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How do top investors pull out 20% ROI?
It's called leverage. Here's an example from real estate. The underlying appreciation on a house in certain parts of America is something like 7% a year. So if you bought the house "all cash," your return would be something like 7% a year. (Actually, a little more, because of the rent you would be collecting, or saving...
Retired, want to buy a mobile home; how to finance?
Do you think your 403b will earn more than the mortgage interest rate? If so, then mortgage seems the way to go. Conservative investment strategies might not earn much more than a 3-4% mortgage, and if you're paying 5-6% it's more likely you'll be earning less than the mortgage. From another point of view, though, I w...
How do historically low interest rates affect real estate prices?
The article John cites says no correlation, but this chart from the article says otherwise; One sees the rate drop from 14% to 4% and housing rise from an index of 50 to near 190. (reaching over to my TI BA-35 calculator) I see that at 14%, $1000/mo will buy $84,400 worth of mortgage, but at 4%, it will buy $209,500. ...
Figuring out an ideal balance to carry on credit cards [duplicate]
I think this advice to carry a balance each month is nonsense. You're just wasting money that way. Personally, I have always paid off my credit cards every month for as long as I can remember, and my credit score is only 8 points below the max. The bigger factors by far are: It might be good advice to charge a small...
Can saving/investing 15% of your income starting age 25, likely make you a millionaire?
Other people have already demonstrated the effect of compound interest to the question. I'd like to add a totally different perspective. Note that the article says if you can follow this simple recipe throughout your working career, you will almost certainly beat out most professional investors [...] you'll likely acc...
When investing, is the risk/reward tradeoff linear?
The risk-reward relation depends on what you are changing. In the most cases people ask about, it is not linear but I will give examples of both. Nonlinear case 1: As you diversify your portfolio, the firm-specific risks of various stocks cancel each other out without necessarily affecting the expected return of the p...
How does high frequency trading work if money isn't available for 2-3 days after selling?
As previously answered, the solution is margin. It works like this: You deposit e.g. 1'000 USD at your trading company. They give you a margin of e.g. 1:100, so you are allowed to trade with 100'000 USD. Let's say you buy 5'000 pieces of a stock at $20 USD (fully using your 100'000 limit), and the price changes to $20...
Why is economic growth so important?
There is an economic principle called "non-satiation," which translated into plain English means "people always want more." (This was best illustrated in the movie, Oliver Twist, "Please sir, can I have MORE?") Over time, most people won't be satisfied with "things as they are." Which is why growth is so important. Man...
Why do stocks go up? Is it due to companies performing well, or what else? [duplicate]
Prices can go up or down for a variety of reasons. If interest rates decline typically every stock goes up, and vice versa. Ultimately, there are two main value-related factors to a price of a stock: the dividends the company may issue or the payoff in the event the company is bought by someone else. Any dividend paid ...
Shorting diluting stocks
It depends on how big the dilution is. Could be a good trade. Do the math yourself, many times nobody else has as all the employees think they are going to get rich because "options" :)
Could someone explain this scenario about Google's involvement in the wireless spectrum auction?
If history is any guide, Page’s idealistic impulses could result in a vaster, more sprawling company. The following is an example of one of Page’s idealistic impulses (wanting people to share spectrum) which could result in a vaster, more sprawling company (if they hadn't been outbid, Google would have expanded by buyi...
How does Yahoo finance adjust stock data for splits and dividends?
For stock splits, let's say stock XYZ closed at 100 on February 5. Then on February 6, it undergoes a 2-for-1 split and closes the day at 51. In Yahoo's historical prices for XYZ, you will see that it closed at 51 on Feb 6, but all of the closing prices for the previous days will be divided by 2. So for Feb 5, it wi...
Can paying down a mortgage be considered an “investment”?
Something you invest in has the ability to grow in value. So examples of investments would be buying stocks, bonds, currencies, commodities. Buying your house or a piece of real estate can be considered an investment because the house/property will hopefully be worth more as time passes. So the act of paying down a ...
How were self employed folk taxed in the U.K. before 1997
This link: http://www.ifs.org.uk/fs/articles/ewgm_feb93.pdf (from 1996, describing the proposals for the change) seems to answer the question in its description of "the current system" - they had to file business accounts and it was calculated by the Inland Revenue from that.
Why is Insider Trading Illegal?
A practical issue is that insider trading transfers wealth from most investors to the few insiders. If this were permitted, non-insiders would rarely make any money, and they'd stop investing. That would then defeat the purpose of the capital markets which is to attract capital. A moral issue is that managers and opera...
Purchase same stock twice
Investors purchase additional shares all the time. Every investor that adds money to their investments does this every paycheck or every month. Investors do this every time they reinvest dividends, interest or capital gains. They also buy and sell shares when they decide to rebalance their portfolio. Whether you are i...
Do online repositories of publicly traded companies' financial statements exist?
You can use the Securities Exchange Commission's EDGAR search engine to search all available SEC related filings. https://www.sec.gov/edgar/searchedgar/companysearch.html Top tip: use the fast search on the right to search for the company ticker rather than by company name.
Where can I get interesting resources on Commodities?
Here are some pretty big name news agencies which have a section dedicated to commodities: CNN Bloomberg Reuters
What is needed to be a “broker”?
You must understand that: So, if you -- the prospective buyer -- are in Waukegan, do you take the train all the way to New York City just to buy 100 shares of stock? No. That would be absurdly expensive. So, you hire an agent in NYC who will broker a deal for you in the exchange. Fast forward 100 years, to the time ...
What is the incentive for a bank to refinance a mortgage at a lower rate?
In a lot of cases, the bank has already made their money. Shortly after you get your mortgage is sold to investors though the bank is still servicing it for a fee. Therefore, if you refinance, they get to sell it again.
What debts are both partners liable for in a 'community property' state?
No two states have the same exact laws regarding community property. I would recommend asking a competent financial advisor in your area, as they would be more familiar with the local statutes.
UK: Personal finance book for a twenty-something
I would always recommend the intelligent investor by Benjamin Graham the mentor of warren buffet once you have a basic knowledge ie what is a share bond guilt etc In terms of pure investment the UK is fairly similar the major difference is the simpler tax structure, ISA allowance and the more generous CGT regime.
How can I save on closing costs when buying a home?
For example: do I need a realtor, or can I do their job myself? In general in the United States the real estate agent fee is paid by the seller of the property. Their agent will be more than happy keep the entire fee if they don't have to split it with your agent. If you don't have an agent you will be missing somebod...
Is insurance worth it if you can afford to replace the item? If not, when is it?
Another factor to consider is that resale value of the laptop is quite bit more if it is still under warranty. This would apply to people who replace their laptop often. It is higher because the purchaser can be assured they are not getting a lemon. I determined this by comparing prices on ebay before selling my comp...
What drives the stock of bankrupt companies?
What drives the stock of bankrupt companies? The company's potential residual assets. When a company goes bankrupt it is required to sell its assets to pay off its debts. The funds raised from selling assets go to the following entities: The usual order of debt repayment, in terms of the lender, will be the government...
Why does AAPL trade at such low multiples?
This is also an opinion, the iPhone makes up too much of the company's total revenue. Last quarter results were very well received because of the somewhat dramatic increase in service revenue indicating that maybe the company can shift from relying so heavily on the iPhone. As it stands, Apple is a single product com...
Working abroad in Australia, what is involved financially and administratively?
We don't seem to have (m)any expats or Australians on the site yet, but I'll share what I have learned. I'm taking advantage of your profile information listing you as a software developer. A friend of mine is currently doing a study of national IT professional societies for his MBA project. One of his goals is to u...
Given advice “buy term insurance and invest the rest”, how should one “invest the rest”?
The simplest way is to invest in a few ETFs, depending on your tolerance for risk; assuming you're very short-term risk tolerant you can invest almost all in a stock ETF like VOO or VTI. Stock market ETFs return close to 10% (unadjusted) over long periods of time, which will out-earn almost any other option and are ve...
Shouldn't a Roth IRA accumulate more than 1 cent of interest per month?
The term 'interest' tends to be used loosely when discussing valuation of stocks. Especially when referring to IRAs which are generally the purvey of common-folk who aren't in the finance industry. Often it is used colloquially to include: Using this definition (which is what I'm guessing your IRA Calculator is doing...
What special considerations need to be made for a US citizen who wishes to purchase a house in Canada?
About deducting mortgage interest: No, you can not deduct it unless it is qualified mortgage interest. "Qualified mortgage interest is interest and points you pay on a loan secured by your main home or a second home." (Tax Topic 505). According to the IRS, "if you rent out the residence, you must use it for more than ...
How much should I be contributing to my 401k given my employer's contribution?
First - yes, take the 2.5%. It could be better, but it's better than many get. Second - choosing from "a bunch" can be tough. Start by looking at the expenses for each. Read a bit of the description, if you can't tell your spouse what the fund's goal is, don't buy it.
How can one get their FICO/credit scores for free? (really free)
Check with your bank. As of January, 2015, the following banks and credit unions are offering free credit-scores: Announced, in the pipeline: Source: Banks to offer FICO credit scores for free Personal Experience: I've been receiving free FICO score from my credit union for more than 6 months now. Advice: Most people ...
For very high-net worth individuals, does it make sense to not have insurance?
There is an economic, a social and a psychological side to the decision whether to buy insurance or not, and if yes, which one. Economically, as you say already in your question, an insurance is on average a net loss for the insured. The key word here is "average". If you know that there are many cancer cases in your...
How can I borrow in order to improve a home I just bought?
It depends on your equity(assets - liabilities). If you have a lot of equity, banks will be happy to lend you money because they now they can always seize your assets. If you don't have a lot of equity another option is to go to hard money lenders. They charge high rates and some of them lend-to-own, but is an option....
Mortgage company withholding insurance proceeds
Have you found a general contractor to rebuild your home? I would imagine that someone with a bit of expertise in the area is used to dealing with insurance companies, floating the money for a rebuild, and hitting the gates to receive payment for work accomplished. Business are used to not receiving payment when work...
Details on opening a small corporation in ontario
The Canada Revenue Agency does indeed put out just the guide you want. It's at http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/E/pub/tg/rc4070/rc4070-e.html - you should always take a good look at URLs to make sure they're really from the government and not from some for-profit firm that will charge you to fill out forms for free services. I...
Do people tend to spend less when using cash than credit cards?
Others have commented on the various studies. If, as JoeTaxpayer says, this one particular study he mentions does not really exist, there are plenty of others. (And in that case: Did someone blatantly lie to prove a bogus point? Or did someone just get the name of the organization that did the study wrong, like it was ...
What's a Letter of Credit? Are funds held in my bank for the amount in question?
Wikipedia has a detailed article explaining this. A standard, commercial letter of credit (LC) is a document issued mostly by a financial institution, used primarily in trade finance, which usually provides an irrevocable payment undertaking. So yes, they are primarily for use by businesses. If you will read the articl...
When shorting a stock, do you pay current market price or the best (lowest) available ask price?
When you want to short a stock, you are trying to sell shares (that you are borrowing from your broker), therefore you need buyers for the shares you are selling. The ask prices represent people who are trying to sell shares, and the bid prices represent people who are trying to buy shares. Using your example, you cou...
Can a CEO short his own company?
mhoran_psprep has answered the question well about "shorting" e.g. making a profit if the stock price goes down. However a CEO can take out insurance (called hedging) against the stock price going down in relation to stocks they already own in some cases. But is must be disclosed in public filings etc. This may be d...
Why are typical 401(k) plan fund choices so awful?
To piggy back mbhunter's answer, the broker is going to find a way to make the amount of money they want, and either the employee or the company will foot that bill. But additionally, most small businesses want to compete and the market and offer benefits in the US. So they shop around, and maybe the boss doesn't have...
Is it irresponsible for me to lease a $300/month car for 18 months?
With a gross income of $ 95,000 per year, and a net savings rate of over $ 18,000 per year, a budget of $ 3,600 per year for automobile interest and depreciation is not irresponsible. But poor car choices, poor car maintenance habits, and driving habits that risk totalling cars are irresponsible. Also, not fully under...
Why do banks insist on allowing transactions without sufficient funds?
Believe it or not, this is done as a service to you. The reason for this has to do with a fundamental difference between a credit card account and a checking account. With a credit card account, there is no money in the account; every charge is borrowed money. When you get to your credit limit, your credit transaction...
Recent college grad. Down payment on a house or car?
That sounds like way too much for a car! I suggest you get a used car that only has a few years on it and is in mint condition. Not only are they cheaper to purchase, they are also the cheapest to insure.
Why buy insurance?
People's value of money is not always linear. Consider an individual with $1000 in the bank. I'm going to look at amounts of debt by orders of magnitude: Now its pretty easy to see a order of magnitude increase in impact from $100 to $1000, and it becomes slightly worse for the $10,000 case due to debt. However, one...
What are the options for a 19-year-old college student who only has about $1000?
$1000 is not that much, and I think the best you can do with them is keeping them in a high-yield savings account (look at the online savings accounts that give 1% and more, not the regular bank savings accounts which are worthless). If you need money all of a sudden (for a school book, or rent, or bills, or some other...
How will a 1099 work with an existing W-2?
You can do either a 1099 or a W-2. There is no limitations to the number of W-2s one can have in reporting taxes. Problems occur, with the IRS, when one "forgets" to report income. Even if one holds only one job at a time, people typically have more than one W-2 if they change jobs within the year. The W-2 is the si...
Could capital gains from a stock sale impact my IRA eligibility?
Yes, eligibility for contributing to a Roth IRA is determined by your Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) which is based on your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI). Now, AGI includes the net capital gains from your transactions and MAGI adds back in things that were subtracted off (e.g. tuition deductions, foreign earned in...
Which type of investments to keep inside RRSP?
Everything else can be held inside or outside your registered account depending on your investment or tax needs
Can an unmarried couple buy a home together with only one person on the mortgage?
In this case can the title of the home still be held by both? Yes, it is possible to have additional people on title that are not on the mortgage. Would the lender (bank) have any reservations about this since a party not on the mortgage has ownership of the property? Possibly, but there is a very simple way to avoid t...
Optimal Asset Allocation
When you have multiple assets available and a risk-free asset (cash or borrowing) you will always end up blending them if you have a reasonable objective function. However, you seem to have constrained yourself to 100% investment. Combine that with the fact that you are considering only two assets and you can easily ...
Can saving/investing 15% of your income starting age 25, likely make you a millionaire?
If by being a millionaire you mean dollar millionaire then I doubt that it is really that easy in Pakistani context. At present the exchange rate is 107 Pakistani rupees per US dollar so even with this exchange rate, to have a million US dollars means having 107 million rupees of wealth. Now with this maths in mind you...
As an investing novice, what to do with my money?
A lot of people on here will likely disagree with me and this opinion. In my opinion the answer lies in your own motives and intentions. If you'd like to be more cognizant of the market, I'd just dive in and buy a few companies you like. Many people will say you shouldn't pick your own stocks, you should buy an in...
What causes discontinuities with stock prices
During the 12 plus hours the market was closed news can change investors opinion of the stock. When the market reopens that first trade could be much different than the last trade the day before.
Finding out actual items bought via credit card issuer and not the store receipt?
As a merchant I can tell you that the only thing the bank gets from me. Is the total amount and a category for my business. No detail, not ever.
Buy index mutual fund or build my own?
One thing I would add to @littleadv (buy an ETF instead of doing your own) answer would be ensure that the dividend yield matches. Expense ratios aren't the only thing that eat you with mutual funds: the managers can hold on to a large percentage of the dividends that the stocks normally pay (for instance, if by holdi...
Paying off mortgage or invest in annuity
I am in the process of writing an article about how to maximize one's Social Security benefits, or at least, how to start the analysis. This chart, from my friends at the Social Security office shows the advantage of waiting to take your benefit. In your case, you are getting $1525 at age 62. Now, if you wait 4 year...
Where to find out conversion ratio between General Motors bonds and new GM stock?
Looks like the result got decided recently, with a little uncertainty about exactly how much is the total allowed claims: http://www.wilmingtontrust.com/gmbondholders/plan_disclosure.html http://www.wilmingtontrust.com/gmbondholders/pdf/GUC_Trust_Agreement.pdf They give the following example: Accordingly, pursuant to S...
Can the Delta be used to calculate the option premium given a certain target?
In a simple world yes, but not in the real world. Option pricing isn't that simplistic in real life. Generally option pricing uses a Monte Carlo simulation of the Black Scholes formula/binomial and then plot them nomally to decide the optimum price of the option. Primarily multiple scenarios are generated and under tha...
Boyfriend is coowner of a house with his sister, he wants to sell but she doesn't
He needs to go see a lawyer to find out what all his options are, and the consequences of any of them. Then he needs to get help extricating himself from this situation, in whatever fashion he chooses: buyout, giveaway, what have you. This situation involves property, which involves money, so definitely get professiona...
Why would someone buy a way out-of-the-money call option that's expiring soon?
Out of the money options often have the biggest changes in value, when the stock moves upward. This person could also gain, by the implied (underlying) volatility of the stock rising if it moves erratically to either side. Still seems to be a very risky game, given only 4 days to expiry.
Covered calls: How to handle this trade?
You are NOT responsible for liquidating the position. You will either end up retaining your 100 sh. after expiration, or they will be called away automatically. You don't have to do anything. Extending profitability can mean different things, but a major consideration is whether or not you want to hold the stock or n...
If one owns 75% of company shares, does that mean that he would have to take upon himself 75% of the company's expenses?
Typically, no. Unless you have a detailed agreement spelling out the apportioning of costs, all operating expenses are deducted from gross income first, with the division of the proceeds coming out of net profit, in accordance with the type and % of shares you own, and per the terms of the shareholders agreement. This ...
How can I minimize the impact of the HST?
The HST is a sales tax levied on most goods and services. It is important to realize that in both BC and Ontario, the new HST does not (in most cases) result in an increase in sales tax paid. For example, in Ontario the PST is 8% and when combined with the GST the sales tax is 13%. With the HST, the GST and PST are rep...
Less than a year at my first job out of college, what do I save for first?
On paper the whole 6 months living costs sounds (and is) great, but in real life there are a lot of things that you need to consider. For example, my first car was constantly falling apart and was an SUV that got 16MPG. I have to travel for work (about 300 miles per week) so getting a sedan that averages close to 40MPG...
Which technical analysis indicators are considered leading stock market indicators?
Relative Strength Indicators are also trailing indicators. They are based on the number of recent upticks or downticks in an investment's price. (The size of a tick is quantized, and related to the investment's price.) By the time enough upticks have accumulated to generate a buy signal, the investment has already i...
Consumer Loans vs Mortgages
Here's a good definition of a consumer loan: What is a Consumer Loan? As@Pete B. pointed out, there are some states (California loves to be the oddball, doesn't it?) that treat some loans in a more unconventional manner, but the gist of it is that a consumer loan is normally unsecured, meaning there's no collateral or ...
How bad is it to have a lot of credit available but not used?
I never give advice but I will now because you are getting poor advice. I run between 820 and 835 for a FICO score and have for years. I have a Discover, AMEX, VISA and MC. I have over 200,000 dollars of credit and I never EVER pay interest. I pay off the cards every month. So, does it matter how much credit you h...
Do you know of any online monetary systems?
I'm not sure, but I think the monetary system of Second Life or World of Warcraft would correspond to what you are looking for. I don't think they are independent of the dollar though, since acquiring liquidity in those games can be done through exchange for real dollars. But there can be more closed systems, maybe Sim...
Can anybody explain “cut their exposure to equities” and “fat and flat range” for me, please?
Someone's (or, a bank's) "exposure to equities" refers to the amount of value which has a risk that fluctuates with the equities market (ie: the stock market). In very broad terms, I think it might make sense to say that exposure to equities could mean, for example, owning many rental properties, if the rental market w...
Salary equivalency: London vs Berlin
Coming to London at this point of time is not a wise decision, not that I mean to discourage you. The job market is quite competitive because loads of developers are in the markets, because of the layoffs. So be ready to wait for some time to land a role. Banks aren't recruiting that heavily, but that might change if t...
Can a recruiting agency demand information to file an I-9 before I have a job?
Unless they're the actual employers, the I-9 is none of their business. Your employer must verify your eligibility for employment on the first day of your employment, i.e.: when you find a job you'll have to fill I-9 anyway. The only reason I can think for them to do it is to verify that you're eligible for employment ...
Using Loan to Invest - Paying Monthly Installments with Monthly Income
I think we are mixing this up. If you invest using loan, and are paying the loan out of your pocket and leaving the loan in investment, then there is no way you are making more money. Had you directly invested the same money in market instead of EMI, you would end up gaining more. Take a Loan of 100000, Year Int say 5....
Any reason to keep IRAs separate?
Once upon a time, money rolled over from a 401k or 403b plan into an IRA could not be rolled into another 401k or 403b unless the IRA account was properly titled as a Rollover IRA (instead of Traditional IRA - Roth IRAs were still in the future) and the money kept separate (not commingled) with contributions to Traditi...
Does borrowing from my 401(k) make sense in my specific circumstance?
Your comment regarding your existing finances is very relevant and helpful. You need to understand that generally in personal finance circles, when a strong earning 22 year-old is looking for a loan it's usually a gross spending problem. Their car costs $1,000 /month and their bar tabs are adding up so the only logic...
Does gold's value decrease over time due to the fact that it is being continuously mined?
Contrary to Muro's answer which strangely shows a graph of the Fed's balance sheet and not the money supply, the supply of US dollars has never doubled in a few days. This graph from Wikipedia shows M2, which is the wider measure of money supply, to have doubled over approximately 10 years, http://en.wikipedia.org/wik...
How can a person with really bad credit history rent decent housing?
She can find a landlord that doesn't do credit checks. Maybe on Craigslist? She may end up paying more, have a bigger security deposit, etc. She can get someone else (not you) to sit her down and explain to her frankly that she's messing things up for herself and her children by being a poor manager of her finances. ...
How can I legally and efficiently help my girlfriend build equity by helping with a mortgage?
There is no simple, legally reasonable, way for her to build equity by helping out with your mortgage, without her having a claim to your mortgage. The only 'equitable' thing she can do is rent from you. If you want her to be building equity, have her start and fund a brokerage account for herself. If you have an affi...
How do I choose between buying a car or buying a plot of land in Pakistan?
“The plot of land definitely is going to give better results in long term.” Will it? Land is not guaranteed to go up in value. And a car can provide more employment opportunities for you. You need to look at your specific situation—with specific numbers—rather than using rules of thumb as hard guidelines.
1.4 million cash. What do I do?
Have you considered investing in real estate? Property is cheap now and you have enough money for several properties. The income from tenants could be very helpful. If you find it's not for you, you can also sell your property and recover your initial investment, assuming house prices go up in the next few years.
Calculation, timing, and taxes related to profit distribution of an S-corp?
We will bill our clients periodically and will get paid monthly. Who are "we"? If you're not employed - you're not the one doing the work or billing the client. Would IRS care about this or this should be something written in the policy of our company. For example: "Every two months profits get divided 50/50" They ...
Effect of Job Change on In-Progress Mortgage Application
I recommend you ask this question to a qualified mortgage broker. We just closed on our first house. My wife & I have had several years of stable jobs, good credit scores, and a small side business with 1040 Schedule-C income... and we were surprised by the overwhelming amount of documentation we needed for the loan....
How to calculate my real earnings from hourly temp-to-hire moving to salaried employee?
If you are a temp-to-hire, or you are asked to setup a company then you are not an employee. They expect you to fund everything from your hourly rate. This includes pay, insurance, taxes, social security, sick, vacation, holidays... The rule of thumb for an established company is 1.75 to 2.25 times the salary rate is t...
How much should I be contributing to my 401k given my employer's contribution?
For your first question, the general guidelines I've seen recommended are as follows: As to your second question, portfolio management is something you should familiarize yourself with. If you trust it to other people, don't be surprised when they make "mistakes". Remember, they get paid regardless of whether you mak...
Separate bank account for security deposit from tenant
Per Md. REAL PROPERTY Code Ann. § 8-203: (d) (1) (i) The landlord shall maintain all security deposits in federally insured financial institutions, as defined in § 1-101 of the Financial Institutions Article, which do business in the State. (ii) Security deposit accounts shall be maintained in...
Long(100%)-Short(-100%) investment explanation
When portfolio positions are reported in percentages, those percentages are relative to the portfolio's base equity. When you start out, that is equal to the cash you have in a portfolio. Later it's the net equity of the portfolio (i.e., how much money you could withdraw if you were to exit all your positions). If yo...
Can I buy only 4 shares of a company?
I'm not sure it is the best idea, but you can buy only 4 stocks generally. As you alluded to, you should take notice of the fees. Also note that many stocks trade at significantly lower prices than Apple's per shares, so you might want to factor that into your decision. You could probably get a better feel for trans...
Are there “buy and hold” passively managed funds?
Passive implies following an index. Your question seems to ask about a hypothetical fund that starts, say, as an S&P fund, but as the index is adjusted, the old stocks stay in the fund. Sounds simple enough, but over time, the fund's performance will diverge from the index. The slight potential gain from lack of cap ga...
Will I, as a CS student, be allowed to take loans for paying the fees of Ivy Leagues?
This article gives the very good advice to simply contact one of the schools in question and ask how to apply for financial aid as an international applicant. Most Ivy League schools admit so many international students that they will have answers to any financial question you can imagine. They may even already expla...
Better rate for investment between CD or savings
Excel has two functions you can use: Your question has the CD with a APR and the savings account that mentions both APR and APY. So convert them both to APY to compare them. The savings account (2.27 APY) will return more money based on the numbers in your question (2.27% vs 1.56%) The previous part was the math part o...
Where can I trade FX spot options, other than saxobank.com?
You can trade currency ETF options on IB. It is SIPC insured; the options are just like vanilla options in Saxo.
Is it possible to eliminate PMI (Personal/Private Mortgage Insurance) on a mortgage before reaching 20% down on principal?
Banks are currently a lot less open to 'creative financing' than they were a few years ago, but you may still be able to take advantage of the tactic of splitting the loan into two parts, a smaller 'second mortgage' sometimes called a 'purchase money second' at a slightly higher interest rate for around 15-20% of the v...
How to rescue my money from negative interest?
You obviously pay your taxes in Switzerland and are employed (judging from your comments on your maximum possible contribution to the 3. Säule). Under these circumstances, your best best may well be to pay into the occupational pension system ("Einkauf in die 2. Säule"). Essentially, you can add funds to your pension p...
What are the reasons to get more than one credit card?
Someone mentioned sign up bonuses but only mentioned dollar values. You might get points, sweet, sweet airline points :) which some might find compelling enough to churn cards so they always have a few open.
Is 401k as good as it sounds given the way it is taxed?
Your analysis is not comparing apples to apples which is why it looks like investing money in a non-qualified account is better than a 401k (traditional or Roth). For the non-qual you are using post tax dollars (money that has already been taxed). Now on top of that original tax you are also going to pay capital gains...
Legitimate unclaimed property that doesn't appear in any state directory?
Most states have a "cap" on the amount a "heir finder" can charge for retrieving the property. It is generally around 10%. Even if the state does not have a particular statute you can usually negotiate the rate with the company. Thirty-percent is extortion, if they won't do it for less, someone else will.
How to evaluate growth stocks
A classic text on growth stock picking is Common Stock and Uncommon Profits By Philip Fisher, with a 15 point checklist. Here is a summary of the list that you can check out.
Can I claim GST/HST Input Tax Credits (ITCs) on Uber, taxi, or limousine fares?
Apparently Canadians have not been paying any tax on Uber rides, and will only begin to do so on July 1, 2017. Source: http://mobilesyrup.com/2017/03/22/uber-canada-gst-hst-budget-2017/
Can Health-Releated Services be a Business Expense?
Chris, since you own your own company, nobody can stop you from charging your personal expenses to your business account. IRS is not a huge fan of mixing business and personal expenses and this practice might indicate to them that you are not treating your business seriously, and it should classify your business as a h...
How are they earning money in the movie “Trading Places”?
They are not selling stocks. They are selling OJ futures contracts. Selling a futures contract at 142 gives the buyer the right to buy a fixed number of pounds of orange juice concentrate ("OJ") on a future date at 142 cents per pound. The seller has an obligation to suppy that fixed number of pounds of OJ to the buyer...