 years, and develop a corpus of Rs 1.02 crore. However, with only five years left in your life to achieve the same goal, your monthly investment would be Rs 7,500 – or Rs 13,500 with 10 years left. This is all due to the effect of compounding interest rate.

Get term insurance and also ensure dependents

For those with dependent family members, consider getting life-term insurance coverage in the amount of 10-20 times your present income per year. Less than that figure, for example, an endowment plan, may not cover your dependents’ financial requirements. Term plans are quite inexpensive and offer many additional benefits, such as premium return and month income. Likewise, acquire a health cover for every one of your family members. This will enable you to save significantly the money you will have to shell out from your pocket in case of medical emergency.

Do tax planning

Avoid going into panic mode at the end of the year, especially when a big TDS occurs in March. Paying tax is a one-year process and everyone has a whole year to figure out what one earned and what to pay. Hence, one needs to maximize the use of that time to determine the best ways to save tax. Section 80 (C) of the tax code, equity-linked saving plans and public provident fund can bring higher long-term benefits compared to insurance plans. Likewise, you can save more tax if you get health insurance for you and your dependent parents. Make sure that your figures for home-acquisition loan principal and interest repayments or rentals paid are accurate. In case you are fall short of exemption limits, you need to determine and invest in a tax-reducing instrument as early as possible. You can attain efficiency on FDs by not going above the interest earnings limit. Above that limit, invest in debt mutual funds for tax efficiency and bigger income.

Avail of digital payments

Digital payment has more advantages than using cash. Demonetization compels us even more to go digital, but be aware of online scams and fraud. Automating payment allows you to do the following: pay your credit card, e-wallet or netbanking bills without using cash, allowing you to earn cashbacks and reward points. Moreover, issue ECS instructions for paying your insurance premiums and EMIs. And as more people are now doing, use your debit card for any transaction. Even day-to-day purchases such as groceries and medicines should be done through e-commerce which already utilizes numerous apps and websites. The future is now here in the growing utilization of paperless financial products. The convenience of using of digital bank accounts and digital wallets should encourage you and people around you to shift to this financial format.

Effective Financial Strategizing Tips For 2017

What does 2017 hold for us all? With the new administration in place, many Americans are figuring out ways to improve their finances and setting goals for the current year. The fact is that many of these people will fall short of their financial objectives and some will not even get moving at all, neglecting their financial well-being altogether. Start enhancing your financial health in 2017 with these 12 effective tips. Take a good look at what these expert educators, who educate experts to teach other experts and who deal with numerous financial advisors, have to share in order to raise your 2017 financial planning to a higher level. Your journey to building financial security begins with the first important step which is to learn the essential principles.

Tip # 1- Increase Your Retirement Savings

“Here are three effective steps to increase your retirement savings. First, put savings on an automatic income-withdrawal scheme, such as salary deferrals to 401(k) plans, automatic monthly payments from your checking account and amortizing a mortgage. Second, make full use of tax-friendly retirement schemes like IRAs and Roth IRAs. Third, forget this money!”

Tip # 2 – Revise Your Investment Allocations

“Considering the fresh increase in equity values, long-term investing, especially for retirement portfolios, performs much better if the stock allocation is reverted to the target allocation regularly. In short, with higher equity values at hand, the wise move is to reduce the equity load and increase the bond share.”

Tip # 3 – Do not Neglect Your Estate Plan

“A complete financial planning strategy must include estate planning as well as a family emergency program. Savings accounts, in particular, are often set primarily for emergencies. Most experts recommend a six-month compensation coverage in a liquid savings account. How do you deal with premature-death planning? Do you have the assets to take cover funeral expenses and liquidity to sustain family expenses? You must consider the targeted time frame of such expenses to determine the immediate amount needed as well as the amount that is liquid. Personal saving accounts, employee incentives and life insurance proceeds may serve to address family needs. These funds, however, must be properly set up. The individual’s will, private asset titling and inheritance provisions should be evaluated to ascertain that family needs fall within the available amount of funds and that such funds are made available when needed.”

Tip # 4 – Opt for Long-Term Investment

“Investing is a marathon, not a sprint. Build an investment plan and let the market take care of itself; as long as you stick with your plan, you will reach your goal. Historical figures from way back in 1926 to the present show that a diversified portfolio of big capitalization stocks earned an average of 10%, compounded annually. Government and corporate bonds have given about 6%. Woody Allen famously said that 80% of success is showing up. To succeed likewise in stock investment requires showing up and persevering with your original long-term goals.”

Tip # 5 – Capital Ownership is Crucial

“Aim for capital ownership. Until you choose to be taxed, appreciation is not taxed. You have control of the situation. Aside from that, your income is preferentially taxed at rates that apply for long-term capital gains. Moreover, the income from capital qualified dividends and long-term capital gains are likewise taxed preferentially. When you can already afford to be remunerated with stock instead of plain income, you stand to get more long-term benefits. Generally, what matters is not the amount paid on your investment but how you are paid.”

Tip # 6 – Take Control of Your Debt

“Only by having an effective debt management strategy can you ultimately cut the vicious cycle of indebtedness and release your potential for building wealth. An effective debt management requires prudently prioritizing your most expensive debt first, such as credit card statements, then personal debts, then deal with education loans and, next, housing loans. Nevertheless, managing debt equally involves staying away from getting another loan and finding ways to reduce spending or, at least, spending more wisely. For example, you will be surprised at how much you will save if you purchased a coffee machine instead of buying coffee daily.”

Tip # 7 – Discuss Money Maters with People Close to You

“Usually, people keep their loved ones in the dark regarding their financial situation, producing stress in their relationships. Dealing with financial issues and aspirations together with your partner will bring so many benefits. Spend time to formulate a common vision of what you want to achieve in the future. For parents, invest time to educate your children about handling money. Whether we teach them directly or not, children eventually pick up attitudes regarding the value of money. Hence, be careful how you talk to your children regarding money. Even a little pep talk will do a great deal toward teaching them good money values.”

Tip # 8 – Evaluate Insurance Coverages

“Regularly check the coverages in your insurance policy to make sure that they remain consistent with your original goals and purposes. Include all your policies, such as health insurance, life insurance, car insurance, disability insurance and home mortgage insurance. Also consider getting some additional coverage through an umbrella policy. Although insurance may not be as exciting a subject as other financial assets, it can be a valuable tool for preparing for a secure future. With respect to life insurance, always update your designated beneficiaries and values of coverage during important life events.”

Tip # 9 – Remember Your Children’s Welfare

“Plan out a way, no matter how small, to make 2017 a launching pad for your children’s financial benefit 10 to 12 years henceforth. For example, open a fund in a 529 account for a college education or the new 529 ABLE accounts for disabled children. Or, it could be a trust or a funding for a small investment account to serve as a security fund when they finish college. Such seemingly insignificant acts in the present can turn out to be lifesavers for your children once they reach adulthood. It sure beats having to keep them under your roof when they reach 30.”

Tip # 10 – Re-Financing Education

“Some people end up in a situation where they are still amortizing their college loans while trying to set aside some savings for their children. It might be the opportune time to consolidate or refinance your educational loans. Expect interest rates to rise even more this 2017 and for direct loans to vary wildly. Look for a much lower interest rate today. Consolidated loans can be accepted by repayment plans such as PAYE and REPAYE. Such plans can be appropriate for your income and, thus, help you manage payments in your early-career years. Moreover, consider your future and begin saving in 529 plans; but make sure that you become selective when it comes to 529 plans as not all of them offer the same benefits. Those plans offered in Nevada and Ohio are quite popular; but carefully check your own state’s version of the plan to find out your eligibility to avail of some special income-tax refunds or rebates.”

Tip # 11 – Make Full Use of Flexible Spending Accounts

“Maximize the use of flexible spending accounts (FSAs) offered by your company for out-of-pocket medical expenses and dependent medical expenses. The maximum FSA contribution for this year is $5,000 for dependent care FSA and $2,600 for healthcare FSA. You can get significant tax savings because monies deferred into FSAs are tax-free — whether federal, state, local or FICA. Under the proper conditions, any person may save several hundreds of dollars yearly in tax savings by contributing to FSA at maximum levels. But do not forget that there is a use-it-or-lose-it proviso in FSAs. Whatever monies you have that remain unused at yearend will be forfeited. It is crucial for you to carefully compute the yearly contributions.”

Tip # 12 – Formulate A Retirement Risk Management Plan

“Determining retirement income is not the same as saving and building up wealth for your future retirement. Firstly, the risks vary. Retirees must have a plan to address market fluctuations, their undetermined longevity and other various spending variable, for instance, a prolonged health care. Using only investments or insurance for planning is not the best method to build a plan to address various risks. Take time to begin educating yourself about retirement income to formulate a comprehensive and financially efficient strategy for handling all possible retirement risks.”

There are several crucial principles you need to know to achieve a successful financial year. Planning gives you enabling power; so, start planning. Set your savings and investment strategy on autopilot as much as possible. Regularly review your vision for your financial future. Evaluate your emergency fund, insurance coverages and your investments in 2017, to keep them consistent with your objectives.

Making 2017 the Year to Save: 10 Tips on How to Hack It

Before December comes to an end, most people commonly write down their resolutions for the New Year. And for countless individuals, one of their goals is to “save money“. Easier written than done; because in spite of the good intentions, a big majority of these optimistic people fail by the second month of the year and their savings accounts remain stagnant (if not depleted) and their spending fly out of the window.

There must be an effective way to succeed in this most challenging mission. Here are 10 suggestions to help you finally hack it.

1. Set a specific savings objective

Hit the ground this New Year running – the better to burn those holiday calories away — with a specific savings objective for 2017. Make sure the goal you set is quantifiable, attainable, realistic and suitable. Avoid being too optimistic and setting an unrealistic savings objective, which will increase your chances of not achieving your goal.

A sensible objective for saving requires having a definite item to buy or a specific figure you can realistically attain within the year. The whole process will need enough self-control and some sacrifices with regard to spending if you hope to reach your goal. Setting a very high target may only frustrate you in the end.

The next vital step is to get a friend or relative to help you achieve your goal; or, print out your objective and put it in a prominent place to remind yourself constantly – the PC or smartphone wallpaper would be a good place.

2. Carefully select a savings account

Be discerning about where you put your savings. Savings accounts offer different features and benefits, whether you talk about fees, interests or minimum balances. It is best to conduct an assessment and select the most suitable account. Also, be mindful of other charges, such as ATM fees and monthly service charges.

Although the interest rate may appear small to you, it can accumulate before you realize it. The thing to remember is that even tiny amounts will come in handy when you have a definite amount to attain. Also visit the websites of banks with online services as some of them offer higher interest rates on savings accounts.

3. Avail of an automatic saving scheme

The common assumption is that people lack the self-discipline to put aside a part of their monthly income for a savings account. The only solution is to go automatic by contributing directly to your account each month. Many banks can provide free services to transfer a definite amount of money from your checking account to your savings account monthly.

You may also request your HR department to deposit directly a portion of your paycheck into a savings account each month.

4. Set up an emergency fund

Your savings account can also serve as a source of money for a rainy day; but if you can take the challenge on a higher level, you can also set up a fund devoted only for emergency purposes. Unless you get into an emergency situation and you are forced to use your savings account, the primary purpose for a savings account is to cover major purchases, such as advances for a car or a house purchase. Hence, in case you get laid off from your job or need medical attention, your emergency fund will come to your aid without you having to give up your original goal of buying a car or a house.

Ordinarily, an emergency fund should be sufficient to pay for your expenses for a period of four to seven months. Financial advisers suggest beginning with a relatively small goal – say, $1,000 — and slowly increase your target.

5. Check your monthly expenses regularly

You need to begin a thorough monitoring of your monthly expenses. That means writing down your monthly expenses and every purchase to the last cent. This will tell you exactly where your money goes and in which areas you are spending above your budget. Consequently, you can have greater control of your money, allowing you to gain a better perspective of your spending habits so you can make a more suitable budget you can follow.

It might come as a surprise to you, for instance, that you shell out an inordinate amount of money on coffee weekly. Knowing that, you can decide to reduce your coffee intake each week and put whatever you save into your savings account.

6. Set your budget

When you have a clear idea of how you spend your money, you can set a realistic budget. While budgeting may appear to be a hit-or-miss process at the start, it will eventually become a more defined and accurate process once you have finally succeeded in cutting away your undisciplined spending habits.

Remember, there is no need to stop spending for entertainment or certain perks; however, your priority is to settle your bills promptly until you achieve your goal for saving. The main purpose for a budget is to compel you to spend within your income limit in order to enhance your savings.

7. Shop more wisely

Every time you shop, be more discriminating. Earn more points by applying for loyalty programs at the shops, join a warehouse club and purchase wholesale as much as you can, use discount coupons and shop whenever there are bargains deals or knockdown sales.

Use online shopping to your advantage by canvassing comparative prices on websites and buy according to whichever is the best offer. Buy an item not because an item is merely discounted; the best deal is one that has the greatest advantage for you in terms of quality, price and other features.

8. Use apps to your advantage

Practically everything now comes with an app that makes it very convenient to acquire or avail of, whether grabbing a taxi or chatting with pals. Make good use of the technology to help you save more money.

Some apps can help you in the budgeting process, some to help you locate the best buys in your community, as well as some to let you sell your used items. Monetize all the unused appliances and stuff in your home through these apps and make your savings grow.

9. Use a flexible spending account (FSA)

Contemplate applying for a flexible spending account in your company. Some employers provide FSAs as a benefits privilege for their employees which allows you to save money on health-care expenses not covered by insurance, as well as deductibles and joint-payments.

When you have joined such a program, decide on what amount to contribute for the year. The amount will be deducted from your paycheck eventually, minus income tax. Under the program, you can take out money from the account to cover for specific allowable medical expenses, which are effectively discounted due to your tax savings. Make sure you avail of the whole amount within the year covered.

10. Monitor your progress … and when you achieve your goal, reward yourself!

In order to succeed in the budgeting process, know where you are exactly each week in your finances. Set up a time for a “money date” when you can sit down each Sunday and assess expenses to make sure you are within the set budget. In case you find yourself off the track (whether you overspent or you failed to put away even a cent from your salary), get back on track. You cannot win all battles; but aim to win the war.

Nevertheless, once you achieve your savings goals, strike up a party and reward yourself (without overspending, of course)! Aim for the middle road in your savings strategy; that means you can still shop and spend but, this time, more responsibly.

Effective Ways to Choose Investments

Here are basic and essential steps to follow in choosing the right investment for your specific needs and goals:

1. Assess your personal needs and goals

Take ample time to consider why you want to invest and what you want to get out of it. Since nobody knows you better than yourself, your goals and your needs, as well as your tolerance for risk, start by analyzing your daily expenses and determine where you can get the money to invest. Online apps can help you do this money fact-finding process.

2. Decide how long you want to invest

When do you need the money you will invest? Soon or much later? Depending on your goals (a home purchase will differ from a bike purchase) your time target will vary and also influence the degree and form of risks you can handle. Here are examples:

Saving for a deposit to buy a house in two or three years will not suit investing in shares or funds since their value fluctuates. Opt for a cash savings account, such as Cash ISA.

Let us say you want to set up a pension fund after in 25 years, investing in short-term assets will not do; so choose long-term options. You will end up better off with long-term investments, except for cash savings accounts, since you can level out inflation and thus achieve your pension objective.

3. Choose an investment strategy

Having set up your needs and goals and considered the risks involved, make an investment plan to assist you in determining the kinds of products that match your plan.

It is always a safe and smart move to invest in low-risk investments, such as Cash ISAs. Next, you may augment medium-risk investments, such as unit trusts which have greater volatility. Go for high-risk investments only if you already have a solid portfolio of low and medium-risk investments. Even so, the risk will be much higher and you must consider the possibility of losing your money.

4. Choose to diversify!

It is common knowledge that to enhance your success at investing, you must also increase the risk you must take. However, you can control and increase the interaction between risk and return by distributing your over a broad selection of investment choices whose prices do not follow the same pattern. This is what we refer to as diversification. Its purpose is to level out the gains and also enhance growth, as well as decrease the general risk that your portfolio can take.

5. Choose your DIY level

Before buying any stock, seek professional advice to fully understand the product.

It all depends on how much time you want to devote in investing:

For do-it-yourself-ers who want to savor the moment of making decisions themselves, try buying individual shares; however, make sure you comprehend the risks.

For people with no time to spare or are not hands-on or for those with little money to invest, the common option is investment funds, like unit trusts and Open Ended Investment Companies (OEICs). Through these products, your money is lumped with other people’s money in purchasing diverse investments.

Seek financial counsel if you are not certain as to the kind of product will fit your needs or which investment funds to select.

6. Know the fees involved

Buying stocks directly, such as individual shares, will require paying a stockbroker service fee. On the other hand, in buying investment funds, you will pay charges to the fund manager. Also, seeking the help of a financial counselor will involve paying fees.

All those fees and charges will vary according to the company involved. Inquire first how much the fees are before making any final buying decisions. Although higher charges may mean higher service quality, assess whether the charges are reasonable and whether such service can be had at a lower fee rate somewhere else.

7. What to avoid in investing

Keep away from high-risk assets, except if you comprehend quite well the risks involved and are willing to handle them. As mentioned earlier, take on higher-risk products only when you already have solid low- and medium-risk investments.

There are, of course, certain investments you must totally avoid. Seek professional advice regarding this.

8. Monitor your investments regularly – but do not time the market

Investigations show that those who invest and monitor their investments daily are apt to buy and sell too frequently and derive lower gains compared to those who let their money grow over the long haul.

Yearly reviews are sufficient to show you over time how your investments are performing and still allow you to adapt your savings accordingly to attain your objective. However, you will have to read periodic statements to obtain an educated perspective of things. To help you do this, click on the list of tips below.

Remember, avoid the inclination to react wildly each time prices fluctuate abnormally. The veteran investor knows markets can fluctuate unpredictably over time; and sticking it out allows one to smooth out the movements.

How do the Wealthy Invest?

If we knew how the wealthy invest, we can begin setting the stage for our own financial success. Who else can teach us the prudent and secure steps toward increasing our chances of building wealth than the rich themselves who constantly ponder ways to do so? In spite of the fact that the wealthy also make significant mistakes that affect their gains, they remain on top of their game and bring in money, making the envy of many people. That is no accident. With diligence and the ability to get the proper financial advice, they have the knack for succeeding in enhancing their assets.

A recent Trust survey covering wealthy individuals revealed that one-third of respondents obtained their fortune by investing. Their secret, of course, lies in the right investment vehicles to choose. How can we imitate the wealthy and succeed as well? Here are some tips:

1. Portfolio diversification.Successful wealthy investors have learned that betting on single stocks, such as Tesla Motors or Apple, and hoping to catch a windfall is often a worthless and risky move. A study recently conducted by Open folio showed that the top 5% wealthiest investors had the least portfolio volatility of all respondents and had below 40% of their portfolios assigned to single stocks. Hence, desist from stock picking and concentrate more on reducing volatility and investing in diverse assets to cushion the overall negative effects of market drops. In case you now have a well-diversified portfolio, remain steady and avoid the tendency to time the market. It may come as a great challenge to many, as it also does even to veteran investors who normally have better access to valuable financial data than most ordinary investors.

2. Aim for a long-term engagement.The recent Brexit crisis and the ongoing US presidential campaign have brought anxiety to investors, causing many to sell off stocks or do various drastic changes in their portfolios. However, it is vital that investors should remain steadfast when such major market events occur. Statistically, those who patiently wait and stick to their guns are often rewarded, while others who do not, miss the opportunities provided by eventual recoveries and risk incurring transaction fees and adverse tax penalties. Only 14% of wealthy investors, according to a U.S Trust survey, gained their biggest investment returns through timing the market. Surprisingly, 86% made great headway by choosing to focus on a long-term buy-and-hold approach. Knee-jerk decisions tend to produce quite a significant undesirable effect on investors’ long-term financial objectives; and that includes the building up of a sufficiently stable retirement fund.

3. Stay away from variable annuities.Variable annuities, in general, do not provide secure investments for anyone – with the exception of the cunning advisors who sell them and invariably get fat commissions from such deals. As much as possible, avoid variable annuities which involve high fees and do not provide enough investment alternatives and the desired liquidity. Opt for investments which have lower fees and greater results. And in case you decide to choose a variable annuity, make certain that you collaborate with a financial advisor who is on the level, transparent and accessible. In spite of the Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule taking effect in 2017, it is crucial for any investor to be aware of their financial advisor’s fee requirements.

4. Be careful of target-date funds.Although target-date funds may appear as suitable portfolio choices, they do not necessarily fit your risk capacity, investment objectives or the other assets you possess. But as long as If you evaluate target-date funds meticulously, make certain to assess their investment approaches, fees and costs, and how suitably they will merge within your general asset distribution.

5. Be aware of the risks of alternatives.So many investors who look for bigger gains turn to alternatives, such as hedge funds, illiquid real estate investment trusts or private equity. The best option is to first analyze factors — for instance, your age, earnings capacity, risk tendency and tolerance and investment objectives — with the assistance of a financial advisor in order to determine if these highly risky investments suit your circumstances in the present or far into the future. In the event you both decide to go ahead and invest in alternatives, bear in mind that generally, high-risk alternatives must cover only from 5% to 15% of a portfolio.

No matter what assets you decide to invest in, whether a large-cap manager, a liquid REIT or an ETF, evaluate the advantages and disadvantages in order to weigh if they match the level of risk you can afford to take and your long-term investment objectives. By doing this, you ascertain the safety and stability of your investment and, in the long run, increase your chances of gaining higher results.

What Should You Invest In?

Stocks, bonds, bank accounts or IRAs? How do you choose?

With several types of investments to choose from and also thousands of sub-categories under them, finding the most suitable investment choice can be a daunting task.

First off, the main consideration in any long-term investing decision is the rate of return expected from it. At times though, investing in short-term investment can enhance your wealth even if the returns are not as high as you want them to be. You can select from among these common short-term savings vehicles:

Short-term savings vehicles

Bank savings account: The most resorted to savings medium availed of by people, which provides small returns but better than keeping your money at home where it could be stolen or spent easily.

Money market funds: These funds are a type of special mutual funds that are invested in exceptionally short-term bonds. Money market fund shares are always valued at $1 whereas most mutual funds can have uncontrolled prices. Although they pay higher returns compared to bank savings accounts, they provide lower returns than certificates of deposit.

Certificate of deposit (CD): You can also open a CD, a special account made at a bank or another financial body which has an interest rate often at par with short- or intermediate-term bonds, depending on the CD’s deposit duration. The depositor receives regular returns on interest until the account matures, at which time the original amount deposited is returned together with accumulated interests incurred. Oftentimes, certificates of deposit through banks are insured to a maximum of $100,000.

Our company is partial to stocks as investment vehicles over the rest of the long-term choices since stocks have statistically provided the best rate of return in an investment. The most common long-term investing vehicles are as follows:

Long-term investing vehicles

Bonds: There are various forms of bonds. Also known as “fixed-income” securities, bonds generate a “fixed” or set income value each year when it is sold. They are very similar to CDs as investments options although they are issued by the government or corporations and not by banks.

Stocks: Stocks allow an individual to own a portion of a company or business. A single stock share represents an investor’s proportional stake or share of ownership in a business. As the business grows, the worth of an investor’s share in it also increases. Otherwise, the worth decreases.

Mutual funds: Mutual funds are vehicles which allow investors to combine their money to buy bonds, stocks, or any vehicle the fund manager considers viable. In short, you turn over the control of your money to a professional who now has the final say as to the performance of your investment. In most cases, these “professionals” play with your money by underperforming the market indexes to their own benefit.

Retirement plans

Several special plans are intended to build retirement savings; and many of these plans permit an individual to transfer money directly from his or her paycheck prior to taxes. In support for this plan, companies sometimes match the amount transferred, or even a small portion of that amount, as their goodwill contribution to their employees’ future. In some countries, the company share is required by law at specific amounts or percentage of salaries. In some cases, these plans can provide an “advance” out of the plan to purchase a house or pay for college, at no interest. In cases where an “advance” is not allowed, an individual can take out a loan from the account, or take a low-interest secured loan using the retirement savings as security. The rates of return on these plans vary according to the type of vehicle invested in, whether bonds, stocks, CDs, mutual funds or any mix.

Individual retirement account (IRA): This type of plan lets you invest some money into a tax-deferred retirement fund – which means you will not be taxed unless withdrawals are made or before the fund matures. Regular income-tax rates apply once money is withdrawn, which are higher than capital-gains tax rates. All IRAs are considered as specialized accounts and not as investments, allowing the account holder to invest freely in any manner. Some or all of your IRA payments may be considered tax-deductible, if the holder satisfies certain requirements.

Roth IRA: Unlike the previous IRA plan, this type of retirement account requires no tax payments up-front on contribution. Rather, it provides full exclusion from federal taxes when cash is withdrawn to purchase a first home or pay for retirement. Likewise, a Roth IRA can also be utilized for other specific needs, for instances, unreimbursed medical expenses and education minus any penalty. Nevertheless, earnings which are withdrawn will be taxed as income if your age is below 59 ½ years. Only qualified taxpayers can avail of a Roth IRA; that is, if you join corporate retirement plans and are disqualified from deductible payments to the conventional IRA.

401(k): Employers provide this retirement savings vehicle, whose name is taken from the section of the Internal Revenue Code which allows it. This plan has the tax advantages and the potential benefit of corporate matching (as mentioned above), making the 401(k) a potential choice for many people.

403(b): This is the nonprofit version of a 401(k) plan. Local and state governments also provide a 457 plan.

Keogh: A specialized form of IRA that serves simultaneously as a pension plan for a self-employed individual, who has the capacity to pay substantially higher contributions permitted for an IRA.

Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) plan: This is a special type of Keogh-individual retirement plan designed to allow small businesses to provide retirement plans (for their employees) that are slightly easier to manage compared to conventional pension plans. Either the employer or the employees can participate in a SEP.

Investing in stocks

Stocks deserve a closer look as they have been known in the past to offer higher returns compared to bonds and other vehicles. As mentioned, the investor becomes a part-owner of a company. Since it was started by Dutch mutual stock corporations in the 16th century, the present-day stock market allows business-owners to raise capital to run their enterprises with the money provided by investors. This scheme makes the investor a stakeholder or a virtual co-owner of the business itself. As a token of that ownership, the stock certificate is given to the investor to serve as specialized financial “security,” or financial instrument attesting to or securing an investor’s claim on the assets and income of a business concern.

Common stock

The most common type of stock is, as expected, the common stock. The common stock provides an ideal vehicle for most individuals, since anyone can participate – whether you are young, old, discriminating or easy-go-lucky. There is practically no restriction imposed against anyone who wants to buy a common stock. Nevertheless, the common stock does not merely consist of a document but an actual part-ownership of an existing business operated by real people. Through buying stocks, you participate in a very satisfying process of producing wealth which is unmatched by any other means, except probably by a fortunate turn of events, such as inheriting the wealth of a departed relative you have never met or striking a substantial oil deposit in your backyard.

In short, shareholders are part “owners” of a company’s assets and its generated income. As the business grows with more acquisition of more assets and enhanced income-production, the worth of the company also increases. This results in the increase of the total value of the business as well as in the proportional value of the stock in that business.

As stakeholders and part-owners of the company, shareholders are given the right to vote or elect the members of the board of directors. This board serves as a set of officers who supervise the primary decisions made by the company managers. These directors are the main players in the corporations throughout the world and possess great power, as a result. For instance, boards can choose to allow a company to invest in itself, pay dividends to investors, buy other businesses or assets, or repurchase stocks from its investors. Although the top managers of a company (those who operate the business from day-to-day) can provide some advice or guidelines to the board, the final decision belongs to the board members. Oftentimes, the board also has the power to hire and fire the company managers.

All is not perfect even in owning stock in a company that is doing well at any given time, as running a business has certain risks. Obviously, being part-owner or a company means sharing in the potential risks latent in any business operation. If the business does not make a positive income, the shares of stock will decrease in value. In case the business folds up, the stock will then become worthless.

Different types of stock

Sometimes, companies can opt to focus the voting privilege of a company to cover only a particular type of stock, limiting the majority of shares to only a select group of investors. As an example, a family business seeking to raise capital by selling equity might create a second type of a stock which they already control and has, for instance, 10 votes for each share, while they release to others another type of stock that allows only a single vote per share.

This, for many people, is not an acceptable deal; and so, many investors usually avoid companies having such multiple types of voting stock. Media companies often have this form of structure which had its inception in 1987.

That is why you hear of Class A and Class B shares, because of this selective classification of stocks.

What happens from now on?

That is about all you need to know for now about the fundamental classes of investment options available to you. You can start impressing some of your friends and relatives about your newfound knowledge on stocks. Use the basic terminology as well as the essential principles of becoming a shareholder of a company to tell them how they can also join in the experience of investing. Most of all, tell them of the potential rewards you and they can expect from buying stocks while reminding them of the greater risks they will encounter compared to merely keeping their money in a bank. In the end, what you will decide to do with your new knowledge will be up to you.

We encourage you to take avail of our newsletter services for a month for free. Our contributors may have diverse views on many issues; but this fact helps to provide you with a wide selection of insights and perspectives on how to succeed in investing. We have a disclosure policy which allows us to be fully transparent in all transactions.

Learning How to Invest (Part 2)

Planning and setting objectives

Investing is a long-term process, like planning a long vacation. Ask yourself these questions before you embark on this endeavor:

• What is your destination? (What financial goals do you have?)
• How long is your vacation? (What is your time frame in investing?)
• What should you bring along? (What investments forms will you choose?)
• How much gas do you need to use? (How much will you invest to achieve your goals? How much can you invest a regular plan?)
• Do you have stopovers on the way? (What short-term financial expenses do you have?)
• How long is your vacation? (Will you have to retire using your investment?)
• If you run out of gas because you frequently stop to rest and drive through the night, you are bound to spoil your vacation. So it is if you do not save enough money, if you invest haphazardly or fail to invest at all.

Answer these questions judiciously and honestly. Muddling through this process of self-examination and preparation will cause you to see the finer points of investing which requires a lot of number-crunching. Calculate accurately how much a college education will cost and how much you will need during your retirement years. It will not only be satisfying to know that you can actually attain your destination, you will also remain aware of what you must do along the way in order to fulfill your future goals.

In case you are panicking because you consider numbers to be a great challenge, do not be alarmed. There are user-friendly online interactive calculators which can assist you estimate your financial goals. As we said, the more realistic and detailed your figures are, the greater the chances of setting and realizing viable goals.

How stock trading works

Now that you have set your finances in order and you have also established definite financial objectives, you are now ready to learn how to begin investing. With mutual funds, the procedure is quite easy: Call the fund company and request them to open an account for you. Dealing with stocks can be a more challenging endeavor.

Stocks are traded at various stock exchanges. The major US exchanges are the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the American Stock Exchange (AMEX), and the Nasdaq Stock Market. Although there are differences in the manner these exchanges perform their trading, the process itself of buying and selling shares requires a similar process in all of them.

Stock exchanges are where buyers and sellers connect. The buyers make a “bid”, which is the price at which they are willing to buy a share, while sellers “ask” the price at which they are willing to sell their shares. The “spread” is the difference of the two prices, which often goes to the professionals who manage trades in exchanges.

Depending on the amount of shares traded on a certain day or period, the value of the spread will vary. For traded stocks which are making brisk sales, the spreads will tend to be very small because of competition. Conversely, the spread will tend to be large for stocks being traded thinly, to cover the risk that exchange professionals have to take.

Any investor can establish a bid or ask price by placing orders to buy or sell at a certain price. Such orders are referred to as “limit” orders. Exchange professionals monitor these “open” orders, executing them when conditions are satisfied and utilizing these orders to determine preference for the stock.

Buying stocks is primarily done through brokerage accounts. You may choose between two options: the overly high-priced full-service brokers, or the discount broker. To know more about picking brokers, visit our Broker Center, comparing brokers and choosing the best one who can open an account for you.

The dangers of margin

Through a brokerage account, you can choose between a cash account or a margin account. A cash account allows you trade using available money you are willing to invest. A margin account allows you to buy stocks using other people’s money – which you borrow. Margin accounts can be attractive for obvious reasons; however, the risks can be significant.

Some brokers will advise you to opt for margin as they have hidden interest in doing so, using greater “buying power” as a lure. Remember that what you increase is not only your “borrowing power” but also the risks you take.

Moreover, brokers get some of their killing through collecting interest on margin loans – a sort of commission. The two words (broker and commission) were born twins! As investors borrow more money to buy more stocks, the brokers (who promote margin accounts) collect more commission fees. The broker possesses complete control over the loan collateral, while having the power to interfere and compel you to sell stock in case you are defaulting on your loan. Warning: Margin will milk you dry while the broker gets all the milk and honey.

Direct investment plans (DIPs) and Dividend reinvestment plans (DRPs)

If you think you are not up to opening a brokerage account yet, other plans can provide a different but sure way to buy stock. Nicknamed by investors as Drips, these plans let shareholders buy stock from a company, directly and at low costs or fees. Only a few firms offer these plans, although they are best for investors who only have limited amounts of money to spend at regular periods.

Summary

Now that you have gained enough background information on how to start investing in stocks, as well as what your financial goals are, how much money you will need to invest, how long it will take to recover your investment, the next move is to begin considering where to invest and the kind of potential gain you hope to make.

You can get more info from our newsletter services which we offer free for one month. Our contributors may have diverse views on many issues; but this fact helps to provide you with a wide selection of insights and perspectives on how to succeed in investing. We have a disclosure policy which allows us to be fully transparent in all transactions.