Can’t Keep Up? 10 Ways to Simplify Your Investments

Establishing an effective investment strategy can take a lot of effort and research. That may entail perusing prospectuses, talking with financial advisors, and reading business magazines to determine the latest trends. This will help you create a diversified portfolio and avoid putting all of your financial eggs into one basket. But while diversification is important, you shouldn't have to waste time trying to wade through your investments and relearning your financial strategies every time ...

11 Things Your Broker Won’t Tell You

Investment brokers are supposed to be the liaisons between consumers and their money. Ideally, a broker helps clients plan for their financial futures and accomplish their fiscal goals. But that's not always how the relationship works. Brokers also have their own interests, at the top of which is a desire to make money. All too often, the clients' needs and desires come second to those of the investment broker - and the worst part is, the broker usually isn't breaking any laws. Here are e...

My Favorite Book on Investing

I have always enjoyed reading personal finance and investing books. My favorite investing book is The Four Pillars of Investing: Lessons for Building a Winning Portfolio by William J. Berstein. After reading it, I have felt that most other investing books didn't quite measure up as the topics were better covered in Bernstein's book. Most of my investing strategy is designed around what I learned in this book. The four pillars according to Dr. Bernstein are theory, history, psychology an...

How Much Should You Save Before Jumping into Investing

The question of how much you should have saved before you jump into investing is a personal one. Everyone has different needs and different goals, thus for everyone, the question is a personal one. However, there are some general rules of thumb which can help you to make the decisions more clearly. Here’s what you need to know: You Need an Emergency Fund First and foremost, if you don’t have one (most Americans don’t), you need an emergency fund. This should be at the minimum between $500-...

The Duties Of A Brokerage Firm And Discount Brokerage

Brokerage firms basically act as liaisons between individuals or companies that buy and sell stocks. They may charge a fee for their services or cut a percentage from the profits made in a deal; it depends on the stipulations made in the contract. When the first stock exchange was founded in NY over 200 years ago, it was intended to mediate transactions between banks and companies that needed a way to make money without taking loans, so they sold stocks and raised capital. As the years went...

Crowdfunding Platforms Raising Money For Common Interests

Crowdfunding is a term which describes a group of individuals who come together to fund and support projects initiated by organizations or other individuals. It supports the concept of there being power in numbers. Money and resources are pooled together usually by means of online fundraising. Crowdfunding can benefit a variety of causes and creative works including political campaigns, charity fundraising, start up companies, artists, and independent film makers. Social and commercial entrepren...

401k Withdrawal Rules

A 401k plan is a special kind of retirement savings plan funded through contributions from payroll prior to tax deduction, and 401k withdrawal rules set out the circumstances under which you can take money out of your plan. The name of the plan refers to section 401k of the Internal Revenue Code, under which these contributions are permitted. Most programs provide a range of investment options, in mutual funds or in other types of asset with varying levels of risk. Starting a 401k plan is ob...

What Is An Annuity?

Several years ago, the sure-fire way to make money work was to invest in the stock market. Recent instability, though, has made such a move risky. If you have money to invest and you want to put it to work, you might want to consider an annuity. These funds are tools for saving and investing money, but they are rarely dependent on the financial rollercoaster that is the stock market. The facts below should leave annuities explained, and they should give you some idea of what sort of annuity migh...

The 5 Safest Investments You Can Make Today

With the roller coaster ride that the stock market has been on and with seemingly every other investment vehicle going down the tubes, more and more people are desperately searching for the safest investments available. These options, while not necessarily a sure thing are about as close as you can get to a sure thing. In all cases, these investment options will not pay a lot of money and all have risks associated with them, but we’ll discuss the details of that with each option. Savings Acc...

The Future Of Energy Investment

Ever since the industrial revolution took place centuries ago, we have shifted much of the basis of our energy focus on the production, usage, distribution, and development on fossil fuels. Many consumers and businesses are constantly looking for more efficient ways of powering their industry - with some turning to companies such as the Energy Plus Company. Though it has proved an effective strategy in the past, consumers and businesses alike have become increasingly aware of this market's unsur...