Posted on May 20th, 2008 by vLogged
Protecting your assets is the top concern of everyone. Everyone has their own definition of this wretched word – ‘Risk’. Bottom line is that everyone is afraid of losing their money when it comes down to investment assets. The truth is that this definition takes a whole new meaning depending upon your current stage in life. For those in retirement, even a small risk is too much risk. On the other hand those in their initial states of career are more willing to experiment. Whatever be the case, understanding the different types of risks is the key factor over here. Its only then that one can personalize their definition of risk.
1. Market Risk – defined as “The risk that the value of your investment will decrease due to movements in the stock market”. The index movement is difficult to understand as its increase/decrease can depend upon anything from a company scandal to natural disasters to even terrorism. The key is to take advantage of the returns the market can offer without the inherent risk.
2. Interest Rate Risk – is the risk of fluctuating Interest Rates. Even though a Fixed Interest Rate is safer, it also means lower rates. One has to carefully balance between the two depending upon their circumstances.
3. Inflation – Even though this doesn’t directly affect your absolute savings, but it affects the cost of living index. Thus the effective money index goes down.
4. Excessive Taxation – Some simple steps like avoiding tax on re-invested income can help prevent one from this risk. However, more often than not, a poorly designed investment portfolio suffers from this risk. This is where one should get professional help.
5. Other Miscellaneous Risks – These are the risks which most financial planners fail to address. These involve huge medical expenses, lawsuits etc. This also includes the risk that one takes by not seeking professional help to combat potential risks that one’s portfolio may face.
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Filed under: Credit, Financial Planning, Funds, Investing, Personal Finance
Posted on May 18th, 2008 by vLogged
Felix Salmon is a blogger/writer with the Conde Nast Portfolio magazine. He wrote a blog entry yesterday about cap weighted funds which I think is a must read for anyone confused between cap weighted funds and fundamentally weighted funds. He quotes Joe Nocera “fundamentally weighted funds ain’t index funds, and they shouldn’t be viewed as a replacement for index funds”.
Where the cap-weighted crew have done magnificently well is that they’ve alighted on the S&P 500 as their chosen benchmark, and then decided that all investment decisions should be made with respect to it: they’re setting the terms of the debate.
For many investors a fundamentally-weighted fund might well suit their risk profile better than an S&P 500 index fund - or it might free up a bit more risk appetite to go exploring in places like emerging markets and commodities.
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Filed under: Finance, Funds, Products & Websites
Posted on May 14th, 2008 by vLogged
If you have bad credit, it’s a good idea to start working to get it fixed now. Regardless if your credit problems are because of mistakes on your credit report, a poor credit history from not paying your bills, or stolen identity, there are several steps you can take to fix your credit. The first and the foremost being, choosing the right credit repair company.
RepairYourBadCredit.com is one of such services which offers credit repair solutions online. They have been in this business for almost 7 years now. In fact they are so confident that you’ll like the solutions they provide that they back it up with a money back guarantee. Their money-back guarantee is not like the ‘warranties’ which many other companies provide which entitles you to a part of the money if you aren’t completely satisfied.
One of the other advantages of joining their program includes a high level of transparency. There are no hidden costs or clauses. In fact, unlike many other credit repair services, they completely take care of obtaining your credit reports for you at no additional fees.
With great personal attention, constant updates (weekly emails) and a claim that you’ll see the results in the first 60 days, RepairYourBadCredit.com is definitely worth checking out. In fact there are quite a few testimonials over there to vouch for their superb services.
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Filed under: Credit, Financial Planning, Personal Finance
Posted on May 10th, 2008 by vLogged
In order to reduce the tax burden that small businesses may suffer from, it is vital for the owners to be aware of the latest reforms which can help them avail tax reliefs. Several aspects of the tax legislation help provide relief to small businesses. The categories which include reduction and aid include returns on income tax, tax incentives on small business growth and reduction on capital gains and dividends. Together, all these small reliefs add up to provide considerable relief for tax payers.
1. The latest laws have broadened the span of entities covered in smaller tax categories. This helps in reduction of income tax as the business income can be taxed under such categories with lower tax (10 & 15 percent). This is quite less compared to the 35 percent of other higher categories. Thus small businesses can reduce the money falling under the span of income tax returns.
2. Earlier, when the business was inherited by the beneficiaries of the business owner upon his/her death, the beneficiaries were expected to pay a percentage of the value of assets as tax. This form of tax has been eliminated.
3. The recent change in regulations through taxes on dividends and capital gains provides a relief from the problems of double taxation where the business and the individuals were expected to pay taxes for the same capital gains.
4. By increasing the depreciation rates by 20 percent for new assets in their first year, the new regulations have taken a step forward in promoting small business growth. These incentives promote acquiring of assets by small businesses.
Hence, it’s advisable for any small business to hire a professional financial consultant to benefit from these new regulation changes and reduce the amount of money they pay as taxes. This money can be easily diversified to further boost their business growth.
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Filed under: Business & Economics, Finance, Funds, Investing, Taxes
Posted on May 8th, 2008 by vLogged
We all know how lawsuits or claims can run into months and years. Not only are they terribly time consuming, they also eat up on your savings and investments. That is where companies like LawMax come in which can help you avoid financial crisis during such trials. They loan you immediate cash against the proceeds from your lawsuit (whenever it is resolved). And this isn’t even the best part. You need to make a repayment only if you settle your lawsuit (either by winning the case or reaching an out of court settlement). What this means is that you pay them nothing should you fail to reach a settlement.
Once you provide LawMax with complete documentation from your attorneys, you can expect to hear from them within two days. Obviously, the rates of such a loan are more than the bank considering the fact that they share the risk with you (i.e. you don’t need to repay if your case doesn’t reach a settlement).
Applying to LawMax is fairly simple and easy with filling up an online form. With easy access to their staff via phone, fast decision time and no credit checks, employment requirements or monthly payments, Lawmax is definitely worth considering for getting a lawsuit loan.
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Filed under: Funds, Personal Finance, Products & Websites, loans
Posted on May 6th, 2008 by vLogged
Postponing Social Security until age 70 makes a great deal of sense for most healthy, married Americans that can do without the income. Of course, there are numerous exceptions and before postponing your benefits you should seek professional guidance. Obviously most haven’t because about two-thirds of current Social Security recipients started taking benefits before their normal retirement age? For the vast majority, this was a mistake and will cost them dearly in retirement as the result will be lower lifetime benefits. Is there a way to reverse this mistake and start again?
Yes! The Social Security Administration allows you to pay back the money you’ve received in Social Security benefits - without interest and without adjustment for inflation - and reapply for higher benefits. All you need to do is complete form 521, “Request for Withdrawal of Application”. You’ll be asked the reason for your action but don’t worry because any answer is acceptable. Let say you started at age 62 and have been drawing $1,000 a month for eights months but now want to reapply. Along with form 521 you’d write a check for $8,000 and then you can reapply when ready. If you filed a tax return during the period, you’ll probably want to file an amended return because chances are you overpaid your taxes and are due to refund. If you wait until age 70 to reapply, your benefits will grow about 8% annually, plus the cost-of-living-adjustments, which means your benefits will more than double from those at age 62. As you’ll learn from reading my Guide to Social Security there are several other good reasons to postpone Social Security if you can possibly afford to do so. In fact, the typical family may be able to add as much as $200,000 to their lifetime retirement income if the primary breadwinner postpones Social Security until age 70.
The foregoing shows two easy ways to maximize your Social Security benefits by taking advantage of little known glitches in the rules. More and more married couples are realizing that postponing Social Security is the wise move because there is an increasing probability that at least one of them will live well beyond age 90. Since Social Security is a lifetime annuity promised by the U.S. Government with benefits annually adjusted upward for inflation and tax-favored when taken, making them a relative larger part of your retirement income is smart. This is done by postponing until age 70 if possible and taking advantage of the two “loopholes” we’ve discussed. Of course, by using these loopholes you’re adding to the financial woes of the Social Security System. If you find these glitches attractive, act soon before Congress wakes up and closes the gate.
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Filed under: Finance, Financial Planning, Investing
Posted on May 2nd, 2008 by vLogged
As every other investor, you are probably looking for the most time efficient way to make money. Hedge may be the way to go provided you have a bit of extra money to spend.
Alfred Jones (the father of unorthodox investment techniques) developed the first hedge funds. Selling short stocks while buying long stocks was one of his most successful techniques. This is the basic way hedge funds are operated. But with the guidelines associated with them, they require much more money than normal stock trades. Hedge funds are guiding investors to make profit in a high risk environment. They use a technique called leverage where they combine the investor’s capital with borrowed money from a bank.
The fee associated with hedge funds is called an incentive fee. It is not based on a percentage of client’s profits but on a portion of it. This fee will get reinvested in hopes of making the company even more money. Most of the hedge funds are owned by companies as most people do not have enough money to meet the minimum initial investments for their own hedge fund. Back in 2004 the hedge fund investments passed one trillion dollars.
Timing is everything if someone wants to make profit from a hedge fund. If one company owning a hedge fund is merging with another company then it is probably the best time to invest. Buy a large amount of shares in the company that is going to merge. It is a much known observation that the value of these shares dramatically increases once the merge takes place. However, with most mergers only being rumors and not actually taking place, there is a high risk in this strategy. The activities of companies are often unpredictable. Selling short is another great way to turn a profit on merging companies. The difference between the high purchase price in case the merge takes place and the present market price is the advantage of this strategy.
The security of hedge funds is a great advantage. They are kept totally private as these types of investments take place between a company and an individual. The government and other companies are not involved in it. That way they do not have to file with the SEC and are usually kept in places with lesser regulations like the Cayman Islands or the Virgin Islands. The downside of this secrecy is that they are often believed to be unethical and illegal. However, this is not true and hedge funds are a great way to make a great profit. But you need to have the amount of money needed to invest in hedge funds and you must be willing to take the extreme risks. The immense pay off can change your life and that makes many people willing to take this financial risk.
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Filed under: Investing, Understanding Finances
Posted on May 1st, 2008 by vLogged
For people operating their own business, one of the biggest time consuming and frustrating process is finding the right financing partner for their business loans. Often, this is a complex and prolonged procedure due to extensive documentation and poor sources of information. This is where services like Ezunsecured kick in. With specialized services to find your business the finances it need; be it for starting out, expanding or maybe even for establishing emergency funds; Ezunsecured sure looks like an expert in their niche.
I can’t stress enough the importance of getting your application correct the first time even if you have to employ the services of experts. The ‘hit-and-trial’ model just doesn’t work out in this case, especially if you are looking for some emergency funds. And if you are starting out or expanding a business, then you need to be focusing on your business strategies and plan execution. Getting caught up in the financer-hunting game can not only take up your valuable time, it may also turn out to be a frustrating exercise. This is why, if you have a good credit score, the lenders in Ezunsecured’s network would require minimum income or asset documentation. In fact they claim that if you have a FICO score of above 700, the lenders will most probably require ‘zero’ documentation. Now that certainly adds ‘easy-processing’ to the advantages of using their services.
Apart from the ones mentioned above, there are several other services being offered at Ezunsecured. These include consolidating your business debt, invoice factoring and getting working capital. With excellent services and experts with an average 10 years experience, Ezunsecured is definitely worth looking into if you are looking for unsecured Business Loans.
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Filed under: Business & Economics, Debt Consolidation, Finance, Financial Planning, Funds, Products & Websites
Posted on April 28th, 2008 by vLogged
So here is the post on debt consolidation management as promised. I’ve been planning on writing about the benefits of debt repair companies, but before I do that let me go into defining the differences between credit counselors and credit repair companies. Credit repair companies usually have some person acting as counselors explaining the options a customer has and some of the issues causing the debt problems in the first place. On the other hand accredited credit counselors usually don’t offer loans to help customers become debt-free. They instead offer budgeting help and assist in communication with the lenders through the use of preprinted letters.
Low debt repair companies can do wonders for some customers. However, be careful before signing up. Debt repair companies come in two basic flavors: the reliable and legitimate ones, and those out there to take your money. This is why you should be careful when choosing a credit repair company.
Requesting large fees in advance should be enough to make you suspicious about a company. Sure they are out there to make money. But it might be a mistake to send off your last money if you are already in a financial bind. When being tempted to do so be sure to first ask the company for precise details on what they are going to do for you. Then look for other companies to see if there is a better deal available. It is sad but true that there are several online companies that don’t intend to keep the big promises they make upfront. They just want to get your money. You should take care not to fall into that trap.
Any debt repair company making big promises should be examined carefully as there is only so much that any credit repair company can do for you. There are no secret methods and every promise given should be realistic and not what you would dream of. It just doesn’t work that way.
If a credit repair company is reliable and affordable they can work with you to get some useful information into the credit reporting agencies. Contacting the lenders to make alternative payments options is also something they can provide. Often enough they can refer you to a qualified debt consolidation company helping you to offset your monthly payout on bills.
If a credit repair company is honest they will avoid telling you a story about your credit being above and beyond the truth. With their job being to help you find a way to manage your current debt issues they won’t charge you high advance fees or tell you lies. Thus, if you are considering the use of a debt repair company you should really invest the time needed to find a trustful company you can work with
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Filed under: Debt Consolidation, Financial Planning, Personal Finance
Posted on April 26th, 2008 by vLogged
Around two months back I did a post on bad-credit. That is where I discussed about the importance of getting professional help. There is no doubt that having bad-credit closes a lot of doors, but that in no ways means that the consumers with a bad credit score should jump to apply for the first offer they get. Most consumers don’t realize the number of opportunities that are still open for them. Repairing one’s credit score is a slow process and thus it should be done with utmost care as there is no scope for carelessness. The last thing a consumer would want is to worsen their credit report just because they made a hasty decision.
This is why selecting the ‘right’ offer is very crucial. One must compare all the bad credit offers from major providers and select only the one which best suits their needs. One resource to check out is BadCreditOffer for a comprehensive list of bad credit offers available. With a list which is updated quite frequently (almost daily), the site can be a great resource for someone searching for such offers. With a detailed review on factors such as ease-of-approval, interest rates etc. and a clear ranking system, this website’s list can be used to easily access the offers available in today’s credit market.
Also, one must always take care to diligently select a credit offer for their respective credit category. An company/institution which may provide a great offer for credit cards may not have similar provisions for home-loans. This is where a category specific rank list becomes very crucial. With categories such as personal-loans, auto-loans, credit-cards etc on BadCreditOffer, always make sure you compare the offers provided in relevant category.
Whatever you decide, once you apply for an offer make sure you make payments on time as that is the only way to rebuild your credit and your financial future.
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Filed under: Credit, Financial Planning, Personal Finance, Products & Websites
