Diversification is the strategy of spreading your money among different types of investments. But why? Why not pick what you think will do best and let it ride? There are numerous examples of diversified portfolios doing poorly. In 2013, for example, if you’d invested only in US-based stocks, you would have done better than a […]
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What to Look for When You Review Your 401(k)
Although it might seem like a chore, reviewing your 401(k) from time to time doesn’t have to be painful. The best way to save for retirement is to let things run on autopilot, but you can’t completely set-it-and-forget-it. A periodic review will help ensure that you’re on track, and you can review the most important […]
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Investing Doesn’t Have to be Complicated
You’re on your own more than ever when it comes to retirement, and that means you have to manage your money wisely. But investing is a challenge, especially if you don’t have the time or desire to figure out all of the complexities. The good news? Investing doesn’t necessarily have to be complicated, and you […]
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Types of Investments
There are a number of different types of investments you can use to grow your money. Some of them are useful for general goals, while others serve very specific purposes. As you work towards your goals, it’s helpful to know what the different types of investments are, and when each one might be useful. Let’s […]
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How Investing in Stocks is a Major Pain
Investing in the stock markets allows you to potentially grow your money over the long-term. However, there are several ways to get exposure to stocks. When people think about investing in stocks, their minds sometimes turn towards buying individual stocks. That is, they imagine buying the shares of specific companies (like Disney, GE, or Microsoft). […]
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Market Risk – What it is and What You Can Do
Market risk is the risk that you will lose money the markets. In most cases, people are referring to the stock markets, but it’s certainly possible to lose money in other markets as well. Market risk is a reality anytime you’re dealing with a security that has a price that can move up or down […]
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Target Date Funds vs Target Risk Funds
In the world of asset allocation funds, there are basically two choices available: target-date funds, and target risk funds. They may and look very similar, but there’s one important difference: target of risk funds are static, while target date funds change over time. Let’s dig into that a little deeper. Asset allocation funds (including target-date […]
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What is a Target Date Fund?
In recent years, target date funds have caught on as a popular way to invest. These funds are easy to use because they allow you to put your retirement investing on autopilot. However, these investments are far from perfect. You should really take a look at how they are composed and how they work before […]
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How to Invest in a 401k
401k plans often require that you pick your own investments. If you’re like most people, you might not know where to begin. Fortunately, you probably have some resources available to you, and you can also figure a few things out on your own if needed. Let’s review the basics of how to invest in a […]
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Investment History – How to See Investment History in Technicolor
So how do you get a view of investment history by asset classes? An easy way to see how different investments have done is to view a Callan Chart. The Callan Chart shows investment history for each year, and different types of investments are displayed from best to worst. Callan Charts are especially handy for […]