Personal Finance And Investing

31 January 2010

Selling Covered Calls

While options are generally the lair of the expert trader, there can be some cases where using options can behoove even the casual investor.

Covered calls represent an opportunity for investors to limit their downside at the expense of some of their upside. In certain markets and circumstances this can be a very desirable outcome.

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6 December 2009

Gifts for Investment Nerds

As the holiday season approaches, we take a quick sojourn through some gift ideas for those particularly hard-to-shop-for investment dorks in our lives.

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6 September 2009

Is America Still the Land of Opportunity?

Many pundits are advocating a flight from the Dollar. The US is apparently in the midst of a spiral that cannot be averted. Should you be moving your money offshore?

While there are many risk factors to investing in the US right now, there are many risk factors in investing in other countries as well. The picture may not be as clear as some would suggest.

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30 August 2009

The Joneses Are Your Enemy

We all know better than to try to keep up with the Joneses. Sadly some of us still try.

Even worse, many of us let the Joneses affect us in ways we never even notice. Are you letting your neighbors have an undue influence on you?

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8 August 2009

Should You Be In the Stock Market?

Recently, participation in the American Stock Market reached as high as 50% of the U.S. population. With so many people invested, the question remains: Should they all really be in there?

How did so many people decide the stock market was right for them? Are they rational?

We address these questions and more and help you decide if you should be in the stock market or not.

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2 August 2009

Some Thoughts on “Dollar Cost Averaging”

“Dollar Cost Averaging” is pretty much an accepted wisdom in investing circles today, but when we refer to DCA what are we really talking about? Are we using the right terminology?

When we are talking about “Dollar Cost Averaging,” are all our preconceived benefits really as proven as we think? What are the benefits of Dollar Cost Averaging?

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26 July 2009

76 ETFs For Foreign Stock Exposure

ETFs can provide an easy way to gain exposure to the markets of foreign countries. Unfortunately gaining access to which ETFs are available is not as easy of a task.

In this article we provide a master list that we plan to update of International ETFs you can use in your portfolio.

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7 June 2009

Treasury ETFs

Treasuries have been particularly volatile lately as the market tries to come to a consensus about the recovery and inflation.

If the recovery comes soon and inflation sets in, treasuries may be a terrible investment. At the same time they are likely currently priced for a recovery within a year or so. If that prediction is overly optimistic they may in fact be an excellent investment.

ETFs offer a convenient way to incorporate the risk profile of Treasuries into your portfolio.

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23 April 2009

The Difficulty of Investing in 2009

The current economy is a very difficult environment. Competing and conflicting situations make a coherent strategy difficult. Several things make 2009 a particularly difficult nut to crack:

• Asset Class Issues
• Government Interference
• Conflicting Short and Long Term Issues

How can an investor overcome these issues?

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4 April 2009

5 ETFs That Can Help Balance Your Portfolio

While I generally advocate against investing in individual stocks for amateur investors, I make some exceptions for ETFs. Exchange Traded Funds are funds that trade on the stock market like a regular stock, but represent managed funds like mutual funds.
These ETFs give you an opportunity to hedge your stock market positions and provide some balance to your portfolio fairly easily. While I would still recommend a lot of research before buying any of these, each of these ETFs gives you some ability to round out your positions.

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