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What is the preferred way to finance home improvements when preparing to sell your house?
You could take on more work. Pizza delivery, lawn work, babysitting, housecleaning, etc. None of those are much fun, but all are better than opening a credit card bill.
What are the marks of poor investment advice?
Any investment advice that is not targeted to your situation should be avoided.
Do I need to own all the funds my target-date funds owns to mimic it?
If you read Joel Greenblatt's The Little Book That Beats the Market, he says: Owning two stocks eliminates 46% of the non market risk of owning just one stock. This risk is reduced by 72% with 4 stocks, by 81% with 8 stocks, by 93% with 16 stocks, by 96% with 32 stocks, and by 99% with 500 stocks. Conclusion: After...
What are my best options if I don't have a lot of credit lines for housing loans?
Rather than trying to indirectly game your credit score, I would instead shop around and see if there are other lenders that will pre-qualify you with your credit the way it is today. BofA and other large banks can be very formulaic in how they qualify loans; a local bank or credit union may be more willing to bend th...
Everyone got a raise to them same amount, lost my higher pay than the newer employees
This is one effect of rising minimum wages: compression of lower pay tiers. The new employees might have been offered a lower starting rate than the result of your raise, but your employer did not have that option as a matter of law.
Can somebody explain “leveraged debt investment positions” and “exposures” in this context for me, please?
Exposure is the amount of money that you are at risk of losing on a given position (i.e. on a UST 10 year bond), portfolio of positions, strategy (selling covered calls for example), or counterparty, usually represented as a percentage of your total assets. Interbank exposure is the exposure of banks to other banks eit...
Are U.S. salaries typically measured/reported before tax, or after tax?
In the U.S., virtually all salaries are expressed as "gross salaries", which are before the taxes that the individual must pay on their income. The numbers shown in the links are almost certainly gross salary figures. However, the "gross salary" is not the entire "total compensation" number, which is the total value of...
How to calculate my estimated taxes. 1099 MISC + Self Employment
There are a couple of things that are missing from your estimate. In addition to your standard deduction, you also have a personal exemption of $4050. So "D" in your calculation should be $6300 + $4050 = $10,350. As a self-employed individual, you need to pay both the employee and employer side of the Social Security ...
Why can't you just have someone invest for you and split the profits (and losses) with him?
Such an offer has negative value, so it's hard to see how it would make sense to accept it. The offer has two components, one part that you gain and one part that you lose. The gain is that half your losses are covered. The cost is that half your profits are lost. For that to be a net benefit to you, you would have to ...
Which Benjamin Graham book should I read first: Security Analysis or Intelligent Investor?
Read the Security Analysis. I believe if you read it completely, you will have a real good chance of succeeding at making good money. If you find the book hard to read just go through it and underline under the text as you read it.
Optimal way to use a credit card to build better credit?
Or here's a better idea: don't have a credit card at all. They offer no real benefits and plenty of dangers. Don't take my word for it, though: "I tell every student class I get, high school students, university students, you know, they'd be better off if they never used credit cards" - Warren Buffet (Net worth...
Is there a free, online stock screener for UK stocks?
I use and recommend barchart.com. Again you have to register but it's free. Although it's a US system it has a full listing of UK stocks and ETFs under International > London. The big advantage of barchart.com is that you can do advanced technical screening with Stochastics and RS, new highs and lows, moving averages e...
Market Hours and Valuations
Stock values are generally reflective of a company's overall potential; and to some extent investor confidence in the prospect of a continued growth of that potential. Sales over such a short period of time such as a single weekend do not noticeably impact a stock's valuation. A stock's value has more to do with wheth...
First time home buyer. How to negotiate price?
First of all, never ask a realtor for advice. The realtor represents the SELLER. Blankip's advice above is by far the most accurate of the previous answers. The first step is to estimate the market. Look at past sales in the neighborhood over time, and from them estimate the prospects for the house at different time du...
Is accident insurance worth it for my kids who play sports
The general answer to any "is it worth it" insurance question is "no," because the insurance company is making a profit on the insurance.* To decide if you want the insurance, you need to figure out how much you can afford to pay if something happens, how much they cover, and how badly you want to transfer your risk to...
Should I invest in real estate to rent, real estate to live in, or just stocks and bonds to earn 10-15%?
That your asking is a good first step towards taking control of your future. But truly, you must seek the advice of a personal consultant that is much more in tune with your finances that anyone out here in the public will be. You can get this type of advice locally, or if you want something online, I suggest oDesk or...
How to explain quick price changes early in the morning
The gap up/down and rapid movement immediately following market open is due to overnight futures activity. In your example, SP500 on June 20, 2016 saw a 20-point gap up at market open. This was because the SP500 futures were trading 20 points higher at 9:30 AM than at its close on Friday. The index will always "catch u...
Why don't market indexes use aggregate market capitalization?
They do but you're missing some calculations needed to gain an understanding. Intro To Stock Index Weighting Methods notes in part: Market cap is the most common weighting method used by an index. Market cap or market capitalization is the standard way to measure the size of the company. You might have heard of lar...
28 years old and just inherited large amount of money and real estate - unsure what to do with it
We don't have a good answer for how to start investing in poland. We do have good answers for the more general case, which should also work in Poland. E.g. Best way to start investing, for a young person just starting their career? This answer provides a checklist of things to do. Let's see how you're doing: Match...
How does Vanguard determine the optimal asset allocation for their Target Retirement Funds?
Googling vanguard target asset allocation led me to this page on the Bogleheads wiki which has detailed breakdowns of the Target Retirement funds; that page in turn has a link to this Vanguard PDF which goes into a good level of detail on the construction of these funds' portfolios. I excerpt: (To the question of why s...
What is a negotiable security and how are they related to derivatives?
The price for securities is negotiable. You totally have a right to make a lower offer when buying or ask for a higher price when selling. Securities don't trade at a fixed price, the price goes up and down throughout the day based on the price offers made by buyers and sellers and where they find agreement. If a s...
Can I deduct equipment expenses for a job I began overseas?
I'm not an expert, but here's my $0.02. Deductions for business expenses are subject to the 2% rule. In other words, you can only deduct that which exceeds 2% of your AGI (Adjusted Gross Income). For example, say you have an AGI of $50,000, and you buy a laptop that costs $800. You won't get a write-off from that, beca...
If I sell a stock that I don't have, am I required to buy it before a certain amount of time?
If you sell a stock you don't own, it's called a short sale. You borrowed the shares from an owner of the stock and eventually would buy to close. On most normal shares, you can hold a short position indefinitely, but there are some shares that have a combination of either a small float or too high a short position tha...
How prudent would it be to invest (stocks/equity) in businesses that are based on Cash transactions?
Every listed company needs to maintain book of accounts, when you are investing in companies you would have to look at what is stated in the books and along with other info decide to invest in it.
How can I figure out how much to bid on a parking space?
Scenario 1: Assume that you plan to keep the parking space for the rest of your life and collect the income from the rental. You say these spaces rent for $250 per month and there are fees of $1400 per year. Are there any other costs? Like would you be responsible for the cost of repaving at some point? But assuming th...
Paid cash for a car, but dealer wants to change price
Your son is in the right. But he broke the "unwritten" rules, which is why the car dealer is upset. Basically, cars are sold in the United States at a breakeven price. The car company makes ALL its money on the financing. If everyone bought "all cash," the car companies would not be profitable. No one expected anyone, ...
Are services provided to Google employees taxed as income or in any way?
(1). Is this right? Pretty much, though this is a really rudimentary way to think about it. (2). If it is, why is it that extensive services are provided by high margin companies competing for talent, rather then lower margin businesses looking to boost their profits by reducing their expenditures on employees (by cutt...
If a company's assets are worth more than its market cap, can one say the shares must be undervalued?
You haven't mentioned how much debt your example company has. Rarely does a company not carry any kind of debt (credit facilities, outstanding bonds or debentures, accounts payable, etc.) Might it owe, for instance, $1B in outstanding loans or bonds? Looking at debt too is critically important if you want to conduct th...
Why is OkPay not allowed in the United States?
The U.S. requires money transfer services to be licensed under 31 USC 5330 in addition to any applicable laws at the state level. According to multiple sources online, including the thread referenced by MD-Tech's answer, OkPay either cannot or will not get a license, so they are out. I dug on this a bit more because I...
Are Certificates of Deposit worth it compared to investing in the stock market?
For the specific example you gave, a CD with a 0.05% rate of return, I'd shop around some more, that's a VERY low rate of return. A more realistic one would be 0.5%, depending on the terms. As has been mentioned, CDs are good when you need to preserve your capital. What might be a situation for that? They are great for...
Can a car company refuse to give me a copy of my contract or balance details?
The comments are getting too much, but to verify that you are not insane, you are being bullied. It sounds like this is a sub-prime loan, of which you are wisely trying to get out of. It also sounds like they are doing everything in their power to prevent you from doing so. For them you are a very profitable custome...
What effect does a company's earnings have on the price of its stock?
A common (and important) measure of a stock's value is the price/earnings ratio, so an increase in earnings will normally cause the stock price to increase. However, the price of the stock is based on a guess of the value of the company some time (6 months?) in the future. So an increase in earnings today probably make...
I received $1000 and was asked to send it back. How was this scam meant to work?
Possible ways they could make money (or think they could): I would go back through your transaction history and see if it's disappeared. Even with an assumed-rubbish interface finding a reversal of the transaction should be easy as you know the amount. I wouldn't spend it for a very long time if it is still there, ju...
Should I avoid credit card use to improve our debt-to-income ratio?
For scoring purposes, having a DTI between 1-19% is ideal. From Credit Karma: That being said, depending on the loan type you looking at receiving (FHA, VA, Conventional, etc), there are certain max DTIs that you want to stay away from. As a rule, for VA, you want to try to stay away from 41% DTI. Exceptions are made...
Why do car rental companies prefer/require credit over debit cards?
A few reasons make sense: They have a defined process for rentals, risk assessment, and customer credit. Especially for a large corporation, making changes to that process is not trivial, adds risk/uncertainty, and will be costly. Such changes for a relatively small customer base might not makes sense. Many rental comp...
Taxes for citizen of EU country #1 living in EU country #2 and working from home for non-EU country #3?
There are just too many variables here... Will you legally be considered a permanent resident from the moment you move? Will you work from home as a contractor or as an employee? Those are not questions you can answer yourself, they really depend on your circumstances and how the tax authorities will look at them. I st...
What are the marks of poor investment advice?
Anybody that offers a bigger return than a deposit claiming 100% safe is a fraud. There is always a risk: Yes, you can gain 30% in a year, but nobody can guarantee that you'll repeat that gain the next. My own experience (and I do take risks), one year I go up, the next year I go down...
I have savings and excess income. Is it time for me to find a financial advisor?
Many of my friends said I should invest my money on stocks or something else, instead of put them in the bank forever. I do not know anything about finance, so my questions are: First let me say that your friends may have the best intentions, but don't trust them. It has been my experience that friends tell you what th...
Why would you elect to apply a refund to next year's tax bill?
If you expect your taxes to be higher next year, it saves you the trouble of sending estimates or changing the withholding levels. But yes, its basically a free loan you're giving to the government.
3-year horizon before trading up to next home: put windfall in savings, or pay off mortgage?
First, I would want cash around the time I made the move. I would like enough for a 20% down payment, moving expenses, and enough for 6 months of mortgage payments on the existing house. This way if the house does not sell quickly, you are safe. As you approach the time it comes to move, you can work backwards on ho...
Should I fund a move by borrowing or selling other property assets?
that would deprive me of the rental income from the property. Yes, but you'd gain by not paying the interest on your other mortgage. So your net loss (or gain) is the rental income minus the interest you're paying on your home. From a cash flow perspective, you'd gain the difference between the rental income and your...
Price graphs: why not percent change?
The actual price is represented on charts and not the change in price as a percentage, because it is the actual price which is used in all other parts of analysis (both technical and fundamental), and it is the actual figure the security is bought and sold at. A change in price has to be relative to a previous price at...
What percentage of my portfolio should be in individual stocks?
I think it depends entirely on your risk tolerance. Putting money in individual stocks obviously increases your risk and potentially increases your reward. Personally (as a fairly conservative investor) I'd only invest in individual stocks if I could afford to lose the entire investment (maybe I'd end up buying Enron o...
Fund equalisation / dividend
What you are describing is a very specific case of the more general principle of how dividend payments work. Broadly speaking, if you own common shares in a corporation, you are a part owner of that corporation; you have the right to a % of all of that corporation's assets. The value in having that right is ultimately ...
Can written options be exercised against you prior to expiry when they become “in-the-money”?
Yes, if it's an American style option. American style options may be exercised at any time prior to expiration (even if they're not in-the-money). Generally, you are required to deliver or accept delivery of the underlying by the beginning of the next trading day. If you are short, you may be chosen by the clearinghous...
In what cases can a business refuse to take cash?
A business can refuse cash (paper currency) payment pretty much in all cases provided it's a reasonable policy and/or notified during/in advance of contracting. Details in this link. "all United States money as identified above are a valid and legal offer of payment for debts when tendered to a creditor. There is, howe...
Reason for “qualified” buyer requirements to exercise stock options/rights spun off from parent company?
The fact that your shares are of a Canadian-listed corporation (as indicated in your comment reply) and that you are located in the United States (as indicated in your bio) is highly relevant to answering the question. The restriction for needing to be a "qualified institutional buyer" (QIB) arises from the parent comp...
How to calculate P/E ratio for S&P500 sectors
For the S&P and many other indices (but not the DJIA) the index "price" is just a unitless number that is the result of a complicated formula. It's not a dollar value. So when you divide said number by the earnings/share of the sector, you're again getting just a unitless number that is incomparable to standard P-E r...
How much does it cost to build a subdivision of houses on a large plot of land?
The basic answer is that you are comparing apples and oranges. On the one hand, you are considering a case where someone buys a single already-built house. On the other hand, you are considering a case where someone buys a large piece of land, builds 10 houses, and (presumably) sells or rents the 9 they're not living...
Filing 1040-NR when I have been outside the US the entire year?
Yes, you can still file a 1040nr. You are a nonresident alien and were: engaged in a trade or business in the United States Normally, assuming your withholding was correct, you would get a minimal amount back. Income earned in the US is definitely Effectively Connected Income and is taxed at the graduated rates that...
Pros/Cons of Buying Discounted Company Stock
Some other answers mention the ability to sell at grant. This is very important. If you have that ability, think about your guaranteed return. In my case, I get a 15% discount on the lowest 6 month window price from the last two years. If you do the math, the worst case return can be calculated: 1) Money that from the...
What happened when the dot com bubble burst?
What happened was that people would start an "Internet" company without any viable business plan, and investors would pour money. Any company with ".COM" or "eSomething" or "netXXX" or whatever would get tons of money from investors, basically selling dreams of getting rich fast. The companies that flourished back than...
I am turning 18 and I am a Student, I need strategies on building great credit soon. Where should I start?
The details of credit score calculation tend to change periodically, but the fundamentals are mostly consistent. Pay your bills, keep your average account age high, overpay your credit card minimums, and keep your overall debt low. And do soft pulls on your credit report to see what's happening. First, the simplest r...
Should I consolidate loans and cards, or just cards, leaving multiple loans?
First of all, congratulations on admitting your problem and on your determination to be debt-free. Recognizing your mistakes is a huge first step, and getting rid of your debt is a very worthwhile goal. When considering debt consolidation, there are really only two reasons to do so: Reason #1: To lower your monthly pa...
If I were to get into a life situation where I would not be able to make regular payments, do lenders typically provide options other than default?
For insight on what will happen, I suggest looking at the situation from the lender's perspective: If your setbacks are temporary, and you are likely to get back on your feet again, they will protect their investment by making accommodations, and probably charging you extra fees along the way. If your financial hardshi...
Funds in closed bank account have gone to the government
Legally speaking, if you do close a limited company, the funds belong to the government ("bona vacantia"). There's some guidance on this at Companies House and there is indeed a substantial amount of administration work to get it undone. Notable excerpts: You should deal with any loose ends, such as closing the company...
I am not VAT registered. Do I need to buy from my supplier with excl VAT prices or incl VAT?
If an item costs £10 excluding VAT, and you buy it from a VAT registered company, you will have to pay £12. You sell it for any price you like, and you don't add VAT. Let's say you set the price at £15 and sell 1000 items for £15. You take £15,000, you spent £12,000, you make £3,000 profit in your pocket and you'll pa...
Can one be non-resident alien in the US without being a resident anywhere else?
If you aren't a US National (citizen or Green Card holder or some other exception I know not of), you're an alien, no matter where else you may or may not be a citizen. If you don't meet the residency tests, you're nonresident. Simple as that.
How do I calculate ownership percentage for shared home ownership?
Accounting for this properly is not a trivial matter, and you would be wise to pay a little extra to talk with a lawyer and/or CPA to ensure the precise wording. How best to structure such an arrangement will depend upon your particular jurisdiction, as this is not a federal matter - you need someone licensed to advise...
What is the different between 2 :1 split and 1:1 split
The 1 for 1 split could be the case where a company is being split into two parts. The new part may be spun off, or sold to another company. Any time a company splits into two parts, the ratio of the resulting companies needs to be determined.
Options revisited: Gold fever
Your plan already answers your own question in the best possible way: If you want to be able to make the most possible profit from a large downward move in a stock (in this case, a stock that tracks gold), with a limited, defined risk if there is an upward move, the optimal strategy is to buy a put option. There are a...
Is inflation a good or bad thing? Why do governments want some inflation?
Basically, in any financial system that features fractional reserve banking, the monetary supply expands during times of prosperity. Stable, low inflation of 2-4% keeps capital available while keeping the value of money stable. It also discourages hoarding of wealth. Banks aren't vaults. They take deposits and make an ...
Why would a company with a bad balance sheet be paying dividends?
Ford paid off a tremendous amount of debt prior to reinstating the dividend. While they still have a sizable amount of debt on the balance sheet, they've been able to refinance this debt to a much more affordable point. Their free cash flow + cash on the balance could enable them to pay it off in the very near future (...
Flexplan - a company is taking over another, do I pay the balance?
This is only one of a series of questions your friend needs to understand. They will also need to know what happens to: vacation balances; the vacation earning schedule; retirement fund matching; the pension program; all the costs and rules regarding health, dental and vision;life insurance amounts. Some of these can b...
I'm an American in my mid 20's. Is there something I should be doing to secure myself financially?
I may be walking on thin ice but that's never stopped me from answering before. ;) I have a PhD in physics. I knew that I wasn't a die-hard publisher so I didn't pursue academia. A postdoc will likely pay about what a person with a BS in math could make in industry, but you're now a few years past that age. You'll be...
Does material nonpublic information cover knowledge of unannounced products?
So is knowledge of unannounced products simply not considered material nonpublic information? Well "material" is relative but it certainly is nonpublic information. And trading based on that information would likely be considered illegal if it is actually material. Many companies require that employees with material...
Why do 10 year Treasury bond yields affect mortgage interest rates?
yield on a Treasury bond increases This primarily happens when the government increases interest rates or there is too much money floating around and the government wants to suck out money from the economy, this is the first step not the other way around. The most recent case was Fed buying up bonds and hence releasing...
Do financial advisers in Canada who work at the bank, make investing decisions not in your best interest?
The way this works, as I understand it, is that financial advisers come in two kinds. Some are free to recommend you any financial products they think fit, but many are restricted in what they can recommend. Most advisers who work for finance companies are the second kind, and will only offer you products that their co...
I'm 18. How to build good monthly income at my 20's?
Market rate of return averages about 8% annually (sometimes more, sometimes less or negative). To get 30k monthly -- even taking that as pretax -- you're talking about 360k yearly. Divide that by 0.08 and you need to have savings of 4.5 million--- and really you should double that for safety.. Tl;dr: forget it. Added ...
When is it worth it to buy dividend-bearing stocks?
You should never invest in a stock just for the dividend. Dividends are not guaranteed. I have seen some companies that are paying close to 10% dividends but are losing money and have to borrow funds just to maintain the dividends. How long can these companies continue paying dividends at this rate or at all. Would you...
Few questions related to Balance sheet and Income Statement?
1.) There is no logic in this question, because when there is an increase in net income for the year it will be in the form of something, ie it can be cash and cash equivalent like cash in hand or cash at bank. So as your ques says if there is increase in net income of 20 then asset side also increase by 20(cash) which...
Mortgage company withholding insurance proceeds
Fire insurance, as you have discovered, is a complete ripoff. Most people pay fire insurance all their lives with no benefit whatsoever, and those such as yourself who are lucky enough to get a payout find that it is completely insufficient to replace their loss. I once computed the actual beneficial net present financ...
Is it smarter to buy a small amount of an ETF every 2 or 3 months, instead of monthly?
Note, the main trade off here is the costs of holding cash rather than being invested for a few months vs trading costs from trading every month. Let's start by understanding investing every month vs every three months. First compare holding cash for two months (at ~0% for most Canadians right now) and then investing...
Why is the buy price different from the sell price of a stock? [duplicate]
This is called the Ask-Bid Spread. The difference varies based on the liquidly of the asset. The more liquid or the higher the volume of trades for the asset then the smaller the spread is. The spread goes to the broker to pay for some of the cost of the trade. My guess is that when there is a higher volume of shares b...
Automate Savings by Percentage on varying paychecks?
When I have been faced with this sort of situation I have done the split at the bank. They had the ability to recognize the deposit as a payroll transfer and split it the way I wanted. I put a specific amount of money into checking, another amount of money into the mortgage, and a specific amount of money into another...
Is it possible to borrow money to accrue interest, and then use that interest to pay back the borrower + fees?
There are many flaws with your idea. Say I want to borrow $225,000.00 to accrue interest on a 1.20% APY account. I promise ... that I cannot withdraw nor touch the account by legal contract. If you break the contract and lose the money, the lender is out the money. They can take you to court and will win, but if yo...
Would I qualify for a USDA loan?
Sounds feasible. I make $45000 a year, with two car payments, credit card and student loan debt. Also, my wife doesn't work. I was approved for a $116000 house with a USDA loan. There are limits or how much debt you can have when applying for a USDA (sorry, I can't remember off the top of my head) and you'll also b...
Joint Account for Common Earnings
Do not use a shared bank account. One of you can cash/deposit the check in your personal account and then either pay the others in the group cash or write them a check. You open yourself up to many, many problems sharing a bank account and/or money. Treat it like a business as far as income goes, but I would not rec...
Why are prices in EUR for consumer items often the same number as original USD price, but the GBP price applies the actual exchange rate?
The simplest answer would be: Because they can. Why charge less for something if people will pay more? One example are Apple products. While there the price number is not exactly the same in EUR and USD, they are so close that, effectively, the EUR product is more expensive. Many things go into a price. There might be ...
Is there legal reason for restricting someone under 59-1/2 from an in-service rollover from a 401K to an IRA?
You're going to find a lot of conflicting or vague answers on the internet because there are a lot of plan design elements that are set by the plan sponsor (employer). There are laws that mandate certain elements and dictate certain requirements of plan sponsors, many of these laws are related to record keeping and fi...
Using Marine Traffic (AIS) to make stock picks?
Since you seem determined to consider this, I'd like to break down for you why I believe it is an incredibly risky proposition: 1) In general, picking individual stocks is risky. Individual stocks are by their nature not diversified assets, and a single company-wide calamity (a la Volkswagen emissions, etc.) can create...
Do stock prices really go down by the amount of the dividend?
It might be clearer to think of it as price going up when a dividend is expected, since that's money you'll get right back. As the delay before the next dividend payment increases, that becomes less of a factor,
Investing in stocks with gross income (not yet taxed) cash from contract work?
You need to report the income from any work as income, regardless of if you invest it, spend it, or put it in your mattress (ignoring tax advantaged accounts like 401ks). You then also need to report any realized gains or losses from non-tax advantaged accounts, as well as any dividends received. Gains and losses are...
Married, 55, grown kids: Should I buy life insurance, or invest in stocks? The ultimate decision
The following is from Wikipedia - Term life insurance (with very minor editing) Because term life insurance is a pure death benefit, its primary use is to provide coverage of financial responsibilities, for the insured. Such responsibilities may include, but are not limited to, consumer debt, dependent care...
Is it a good practice to keep salary account and savings account separate?
There are a lot of good answers, but I will share my experience. First, a savings account needs to be for savings. If your in the US you have "Regulation D" to deal with and that will bite you on the rear if you go over those limits. Specially easy to do if your purchasing from a savings account. Next having an "Inco...
Should I scale down my 401k?
the whole room basically jumped on me I really have an issue with this. Someone providing advice should offer data, and guidance. Not bully you or attack you. You offer 3 choices. And I see intelligent answers advising you against #1. But I don't believe these are the only choices. My 401(k) has an S&P fund, a short t...
New car price was negotiated as a “cash deal”. Will the price change if I finance instead?
I am a carsalesman. Lets get one thing straight, we are not allowed to give people a better deal just because they pay cash, regardless of what some people say. That can be seen a discrimination as not all people are fortunate enough to have cash available. if anything, finance is better for the dealership, as we get f...
Will an ETF increase in price if an underlying stock increases in price
The creation mechanism for ETF's ensures that the value of the underlying stocks do not diverge significantly from the Fund's value. Authorized participants have a strong incentive to arbitrage any pricing differences and create/redeem blocks of stock/etf until the prices are back inline. Contrary to what was stated ...
Why can't the government simply payoff everyone's mortgage to resolve the housing crisis?
Could it be done? Yes, it could, subject to local law. A variant of such an approach has been suggested for those countries experiencing collapse of demand. One might consider whether whether it applied to secured loans (such as mortgages), unsecured loans, or both; whether it would be capped at a certain absolute (say...
Why would someone want to sell call options?
You appear to be thinking of option writers as if they were individuals with small, nondiversified, holdings and a particular view on what the underlying is going to do. This is not the best way to think about them. Option writers are typically large institutions with large portfolios and that provide services in all ...
Paying Tax on Stocks Trading
The answer to your question doesn't depend on who you trade with but what country you live in. If you live outside of the US, you will have to pay tax on dividends... sometimes. This depends on the tax treaty that your country has with the US. Canada, Australia, UK and a few other countries have favorable tax treaties ...
Shares; are they really only for the rich/investors?
As a matter of fact, I invest small sums in stable stocks every month (in fact, much lesser than the $50 you are talking about). More than the return on investment, I gained a lot of knowledge keeping track of my stocks and this now helps me pick my stocks better. And the portfolio is doing great too. So, it is a good ...
What's the difference between buying bonds and buying bond funds for the long-term?
A bond fund will typically own a range of bonds of various durations, in your specific fund: The fund holds high-quality long-term New York municipal bonds with an average duration of approximately 6–10 years So through this fund you get to own a range of bonds and the fund price will behave similar to you owning the...
What happens to bonds values when interest rates rise? [duplicate]
It depends a lot on your investment period and the quality of the bonds that you want to invest. For example, if you want to invest until the maturity of the bonds, and the bonds are very safe (i.e. they are not expected to default), it does not matter that the interest rate rise. That is because at the maturity of the...
Excessive Credit Check from Comcast
In general, it is unusual for a credit check to occur when you are terminating a contract, since you are no longer requesting credit. If the credit check was a "hard pull" it will stay on your credit report for 2 years, but will only have an impact on your credit score for up to 12 months. If the check is a "soft pull"...
Borrowing money to buy shares for cashflow?
Don't do it. I would sell one of my investment houses and use the equity to pay down your primary mortgage. Then I would refinance my primary mortgage in order to lower the payments.
I've got $100K to invest over the next 2 to 7 years. What are some good options?
I like precious metals and real estate. For the OP's stated timeframe and the effects QE is having on precious metals, physical silver is not a recommended short term play. If you believe that silver prices will fall as QE is reduced, you may want to consider an ETF that shorts silver. As for real estate, there are a ...
What would I miss out on by self insuring my car?
If you can afford to replace your car, it is more cost effective, on average and over time, not to carry comprehensive and collision insurance. The insurance companies do make a profit, after all. However, you may be able to worry less ("What if someone steals my car if I park here?") with the insurance, and you have t...
Some stock's prices don't fluctuate widely - Is it an advantages?
I don't think you are reading the stock chart right. ORCL has a beta of 1.12 which means it has more volatility than the market as a whole. See image below for a fairly wild stock chart for a year. I would not truly consider ESPP participation investing, unless you intend to buy and hold the stock. If you intend t...
What does inflation mean to me?
It means that your money does not have the same amount of buying power.