Although Annuities are considered an investment, they’re really a contract between you and an insurance company that may, or may not, behave like an investment. The simplest type of annuity is an immediate, single life only annuity (even the simplest can be complicated!). According to immediateannuity.com, a 65 year old male will begin to receive Read more about Annuities – A Different Animal[…]
Investing in foreign stocks is an important element of portfolio diversification. Since it’s difficult to buy and sell stocks on foreign exchanges, the best way to invest is with mutual funds or ETF’s (exchange traded funds). But there’s an odd quirk in the way foreign stock index funds choose how much to invest in each Read more about International Investing: Go Japan![…]
Today, there are two widely accepted approaches to investment management: active and passive. Active investment management simply means that a manager is actively looking for good investments and selling those he thinks will do poorly. Passive management accepts the premise that it’s nearly impossible to beat the market and simply invests in the market. In Read more about Active Investing Isn’t for the Faint of Heart[…]
It’s been hard to pick up a newspaper or watch the news lately without hearing about the Federal Reserve (the “Fed”) and interest rates. The implication is that what the Fed does has a big impact on the economy and investments, and that is correct. However, it is also implied that we can predict what Read more about Interest Rates Matter, But They Don’t[…]
Since they were first made available in 2001, 529 plans have become a popular way to save for a child’s college education, but there may be a better way. The advantages of a 529 plan is that you may be able to avoid state (but not federal) income taxes on your initial contribution, your investment Read more about A Great Way To Save For College That Few Know About[…]
I recently came across a U.S. News article from 2010 titled “The 100 Best Mutual Funds for the Long Term”. 27 of the funds are “large cap” and comparable to the S&P 500. I know from experience and various studies that actively managed mutual funds typically trail passive index funds, but I validate this every Read more about Here’s Hoping You Didn’t Buy One Of The Best Mutual Funds In 2010[…]
The market has been a bit unstable over the past few weeks, how can this be a good thing? The answer lies in what economists refer to as the “equity (stock) risk premium”. This is their way of explaining why stocks have historically returned 6.6% annually (after inflation) while bonds have returned 3.6% (Siegel, 2014, Read more about Stock Market Turbulence – A Good Thing?[…]