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How can someone with a new job but no credit history get a loan to settle another debt?
I believe the best way to go about it is to approach a good friend or relative to borrow the money, interest free. Do discuss with them the repayment schedule. If you have any assets such as house / stocks, you can pledge them in exchange for $5000 cash. I believe the banks would be more than happy to lend to you. You ...
How to make money from a downward European market?
Invest in solid companies, not in esoteric products built on sand. The problem is with finance, not with real economy: oil companies make money, mobile phone companies make money, airlines make money...
After Hours S&P 500
My original answer contained a fundamental error: it turns out that it is not true that any exchange can create its own product to track any underlying index. If the underlying index is copyrighted (such as the S&P indices, Russell indices, Dow Jones indices, etc.) then the exchange must enter into a licensing agreeme...
Relocating for first real job out of college?
If the job looks good, I wouldn't let having to relocate stop you. Some companies will help you with relocation expenses, like paying travel expenses, the movers, the security deposit on an apartment, etc. It doesn't hurt to ask if they "help with moving expenses". If they say no, fine. I wouldn't expect a company to d...
Should you co-sign a personal loan for a friend/family member? Why/why not?
Never co-sign a loan for someone, especially family Taking out a loan for yourself is bad enough, but co-signing a loan is just plain stupid. Think about it, if the bank is asking for a co-signer its because they are not very confident that the applicant is going to be paying back the loan. So why would you then step ...
I file 83(b) election, but did't include a copy of it in that year’s tax return
It matters because that is the requirement for the 83(b) selection to be valid. Since the context is 83(b) election, I assume you got stocks/options as compensation and didn't pay for them the FMV, thus it should have been included in your income for that year. If you didn't include the election letter - I can only gue...
What is today's price of 15 000 Euro given 15 years ago?
What you are positioning as a loan was not a loan at all. Your father bought something to be delivered in the future. Your aunt does not want to deliver it, so she should buy it back at whatever the current market value is. What is the price that your dad believes her share of the inheritance is currently worth? Is tha...
Moonlighting as a software developer: employee or independent contractor w/ LLC?
I've been in a similar situation before. While contracting, sometimes the recruiting agency would allow me to choose between being a W2 employee or invoicing them via Corp-2-Corp. I already had a company set up (S-Corp) but the considerations are similar. Typically the C2C rate was higher than the W2 rate, to account f...
Tax deductions on car and/or home?
If you itemize your deductions then the interest that you pay on your primary residence is tax deductible. Also realestate tax is also deductible. Both go on Schedule A. The car payment is not tax deductible. You will want to be careful about claiming business deduction for home or car. The IRS has very strict rules ...
Balance sheet, Net Increase
The changes to Equity given are: Since the total change is 42,500, the difference would be change in Retained Earnings (net income), so net income is
How do I figure out the market value of used books?
Regarding the textbooks and technical books, it might be worth checking out sites like Chegg.com or other textbook rental websites. They might buy it from you directly versus trying to sell it on an ebay or amazon. For fiction or nonfiction, amazon and ebay can be tough, but probably worth a look. See what comparables...
How can banks afford to offer credit card rewards?
There are 3 entities in a credit card transaction; Typically when you swipe for 100, the merchant only gets around 97.5. The 2.5 is divided amongst the 3 entities, roughly around 0.5 for the Merchant Bank, around 0.5 for the Card Network and a lions share to Issuing Bank of around 1.5 The reason Issuing Bank gets large...
Starting an investment portfolio with Rs 5,000/-
I don't think it makes sense to invest in an FD since. 1.) A 30 day FD is not very likely to give you 8-9% 2.) Inflation is so high in India that your losing money even though you think that you are doing well enough. I would suggest you to expect a larger return and try hedging your portfolio correctly. For example ...
One of my stocks dropped 40% in 2 days, how should I mentally approach this?
If you own the stock today, it doesn't matter what it traded for yesterday. If XYZ is trading for $40 and you own it, ask yourself if it's worth buying today for $40. If it isn't, you may want to consider selling it and buying something that is worth $40.
Open Interest vs Volume for Stock Options
You are asking 'what if', do you have some anticipated answers? Having volume smaller than open interest is the norm. As far as I can tell, having only one trading day and no previous open interest only affects someone trying to sell a contract they are holding. Meaning that if you only have one day to sell your contr...
As an American working in the UK, do I have to pay taxes on foreign income?
A) a tax treaty probably covers this for the avoidance of double taxation. Tax treaties can be very cryptic and have little precedence clarifying them http://www.irs.gov/businesses/international/article/0,,id=169552,00.html B) I'm going to say NO since the source of your income is going to be US based. But the UK tax l...
ESPP strategy - Sell right away or hold?
A general rule of thumb is to avoid having more than 5% of your investments in any single stock, to avoid excessive risk; it's usually even more risky if you're talking company stock because an adverse event could result in an inferior stock price and you getting laid off. Under other circumstances, the ideal amount of...
Do banks give us interest even for the money that we only had briefly in our account?
It depends on your bank's terms (which may in turn be influenced by laws and regulations), but most banks calculate interest on a per-day basis, so if you leave the money in the account for more than a day, it will generate interest. However, it will most likely be so little that you could make more money doing any kin...
us citizen receiving bank transfer from foreign boyfriend
No, any gifts you receive are not taxable to you. In fact, losing money in a scam (as this sure sounds like to me) can even be tax-deductible if you lose enough! I wouldn't recommend accepting anything. Usually people with millions are dollars are capable of setting up their own bank accounts.
Zero volatility stocks in intraday trading in India
you need to use easy programming language to imply onto a scan where you enter Scan all stocks display if volume < (less than) 100
Sales Tax Licence/Permit - When is it required and how can I make a use of it as a non-US resident selling in USA?
Disclaimer: I am not a tax specialist You probably need a sales tax permit if you're going to sell goods, since just about every state taxes goods, though some states have exemptions for various types of goods. For services, it gets tricker. There is a database here that lists what services are taxed in what states; i...
My landlord is being foreclosed on. Should I confront him?
I wouldn't confront him. It's really none of your business what he has done or not done with your money as long as you've been a faithful tenant. Whoever gets the house after the foreclosure wants you to stay. I mean, a faithful tenant paying rent is a whole lot better than no one in the house at all. The new landlord ...
Does negative P/E ratio mean stock is weak?
P/E is the number of years it would take for the company to earn its share price. You take share price divided by annual earnings per share. You can take the current reported quarterly earnings per share times 4, you can take the sum of the past four actual quarters earnings per share or you can take some projected e...
Borrowing money to buy shares for cashflow?
It's generally a bad idea to use low-risk credit (low-risk in sense you're practically guaranteed to be forced to pay it off) to buy high-risk shares. In optimistic scenario, the profit from shares would be higher than your credit percentages. In less optimistic scenario you come with nothing. In worse scenario you hav...
How do you get out of a Mutual Fund in your 401(k)?
One of the strengths of 401K accounts is that you can move from investment X in the program to investment Y in the program without tax consequences. As you move through your lifetime you will tend to want to lower risk by investing in funds that are less aggressive. The only way this works is if there is an ability to ...
Evidence for timing market in the short run?
This is the S&P a bit over 20 years. If you've discovered a way to sell at 1400 in 2000, buy at 800 or so in 2003, sell again, well, you get the idea. There's strong evidence the typical investor hears the S&P is making new highs and rushes in. It's this influx that may send stocks higher from here, until the smart mo...
Tax on Stocks or ETF's
If you sell a stock, with no distributions, then your gain is taxable under §1001. But not all realized gains will be recognized as taxable. And some gains which are arguably not realized, will be recognized as taxable. The stock is usually a capital asset for investors, who will generate capital gains under §1(h), b...
Why invest for the long-term rather than buy and sell for quick, big gains?
The technical term for it is "timing the market" and if you can pull it off correctly, you will do quite well. The problem is that it is almost impossible to consistently do well. If it were that easy there would be a lot of billionaires walking around. Even Wall street experts haven't been able to predict the market t...
Consolidate my debt? Higher APR, but what does that actually mean?
No. It means each month the total amount you owe goes up by a factor of (1+0.298/12). So if you owed $23K at the beginning of the month, at the end you owe a total of 23K*1.0248=$23,571. Then subtract the $804 you are paying. If you want to think of it in terms of interest and principal, you are paying $571 a month...
Can I open a Demat account in India from abroad?
You need 2 things One a Demat Account and second a Broker Account. If you need to trade online, then an agreement [Power of Attorney] between Your Saving Bank Account, the Demat Account and the Trading Account. So there are quite a few forms that need signature and proof of identify. Physical presence is required.
What are the common income tax deductions used by “rich” salaried households?
The $250K and up are not one homogeneous group. The lower end of this group benefits from normal Schedule A itemized deductions, e.g. mortgage interest, property tax, state income tax, and charitable donations. As you mention, 401(k) ($17k employee contribution limit this year), but also things like the dependent care ...
What is the process through which a cash stock transaction clears?
This is the sad state of US stock markets and Regulation T. Yes, while options have cleared & settled for t+1 (trade +1 day) for years and now actually clear "instantly" on some exchanges, stocks still clear & settle in t+3. There really is no excuse for it. If you are in a margin account, regulations permit the tradi...
Considerations for holding short-term reserves?
Factors to consider: For the taxable investments:
Best return on investment for new home purchase
I encourage you to think of this home purchase decision as a chance to buy into a community that you want your children to grow up in. Try to find a place where you will be happy for the next 20 years, not just the next 2 or 7 years. In your situation, option 1 seems like a bad idea. It will create an obstacle to hav...
Adjusting a value for inflation each month using rolling 12-monthly inflation figures
The actual increase in the cost of living for one month over the previous month cannot be calculated from the annualized increase in cost over the entire previous year. Consider the hypothetical case of a very stable economy, where prices stay constant for decades. Nevertheless, the authorities issue monthly statement...
On paper I have 1 share in my company. How can I sell a smaller percentage of my company to another party?
Do a share split. Your initial 1 share each becomes 10 (or 100) shares each, then you can sell/gift/etc shares as needed.
Is it really possible to get rich in only a few years by investing?
You are probably right that using a traditional buy and hold strategy on common equities or funds is very unlikely to generate the types of returns that would make you a millionaire in short order. However, that doesn't mean it isn't possible. You just have to accept a more risk to become eligible for such incredible r...
Must ETF companies match an investor's amount invested in an ETF?
First, it's an exaggeration to say "every" dollar. Traditional mutual funds, including money-market funds, keep a small fraction of their assets in cash for day-to-day transactions, maybe 1%. If you invest $1, they put that in the cash bucket and issue you a share. If you and 999 other people invest $100 each, not off...
Money market account for emergency savings
I'm not a fan of using cash for "emergency" savings. Put it in a stable investment that you can liquidate fairly quickly if you have to. I'd rather use credit cards for a while and then pay them off with investment funds if I must. Meanwhile those investments earn a lot more than the 0.1 percent savings or money market...
Why is a stock trade flat on large volume?
Large volume just means a lot of market participants believe they know where the stock price will be (after some amount of time). The fact that the price is not moving just means that about 50% of those really confident traders think the stock will be moving up, and about 50% of those really confident traders think th...
Pros/cons for buying gold vs. saving money in an interest-based account?
Just because gold performed that well in the past does not mean it will perform that well in the future. I'm not saying you should or should not buy gold, but the mere fact that it went up a lot recently is not sufficient reason to buy it. Also note that on the house, an investment that accrues continuous interest for...
Basic questions about investing in stocks
For point two.. The norm for buying stock is to just register online with a major broker: Fidelity, Schwab,TD Ameritrade...etc, send them money to fund your purchase, make the stock purchase in your account, and then have a little faith. You could probably get them to physically transfer the stock certificates from the...
Received a late 1099 MISC for income I reported already, do I have to amend?
Why would the IRS be coming after you if you reported the income? If you reported everything, then the IRS will use the 1099 to cross-check, see that everything is in order, be happy and done with it. The lady was supposed to give you the 1099 by the end of January, and she may be penalized by the IRS for being late, b...
1 EIN doing business under multiple business names
You're confusing a lot of things here. Company B LLC will have it's sales run under Company A LLC, and cease operating as a separate entity These two are contradicting each other. If B LLC ceases to exist - it is not going to have it's sales run under A LLC, since there will be no sales to run for a non-existent compan...
Gap in domestic Health Insurance coverage, expect higher premiums?
I bought Health Insurance for myself after a period without it, and my premiums were not terrible. I was a 27 year old man, living in California, no preexisting conditions, and I paid approximately 90$ a month. This was for a standard Health Insurance plan. However, when I moved back to NY a little while later, insura...
Payroll reimbursments
Not correct. First - when you say they don't tax the reimbursement, they are classifying it in a way that makes it taxable to you (just not withholding tax at that time). In effect, they are under-withholding, if these reimbursement are high enough, you'll have not just a tax bill, but penalties for not paying enough ...
Can I open a Demat account in India from abroad?
To trade stocks in India, you need a copy of your pan card, address proof(passport or driving license/electricity bill), income tax return (if you are trading futures & options and currencies), and a cancelled cheque from the bank. You will also need to sign across your recent photographs, and require various other for...
Is refinancing my auto loan just to avoid dealing with the lender that issued it a crazy idea?
What are the fees associated with changing the new loan? Are those fees worth the peace of mind? If so, than it is not "crazy". The decision really boils down to that: is it worth the money that you will spend refinancing the loan to not have to deal with the original bank that financed your loan, assuming that you fi...
Do I even need credit cards?
A credit card can be a long running line of credit that will help to boost your FICO score. However if you have student loans, a mortgage, or car payments those will work just as well. If you ever get to the point where you don't have any recent lines of credit, this may eventually end up hurting your score, but until...
Making a big purchase over $2500. I have the money to cover it. Should I get a loan or just place it on credit?
Some already mentioned that you could pay with your savings and use the credit card as an emergency buffer. However, if you think there is a reasonable chance that your creditcard gets revoked and that you need cash quickly, here is a simple alternative:
Can I actually get a share of stock issued with a piece of paper anymore?
Yes you can. One additional "advantage" of getting the physical certificate is you can use it to transfer your account from one brokerage to another. You get the certificates in the mail and then just send them to the new broker. Why anyone would want to go through this extra work (and usually added expense) rather th...
Equation to determine if a stock is oversold and by how much?
To my knowledge, there's no universal equation, so this could vary by individual/company. The equation I use (outside of sentiment measurement) is the below - which carries its own risks: This equations assumes two key points: Anything over 1.2 is considered oversold if those two conditions apply. The reason for the...
Do I need to start a 529 plan for each child (2 separate plans), or can I just open one 529 plan and let both children use it?
MrChrister makes some good points, but I saw his invitation to offer a counter opinion. First, there is a normal annual deposit limit of $13,000 per parent or donee. This is the gift limit, due to rise to $14,000 in 2013. If your goal is strictly to fund college, and this limit isn't an issue for you, the one account ...
Why can it be a bad idea to buy stocks after hours?
During market hours, there are a lot of dealers offering to buy and sell all exchange traded stocks. Dealers don't actually care about the company's fundamentals and they set their prices purely based on order flow. If more people start to buy than sell, the dealer notices his inventory going down and starts upping the...
When is the right time to buy a new/emerging technology?
If you're looking for a purely financial answer (ignoring the social/environmental aspects) there are a few different ways you can look at it. For these types of improvements the simplest is a payback calculation. How long would it take you to recoup the initial costs? For example, if the entire installation cost $5...
Do overall 401(k) contribution limits sum across employers?
Let me first start off by saying that you need to be careful with an S-Corp and defined contribution plans. You might want to consider an LLC or some other entity form, depending on your state and other factors. You should read this entire page on the irs site: S-Corp Retirement Plan FAQ, but here is a small clip: Co...
Should I sell my stocks when the stock hits a 52-week high in order to “Buy Low, Sell High”?
I primarily intend to add on to WBT's answer, which is good. It has been shown that "momentum" is a very real, tangible factor in stock returns. Stocks that have done well tend to keep doing well; stocks that are doing poorly tend to keep doing poorly. For a long-term value investor, of course fundamental valuation sho...
Paying Off Principal of Home vs. Investing In Mutual Fund
Other answers are already very good, but I'd like to add one step before taking the advice of the other answers... If you still can, switch to a 15 year mortgage, and figure out what percentage of your take-home pay the new payment is. This is the position taken by Dave Ramsey*, and I believe this will give you a bett...
Personal finance in EFU and NAFA
I want to know why my investment is having loss in 4 to 5 months. As the funds invest in stock markets, the Pakistan stock market is going down in last 4-5 months from all time high. Should I liquidate my investment or wait in hope that it will grow again? This is opinion based and one cannot predict what will happen i...
How to start buying shares with small amount of money?
Before anything else, read up on the basics of economics. After that, there a few things you need to ask yourself before you even think about investing in anything: If you have an answer to those questions: Once you answered those questions I could make a simple first suggestion: Confident in handling it yourself and l...
How a company can afford to give away so many shares as part of its ESOP
Companies theoretically have an infinite number of equity units at their disposal. Issuance must be approved according to its founding contracts. If an equity is trading on an open market then the price of each unit issued in lieu of cash compensation is known. Even if an equity doesn't trade openly, bidders can be s...
I have about 20 000 usd. How can invest them to do good in the world?
I'd suggest you to separate "doing good" from "earning profit". Look at the guys like Warren Buffett and Bill Gates (or Carnegie and Ford for that matters). They understand that you can't reconcile the two goals, so they donate for free what they earned for profit. If you want to make a social impact with your money, y...
Why do financial institutions charge so much to convert currency?
Banks do of course incur costs on currency transactions. But they're not as high as the fee charged to the customer. Most banks in most places lose a lot of money on operating bank accounts for customers, and make the money back by charging more than their costs for services like currency exchange. If you don't choose ...
Buy tires and keep car for 12-36 months, or replace car now?
If You use the car regulary, I don't think that driving on the bald tires for 3 years is a reasonable option. Have You considered buying used tires? Those will be cheaper and will last till You get to replace the car.
Are buying and selling futures based on objective data?
If you're simply a futures speculator, then yes, it does seem like gambling. If you're a farmer producing a few thousand bushels of wheat, futures can be a mechanism for you to hedge against certain kinds of market risk. Same if you're running a heating oil company, etc. I just read somewhere that the bad spring weathe...
Oversimplify it for me: the correct order of investing
I am a firm believer in the idea of limiting debt as much as possible. I would not recommend borrowing money for anything other than a reasonably sized mortgage. As a result, my recommendations are going to be geared toward that goal. The top priorities for me, then, would be to make sure, first, that we don't have t...
Free Historical Commodity Prices in txt?
You can find gold historical prices on the kitco site. See the "View Data" button.
What are the differences between a REIT and an MLP?
A REIT is a real estate investment trust. It is a company that derives most of its gross income from and holds most of its assets in real estate investments, which, in this case, include either real property, mortgages, or both. They provide a way for investors to get broad exposure in a real estate market without goi...
Are social media accounts (e.g. YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, etc.) considered assets?
Assets with zero value, perhaps. Unless you can prove that they have resale value. Good luck with that. In other words, not worth spending time on.
Should I pay my Education Loan or Put it in the Stock Market?
I read your question that you have a comfortable amount toward retirement. If not, pad your retirement accounts if possible. If your loan rate is locked at 2.67%, invest that money in the market and pay the loan as agreed. So long as you feel comfortable in your employment and income status for the next few years, I ...
Should I invest in the world's strongest currency instead of my home currency?
First, currencies are not an investment; they are a medium of exchange; that is, you use currency to buy goods and services and/or investments. The goods and services you intend to buy in your retirement are presumably going to be bought in your country; to buy these you will need your country's currency. The investmen...
Is Cost of Living overstated?
New York City is high cost-of-living, and I have absolutely no clue why people live there. It's a tough place, and the taxes are oppressive. People buy a studio apartment for $150,000 that has 175 square feet (that's not a typo) plus a $700/month maintenance fee that continues after the mortgage is paid off. And tha...
Should a high-school student invest their (relative meager) savings?
Nobody has mentioned your "risk tolerance" and "investment horizon" for this money. Any answer should take into account whether you can afford to lose it all, and how soon you'll need your investment to be both liquid and above water. You can't make any investment decision at all and might as well leave it in a deposi...
How can I improve my credit score if I am not paying bills or rent?
When you say "promptly paying off the outstanding balance", do you mean you pay it off literally as soon as you have incurred the debt? It is important to actually let the debt post on a statement before you pay it off. If you pay it off before the statement posts then this won't help your credit at all. Once the state...
Is it possible to buy UK Consols (perpetuities)?
Selftrade does list them. Not sure if you'll be able to sign up from the US though, particularly given the FATCA issues.
Annuities question - Equations of value
These are the steps I'd follow: $200 today times (1.04)^10 = Cost in year 10. The 6 deposits of $20 will be one time value calculation with a resulting year 7 final value. You then must apply 10% for 3 years (1.1)^3 to get the 10th year result. You now have the shortfall. Divide that by the same (1.1)^3 to shift the ...
Most common types of financial scams an individual investor should beware of?
Anything where the initial step of someone trying to get you into anything financial is to send you an e-mail. There are valid situations in which e-mails may be used to introduce you to a financial product or offer, such as if you have signed up for an electronic newsletter that includes such information. But in that ...
PayPal wants me to “add a bank account”, another funding source. Credit card isn't working. Why?
It's possible the recipient of the payment is not setup to receive funds form PayPal from a credit card, too.
Difference between GOOGL and GOOG
Source
What options do I have at 26 years old, with 1.2 million USD?
I agree with Grade 'Eh' Bacon's answer, but there are a couple of ideas that are relevant to your particular situation: If I were you, I would invest at least half of the cash in growth ETFs because you're young enough that market variability doesn't affect you and long term growth is important. The rest should be inve...
Sleazy Bait and Switch Marketing — Is this legal?
But.. what I really want to know.... is it illegal, particularly the clause REQUIRING a trade in to qualify for the advertised price? The price is always net of all the parts of the deal. As an example they gave the price if you have $4000 trade in. If you have no trade in, or a trade in worth less than 4K, your fina...
Question about Tax Information from a Prospectus
At the end of each calendar year the mutual fund company will send you a 1099 form. It will tell you and the IRS what your account earned. You will see boxes for: You will end up paying taxes on these, unless the fund is part of a 401K or IRA. These taxes will be due even if you never sold any shares. They are due even...
Does it make sense to buy an index ETF (e.g. S&P 500) when the index is at an all-time high?
In 1929 the Dow Jones Industrial Average peaked at roughly 390 just prior to the Great Depression. It did not return to that level again until 25 years later in 1954. 25 years is a long time to go without any returns, especially if you are a retiree. There is no easy answer with investing. Trying to time the tops and b...
find stock composition of a publicly traded fund
The big websites, Yahoo and the like, only give the 10 biggest positions of any fund. Download the annual report of the fund, go to page 18, you will find the positions on the 31st of December. However the actual positions could be different. The same applies to all funds. You need the annual report.
What U.S. banks offer two-factor authentication (such as password & token) for online banking?
E*Trade offers banking services, and will provide you with a security token free if you have sufficient assets there ($50,000). Otherwise they'll charge you a $25 fee.
Is it better to pay an insurance deductible, or get an upgrade?
I think you have a few choices that cannot be described by math alone: Repair current phone: 149 Replace current phone with new model from carrier: 100 + cost of new phone Replace current phone with new model on payment plan from carrier: 100 + cost of new phone + finance charge (could be zero or cleverly hidden). Y...
Should I finance a new home theater at 0% even though I have the cash for it?
I think most people have already answered this one pretty well. (It's usually worth it, as long as you pay it off before the interest kicks in, and you don't get hit with any fees.) I just wanted to add one thing that no one else has pointed out: Applying for the loan usually counts as a hard pull on your credit hist...
How can one go short in Uber?
The answer to this question is related to another question: How would I invest in Uber? Given that Uber is a privately-held company, the average investor cannot directly buy stock. However, there are some indirect methods that you can use to invest in Uber, and as a result, it is also possible to indirectly short Uber...
Live in California but work for Illinois-based company
They might be concerned with having to charge sales tax in California if they have a single employee in California, creating a nexus situation with CA. If that's the case, or even if there is some other issue, you might be able to switch from being a W2 employee to being a 1099 independent contractor. There's a host of...
Can an S-Corp write off work and merchandise expenses donated to a non-profit organization?
An S-corp doesn't pay income tax -- taxation is pass-through. This being the case, there are no tax deductions it could take for charitable giving. The solution would be for you to make the contribution out of your own pocket and then personally claim the deduction on your own taxes.
How much time would I have to spend trading to turn a profit?
Making a profit in trading is not a function of time, it's a function of information, speed, and consistency. Regardless of how much time you spend learning about trading, there is no guarantee that you will ever become profitable because you will always be competing against a counter-party who is either better- or mor...
Info about managment compansation schemes in publicly traded companies
Converting the comment from @MD-Tech into answer How or where could I find info about publicly traded companies about how stock owner friendly their compensation schemes are for their board and officers? This should be available in the annual report, probably in a directors' remunerations section for most companies
Accepting high volatility for high long-term returns
This is basically what financial advisers have been saying for years...that you should invest in higher risk securities when you are young and lower risk securities when you get older. However, despite the fact that this is taken as truth by so many financial professionals, financial economists have been unable to form...
Why does historical price data not go back all the way on Google Finance?
Google Finance and Yahoo Finance have been transitioning their API (data interface) over the last 3 months. They are currently unreliable. If you're just interested in historical price data, I would recommend either Quandl or Tiingo (I am not affiliated with either, but I use them as data sources). Both have the same h...
Why do 1099 forms take so long for brokerages to prepare and send out?
The simple answer is that brokerages have to close the books at the end of the year before they can send out the tax forms (what this entails is off topic for this site). I doubt that printing and mailing the forms takes very long. It is simply the process of reconciling the books so they don't have to send out correct...
Good Percentage Return on Equity?
Yes definitely Warren Buffet averaged returns of only around 21% throughout his 40 years in business. ROE of 23% is probably more than double the ROE of most companies , whats more as the saying goes its easier to grow sales from 1 million to 100 million than to grow sales from 100 million to 10 billion
Finding a good small business CPA?
Look for an accountant who brings not only expertise in number crunching, but consulting and business planning - a full package.
If I'm going to start doing my own taxes soon, do I need to start keeping receipts for everything?
You need receipts only if you claim deductions in the itemized deductions section based on them. You itemize deductions only if your claims exceed the standard deduction (which for a single person was $5,800 last year). Even then, you need receipts for everything only if you claim sales tax as the deduction (you have t...
When are equal-weighted index funds / ETFs preferable to market-cap-weighted funds?
Equal-weight ETFs remove the large cap bias found in most popular indexes. What results behaves very much like a small-cap or mid-cap index. Observe RSP vs IJR over a 5 year period: IJR (iShares S&P SmallCap 600 ETF) vs RSP (Rydex S&P Equal Weight ETF) I'm not sure if equal-weighting is worth the reduced efficiency. M...
What are the tax implications of earnings from the stock market (BSE)?
If you have held the stocks longer than a year, then there is no tax apart from the STT that is already deducted when you sell the shares. If you have held the stock for less than a year, you would have to pay short term capital gains at the rate of 15% on the profit. Edit: If you buy different shares from the total a...