best ways to Invest Money in Stocks

best ways to Invest Money in Stocks : For 2012 and beyond there are 3 very popular ways or places to invest money in stocks, and your best place to invest will depend on how actively you want to invest in the stock market. Do you want to try to pick the best stocks yourself or would you rather invest your money with a fund and leave the money management to professionals?

You can invest money in stocks online by simply opening an account with a major discount stock broker (like TD Ameritrade or E-Trade) and invest in individual stocks, in exchange traded funds (ETFs), or in mutual funds. You can also invest your money in stock mutual funds and get personal attention with low cost if you invest directly with a no-load fund company like Vanguard, Fidelity, or T Rowe Price. Here are the 3 best ways or best places to invest in stocks depending on how active you want to be in the management of your money.

If you really want to invest money in individual stocks in an attempt to find the best stocks each year your best place to invest is with a discount stock broker. Unless you really know what you are doing I wouldn't invest much money in individual stocks. When you invest money here it requires that you stay on top of things. The odds of the average person making money and beating the stock market in 2012 and beyond by buying and selling individual stocks are slim. Few investors beat the stock market.

Your second choice if you want to invest money in stocks is to invest in exchange traded stock funds or stock mutual funds through a discount broker. This is your best place to invest if you are capable of picking your own funds and want to own a diversified portfolio of stocks vs. individual stocks. Diversification lowers your risk by spreading your money around. Professional money managers make the stock picking decisions for you.

The third choice is for people who do not want active participation in the stock market, but do want assistance and service. Their best place to invest money in stocks in 2012 and beyond is through no-load mutual fund companies. Here you open a mutual fund account directly with the fund company vs. a broker. Now you can invest money in a diversified portfolio of stocks with professional money managers working for you. The cost to invest can be much less than you might think if you invest with the fund companies mentioned above. Plus, you can call them and get personal attention - even if you only have a few thousand to invest.

Your main objective when you invest money in stocks should be to earn a higher rate of return at an acceptable level of risk. Trying to pick the best stocks is best left to folks who want to speculate. Stock mutual funds are designed for the average investor. Your cost to invest $10,000 in stock mutual funds (with professional management) can be less than $50 a year with the right no-load (no sales charges) fund companies. That's the best place to invest money in stocks that I know of if you really want to put your money to work for 2012 and beyond without being actively involved in the stock market.

Author James Leitz teaches investment basics, stocks, bonds, mutual funds and how to invest in his investing guide for beginners called INVEST INFORMED. Put Jim's 40 years of investing experience to work for you and get up to speed at http://www.investinformed.com. Learn how to invest

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compare premium life insurance single with regular payments

compare premium life insurance single with regular payments : once you have decided to buy a life insurance plan, the premium paying frequency is an important aspect you should consider. It is important to decide whether you would like to pay the entire premium amount at one go as a single premium or at regular intervals for a particular period of time through regular premium payments.

Here are some aspects you should look at before deciding whether your insurance policy should go single or not.

INCOME FLOW
Consider the single premium option if you have an irregular income or bulk money receipts like bonuses and would not have a problem in putting away a lump sum amount for a long period of time. However, do note that you will be able to pay the premium only when you have sufficient funds in hand. Regular premiums, on the other hand, are suitable for those with a regular income and/or who cannot afford to block a big sum at one go.

Such individuals would have the capacity to pay premiums regularly for many years ahead. You can choose to pay the regular premium annually, halfyearly , quarterly or on a monthly basis; as well as decide on paying for the full term of the policy or a limited period during the policy term.

CONVENIENCE
Single premium plans being a one-time payment take away the fear of forgetting to pay future renewal premiums and the resultant lapse of policy. Thus, these are suitable for those seeking the convenience of having a suitable insurance through-out, without the 'hassle' of paying any more premiums . On the other hand, although regular premiums need to be paid consistently to continue the policy, it also offers you the option to discontinue the policy, if needed.

This is the case, especially in a term cover policy, where the amount of premiums paid may not be too large. Consequently, the loss on discontinuance may not be much since premium rates for term cover plans have come down in the present market.

In the current scenario, regular premium Ulips too do not penalise you for a break in premium payments , but transfer your investment into a discontinuance fund to ensure you stay invested.

AFFORDABILITY
Single premium plans in the market usually carry larger minimum premium sizes than a regular premium for the same plan. So, the single premium payable can be a substantially large amount for a reasonable cover. But in a regular premium case, the amount of each premium will be small and will not pinch your pocket.

Also, when pricing the premium/charges of a plan, insurance companies usually cost-in for any uncertainties of the future in the calculation. The main difference between a single premium and a regular premium plan can be in lapse, expenses and investment return.

Since single premium will not have to factor for discontinuation of premium, renewal commissions & expenses with respect to renewal activity, the overall premium payable may be lower.

RISK EXPOSURE
Insurance plans are basically long-term products. If the investor stays invested for at least 10 years, the returns would be larger. However, in a single premium plan, since the entire sum is invested at one go, it may expose you to market volatility.

But you can overcome this by opting for the fund switch facility in Ulip products. On the other hand, a regular premium product will cover the risk of the volatilities in the market, since a more frequent payment of premium can save you against such market fluctuations.

FLEXIBILITY
In a single premium product, you can access your money only through a policy loan or by surrendering the policy. However, the applicable loan interest and surrender fee/charges can be onerous, but the quantum of loan in a single premium can be bigger.

Most companies do not offer riders on single premium options, whereas a range of riders are available on regular premium such as critical illness, accidental death, waiver of premium etc.

TAX BENEFIT
Single premium plans are eligible for deduction under Section 80C and Section 10(10D) that makes withdrawals taxfree (subject to life cover being five times the premium). However the deduction under Section 80C can be availed only once.

On the other hand, you can avail tax benefit in a regular premium plan throughout the premium paying term. Source: economic times

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how to Reducing Annuity Rates and Pension Income

how to Reducing Annuity Rates and Pension Income : The use of Quantitative Easing by the Bank of England may result in a 60 basis point reduction in gilt yields followed by annuity rates decreasing by 6% during 2012 and will mean less income for retiring pensioners that must purchase an annuity now.

The decrease of annuity rates due to Quantitative Easing would be in addition to the 11% decrease already experienced by pensioners since June 2011 due to the Eurozone crisis where investments have been moved to safe havens such as UK government bonds or gilts.

Gilt yields fall when demand for gilts increases and as prices increase it reduces the yield which means the return on those assets falls. Annuity providers use 15-year gilts to secure the income for pensioners and as a general rule a 60 basis point reduction in gilt yields will result in a 6% decrease in annuity rates, although there may be a time lag before the changes are implemented by the providers.

Quantitative Easing (QE) was introduced in March 2009 and had the effect of reducing annuity rates by 6% during that year. QE was initiated as a result of the financial crisis requiring the Bank of England to inject money directly into the economy and they are doing this now to meet the Monetary Policy Committee inflation target of 2%. The other method to achieve this target is by setting the bank Rate which is very low at 0.5% and therefore Quantitative Easing is the only way to meet the inflation target.

At the end of 2011 inflation, such as the Retail Price Index (RPI) fell from 4.8% to 4.2% and if this continues to fall at 0.6% per month it is likely to fall below the inflation target of 2%. Therefore the Bank of England is planning to inject £75 billion from February 2012 onwards and possibly up to £100 billion more during the year if required.

The Bank of England intends to use Quantitative Easing to stimulate consumer spending and company investment. By buying government bonds or gilts the overall effect is to reduce the yield so encourage investors to switch from bonds or gilts to other financial assets such as company bonds which in turn will reduce the yield on these assets. This ultimately is expected to reduce the cost of borrowing for both the consumer and business and encourage spending due to the extra money in the economy which will help to increase inflation to meet the 2% target.

Quantitative Easing also has consequences for defined benefit or final salary schemes provided by employers as gilts are used to determine the future funding provisions for these schemes. As the yields decrease a company may find the final salary scheme deficit increases and therefore the company will at some stage need provide extra funds for the pension scheme rather than using these funds for other investments such as employing new people.

The bank of England is using QE to benefit the wider economy but the side effect will be decreasing annuity rates for pensioners that are already suffering from lower incomes due to increasing inflation and QE will further reduce their buying power during their lifetime. To counter these negative factors pensioners can maximise their income if they have medical conditions which could add 20% to 60% to the annuity rate by purchasing an impaired health annuity.

Colin Thorburn is the founder of sharingpensions.co.uk and for expert information about the latest annuity rates and planning for retirement please visit http://www.sharingpensions.co.uk/annuity_rates.htm.

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How to Manage Your Real Estate IRA Investments

Best Practices for Real Estate IRA Investing - How to Manage Your Real Estate IRA Investments ; For those with a penchant for real estate investing, IRAs are a potent vehicle indeed. Outside of a tax-advantaged account, such as an IRA or a SEP IRA, rental income is taxable every year, as you receive it, and passive activity rules restrict your ability to claim losses from real estate. If you use a self-directed IRA, or a real estate IRA, however, you can accumulate all that rental income tax-deferred, or tax-free if you hold the asset in a Roth IRA. If you have the patience, liquidity and know-how to be a successful real estate investor, it can make perfect sense to leverage these skills in a self-directed IRA or other retirement account as well.

That said, there are some things that you need to be aware of that are unique to using an IRA or other retirement account for real estate investing, because if you don't comply with certain rules and regulations, you risk exposing yourself to unintended penalties and taxes.

Watch Your Cash Flows
Paying attention to cash flow is critical with Real Estate IRA investing. Remember, the law limits the amount of new money you can contribute to an IRA each year to $5,000 (or $6,000 if you are over age 50.) As any veteran property owner knows, property repairs and renovations can easily exceed many times this amount.

This means you can't intervene in your IRA-owned property with a massive cash infusion from outside your retirement accounts, no matter how badly your property needs the repairs. For anything over the max $5,000 annual contribution, you will need to pay for it from liquidity you have in the IRA itself, roll the money over from another eligible retirement account, or have your IRA borrow the money.

For this reason, it's generally best to have some liquid reserves - cash, cash equivalents, reasonably stable securities, or a line of credit your IRA can tap for this purpose. Your checking account won't do you much good when you have to pay for a $30,000 roof.

Set Aside Cash in Your IRA
Outside of an IRA, the tax code provides a natural means for investment property owners to set aside some reserves. This is part of the logic of depreciation deductions - you're supposed to set aside the savings to pay for expected repairs, maintenance, upkeep and eventual replacement. But you don't get a depreciation deduction in an IRA. You need to set aside reserves from operating income within your IRA or be prepared to transfer assets from elsewhere.

Understand Prohibited Transactions
Remember, you can't lend money to your IRA personally. If your IRA needs to raise cash in a hurry, you can't be the person to provide it, beyond allowable contributions and rollovers. The same applies to your descendants, your parents and grandparents, and any of their spouses. Ditto for any business entities they control. (The law does not specifically rule out your brothers and sisters, though).

The same people who can't lend to your IRA also can't borrow from it, for the same reason (though you can use your self-directed IRA to lend money at interest to whomever else you like.)

Likewise, you can't do business directly with your IRA, nor can any other disqualified individuals, nor can their spouses or any business entities they control. Some people try to open a property management company, or construction company, and have their IRAs compensate their companies directly for services rendered. This is prohibited by the IRS.

Understand Long-Term Tax Ramifications
If you hold a real estate investment outside a retirement account, and sell it at a profit, you pay tax at capital gain rates. If you held it for more than a year, your capital gain tax will be less than your income tax. However, if you hold the property in a tax-deferred retirement account, you will need to eventually pay income taxes on any gains, rather than the lower long-term capital gains rate. To avoid this, consider using a Roth IRA to hold real estate or capital assets in an IRA. You don't get a current year tax deduction, and you can't take depreciation deductions in either case. But any gains are tax free. Additionally, you sidestep the eventual problem of taking required minimum distributions when you get older, which can be a challenge if your retirement portfolio is in illiquid holdings such as real estate.

Don't Stay in the Property
Ordinarily, rental properties allow you to spend a couple of weeks per year in them without jeopardizing their status as investment properties. This is not true for IRA-owned real estate. You can't live in the property, even if you're paying rent. You can't even stay overnight in the property. What's more, you can't let your children, grandchildren, parents, grandparents, or their spouses stay overnight either. If you do, the IRS could consider it a distribution, and impose a tax equal to 100 percent of the amount involved.

Be Careful With Borrowing
Many people are confused by IRS prohibitions on lending to or borrowing from your IRA personally, or pledging your IRA as collateral for a loan, and think that you cannot borrow money for your IRA at all. In fact, your IRA can borrow money. But understand that it's your IRA that's borrowing the money - not you. This distinction is crucial. Your IRA can only borrow money from non-disqualified individuals and entities on a non-recourse basis. This means that if the loan should default, the lender can only come after the IRA to collect. Only assets held within the IRA can serve as collateral for the loan. You cannot pledge anything outside the IRA as collateral, nor sign a personal guarantee of any kind.

Beware of Taxes
Taxes? In an IRA? Alas, yes. While your IRA can defer income tax and is generally exempt from capital gains tax, you still have to pay property taxes if you own real estate in your IRA. Additionally, if your IRA employs leverage - as is common for real estate investing - your IRA may be subject to unrelated debt income tax, or unrelated business income tax, depending on the situation. New Directions IRA does not give tax advice, so you should retain the services of a qualified tax advisor, such as a CPA, tax attorney or enrolled agent, for advice specific to your situation.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bill_Humphrey
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Rules To Consider Before Executing Gold Trading Strategies

Rules To Consider Before Executing Gold Trading Strategies ; Investors tend to take part in gold trading even though knowing the risks involved in this type of trade. This is because of the opportunities it presents in increasing someone's investments and financial portfolio. But this is only possible if you can come up with good gold trading strategies. The right set of trading strategies can provide security to your investment and even avoid the risks involved when dealing with this precious metal.

No matter how effective a trading strategy is, it will not work on all market conditions. There is a certain kind of strategy that can only work on a certain market condition. When developing gold trading strategies, you must take into account four important rules.

Study the trend
Examining the trend is one of the most effective ways to comprehend the latest news in the industry. The information you acquire can be used to forecast future market conditions like the gold price movement in the world market. Although it sounds simple, you still need to take into account various sub-factors such as the socio-political activities in intercontinental territories as well as your own. These identified sub-factors influence gold trading in a global level.

Manage Risks
There is a large amount of money involved in gold trading, and it is therefore always important to play it safe. It is a fact that risks are always present in this type of trade but it is also your job to look for ways that can lessen or even avoid them. You can do a thorough research on the market and develop a systematic plan rather than act unthinkingly. There are ways to assure yourself that your investment will produce great rewards.

Diversification of Personal Portfolio
Diversifying your portfolio is another way to manage risk since it allows you to provide balance by distributing your investment into multiple forms. Loss will have a small impact because portfolio diversification prevents you from losing everything at once. So, in event that the gold market experiences some catastrophe, you still have something stored to recover from your losses.

Enhance Your Knowledge
The best way to come up with good trading strategies is to learn from experts and professionals on dealing with this precious metal. You can benefit from gold the same as any experienced trader or investor. Although there are a lot of experts who don't want to share their knowledge, there are those who want to give back, help or make a living by providing valuable information.

You can find valuable tips and advice from experts on how to develop effective gold trading strategies in the internet. There is a wide range of selections to choose from. Before entering into gold trading, you need to learn as much as you can about it and then learn the ways to develop effective trading strategies.

Investor and trader, John Conejos spends a lot of time studying trends and analyzing market strategies. He wants to enhance traders' and investors' understanding on gold and silver trading. Now you can catch the trend before momentum runs out. Visit Derivative Trading Systems and download its FREE e-book. Learn the "8 Winning Trading Strategies for Gold and Silver in 2012" and the 3 highly valuable technical analysis strategies for greater profit when dealing with these commodities. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=John_T_Conejos


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How to Invest and Save Big Money in 2012 and Beyond

How to Invest and Save Big Money in 2012 and Beyond : Wondering how to invest and where to invest money in mutual funds in 2012 and going forward without paying heavy sales charges, expenses, and fees? Here we spell it out for you so you can put your money to work and invest with confidence.

How much does it cost to invest $10,000 in a typical stock fund? This depends on where you invest your money. In a fund company that charges a 5% load (sales charge) it could cost you $500 up front just to invest your money. Then it could cost $200 a year for fund expenses, increasing as the value of your account grows. For a $100,000 rollover from your 401k you could be looking at $5000 off the top and $2000 a year plus perhaps $1500 a year in management fees for your "advisor" who handles your account. These are examples of how not to invest in 2012 and beyond.

The secret to how to invest money in funds is to put all of your money to work by avoiding sales charges called "loads. The secret to where to invest is to go with a fund company that offers funds that have no sales charges or extra fees; and also has low expenses. The one thing you can control is your cost of investing. The lower your cost the higher your net returns.

Here's how to invest and really put your money to work in stock funds and bond funds: go with NO-LOAD INDEX FUNDS. Here's where to invest: with Vanguard or Fidelity, the two biggest fund companies in America. How much will a $10,000 stock fund investment cost you vs. our first example? Zero for sales charges and maybe $25 to $50 per year for expenses. For a $100,000 rollover you could save $5000 up front plus $1750 a year in expenses plus $1500 a year for extra management fees!

Just search for NO-LOAD FUNDS on the internet and you will see names like Fidelity, Vanguard, and T Row Price. If you are not quite sure how to invest with them give them a call. Don't be afraid to ask questions. All fund companies want you to invest your money with them. That's how they make a living.

Investing money in 2012 and beyond could get tricky. You can not predict the markets, but you can control your cost of investing if you know where to invest and how to invest to get your money's worth.

Author James Leitz teaches investment basics, stocks, bonds, mutual funds and how to invest in his investing guide for beginners called INVEST INFORMED. Put Jim's 40 years of investing experience to work for you and get up to speed at http://www.investinformed.com. Learn how to invest.

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Stock Option Trading Strategies for 2012

Stock Option Trading Strategies for 2012 ; In similar fashion to the previous decade, the S&P 500 finished 2011 in the same place it started. Incredibly though, from July 27 through year end, the Dow traded up or down by more than 100 points in two out of every three trading days. Despite the broader markets finishing the year flat or slightly higher, many traders and hedge fund managers were positioned incorrectly for the high volatility and suffered extreme losses.

Macroeconomic uncertainty remains high and this year will likely be highlighted by more dramatic market swings and lack of direction. Despite slight improvement in some U.S. economic indicators, conditions in Europe appear to still be worsening, most notably the fiscal problems plaguing southern European countries. As such, a strategy to capitalize on high volatility will again prove valuable in 2012.

For success in years like 2011, decades like 2000-2010, and likely again in 2012, one must have a strategy to capitalize from high volatility while not getting shaken-out by being wrongly positioned to the market's direction. Fortunately, an option writing strategy can provide high returns while limiting risk, regardless of market direction, or lack thereof. Such a strategy not only benefits active traders, but can also provide longer-term investors needed protection for an equity portfolio.

(Writing an option contract is selling a contract, or contracts, to buy or sell 100 shares of an underlying stock. By writing one call option for XYZ stock at a $50 strike price, the buyer of this contract has the right to purchase 100 shares of XYZ stock from you at $50/share if XYZ closes above $50 on the option contract's expiration date. Similarly, by writing a put option contract on XYZ at $50, the buyer of the contract has the right to sell XYZ stock to you at $50/share if XYZ closes below $50 on expiration day.)

In 2011, option writers were provided some of the best opportunities I have seen in 12 years trading. Due to high overall market volatility, many individual stock options were, and remain, consistently overvalued; however, the historic probability for profit has remained the same: 70% of all stock options expire worthless, thus, writers have a 70% probability of profit.

Now, remembering that historically 70% of all options expire worthless on their expiration date, the probability of profit for the option writer is already much greater than that of the option buyer. Without doing any due diligence, the option writer already has history on his/her side. To shift the probability for profit even more in the writer's favor, one must identify options that are fundamentally overvalued. (Inversely, option buyers must identify options that are undervalued.) A basic option-pricing program (which can be found for free on many financial websites) can provide this information to any trader.

Two components comprise a contract's value: time value and intrinsic value. Time value is the premium one pays for the time remaining until expiration. Intrinsic value is the dollar amount above (for call options) or below (for put options) the underlying stock's strike price. Time value's core component is volatility. The greater the volatility of an underlying stock, the higher time value attributed to its corresponding options.

Furthermore, before writing a put or call option contract, the prudent trader will not bet against the broader market's underlying direction. A successful option trading strategy, whether as a writer or buyer, should align with the direction as the broader markets, not against it. Option traders lose fortunes attempting to call a top or bottom in a market in hopes of hitting a home run. The broader market trend is a trader's friend, not enemy. To consistently achieve above average, consistent returns, resist the temptation to attempt to call a market top or bottom. When direction is more difficult to determine, focus on the three-month trend, and adjust strategy accordingly before writing new positions.

A final, but very important, point is a reminder to contain losses. Logically, a trader can't make money unless he or she can come back to play again tomorrow. This may seem obvious, and easy to control, but countless traders become emotionally attached to their positions and won't admit defeat. Based on probabilities, we are all going to experience losing positions. Do not "average down" in hopes of salvaging a position, cut your losses at 10-15%. Contained losses are part of the game. Extended losses can, and will, ruin any trader.

Whether your goal is trading for income, protecting an equity portfolio or increasing returns, employing an option writing strategy encompassing the above-mentioned factors can greatly increase one's probability for consistent profits in 2012 and beyond.

Michael Lasko is a full-time option trader with 12 years experience developing trading models and corresponding option trading strategies. His trading journal and newsletter can be accessed at http://www.mikelasko.com

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relevance of break-even rate analysis in bond investments

relevance of break-even rate analysis in bond investments : That the NHAI bonds closed for subscription early is a standing testimony to the investor interest in bonds as an asset class. As individuals typically tend to hold bonds (including bank fixed deposits) till maturity, the only source of return from such investment is interest or income return. The question is: How should individuals select bonds and bank fixed deposits so as to make such investments ideal within their portfolio structure?

This article explains the relevance of break-even rate analysis in bond investments. It then shows why investing in bank fixed deposits with the highest interest rate may not always be ideal and reiterates the importance of choosing maturity based on the individual`s investment horizon.

Chasing rates?
Consider the NHAI bonds. The bonds were offered in two variants - the 10-year bond with an interest rate of 8.2 %, and the 15-year bond with an interest rate of 8.3 %. To many, the 10-year bond seemed attractive. After all, most would have reasoned, a 10 basis-point increase in interest rate isn`t a good compensation for locking-in money for an additional 5 years.

We, however, urge investors to look at such investments in a different way. Consider two scenarios. In scenario I, assume that an individual buys the 15-year bond and earns 8.3 % every year till maturity. In scenario II, the individual buys the 10-year bond, earns 8.2 % for 10 years and then reinvests the capital for another 5 years. In both cases, we are assuming an investment horizon of 15 years.

The investor would be indifferent between scenarios I and II, depending on the rate that the 5-year bond earns between years 10 and 15. Suffice it to know the break-even rate to make the individual indifferent between the two scenarios is 8.5 %. This means that the individual should expect to earn 8.5 % or more on a five-year tax-free bond 10 years hence, to prefer the 10-year bond today! And if an individual is willing to lock-in to 8.2 % rate for a 10-year bond, expecting 8.5 % for a 5-year bond, 10 years hence seems somewhat far-fetched.

Wealth Mapping
Notwithstanding choosing bonds based on break-even rate, individuals should invest in a maturity that closely matches their investment horizon.

An individual having a 10-year investment horizon should prefer the 10-year bond, even if the 15-year bond carries attractive interest rate. Alternatively, an individual may have 10-year and 15-year investment horizon because of two different goals. Based on the break-even analysis, the individual may invest only in the 15-year bond, and choose some other 10-year bond to map the 10-year investment horizon. Or she may choose to invest in both bonds of NHAI, if she finds its 10-year bond more attractive than other 10-year bonds available in the market.

The above argument holds true for bank fixed deposits as well. We recently noticed several banks nudging customers to invest in one-year deposit because it paid the highest interest rate.

We believe that investing in the highest interest rate maturity sector isn`t always ideal. Individuals unintentionally assume reinvestment risk ��" the risk that interest rate could decline a year hence, when the deposit is due for renewal. Besides, such investments don`t map the individual`s cash flow requirement. An individual who doesn`t require the money for, say, 5 years, unnecessarily locks-in to a one-year rate instead of a five-year rate. Choosing the one-year deposit would be ideal in such case, only if the investor believes that interest rates are likely to move up after one year.

Conclusion
Bonds are an important component of individuals` investment portfolio. Choosing bonds, including bank fixed deposits is, however, not about investing in maturity sectors that carry the highest interest rate. Rather, it is to do with mapping investment requirement with the individual`s investment horizon, and then choosing an instrument with the best interest rate in that maturity. And when an individual is compelled to choose between bonds of different maturities, using break-even analysis could be ideal. (source myiris.com ) For the latest updates on the stock market, visit Stock Market Today For the latest updates PRESS CTR + D or visit Stock Market news Today

best ideas Starting a Winter Business 2012

best ideas Starting a Winter Business 2012 : Winter brings a genre of businesses specific to the season. What are some winter business ideas for the season? Ronda Levine explains how you can pick up some extra cash during the winter months.

Different seasons have different needs - and different needs generally means that you will have different business opportunities to fulfill seasonal needs. Winter, especially, has needs for businesses to take care of snow, roads, and other weather-related phenomena. Savvy entrepreneurs will take advantage of these seasonal needs and offer the appropriate business services. Below, you will find a list of great winter business ideas.

Snow Shoveling/Snow Plowing
Elderly people, the disabled, and many other groups are unable to shovel their own snow safely. If you live in a place where it snows, this can be a great business to run (especially if there is a lot of snow). Snow plowing can be a great business as well. While many cities have snow plows, many individual residents with long driveways and privately owned businesses will require skilled snow plowing.

Cold Weather Apparel and Accessories
This is a winter business that can provide work year-round. While demand for snow and cold weather gear such as snow coats, sweaters, hats, snow pants, gloves, scarves, etc. goes up in winter, a few well-organized individuals will procure needed items before the weather gets cold. Starting a cold-weather apparel store can be a great option for those looking for a seasonal business.

Winter Weather Baskets
Another business idea for the winter, outside of the standard gift basket business that thrives on winter holidays, is a winter weather basket making business. The idea would be to provide all the items a family would need should storms hit. There could be different baskets - one for the home and one for the car. The kits should include items like:

• A battery powered radio and batteries
• A listing of emergency services, stations, and notifications
• Bottled water
• No-cook canned food
• A non-electric can opener
• First-aid kit
• Battery powered lamps (candles can elevate the risk of a fire)
• Windshield scraper
• Blankets
• Warm Hats
• Tool Kit

You could extend the list to provide comprehensive supplies to those who are new to cold weather areas.

Holiday Decorating Service
Many people love a home that has been decorated for the holidays, but do not have the time to decorate on their own. Related to this business idea are gift wrapping services, personal shopping services, and catering services specializing in holiday food. By looking for holiday related tasks that busy people may not have time to do themselves, you can find a niche for your business marketing.

Winter Camp for Kids
Let's face it, when it's cold outside, we don't want to go outdoors, much less send our kids outdoors. However, during the winter break (and even after school when it's snowy or wet), kids get bored. Organize a winter camp for kids (check into licensing information) based around a theme or two in order to provide parents with some relief for cabin fever children.

Winterizing People's Homes
Pipes must be wrapped, rock salt must be purchased, some people put lights around the outside of their homes. You can provide a business service to others that will help them get ready for the harsh winter months.

Other Winter Business Ideas
There are many more winter business ideas winter vacation travel agencies, ski instruction, and winter sports training, can all be lucrative businesses so long as you take the time to carefully plan and execute your business idea. Whatever choice you make for your winter business, be sure that you understand whether licensing requirements are necessary and make sure to write a business plan. Finally, don't forget to market your business both on the Internet and out in the world. source www.brighthub.com

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borrowing money for investment on stock market

borrowing money for investment on stock market : Leveraging involves borrowing money for investment purposes. In most cases, the investor puts up his home and/or existing investments as security. By utilizing this additional capital, any gains will be magnified. For example, if you invest $100,000 of your own money in mutual funds, and the value of those funds increases by 10 per cent, you will earn $10,000.

However, if you borrow an additional $400,000, a 10-per-cent gain will return an additional $40,000. So you gain a total of $50,000, which is a 50-per-cent return on your original equity investment of $100,000.

Often these investments are structured so that the investment income (or in some cases a return of capital) is used to make the loan payments. The idea is that, even if the market dips, the investor will have enough cash to service the loan, and can sit tight until the market rebounds.

There are also tax benefits. Any loan acquired for investment purposes is tax deductible.

It adds up to a very seductive investment opportunity, but it has a very ugly flip side. Using the same example, if the market declines by 10 per cent, you will lose a total of $50,000, which is half your original equity investment. And you still owe the bank $400,000.

That's a very scary proposition. As we have seen in recent years, market downturns can be very wrenching. If the investor does not have the nerve or the financial capacity to with-stand the heat, he will bail out, crystallizing some very heavy losses.

Of course, the loan remains and the ongoing debt servicing requirements can seriously compromise the investor's life-style. If the investor is unable to make the payments, the lender will most likely realize on the security, which often includes the family home.

In my view, it is a strategy that is appropriate for only the wealthiest and most sophisticated of investors. How-ever, most people who invest in mutual funds are not market savvy. They are generally people who want other people to manage their money, even though they are almost certain to get below-market returns. For the latest updates on the stock market, visit Stock Market Today For the latest updates PRESS CTR + D or visit Stock Market news Today

best strategies to Improve Finances in 2012

best strategies to Improve Finances in 2012 ; A new year offers a fresh start. Whether you're ready to ramp up your earning power, start saving more money, or manage what you have more effectively, this 50-step guide is designed to help you improve every aspect of your financial life, from overall security to specific saving and spending strategies.

1. Focus on the "why" of your goals instead of the "how." Planning exactly how you will reach a goal, such as saving more money, can actually make it harder to reach that goal, according to research by Julia Belyavsky Bayuk, an assistant professor at the University of Delaware. She found that focusing more on the motivation behind a goal instead of the specifics of how it will be achieved can increase the likelihood of success. That's partly because having a more "abstract" mindset can help people deal with unexpected challenges along the way.

2. Rethink your relationship with money. For those struggling to make better money decisions, life coach Christine Hassler suggests thinking about money as if it's a person. "How's your relationship with George?" she asks, referring to President George Washington's face on the $1 bill. In her book 20 Something, 20 Everything, she encourages readers to first examine their history with money. "If they don't excavate what they believe and their sense of worth, they are unable to progress," she explains. That history includes one's financial situation growing up and patterns of spending. The first step to fixing a dysfunctional relationship with money is to acknowledge its existence.

3. Protect your privacy. Whenever someone asks for your Social Security number, question if it's necessary to share it. Never give it to a solicitor on the telephone or in an email, and if you ever notice a suspicious charge on your credit card, follow up with your card company--it could be the first sign of identity theft.

4. Plan a comeback. A lot of people have struggled over the past few years, but that downswing doesn't have to be permanent. Jude Boudreaux, who now works as a certified financial planner in New Orleans, turned his life around after running up $5,000 in credit card debt in college. He did it by ruthlessly cutting out "extras" in his budget so he could focus on his bigger financial goals, including getting out of debt. Today, Boudreaux says his past struggles are an asset, since he's living proof to clients that it is possible to make a complete comeback.

5. Visualize your future self. People who feel connected to their future identities are more likely to delay gratification, according to research from the Columbia Business School and University of Chicago Booth School of Business. The researchers offer a relatively simple way to do this: Take a moment or two to meditate on your future self, and just how similar it is to your current self.

6. Get organized. Financial accounts often come with monstrous amounts of paperwork. You'll probably need to hang on to important documents (some states require taxpayers to keep up to 10 years of filings on hand), but much of your old paperwork belongs in the trash or the shredder if it has valuable information on it, such as bank account numbers. Store your most important documents, such as birth and marriage certificates, in an archival box or a locked metal file cabinet that's separate from your day-to-day files.

7. Create a paperwork system. Keeping all of your paperwork in one place can be step one to a better financial life. Brooke West, a private financial adviser and vice president at SunTrust, suggests a three ring-binder, which she calls her "financial bible." She uses a new one every year to hold all of her paperwork. She has tabs for bank statements, Social Security benefits, estate planning, pension and retirement benefits, investments, and credit reports. For a few paper-heavy categories, such as flex-spending receipts, she has separate files.

8. Live below your means. Danny Kofke, a teacher and father of two, manages to live well on his $40,000-a-year salary. In his book, A Simple Book of Financial Wisdom, he explains that he does it by following a pretty simple strategy: Living below his means. He doesn't buy what he cannot afford, even when he wants to, and avoids debt at all costs.

9. Coordinate with your partner. Not talking about money is one of the biggest money mistakes couples make. Couples considering moving in together or marriage can save themselves a lot of trouble by talking about hot-button topics such as how to share household expenses, credit card debt, and anticipated future expenses. Don't forget to bring up your long-term goals, too, which can make the discussion a little more romantic. Do you want to swim with dolphins in the Bahamas? Backpack around Europe together? Agreeing on common goals makes it easier to save.

10. Pick a better bank. There's no one-size-fits-all when it comes to banks anymore, which means consumers have to do their own research to pick the best fit for them. In general, says Today Show financial editor Jean Chatzky, larger banks offer more ATMs and lower interest rates on savings accounts, while smaller banks might be less convenient but offer lower fees. Meanwhile, online-only banks might be able to offer higher interest rates, but lack the bricks-and-mortar presence. She recommends the comparison tool FindABetterBank.com, which makes it easy to search by ZIP code. Other websites, including Bankrate.com and Google Advisor, also offer free customized searches.

11. Automate savings. Online banking makes this technique easy: Sign up for monthly transfers into a brokerage or savings account. You can also transfer funds directly from your paycheck so you never even see the money, which means you won't miss it. Check in with your human resources department--you might be able to set up an automatic savings account through your paycheck in addition to your automatic retirement savings.

12. Take advantage of online tools. Mint.com lets users upload account information and get immediate insight into where their money is going. It's free and user-friendly, and comes with a smartphone app that lets you track your budget wherever you are.

13. Create stronger passwords. Scam artists prey on those with easy-to-guess passwords. Avoid becoming a victim by never using the same password on multiple sites, avoiding common words or names, and using a long password that only you know, such as a sentence.

14. Bank safely online. With more customers managing their money through online accounts, mistakes that lead to vulnerability are also more common. Don't "friend" strangers online, and beware of sharing any personal information publicly that could be used to guess your passwords. Take care when entering passwords on smartphones, too, because such devices generally lack the anti-virus software that's more common on computers. If you do notice anything suspicious, contact your bank right away.

15. Watch television for free. From the network news to serialized primetime shows to cable programming, the show you want can almost always be found online. In most cases, all the viewer has to do to access a show is watch a short 30-second advertisement before the opening scenes, or a longer two-minute ad where a commercial break would normally be. Not a bad price, considering that most of us watch ads anyway when we tune into our expensive cable channels. Check out Hulu.com, iTunes, and network websites.

16. Travel for free. By taking advantage of credit card reward programs as well as airline mileage, Brad Wilson, 30, earned a free trip to Australia and New Zealand, valued at around $40,000. "It turns out there are a lot more opportunities than people realize," he says. He suggests actively seeking out deals, layering them on top of each other, and staying organized.

17. Move in with family. The Pew Research Center recently found that there are more multigenerational U.S. households today than at almost any point in modern history, with a total of about 51.4 million Americans living with relatives. That's about 16.7 percent of all Americans, the highest percentage since the 1950s. (During World War II, shared housing was more common, with about 1 in 4 Americans living in a multigenerational household.) The report likens the phenomenon to an "anti-poverty program" that Americans are enacting to insulate themselves from the dark side of the Great Recession.

18. But don't ruin each other's finances. Parents are often pressed for cash, too, especially as they near retirement, which means they have to watch out for their own finances. Budgeting for any support can help, as can exchanging non-financial help, such as shared meals and networking advice.

19. Waste less money on food. Jonathan Bloom, author of American Wasteland, estimates that Americans waste at least 160 billion pounds of food each year. To minimize that, he suggests shopping more frequently and buying less on each trip to the store, and maintaining an uncluttered fridge so you don't forget about items that will soon expire.

20. Become a better cook. Sometimes you have to spend money to save money. Nowhere is that truer than in the kitchen, where investing in a few key pieces of hardware can help you cook better, faster, and cheaper. And anything that makes your food taste better and gets it on the table quickly can lessen the temptation to order budget-busting take-out. Consider investing in a slow cooker to make meals even easier.

21. Use less energy. Small changes, like closing doors to unused rooms or turning off the air conditioner during the day, can make a serious dent in utility bills. So can unplugging appliances, turning off lights, and shutting down computers at night. Even televisions can use power when they're turned off, so unplugging them when they're not in use saves energy. A $30 power strip, called the Smart Strip, automatically cuts power to devices that don't need it when they're off, such as a DVD player, while maintaining power to those that do, such as a cable box.

22. Reduce your utility bills. Making sure your home is properly insulated can save you money on heating and cooling costs. Using a programmable thermostat so that the temperature automatically rises (in the summer) and falls (in the winter) when no one is home during the day can yield annual savings of about 30 percent. While some 25 million households own programmable thermostats, only half actually use them.

23. Forget the Joneses. With Facebook making it easier than ever to compare your own material status to others, it can be easy to always feel one step behind. But it's easy to be unaware of the debt supporting a friend's lifestyle, or their own private financial stresses. Cultivating a sense of gratitude can help ameliorate feelings of jealousy.

24. Take advantage of job benefits. If your employer offers flexible-spending accounts, gym-fee reimbursements, or other perks, be sure to take advantage of them. The human resources department can help connect you with the right paperwork.

25. Plan ahead with big-ticket purchases. Big purchases, such as cars, homes, and vacations, often come with major hidden costs. Homes, for example, can lose value or spring a leak in the roof. Cars depreciate and break down. Waiting to buy until you have the cash reserves to handle those unexpected costs can prevent a lot of financial stress later.

26. Stop receiving email sales alerts from your favorite retailers. Electronic junk mail might not carry the same environmental impact, but it can still convince you to spend money on items you don't need. Unsubscribe to retailer alerts to avoid the temptation.

27. Take advantage of your bank's free tools. Banks are increasingly offering easy ways to track your spending online. If your bank offers a free tool, use it to see where your money is going and where you can cut back.

28. Negotiate, even in this economy. Even if their salary itself is fixed, employees often have room to negotiate on other benefits, such as flexible work hours or vacation, which can result in a more appealing employment package. In the worst-case scenario, the request will be denied, but many employers expect some back-and-forth during the negotiation process.

29. Pick up a few side jobs. Many people don't realize they have valuable skills that others are willing to pay for, such as teaching a second language or even craft skills. To get ideas for how to earn extra money, check out the services section on Craigslist and see what people are advertising--editing, gardening, and event planning. Earning just a few hundred dollars a month can help get you back on your feet, plus you'll get valuable job experience and the possible start of a successful small business that you can continue to grow.

30. Develop a back-up plan. In today's economy, no job is 100-percent secure. Create a list of steps you would take if you were to lose your job, even though you hope never to have to use it. Having a Plan B can give you peace of mind as well as a practical "to-do" list if you ever face the shock of an unexpected job loss.

31. Save up before quitting your job. Even in this economy, between 1.5 million and 2 million people quit their jobs each month. Storing up enough savings to pay for a year's worth of expenses can make that transition easier. Of course, toxic or depressing work environments don't always allow for that kind of flexibility.

32. Get famous. Boosting your own name recognition can lead to a salary increase in almost any profession, according to public relations experts Maggie and Jay Jessup, authors of Fame 101. They suggest choosing a specialty within your field, then gaining notoriety as the go-to expert by taking advantage of social media channels as well as free publicity by being quoted in articles.

33. Invest in your career--even when you're being frugal everywhere else. Investing in a career coach or development course can help you snag a promotion, get "unstuck" from a career rut, or transition into your dream job. The price of one-on-one coaching typically starts at about $200 an hour, but less-formal advice can come from meeting with more experienced colleagues over lunch or coffee.

34. Embrace DIY projects. From making candles from scratch to growing your own potatoes, crafty projects can save money throughout the year. In their book The Bust DIY Guide to Life, Laurie Henzel and Debbie Stoller explain how to sew, grow, and craft your way through dozens of do-it-yourself projects.

35. Reduce your tax load. Have you moved to take a new job? Do you have business expenses? Or child care that allows parents to look for work? If so, you are probably eligible for certain tax deductions. The IRS website, irs.gov, offers detailed guidance on what's allowed--and what's not.

36. Pay off expensive debt. If you're carrying around high-interest credit card debt, paying it off can save you a lot of money in the form of fees and interest. If you already have an emergency savings account and have the funds to pay off the high-interest rate debt, consider doing so.

37. Build a strong credit history. Some people avoid debt and credit cards to such a degree that they fail to build up a strong credit history, which can make it hard to get a loan when they want it, such as a mortgage. Recent college grads with little credit history, for example, can get penalized when they apply for a mortgage or auto loan. Lenders often want to see that you have experience taking on credit and paying your bills on time. As Rod Griffin, public education director for Experian puts it, "You need to demonstrate over time that you handle your debts well."

38. Improve your credit score. The easiest way to do this is by making steady, on-time payments every month and otherwise keeping your accounts in good standing. Get your free credit report once a year at AnnualCreditReport.com to check for any mistakes (and fix them).

39. Choose the best credit card for you. If you pay your balance off each month, you should have a card that gives you rewards points. If you carry debt, just focus on getting the card with the lowest interest rate. Most people have multiple cards that aren't suited to their needs. Pick the one that fits you best and stop using the others. Don't close them, though, because that can hurt your credit score.

40. Check up on your insurance policies. Do you have the auto insurance, renters insurance, and life insurance that you need? According to insurer Allstate, Two in three renters skip insurance altogether, even though most could benefit from the relatively cheap protection. Life insurance is another awkward topic since no one wants to talk about death. But many people are under-insured, which puts their families at risk. Review the insurance that you have and decide whether you have the right amount.

41. Host affordable (and fun) parties. Socializing with friends doesn't have to be expensive. In their new book, Plan to Party, professional party planners Elizabeth Mascali and Dawn Sandomeno suggest saving on invitations by emailing them and splurging on a few special touches, such as adding fresh lemons to water and other drinks or berries as a cocktail garnish.

42. Give better gifts. Surveys show that most Americans say they want to spend less and give more meaningful presents. When birthdays or other events come up, think about how you can give an experience, such as an afternoon at a museum or conversation over tea, instead of things.

43. Celebrate friends' milestones without hurting your bank account. Bridesmaids are famous for their self-sacrifice. Not only do they have to wear the dress, but they are often expected to host events in honor of the bride, travel to the wedding and related events, and give the happy couple wedding gifts. The WeddingChannel.com recently reported that it costs more than $1,600, on average, to serve as a bridesmaid. You can avoid that by splitting costs with friends by room-sharing at the wedding and giving a more personal gift than one on the registry.

44. Create an estate plan. You don't need to be rich and famous to need an estate plan, although celebrity estate planning mistakes hold a few lessons for all of us. Amy Winehouse left her affairs in remarkable order, despite having a relatively complicated personal life, including an ex-husband. Michael Jackson created some complications for his heirs by choosing his elderly mother as a guardian for his young children.

45. Decide what type of investor you want to be. If you're like most people, you probably want to skip stock-picking and put your money in low-cost index funds. Create a diversified portfolio, with longer-term savings in more aggressive investments (such as an index fund that tracks the S&P 500) and shorter-term savings in safer spots such as money market funds.

46. Run some numbers. Most people fail to calculate exactly how much they're on track to save, or how much they'll need, in retirement. Check out the retirement calculators available through your financial institution (Fidelity, T.D. Ameritrade, Transamerica, and T. Rowe Price have them, among others) or use free calculators from Bankrate.com. Experiment with different rates of returns, inflation rates, tax rates, and lifetime expectancy, since no one can predict those factors with any accuracy.

47. Get a detailed home inspection before buying. Home inspections, it turns out, are much more limited than many first-time buyers realize. "The purpose of a home inspection is to look for material defects of a property--things that are unsafe, not working, or that create a hazard," explains Kurt Salomon, president of the American Society of Home Inspectors and an inspector based in Salt Lake City. Home buyers, however, "think we can see through walls and predict the future," he says. If you have specific concerns, such as pool safety or childproofing, consider working with a specialist before buying.

48. Start saving for college. The cost of college can be daunting, but several new strategies make it a little easier to manage. In addition to 529 college savings accounts, which allow parents to invest after-tax money that then grows tax-free, parents can also opt for prepaid tuition plans, which lock in prices today, as well as employer-sponsored college savings plans.

49. Pass on money lessons. Many parents say they feel more comfortable talking about drugs and sex than money. But children learn a lot from their parents' financial habits, often by example. Parents can turn to websites such as Mymoney.gov, AmericaSaves.org, ING Direct's Planet Orange, and SchwabMoneyWise.com for help.

50. Give a smart allowance. Alisa T. Weinstein, author of Earn It, Learn It: Teach Your Child the Value of Money, Work, and Time Well Spent, suggests teaching children to work for their money--in a fun way. She suggests connecting the allowance with tasks related to various careers, such as being a travel agent or chef. Travel-agent tasks include reporting on a destination in an appealing way, creating a brochure, and for older children, calculating exchange rates. "This way, the child is making the connection between effort and money, and the feeling that you worked hard for something. If you can capture that, then you're much more likely to have a child who grows up and can find emotional and financial fulfillment in their careers," says Weinstein. source sg.finance.yahoo.com

Do you have other 2012 tips to add to the list? Please share them below.
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how to Successful Stock Trading

how to Successful Stock Trading : Some people are very comfortable doing stock analysis and some are not. And just because you feel confident and comfortable trading stocks, it doesn't necessarily mean you will be good at it. There are no hard and fast rules on what makes a successful stock trader, yet there are several characteristics that those who make the most amount of money in the least amount of time all have in common.

Top 10 Tips For Successful Stock Trading
Trading stocks simply isn't for everyone. Some people can stand the volatility and the pressure that comes with it, and some people can't. Even among the few who can handle the heat, fewer yet will ultimately be successful doing it. While no exact rules can dictate what makes a lucrative stock trader, Read More..

Successful Stock Traders hush-hush Secrets
Why are you so arrogant? Do you really think you can control the market with your mind? If you close your eyes and click your heels and say over and over again, "It's going to come back. It's going to come back," do you really think the market is going to magically come back? Read More..

60 Stock Tips For Investment Success
The best thing about the book in our opinion was the simplicity behind the material. Will O'Neil always seems to do a good job of making the read easy and understandable by all investors, and it really broke down his CANSLIM style which is one of the most famous if not most widely followed and used investor strategy in existence today. Read More..

Successful Traders Use Successful Trading Techniques
Volume tells you which psychological group has control, bears. If the market has been trading within a narrow range and then breaks above that range on high volume, it means that the bulls have control of the short term trend. Read More..

The basics of our trading system
There is a simple maxim when it comes to stock investing: buy low, sell high. Along with this important maxim, is a commonly enunciated myth involving stock trading: it''s impossible to determine when a stock has peaked or when a stock has hit bottom. Read More..

Trading tips,Successful Stock Trading, trading system, best Trading Techniques, tips Investment Success, Successful stock traders, Successful traders calculate risk, Successful traders lead balanced lives, Stock Trading tips For the latest updates PRESS CTR + D or visit Stock Market news Today

Best Ways to Prepare Finances for 2012

Best Ways to Prepare Finances for 2012 ; The year is almost over, and while you may be eager to turn the page on 2011 and start a fresh new year, there are a few things you need to get in order first. In fact, taking care of business before the year is through will help set up your finances for a stronger 2012. Here are some of the things you should tackle before the ball drops on January 1st.

1. Hit Your Maximum Retirement Contributions
If you haven’t made a any contributions to your 401(k) or IRA, there are some good reasons to make a heroic effort to get as much cash in these accounts as possible before the year is out.

Playing retirement catch up will help you accumulate greater savings over time. Better still, many retirement plan contributions are tax deferred, which means that you won’t pay tax on the amount you deposit (at least not until you withdraw it during retirement). This reduces the tax you will pay in 2011.

Maximum retirement contributions for 2011 are $16,500 to a 401(k) and $5,000 to an IRA. Deduction limits may apply to IRA contributions depending on marital status, income and whether you have a workplace retirement plan, so check with your accountant to determine the optimal type of retirement plan and contributions for your situation.

2. Contribute to a 529 Plan
If you have children, you may want to make contributions to a 529 Plan for their college education. These plans allow funds to grow tax free, and some states even let contributors deduct a portion of their contributions from state taxes.

Plus, if your kids have grandparents or other family members who want to chip in, those contributions are eligible for the annual gift tax exclusion ($13,000 in 2011, or $26,000 for married couples filing a joint return).

There are no maximum contribution limits for 529 Plans, although they do have a lifetime contribution cap. This is between $100,000 and $270,000 and varies by state.

3. Compare Capital Gains Against Losses
Did you know that you can deduct up to $3,000 in capital losses? If you have a losing stock in your portfolio that you don’t think will turn around, selling it before the end of the year could be of benefit.

If your losses on that stock exceed your capital gains for the year, you can deduct that loss against other income. If your overall capital loss is more than $3,000, you can even carry it over and deduct it in 2012.

4. Take Required Minimum Distributions
If you are 70.5 or older, ensure you’ve taken your Required Minimum Distributions (RMD) from tax-deferred retirement plans such as 401(k)s or IRAs. As with all rules related to retirement plans, there are exceptions. You can learn more about RMDs by reading IRS Publication 590.

5. Review Your Beneficiaries
It’s a good idea to review your beneficiaries each year to cover any changes that may have occurred in your family. The assets in your retirement accounts, life insurance and annuities bypass your will because of the beneficiary forms these accounts require. If you want to make changes to your beneficiaries, remember that your need to make those changes to both your will and your beneficiary forms.

6. Use Up Your Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
If you’ve set up a flexible spending account (FSA) with your employer, now’s the time to use it. Although some employers offer an FSA grace period that stretches into the new year, they are generally a use-it-or-lose-it benefit that expires at year end.

If you need medical services or plan to incur other eligible expenses soon, be sure to get it done before your plan’s coverage period deadline to avoid forfeiting those FSA funds.

7. Review Your Long-Term Financial Goals and Set New Ones
You might be caught in holiday shopping and entertaining this month, but set some time aside to plan for 2012. It’s best to do this before the end of the year so that you can hit the ground running when 2012 arrives.

Think about what you learned in 2011 and what you can do in the upcoming year to improve your financial situation. Also think about your long-term goals, and break them down to determine what you need to be doing each year to hit them. Finally, write it all down and set some manageable goals for each quarter of 2012. This will help keep you on track.

8. Make a Budget
You can have all the goals in the world, but if you don’t make a plan for how you want to spend your money, you are unlikely to achieve them.

Pull out your bank and credit card statements for 2011 and find weaknesses in your budget. Are there areas where you could cut back and divert more money to saving? Are there some things you aren’t spending money on (such as insurance) that you would like to divert money to next year?

Make a plan now and begin enforcing it on the first day of 2012. It takes at least three weeks to establish a habit, so the sooner you start, the better.

9. Set Up Automatic Savings
Once you determine where you want your money to go in 2012, take a trip to the bank and set up automatic deposits to your savings and retirement accounts. This will enforce your saving habit and keep your savings out of your reach, making it harder for you to break your commitment to putting that money aside.

If you can, time the withdrawals to occur on the same day you receive your pay check. This way, your savings will be whisked away before you get a chance to even think about spending the money elsewhere.

The end of the year is hectic time for many reasons, but don’t allow these distractions to keep you from addressing your financial affairs one last time this year. Like it or not, your finances will play a major role in how 2012 sha(source http://www.gobankingrates.com ) For the latest updates on the stock market, visit Stock Market Today For the latest updates PRESS CTR + D or visit Stock Market news Today

calculate the risk free rate of return on stock

calculate the risk free rate of return on stock : In finance, rate of return (ROR), also known as return on investment (ROI), rate of profit or sometimes just return, is the ratio of money gained or lost (whether realized or unrealized) on an investment relative to the amount of money invested. The amount of money gained or lost may be referred to as interest, profit/loss, gain/loss, or net income/loss. The money invested may be referred to as the asset, capital, principal, or the cost basis of the investment. ROI is usually expressed as a percentage.

The other posters who are familiar with CAP-M are correct. The proxy for the risk free rate of return are US Treasuries. You can find the rates of return for Treasuries on either yahoo finance or google finance.

You may also notice that betas tend to differ slightly - it depends on whether they're historical, forward looking, based on consensus, etc. You can also find the rate of return on the market (use the S&P Index) at either google finance or yahoo finance.

Here's part of an article on the Capital Asset Pricing Model from Investopedia.com:

Here is the formula:

rj = rf + b(rm-rf)
where:
rj= expected return on asset j
rf= ten year US Treasury rate (the "risk free" rate)
b= beta
rm=market return


CAPM's starting point is the risk-free rate - typically a 10-year government bond yield. To this is added a premium that equity investors demand to compensate them for the extra risk they accept. This equity market premium consists of the expected return from the market as a whole less the risk-free rate of return. The equity risk premium is multiplied by a coefficient that Sharpe called "beta".

Beta
According to CAPM, beta is the only relevant measure of a stock's risk. It measures a stock's relative volatility - that is, it shows how much the price of a particular stock jumps up and down compared with how much the stock market as a whole jumps up and down. If a share price moves exactly in line with the market, then the stock's beta is 1. A stock with a beta of 1.5 would rise by 15% if the market rose by 10%, and fall by 15% if the market fell by 10%. (For further reading, see Beta: Gauging Price Fluctuations and Beta: Know The Risk.)

Beta is found by statistical analysis of individual, daily share price returns, in comparison with the market's daily returns over precisely the same period. In their classic 1972 study titled "The Capital Asset Pricing Model: Some Empirical Tests", financial economists Fischer Black, Michael C. Jensen and Myron Scholes confirmed a linear relationship between the financial returns of stock portfolios and their betas. They studied the price movements of the stocks on the New York Stock Exchange between 1931 and 1965. For the latest updates on the stock market, visit Stock Market Today For the latest updates PRESS CTR + D or visit Stock Market news Today

what best investment plans 2012

what best investment plans 2012 : Professionally handling the different securities (like bonds, shares, funds etc) and possessions to meet the investment objective with satisfaction on obtaining the expected benefits is referred to as investment management. The need for investment management arrives at times of existence of large number of complex financial terms, instability of financial markets, and need for sudden modification in the regulatory issues.

Investment managers who are well versed in advisory and discretionary management works to serve on behalf of private investors playing the role of wealth management with a context of Private banking. Investment management services terms comprises of making decision on asset, stock option, elements of financial statement analysis, plan formulation as well as implementation and enduring supervision over investments. Investment management holds its own responsibility to care upon the invested money and securities. what best investment plans 2012 ? For the latest updates PRESS CTR + D or visit Stock Market news Today

Tips to Trade Using Market Sentiment and the Holiday Season 2011

Tips to Trade Using Market Sentiment and the Holiday Season 2011 : The months of November and December are the second strongest back-to-back months for the financial markets. Many traders and investors use this time of the year to reap big gains as they close the year out. The fact that most traders and investors are sitting in cash and underweight stocks in their portfolios leads me to believe a Santa Clause rally is just around the corner: everyone has cash on hand to buy stocks because they are selling their positions in this pullback we're in right now. I know traders well enough; they will buy back into the market trying to catch the holiday rally in the coming weeks.

I have been short the S&P 500 for a couple of weeks after watching the broad market become overbought and sentiment levels became overly bullish with greedy people thinking they could buy stocks after a massive month-long rally that had not pulled back. Once the selling started you would either get you head handed to you or you made a killing buying leveraged inverse ETFs.

Those who arrived late to the rally are the ones selling out of their positions this week. The interesting thing about this week’s market condition is that I have not seeing any real panic selling in stocks, and I’m not seeing the volatility index spike in value yet.

What does this mean? Well, it means we could actually see another big dip in the market which should last one to two days, and then we get a sharp reversal to the upside.

Take a look at the S&P 500 and Volatility Index below.

This chart allows us to get a feel for fear in the market. Being a contrarian trader, I focus on market sentiment extremes. When the masses are losing money hand over fist, I’m generally on the other side of that trade with open arms. Trading off fear is one of the easiest ways to trade the market. That's because fear is much more powerful than greed and it shows up better on the charts. You can successfully trade panic sell-off bottoms if you know what to look for and how to do it.

On the chart you can see the pullbacks in the S&P 500 that triggered a panic-selling spike in my green indicator. What I look for is a pullback in the S&P 500 and for my panic-selling indicator to spike over 20. When that happens I start watching the Volatility Index for a spike also. The good news is that the Volatility Index typically rises the following day making my panic indicator more of a leading one.

I could write a 20-page report on this topic, but that’s not the point of this article. Just realize that the stock market is likely going to put in a bottom very soon and likely to end with a strong panic-selling washout this week or next.
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best investments tips for 2012

best investments tips for 2012 : Here are some of the best investments for 2012 especially since the world economic conditions appear to still be settling. It also seems that economic growth has apparently stopped or stagnated in both Europe and the United States. With all of the debt that is owed by the United States including trillions of dollars of unfunded social security and Medicare payments, as well as the debt crisis that is occurring in Europe, it is clear that there are some investment options that are better than others.

The Best Investments For 2012 And Uncertain Times
The interest received from savings deposits or bonds depreciate to the point of offering no real value. Corporate stocks during these times may pay meager dividends or none because management needs the money for capital building, working capital, or speculation. And, the owners of rental property may not fare any better because the need for income begins to have an enormous effect on the true price of many investments and properties. Stock Market Today

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2012 will also see some monumental changes in China in its own right. Huge changes at the very top of the Chinese Communist Party are taking place, with not just the retirement of Hu Jintao and Wen Jiabao, but also a clear out at the very top of many Chinese Ministries. Minister level positions in China must retire at 65, and this has already led last week to replacements being installed at each of China’s financial regulators Stock Market Today

5 Ultimate Investing Tips For 2012
The end is coming. Well, maybe not. In the past few years, we have seen the entire world flip upside down as global economies faced one of the worst financial crises ever. Many people believe we are headed towards impending doom and possibly the end of the world in 2012. Whether or not this happens, one thing is certain; our hard-earned wealth is at risk with the United States Dollar on the verge of collapse. To make matters even worse, it appears as if the world’s top economies are also on the verge of collapse, simply look at the latest economic news. 2012 is scheduled to be the year the world ends, but if it doesn’t, here are 5 ultimate investing tips that could help you thrive in 2012: Stock Market Today

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