Investors are people, and people are often impatient. No one likes to wait in line or wait longer than they have to for something, especially today when so much is just a click or two away. This impatience also manifests itself in the equities markets. When the S&P 500, Dow, or Nasdaq take a tumble,…
Read MoreEven though 2016 may end up being a subpar year for stocks, you may realize short-term capital gains. What will you do about them? You could do what many savvy investors do – you could “cash in your losses” and practice “tax-loss harvesting.” Selling losers to offset winners. Tax-loss harvesting means taking capital losses (you…
Read MoreWhen we go to the grocery store, we seldom shop on logic alone. We may not even buy on price. We buy one type of yogurt over another because of brand loyalty, or because one brand has more appealing packaging than another. We buy five bananas because they are on sale for 29 cents this…
Read MoreBuying low and selling high is the oldest stock market adage. How does one put it into practice? Dollar cost averaging may give you a method to capture lower prices today and come out ahead tomorrow. How it works. Dollar cost averaging is a long-term investment strategy. It means investing in small increments. Through scheduled…
Read MoreInformation vs. instinct. When it comes to investing, many people believe they have a “knack” for choosing good investments. But what exactly is that “knack” based on? The fact is, the choices we make with our assets can be strongly influenced by factors, many of them emotional, that we many not even be aware of.…
Read MoreIf you ever have the inkling to manage your investments on your own, that inkling is worth reconsidering. Do-it-yourself investment management is generally a bad idea for the retail investor for myriad reasons. Getting caught up in the moment. When you are watching your investments day to day, you can lose a sense of historical…
Read More“I’m no good on what going on in markets. I have no idea what will happen tomorrow or next week. They get very volatile like this and other times they put you to sleep. But the important thing is where they’re going in five or ten years. And I’m confident they’ll be considerably higher in…
Read MoreAs a young investor, you have a powerful ally on your side: time. When you start saving and investing for retirement in your twenties or thirties, you can put it to work for you. The effect of compounding is huge. Most people underestimate it, so it is worth illustrating. We will use reasonable annual return…
Read MoreNo one knows what will happen tomorrow on Wall Street. Even the most esteemed analysts can only make educated guesses. As the old saying goes: past performance is not indicative of future results. All that said, the market has had many more positive years than negative years. The history of the S&P 500 is worth…
Read MoreInvestors are routinely warned about allowing their emotions to influence their financial decisions. They are less routinely cautioned about letting their preconceptions and biases color their financial choices. In a battle between the facts & our preconceptions, our preconceptions may win. If we acknowledge this tendency, we may be able to avoid some unexamined choices…
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