New Taxes are not the Answer
It would be comical if it were not so financially devastating.
The financial industry as a whole has been ruthless in its methods of stripping investors of their savings through expensive investments, terrible advice and very high fees. The huge profits have come at the expense of individuals and their savings. 2009 was no exception!
The Federal Government sees the profits and sees a new tax as the solution. The real problem is not being addressed by a punitive tax! What is the real problem?! Traditional financial services companies are not serving their clients, they are serving themselves!
There is much better option. “FIRE THEM!” Fire the financial companies that charge these fees to you! “STOP PAYING!” You do not have to pay the high fees and you do not have to unwittingly pay the punitive tax. You can bypass all the complicated and expensive money management schemes.
Learn some basic principles about investing and saving your money! It is not complicated! Then you can objectively evaluate your current investments and decide if you are paying fairly for what you are getting.
Make 2010 a learning year! Explore competing options.
Inflation Protection and Gold
If history repeats itself, then offers to buy gold during a tough and uncertain economy is like watching “It’s a great life” at Christmas Time. Feels good and we know the ending.
Gold has not ended well as a long term inflation hedge in the past and it will not in the future! Buying gold is part of a Market Timing Strategy. Timing the market is like gambling with long term savings. Wear gold, don’t bet on gold.
An excellent hedge for inflation over the past 80yrs has been an appropriate mixture of equities and fixed income! Mark Matson, founder of the Matrix and Matson Money does a great job of defending the free market investing model! Listen as Mark insists on being diversified and as he explains the “Three Factor Model”.
The Free Market provides excellent investment returns to the disciplined investor!
Over 60 years of proof! Come to the next seminar. Learn the simple truth about sound investing.
Come to our next seminar on Monday, January 18 from 4-6 pm in our office.
ART and the ARTIST
The ART and the ARTIST:
Everyone appreciates artistic creativity albeit in different forms and at different levels.
This morning I stepped out of my house into a winter masterpiece of artistic genius on a scale that can not be rivaled anywhere in the creative universe! Appreciating the art leads me to worship the artist!
Steve
Mark Twain on Investing in October
“October. This is one of the most dangerous months to speculate in stocks. The others are July, January, September, April, November, May, March, June, December, August and February.”
– Mark Twain
Great advice! How can you tell if your money manager is speculating with your savings?
Some dangerous red flags:
- Is there a high turnover of the stocks inside your mutual funds?
- Are recommendations being made in reaction to the market conditions?
- Is your manager generating forecasts of the future to justify buying and selling?
- Have your costs gone up as your fund balance has gone down?
Educate yourself!
Do you have a sense that you are getting charged a lot for poor performance? Take a little time to learn how investing works. It’s easy to understand and there is no cost to you. Find out how to measure performance and evaluate if you are getting what you should be from your investment strategy.
Attend a free seminar “Separating Myths from Truth: The story of investing”
Date: Thursday, November 19, 2009
Time: 4:00 – 6:00 pm
Place: our office – 3300 Eagle Run Dr NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49525
RSVP: call 616-458-6480
Monday Up and Monday Down
Yesterday (19th) the DJIA rose above 10,000!
22yrs ago today, Black Monday, the Dow lost 508 points or 23%, the largest percentage loss in the Dow’s history. I remember that day 10/18 1987. The fear and anxiety were all over the news. The Dow was trading above and below 2000 that year. Comparisons to the great depression were everywhere.
The lesson today is not to panic. The stock market ALWAYS recovers over time. Knowing that simple truth and how the markets work in general will give you informed confidence around your invested savings.
You may need to make some changes to your investments. Be careful to make informed decisions based on simple and effective strategies that you can understand.
Sign up for our free educational seminar!
The next two seminar dates are October 21 and November 19 from 4pm to 6pm.
Register by calling 616-458-6480
