Investments made easy
Everyone HATES paying taxes. Especially to our government. Which is why it is completely understandable that people resort to various means to lower their tax obligations. Now, there are legal ways to do this but you better be sure you know what you are doing because the BIR will not relent if you make a mistake.
Take the case of estate taxes for example. [Read more…]
While the PSE’s recent initiatives of developing derivatives, pushing ETF’s and endorsing short-selling are all good in terms of expanding the products and strategies in the market, I get the feeling that we are heading into a situation wherein we are trying to run before we can walk. Yes, derivatives, shorting and ETF’s are all components of a mature market but these efforts seem to overlook what is, for me, the most crucial factor: People.
Based on the PSE’s own figures, there were less than 600,000 accounts in 2012. Even at 20% annual growth, which would be a very generous rate, that would still put total accounts at below 1 million today. And keep in mind, those are ACCOUNTS, not people, so the number of actual people participating would likely be lower than that number. Furthermore, almost two-thirds of those accounts belong to people making less than 1M per year.
As we head into what our Chinese countrymen refer to as “Ghost Month”, we should keep in mind a few things:
First, while the period historically has seen the market drop over 70% of the time, it is NOT a guarantee that it will drop all of the time. Just because it usually drops, doesn’t mean it is SURE to drop this time.
Plainly speaking, we Pinoys have a culture of “Home Ownership”. Para sa atin, owning a house is one of THE milestones in life and many tend to think of renting as a waste of money — in fact I have seen ads touting renting as “nagtatapon ka ng pera”. I can see where they are coming from, and I agree to a certain point, but what they tend to gloss over are the hidden costs that come with owning a house — costs that were once again brought to the fore by last night’s bad weather.
What am I talking about? Time and stress.
In Personal Finance, one of the bogeymen we all have to deal with is inflation. It is actually one of the biggest reasons we HAVE to invest as inflation will eat up the value of our savings if left unchecked. Hence, many books and articles have been written (including some by yours truly) about how inflation is some malevolent phenomena that’s just waiting to gobble up all your hard-earned money. And for the most part, those books and articles are correct.
However, if you look at inflation closely, you will begin to understand that as “evil” as inflation may be, it is also quite necessary for an economy to grow.
Yup, that’s right, inflation is a necessary evil for economies to expand and grow.
Why? Consider the following points: [Read more…]
“Get a car loan so your son can impress the girl next door.”
As I was watching this morning’s Heat vs. Pacers game, I caught a commercial from a local savings bank touting their car loan program and much like Frank Vogel, I was pissed by what I saw.
First, the commercial opens up by showing a young boy, [Read more…]
Do you have a target? (target profit or loss)
Y/N
If No, find a target.
If Yes, has target been hit?
Y/N
If Yes- sell
If No- hold
With the Philippines getting another investment upgrade, its good to be reminded what this means and how it can potentially affect us. Here is how:
Here are two flowcharts of a person in the stock market: One with a plan and one without.
Doon sa with plan, the flow is PLAN –> BUY, then it splits as to whether the stock goes up or down. In either case, you sell upon hitting target. Then, you look for a new stock and the cycle repeats.
Sa without plan:
You BUY, then ask FB kung ok ba binili mo. It goes up, you HOLD and say “tataas pa yan”, if it starts to go down, you say “Sayang. Dapat binenta ko na.” When you lose money you say: “Ok lang, LONG TERM naman ako.
Alin ka sa dalawa?
Pop quiz:
With the amount of bonds this year expected to reach record levels, do YOU understand what this could mean for your investments (potential investments or existing)?
If not, don’t you think you SHOULD know?
Aral muna bago invest.
Answer: (Note: It’s “an” answer, not “the” answer. )
First, we have to understand that bond values are [Read more…]
