Staples have just announced that they are stocking all models of the iPad, this is great news for consumers, especially nearing the Holidays should any of these items be on the wish list of some lucky person. Apple products are notoriously difficult to discount, however the vendor choice, and stacking some of the benefits from […]
Archives for September 2013
On Ethics
Yesterday two interesting things occurred to prompt the writing of this post, though the catalyst the matter has been on my mind for some time now. The matter of Ethics.Yesterday I wrote a piece on how to fund an IRA with a Credit Card, which garnered mixed reviews, and also I became, for the first […]
How to fund an IRA with a Credit Card – and make a huge profit in the process
This post will explain how to fund an IRA with a Credit Card, if you are able to follow the steps here you can gain thousands of dollars of extra money through a trifector of: Credit Card points, Tax Rebates and Interest Free Loans. For this to work best, you need a credit card that […]
Should I pay off my debt or save?
The decision to pay off your debt or save is faced by many people, a particularly strong segment of people come from Graduates who have entered the work force, and with the increased disposable income from their enhanced salary they face the decision of accelerating the repayment schedule of their loans or to save for […]
The secret to negotiating Brokerage Account Retention Bonuses
As many people know, credit card companies often offer a Retention Bonus to their existing customers to incentivize them to not close their accounts. By properly using this knowledge you can often offset or eliminate annual fees, which is a nice touch indeed.In the increasingly competitive discount brokerage world savvy consumers are now taking this […]
Comparing Apples and Oranges – why I would never buy AAPL, yet already own way too much of it.
Apple (AAPL) remains the largest company in the world by Market Cap, it took the position from Exxon Mobile (XOM) in Q3 of 2011, just after Steve Jobs stepped down as their CEO and Tim Cook took the helm. Though Jobs did not preside over the company whilst it spent its time at the No.1 […]
Are you capable of timing the market?
I recently wrote about my decision to aggressively revise my investment portfolio from a very Stock orientated one (90% allocation) into a much more defensive one, phase one of this was simply to liquidate the Stock positions and phase two will be to buy some bonds. Please be aware that I am not advocating Bond […]
What happens to bond prices when interest rates rise
The effect of interest rate rises on bond prices is a very misunderstood event, that I will attempt to clear up in this post. It is true that the trade-able value of a bond is linked intrinsically to interest rates, but they have guarantees and securities beyond this, and understanding how they work will make […]
Why I am actively switching to a defensive asset allocation this week
It is popular theory to push the Passive Investment strategy upon all savers, the common logic for such a strategy is that Active Investments are inefficient because they cost more in terms of tax and trading fees. There is a lot of truth to this, and there are a massive number of mutual funds that […]
Thoughts on the CFP Course
I just signed up for the CFP Course at NYU, and wanted to share some thoughts on the decision making process and the strategies I will be following in order to do this in the most efficient and value orientated way.The Certificate in Financial Planning (CFP) is considered to be the Gold Standard in Financial […]