Few subjects in investing are more misunderstood than asset allocation. Brokers don’t like to talk about it. Instead, they entice their clients with stocks they believe will “take off” or fund managers they think are “hot.” Asset allocation refers to the division of your portfolio between various asset classes, like stocks and bonds. Maybe asset [...]
Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) are similar to index funds, except they can be traded like a stock on stock exchanges, and you must buy them through a brokerage firm. ETFs are required to maintain a 99 percent correlation to their designated benchmark. There are many different indexes used as benchmarks, so be sure to understand how [...]
Property seizure by Medicaid to pay medical bill is possible if homeowner is delinquent on payments with no other assets. Medicaid can seize property to pay medical bills. Seniors needing assistance to pay medical bills may receive Medicaid coverage. Seniors with funds are expected to pay medical bills or face property seizure for Medicaid. Medicaid can seize property and other assets to pay for outstanding medical bills.
Everyone knows that cash is king, right? Actually, holding cash can be very risky. Let me tell you why. I met with a prospective client who was recently widowed. She told me the stock market terrified her and she wanted to keep everything in cash. Her assets were in a six-month certificate of deposit earning [...]
Many couples believe in togetherness, which can be a good thing. However, there are dangers to investing jointly that should give even the closest duos pause. Remember the best-selling book Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus, by John Gray? The difference in the way men and women view the world has particular applicability [...]
Short selling stock-or borrowing shares of stock and promising to return them to their owner at a future date-is popular these days. After all, isn’t it clear that economic Armageddon is just around the corner? The government is printing money. Gold is at an all-time high. Major European countries are on the brink of defaulting [...]
Wouldn’t it be great if you knew when the markets were going to take off or tank? Armed with that knowledge, you’d have no trouble achieving your investment goals. You’d just buy if the markets were going up and sell if they were going down. Here’s the problem with that scenario: Market direction is driven [...]
Decide to payoff an investment property or pay down the mortgage. Don't pay off an investment property and pay down the mortgage at the same time. Consider interest rates on loans before paying off mortgage loans on an investment property or primary home mortgage. Refinance mortgage loans before you pay down a primary home mortgage or investment property mortgage loan.
Smart investing is not very difficult. It is in the interest of the securities industry to convince you otherwise so you will use its services. I have distilled intelligent investing and financial planning down to these ten golden rules. They are easy to understand and to implement. If everyone followed them, the misery index for [...]
You have worked hard all your life. You love your heirs and want to provide for them after your death. You have good intentions. Yet most Americans make critical mistakes in their estate planning that eviscerate their wealth and leave their heirs scrambling to figure out what went wrong. Here are the biggest estate-planning mistakes [...]
