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Pay for a cheap car or take out a loan?
You may not have a good choice until you start that job. $2,000 is awfully low for a car, so it could be very risky. But you may not be able to get a loan until you start the new job. I would talk to a bank or credit union to get an idea of how much, if anything, you could borrow at this time. If you have a letter offe...
Possible to use balance transfers to avoid interest with major credit cards?
I have done this for years and have been quite successful at it. Two reason I even need to do this - desire to pay for engagement ring and pay for 150 person wedding without using my nest-egg/savings. You need to keep a document that details when the free APRs run out, and you need to setup automatic payments of the m...
Should Emergency Funds be Used for Infrequent, but Likely, Expenses?
I don't think there is a definite single answer for this. I think it largely depends on where you are on your financial journey. In the ideal world you'd have everything in bucket 2 built into your budget and be putting a little bit aside every paycheck to cover each of those things when they do come up but that takes ...
What are some well known or well regarded arguments against investing?
I think you're confusing risk analysis (that is what you quoted as "Taleb Distribution") with arguments against taking risks altogether. You need to understand that not taking a risk - is by itself a risk. You can lose money by not investing it, because of the very same Taleb Distribution: an unpredictable catastrophic...
Are my parents ripping me off with this deal that doesn't allow me to build my equity in my home?
First, this was never an arrangement for you to build equity, this was an arrangement for them to speculate on another house under the guise of teaching you a life lesson like responsibility or something contrived. The only way you profit from this is if the value of the house goes up and you sell it. You get 25% of th...
How is money actually made from the buying or selling of options?
Not all call options that have value at expiration, exercise by purchasing the security (or attempting to, with funds in your account). On ETNs, they often (always?) settle in cash. As an example of an option I'm currently looking at, AVSPY, it settles in cash (please confirm by reading the documentation on this set...
Cheapest way to wire or withdraw money from US account while living in Europe
I prefer to use a Foreign Exchange transfer service. You will get a good exchange rate (better than from Paypal or from your bank) and it is possible to set it up with no transfer fees on both ends. You can use an ACH transfer from your US bank account to the FX's bank account and then a SEPA transfer in Europe to ge...
collateralized mortgage obligations
Actually, you're missing the key feature of CDOs. Most CDOs use (much to our economic misery, ultimately) a system call tranching. To simplify this idea, I'll make a two tranch example. Suppose I buy mortgages covering a face value of $120,000,000. Because they are subprime, if I just put them in a pool and finance...
ESPP cost basis and taxes
This answer fills in some of the details you are unsure about, since I'm further along than you. I bought the ESPP shares in 2012. I didn't sell immediately, but in 2015, so I qualify for the long-term capital gains rate. Here's how it was reported: The 15% discount was reported on a W2 as it was also mentioned twice...
What prevents interest rates from rising?
Interest rates are market driven. They tend to be based on the prime rate set by the federal reserve bank because of the tremendous lending capacity of that institution and that other loan originators will often fund their own lending (at least in part) with fed loans. However, there is no mandatory link between the fe...
What is a reasonable salary for the owner and sole member of a small S-Corp?
Generally if you're a sole S-Corp employee - it is hard to explain how the S-Corp earned more money than your work is worth. So it is reasonable that all the S-Corp profits would be pouring into your salary. Especially when the amounts are below the FICA SS limits when separating salary and distributions are a clear si...
What are some time tested passive income streams?
You could buy debt/notes or other instruments that pay out periodically. Some examples are If there is an income stream you can discount the present value and then buy it/own the rights to income stream. Typically you pay a discounted price for the face value and then receive the income stream over time.
Market Relativity Theory?
As of this moment the DOW 30 is up 6.92% Year-to-date. Of the 30 stocks in the index 6 are in negative territory for the year. And of the 6 in negative territory 3 are farther below 0 than the average is above 0. The investors in those 3 stocks (Boeing, Goldman Sachs and Nike) would look at this year so far as a disas...
Why are capital gains taxed at a lower rate than normal income?
I think this question is very nearly off-topic for this site, but I also believe that a basic understanding of the why the tax structure is what it is can help someone new to investing to understand their actual tax liability. The attempt at an answer I provide below is from a Canadian & US context, but should be simil...
How dividend payout happens
As the record date is 7th August, you need to hold stocks on the 7th August closing. You need not hold it till 2nd Sept. The list as taken on 7th August would be processed and instructions given to Bank and the dividends credited by 1st Sept. Edit: To Clarify Victor's comment Typically from the time one sells the stoc...
Why do stores and manufacturers use mail in rebates? A scam, or is there a way to use them effectively?
Unfortunately too many companies view a Mail in rebate as an unwelcome cost instead of as a customer interaction issue, and it gives the company a bad reputation when someone gets stiffed on the mail in rebate, and it also has basically ruined the concept to a large degree. Many people will simply regard the rebate as ...
Does anyone know what Bank of NY Mellon's EB DLs are?
ACWI refers to a fund that tracks the MSCI All Country World Index, which is A market capitalization weighted index designed to provide a broad measure of equity-market performance throughout the world. The MSCI ACWI is maintained by Morgan Stanley Capital International, and is comprised of stocks from both developed ...
Can saving/investing 15% of your income starting age 25, likely make you a millionaire?
As others have shown, if you assume that you can get 6% and you invest 15% of a reasonable US salary then you can hit 1 million by the time you retire. If you invest in property in a market like the UK (where I come from...) then insane house price inflation will do it for you as well. In 1968 my parents bought a house...
Calculating Pre-Money Valuation for Startup
The value of a business without proven profits is really just a guess. But to determine what % ownership the VC takes some measure must be used. He is asking the OP to start the negotiations. So you start high - higher than you will settle for. The value of the business should always be WAY more the $$ you have put ...
4 months into a 30 month car loan, need new engine, can't sell any body parts
Without knowing the details of your financial situation, I can only offer general advice. It might be worth having a financial counselor look at your finances and offer some custom advice. You might be able to find someone that will do this for free by asking at your local church. I would advise you not to try to get...
Is the concept of an “odd lot” adjusted to stock price?
I will assume that you are not asking in the context of high frequency trading, as this is Personal Finance Stack Exchange. It is completely acceptable to trade odd lots for retail brokerage customers. The odd lot description that you provided in your link, from Interactive Brokers is correct. But even in that context,...
Are leverage/ko products the only reasonable way to trade stocks?
I am assuming you mean derivatives such as speeders, sprinters, turbo's or factors when you say "derivatives". These derivatives are rather popular in European markets. In such derivatives, a bank borrows the leverage to you, and depending on the leverage factor you may own between 50% to +-3% of the underlying value. ...
What are the best software tools for personal finance?
KMyMoney Pros: Cons:
What can I do with a physical stock certificate for a now-mutual company?
I found the following on a stock to mutual conversion for insurance firms for Ohio. Pulling from that link, Any domestic stock life insurance corporation, incorporated under a general law, may become a mutual life insurance corporation, and to that end may carry out a plan for the acquisition of shares of its capital ...
What is Chit funds. And how to invest in it?
Chit funds started as group of people pooling money every month and drawing a lot to determine who would get the entire funds that month. For example 5 people pool together Rs 1000/- on first month person "A" gets the draw and takes the Rs 5000/-. Next month again same set of people pool Rs 1000/-, the person who got t...
How much time does a doctor's office have to collect balance from me?
They have forever to collect a balance from you. Furthermore they can add whatever penalties and fees they wish to increase that balance. Worst of all, they don't have to remind you or send you bills or any other notification. You owed it when you left the office. (There very well could be local laws that require n...
Can't the account information on my checks be easily used for fraud?
Yes this is a huge security loophole and many banks will do nothing to refund if you are scammed. For example for business accounts some Wells Fargo branches say you must notify within 24 hours of any check withdrawal or the loss is yours. Basically banks don't care - they are a monopoly system and you are stuck with...
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...
Saving for a down payment on a new house, a few years out. Where do we put our money next?
In October 2011 in the United States, you just don't have any options. Save your money in a savings account and that is the best you can do. Your desire to buy a house means you are a saver not an investor, and you risk tolerance on this pile of money is 0. Save it in a bank account; I highly doubt chasing an interes...
If I buy a share from myself at a higher price, will that drive the price up so I can sell all my shares the higher price?
No, this isn't possible, especially not when you're trading a highly liquid stock like Apple. When you put in your buy order at $210, any other traders that have open limit sell orders with the correct parameters, e.g. price and volume, will have their order(s) filled. This will occur before you can put in your own sel...
Advice on money transfer business
As soon as I see the word "friends" along with money transfer I think scam. But ignoring that red flag.... You will have American companies reporting to the IRS that you are a Canadian Vendor they have hired. Then you are transferring money to people in Bangladesh. Assuming also that you fill out all the regulatory pa...
Can we compare peer-to-peer loans to savings accounts?
That argument is an argument for investing generally, not peer-to-peer lending per se, and the argument as phrased ("thus you should invest your money at a Peer-to-peer loan platform") is a false dichotomy. That said, as soon as one is investing as opposed to just getting a small but guaranteed return, then risk comes ...
Do performers pay taxes on comped meals and hotels?
My number one piece of advice is to see a tax professional who can guide you through the process, especially if you're new to the process. Second, keep detailed records. That being said, I found two articles, [1] and [2] that give some relevant details that you might find helpful. The articles state that: Many artists ...
I am a contractor with revenue below UK's VAT threshold. Should I register for VAT?
I love the flat rate VAT scheme. It's where you pay a percentage based on your industry. An example might be Computer repair services, where you'll pay 10.5% of your total revenue to the HMRC. But you'll be invoicing for VAT at 20% still. Would definitely recommend registering for it since you're expecting to cross the...
Do I repay Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) if I suddenly have income and assets
There are two types of insurance, which causes some confusion. Social Security Disability Insurance (which you indicate you have) is insurance you can receive benefit from if you earn enough "work credits" (payroll taxes) prior to your disability onset. It is not a needs-based program. Supplemental Security Income is a...
Can my employer limit my maximum 401k contribution amount (below the IRS limit)?
On thing the questioner should do is review the Summary Plan Description (SPD) for the 401(k) plan. This MAY have details on any plan imposed limits on salary deferrals. If the SPD does not have sufficient detail, the questioner should request a complete copy of current plan document and then review this with someone...
Incorporating real-world parameters into simulated(paper) trading
You said the decision will be made by EOD. If you've made the decision prior to the market close, I'd execute on the closing price. If you are trading stocks with any decent volume, I'd not worry about the liquidity. If your strategy's profits are so small that your gains are significantly impacted by say, the bid/as...
Can a company stop paying dividends?
Dividends are supposed to be paid from company profits (in the current or previous financial years), there are nuances around what profits mean from country to country, but the link is the UK definition from the HMRC. Profits from previous financial years are commonly called retained earnings. There are a few items aro...
Do I need to prove 'Garage Sale' items incurred a loss
This is what this sounds like to me: https://www.thebalance.com/having-a-garage-sale-or-yard-sale-what-to-do-first-399030 also: http://blogs.hrblock.com/2012/07/25/garage-sale-money-does-the-irs-need-to-know/ Selling a personal item at a loss is generally not a taxable event. You cannot report it as a loss, and the IRS...
Is real (physical) money traded during online trading?
With Forex trading - physical currency is not involved. You're playing with the live exchange rates, and it is not designed for purchasing/selling physical currency. Most Forex trading is based on leveraging, thus you're not only buying money that you're not going to physically receive - you're also paying with money t...
Best starting options to invest for retirement without a 401k
There's already an excellent answer here from @BenMiller, but I wanted to expand a bit on Types of Investments with some additional actionable information. You can invest in stocks, bonds, mutual funds (which are simply collections of stocks and bonds), bank accounts, precious metals, and many other things. Discuss...
Can my employer limit my maximum 401k contribution amount (below the IRS limit)?
YMMV, but I don't accept non-answers like that from HR. Sometimes you need to escalate. Usually when I get this sort of thing, I go to my boss and he asks them the question in writing and they give him a better answer. (HR in most companies seem to be far more willing to give information to managers than employees.) O...
Primary residence converted to a rental property & tax implications
Schedule E is the form you'll use. It lists nearly all deductions you can take for a rental. TurboTax Deluxe will handle it and it includes State Filing.
What prevents interest rates from rising?
To protect yourself from an increase in interest rates get a fixed rate loan. The loan terms: interest rate, number of payments, monthly payments will be fixed for the loan. Of course if rate for the rest of the market drops during the period of the loan, you may be able to refinance the loan. But if you can't refinanc...
Could an ex-employee of a company find themself stranded with shares they cannot sell (and a tax bill)?
It would take an unusual situation. They exercise certain types of option, which come in as regular income rather than capital gains, and are holding the stock "long" (perhaps they are not allowed to sell because of an insider-trading freeze window; like right before earnings announcements). And then the stock tanks...
What are the typical repayment plans for Credit Cards in the United States?
In the U.S., when you receive your credit card bill each month there's a "minimum payment amount." That minimum payment is usually the greater of $25 or 1% of the new balance on the card plus new interest and fees. As long as you pay the minimum payment amount, you can pay as much as you want each month. Note, in your ...
Would you withdraw your money from your bank if you thought it was going under?
The article you link scares me; but I still have faith that the FDIC will keep me protected. Personally, if the FDIC goes broke, there is something more fundamentally wrong with the government as a whole and dollars won't worry me much. There are lots of issues with the FDIC, and I think the answers lie outside of sim...
Why would this FHA refinance cause my mortgage insurance payment to increase so much?
If you're refinancing a conforming (Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac) mortgage, don't go with an FHA. Try a HARP refinance, which won't increase your mortgage insurance even if your home has lost value. HARP also limits the risk-based pricing adjustments that can be charged, so your rate should be very competitive. With an FH...
Accepting personal “donations” (not as a non-profit)
I would be inclined to back the 'tip jar' weblink idea, this is very prolific within the Twitch community, as a method of tipping and thereby supporting content creators. I know that there are numerous tutorials on how to set up 'tip' sites for such usage, so that may point you in the right direction. Also you could tu...
What can my relatives do to minimize their out of pocket expenses on their fathers estate
Also the will stipulated that the house cannot be sold as long as one of my wife's aunts (not the same one who supposedly took the file cabinet) is alive. This is a turkey of a provision, particularly if she is not living in the house. It essentially renders the house, which is mortgaged, valueless. You'd have to put...
Can I sell a stock immediately?
In order to see whether you can buy or sell some given quantity of a stock at the current bid price, you need a counterparty (a buyer) who is willing to buy the number of stocks you are wishing to offload. To see whether such a counterparty exists, you can look at the stock's order book, or level two feed. The order bo...
What increases your chance of being audited?
Here is an article that claims to know something about it. Here are a selection of quotes: The IRS says there are several ways a return can be selected for audit and the first is via the agency's computer-scoring system known as Discriminant Information Function, or DIF. The IRS evaluates tax returns based on IRS formu...
Where to find site with earnings calendar?
Google finance will allow you to import earnings report dates directly to your Google calendar. See screenshot with calendar import button circled in red below.
If the co-signer on my car loan dies, can the family take the car from me like they're threatening to?
I was in a similar situation about a year ago, and the expedient thing to do would be to remove your grandfather from the Title. He would probably have to agree with this, but I think he will if you approach it correctly. In my case, I was the cosigner for my son's car loan and was told by the dealer that I "had to be...
How common are stock/scrip dividends (as opposed to cash dividends) in US equity markets?
Check out the NASDAQ and NYSE websites(the exchange in which the stock is listed) for detailed information. Most of the websites which collate dividend payments generally have cash payments history only e.g. Dividata. And because a company has given stock dividends in the past doesn't guarantee such in the future, I be...
Question about dividends and giant companies [duplicate]
Dividends are a way of distributing profits from operating a business to the business owners. Why would you call it "wasting money" is beyond me. Decisions about dividend distribution are made by the company based on its net revenue and the needs of future capital. In some jurisdictions (the US, for example), the tax p...
Buying my first car: why financing is cheaper than paying cash here and now?
The dealership is getting a kickback for having you use a particular bank to finance through. The bank assumes you will take the full term of the loan to pay back, and will hopefully be a repeat customer. This tactic isn't new, and although it maybe doesn't make sense to you, the consumer, in the long run it benefits t...
How to transform dividends into capital gains?
In the US, dividends have special tax treatment similar to, but not the same as Capital Gains. No easy way to transform one to the other, the very fact that you invested your money in a company that has returned part of your capital as income means it is just that, income. Also in the US, you could invest in Master Lim...
Will a credit card issuer cancel an account if it never incurs interest?
Remember, the card company gets a percentage at the time of purchase, as well as any interest you let them collect from you. Yes, they're still making a profit on our accounts, and they can always hope that at some point we'll run up a high enough bill to be willing to pay some interest. They may kill completely inacti...
What numbers to look for investment returns
(Value of shares+Dividends received)/(Initial investment) would be the typical formula though this is more of a percentage where 1 would indicate that you broke even, assuming no inflation to be factored. No, you don't have to estimate the share price based on revenues as I would question how well did anyone estimate w...
What to sell when your financial needs change, stocks or bonds?
The answer may be a compromise... if your goal is to make bonds a larger part of your portfolio, sell both stocks and bonds in a 4:1 ratio. or (3:1 or whatever works for you) Also, just as you dollar-cost-average purchases of securities, you can do the same thing on the way out. Plan your sales and spread them over a p...
What fiscal scrutiny can be expected from IRS in early retirement?
IRS Pub 554 states (click to read full IRS doc): "Do not file a federal income tax return if you do not meet the filing requirements and are not due a refund. ... If you are a U.S. citizen or resident alien, you must file a return if your gross income for the year was at least the amount shown on the appropriate line ...
Accounting for reimbursements that exceed actual expenses
I've been in a very similar situation to yours in the past. Since the company is reimbursing you at a flat rate (I assume you don't need to provide documentation/receipts in order to be paid the per diem), it's not directly connected to the $90 in expenses that you mention. Unless they were taking taxes out that woul...
What does a well diversified self-managed investment portfolio look like?
Diversified is relative. Alfred has all his money in Apple. He's done very well over the last 10 years, but I think most investors would say that he's taking an incredible risk by putting everything on one stock. Betty has stock in Apple, Microsoft, and Google. Compared to Alfred, she is diversified. Charlie looks at...
Do large market players using HFT make it unsafe for individual investors to be in the stock market?
There's a lot of hype about HFT. It involves computers doing things that people don't really understand and making a bunch of rich guys a bunch of money, and there was a crisis and so we hate rich wall street guys this year, and so it's a hot-button issue. Meh. There's some reason for concern about the safety of the ma...
Are PINs always needed for paying with card?
There generally isn't much in the way of real identity verification, at least in the US and online. The protection you get is that with most credit cards you can report your card stolen (within some amount of time) and the fraudulent charges dropped. The merchant is the one that usually ends up paying for it if it get...
why is the money withdrawn from traditional IRA taxed at the ordinary income tax rate?
The simplest explanation is that a traditional IRA is a method of deferring taxes. That is, normally you pay taxes on money you earn at the ordinary rate then invest the rest and only pay the capital gains rate. However, with a traditional IRA you don't pay taxes on the money when you earn it, you defer the payment of...
Retirement planning 401(k), IRA, pension, student loans
None of your options seem mutually exclusive. Ordinarily nothing stops you from participating in your 401(k), opening an IRA, qualifying for your company's pension, and paying off your debts except your ability to pay for all this stuff. Moreover, you can open an IRA anywhere (scottrade, vanguard, etrade, etc.) and f...
Is there any chance for a layperson to gain from stock exchange? [duplicate]
No. As long as you are sensible, an average person can make money on the stock market. A number of my investments (in Investment trusts) over the last 10 yeas have achieved over 200%. You're not going to turn $1000 into a million but you can beat cash. I suggest reading the intelligent investor by Graham - he was War...
Rental Properties: Is it good or bad that I can't find rental listings on that street?
Based on the information you gave, there are dozens if not hundreds of possible theories one could spin about the rental market. Sure, it's possible that there are no listings because rental units on this street are quickly snapped up. On the other hand, it's also possible that there are no listings because almost all ...
Why would we need a “stop-limit order” for selling?
If one wants to have a bound on the loss percentages that are acceptable, this is would be a way to enforce that. For example, suppose someone wants to have a 5% stop-loss but doesn't want this to be worse than 10% as if the stock goes down more than 10% then the sell shouldn't happen. Thus, if the stock opened in a ga...
Is there any way to attach a statement of explanation while submitting a tax return electronically using Free Fillable Forms?
Depending on what you need to explain, you can submit your electronic return without the supplemental information and subsequently mail a Form 8453 with the additional information. This is helpful for form 8489, for example, where you need to list every transaction reported by your stock broker on a 1099-B. See https...
Are Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) less safe than regular mutual funds?
If anything, the price of an ETF is more tightly coupled to the underlying holdings or assets than a mutual fund, because of the independent creation/destruction mechanism. With a mutual fund, the price is generally set once at the end of each day, and the mutual fund manager has to deal with investments and redemption...
Equation to determine if a stock is oversold and by how much?
What you are seeking is termed "Alpha", the mispricing in the market. Specifically, Alpha is the price error when compared to the market return and beta of the stock. Modern portfolio theory suggests that a portfolio with good Alpha will maximize profits for a given risk tolerance. The efficient market hypotheses sugge...
Will ADR holder be taxed twice
Surprisingly enough, this one isn't actually all that complicated. No, you will not be taxed twice. Dividends are paid by the company, which in this case is domiciled in Spain. As a Spanish company, the Spanish government will take dividend witholding tax from this payment before it is paid to a foreign (i.e. non-Spa...
I may earn a lot of cash soon through self-employment on a lucrative project. How to handle the tax?
I'm not familiar with Canadian taxes, but had your question been written about the United States, I'd advise you to at least consult for a couple of hours with an accountant. Taxes are complex, and the cost of making a mistake generally exceeds the cost of getting professional advice.
Buying a house 50/50
This question is really a variation of rent vs buy. Try looking at it this way - If you bought it 50/50 and rented it out, what would you both get? Now, moved in, you are effectively collecting that rent, but half is your own money, half is from the partner. Is the half you are getting the from the partner equal to 1...
With respect to insider trading, what is considered “material information”?
Some history: In the US, this is very tightly controlled and regulated. Although stock market securities insider trading is a relatively new crime around the world (20-30 year old), the United States is exceptional for offering the longest sentences for it, although it is still far more lucrative than and carries lowe...
Is there a law or regulation that governs the maximum allowable interest amount that can be charged on credit cards or in agreements where credit is extended?
In the EU, you might be looking for Directive 2000/35/EC (Late Payment Directive). There was a statutory rate, 7% above the European Central Bank main rate. However, this Directive was recently repealed by Directive 2011/7/EU, which sets the statutory rate at ECB + 8%. (Under EU regulations, Directives must be turned i...
What's the catch in investing in real estate for rent?
The other thing to remember is seasonality. Just because monthly rent is $900/month doesn't guarantee that you'll bring in $900/month. Plenty of university towns have peak demand during the months of Aug/Sept when students are moving in, but you have to beg//plead//give discounted rent to keep units full during 'off-...
Is my mortgage more likely to be sold if I pre-pay principal?
It's not unusual/undesirable. If everyone prepaid their mortgage, banks would not like this, but we're in no danger of that :). Also, the amount you are pre-paying is not so significant as to make them pay special attention. In many cases when a borrower pre-pays, they will not continue to do so over the life of the lo...
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.
Should I try to hedge my emergency savings against currency and political concerns?
You have to balance several concerns here. The primary problem is that if you go to the effort of saving your money you want to also be sure that your savings will not lose too much of its value to inflation. Ukraine had a terrible inflation spike in 2015 for obvious reasons. Even as inflation has settled down in 2016,...
For how long is a draft check valid, and where do the funds sit?
To answer length validity and security implications of draft checks issued and negotiated within the United States, I am heavily addressing the common erroneous assumptions of where the funds sit while they're "in" a draft check and how to get them out. Tl;Dr The existing answers are incomplete and in some ways dangero...
Buying Fixed Deposit in India from Europe
You could go further and do a carry trade by borrowing EUR at 2% and depositing INR at 10%. All the notes above apply, and see the link there.
Thorough Description of Yield to Maturity?
What is a bond price? A bond is an asset, and like any tradeable asset it has a price. If I hold $10K face value of a certain GM bond, then I would be willing to sell it at some price, which may be more or less than $10K. Whoever is willing to sell it for the lowest amount determines the price. The price is determi...
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...
What ways are there for us to earn a little extra side money?
Congratulations to you and good luck and good health with the baby. I had a friend in a similar situation, and I told him that he could do quite well by putting out the word to an upper-middle-class neighborhood that he was available to setup routers, home networks, etc. I suggested that he could start at a low enough...
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...
Why don't banks print their own paper money / bank notes?
There is absolutely no logical reason why each nation does not own and control banking and thus the supply of money. Any system including the financial system works exactly the same way, regardless of ownership. Banking depends solely on the confidence of the customers/investors. Therefore when a sovereign nation/sta...
Why would my job recruiter want me to form an LLC?
This sounds very like disguised employment. You act like an employee of the company, but your official relationship with them is as a contractor. You gain none of the protection you get from being an employee, and this may make you cheaper, less risky and more desirable for the company who is hiring you. Depending on ...
What is market capitalization? [duplicate]
Market Capitalization is the equity value of a company. It measures the total value of the shares available for trade in public markets if they were immediately sold at the last traded market price. Some people think it is a measure of a company's net worth, but it can be a misleading for a number of reasons. Share pri...
Should I overpay to end a fixed-rate mortgage early? [duplicate]
The simplest argument for overpayment is this: Let's suppose your fixed rate mortgage has an interest rate of 4.00%. Every £1 you can afford to overpay gives you a guaranteed effective return of 4.00% gross. Yes your monthly mortgage payment will stay the same; however, the proportion of it that's paying off interest e...
Super-generic mutual fund type
You can also create a CD ladder (say 1/3 in a 6 month CD, 1/3 in a 1 year CD, 1/3 in a 2 year CD) with half of your emergency fund money. You always want to leave some of it in a liquid account so you can get at it immediately without any interest penalty. CD's provide higher interest than a savings account. By stag...
Ownership in company and rounds of investment
Say the company has created 500 shares [or whatever number]. You have 10 shares [equivalent of 2%]. Now when new capital is needed, generally more shares are created. Say they create 100 more shares and sell it to venture capital to raise funds. After this happens; Total Shares: 500+100 = 600 You own: 10 shares Your Ow...
What are futures and how are they different from options?
For futures, you are obligated to puchase the security at $x when the contract expires. For an option, you have the right or option to do so if it's favorable to you.
Can someone help me understand my student loans?
If you want to pay them off as quickly as possible, pay the minimum payment on the larger two and dump as much as you can into the one with the 8.75% interest. Then, even though it has a slightly lower interest rate, I would attack the one with the next smallest balance after that, while continuing to make the minimum...
Why would a stock opening price differ from the offering price?
The opening price is derived from new information received. It reflects the current state of the market. Opening Price Deviation (from Investopedia): Investor expectation can be changed by corporate announcements or other events that make the news. Corporations typically make news-worthy announcements that may have...
Why does an option lose time value faster as it approaches expiry
This is because volatility is cumulative and with less time there is less cumulative volatility. The time value and option value are tied to the value of the underlying. The value of the underlying (stock) is quite influenced by volatility, the possible price movement in a given span of time. Thirty days of volatilit...
Roth vs. Whole Insurance vs. Cash
Advantage of cash: You can spend the money without having to pay any fees or taxes to get it out. Disadvantage: When inflation is greater than zero, which it has been for many decades, your cash is continually losing value. Advantages of an IRA (Roth or classic): Your money will usually grow as the investments return a...