Latest Articles
Weekend Reading for January 27, 2012
Mitt Romney continues to be under fire for his high income and how little taxes he pays in comparison to that income. Yet, is it really that terrible that he uses the tax code to his advantage? He may come under even more scrutiny now that Warren Buffet’s secretary was at the State of the [...]
Why Your Small Business Should Offer a 401K
A recent survey by the Wells Fargo/Gallup Small Business Index showed that about 50 percent of small business owners are concerned that they wonít have a sufficient amount of money in savings to retire. If these owners are worried, what about their employees? They need a comfortable nest egg as well. Helping your employees build [...]
What’s Wrong With Mitt Romney Paying 14% in Taxes?
Presidential candidate Mitt Romney today released a summary of his 2010 taxes. He paid 14% (technically 13.9%) in taxes that year. The Wall Street Journal reports, the Romney family made $21.6 million, paid $3 million in federal taxes taxes, and also donated $3 million to charities.
What is ETF Contango?
Contango isn’t a latin dance move; rather, it’s when an investment drifts as compared to the underlying investment. In recent years exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have increased in popularity. These investments are collections of shares in multiple investments, but, unlike mutual funds, ETFs can be traded fairly easily on stock exchanges. ETFs are generally low-cost, and [...]
Weekend Reading, January 20, 2012
Just when it seemed Mitt Romney might sweep the first three primaries, controversy has erupted based on the fact he revealed he just pays taxes at the 15% rate and that he holds off shore accounts. Rick Perry has dropped out and is endorsing Newt Gingrich, dropping the pool to just 4 candidates. South Carolina [...]
How Do You Become A Great Investor? Learn How To Shop!
Active investing can be hard. While it’s difficult to beat the indexed averages over the long haul, it’s not impossible. I believe this is more true as an individual investor, than a professional. Let me explain in more detail. An individual investor doesn’t have to worry about annual performance results, your job isn’t on the [...]
Recent Reviews
Rich Dad, Poor Dad Review – Revisited Ten Years Later
I recently reread Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad, Poor Dad book. I read the book when it first came out in 2000, and I was still somewhat of a budding entrepreneur. I figured I would re-read the book now I have more experience under my belt. I also wanted to see if it’s held up to [...]
Lending Club Review. How to Become a Bank.
Did you ever wish when applying for a bank loan, that you were the loan officer sitting on the other side of the table? Well now you can with Lending Club. Lending Club is a peer-to-peer lending (P2P) service. They offer a higher rate of return (over 9.6%) than many other traditional fixed income investments. Compared [...]
Mint.com Review – Should I Use Mint?
Mint is a FREE online personal finance (web 2.0) service similar to Quicken. Mint was recently acquired by Inuit for a… mint. I decided to review Mint.com financial software to see what the buzz is about. For over two years now, I’ve taken mint.com for a test spin with my personal finances. With Mint you have no [...]
TradeKing Review
TradeKing is an online discount brokerage firm that was started in 2005. The reasons why I choose TradeKing were simple. As much as I like and use Fidelity for most of my trades, I felt it was a great way to get experience with another discount stock broker. I also wanted to find a broker [...]
tradeMONSTER Review
TradeMONSTER is a fairly new company, having just opened for business in 2008. In just the few short years the company has been in business, tradeMONSTER has become a recognized name and a front runner in the personal investing industry. Founded by industry experts Dirk Mueller, Jon Najarian and Pete Najarian, tradeMONSTER’s philosophy is to [...]
optionsXpress Review
For just over a decade optionsXpress, now a recent subsidiary of Charles Schwab Corporation, has been serving the needs of millions of investors nationwide. Over the last ten years optionsXpress has worked to gain recognition in the industry and that is exactly what they have done. Now considered a top pick for on line trading, [...]
