|
|
Written by Don McDonald
|
|
July 06, 2007 |
|
Making money often appears to be a daunting task. Too many options
cause us to either throw up our hands in frustration or seek the help
of those we believe know more.
But, in reality, the essence of making money is easy to understand.
|
|
Written by Paul Merriman
|
|
June 26, 2007 |
|
Are target retirement funds the one-size-fits-all investment choice they appear to be? Maybe, maybe not. Here are 10 things Paul Merriman thinks you should know before you invest.
|
|
Written by Richard Buck
|
|
June 21, 2007 |
What’s the best way to buy mutual funds – on your own or through a broker? Richard Buck, publications manager for Merriman, describes an academic study on this topic, then takes his own look “under the hood” of a mutual fund too see what investors really pay for brokers’ help with choosing funds.
|
|
Written by Tom Cock
|
|
June 12, 2007 |
I love contests. In fact, I love them so much that I have refereed hundreds of soccer games over the past decade. But I hate stock-picking contests, especially those designed for teenagers. That’s why I was mortified to read about a recent contest “won” by a Seattle school.
|
|
Written by Paul Merriman
|
|
June 04, 2007 |
|
As more investors turn to index funds, brokers and other fund salespeople continue to invent arguments favoring non-index funds, the kind they want you to buy. An index fund attempts to replicate the investment results of a target index by investing in all the securities in that index or in a portfolio that closely approximates it. An actively managed fund tries to beat the market by selecting stocks the manager hopes will outperform the index.
Here are ten bad arguments against index funds:
|
|
Written by Paul Merriman
|
|
May 24, 2007 |
|
I believe index funds are an investor’s best choice. And I’m in good
company. In addition to Vanguard’s John Bogle, index fund advocates
include Warren Buffet, Peter Lynch, Charles Schwab, The Motley Fool,
Knight Kiplinger and even Jim Cramer. Yet even with that all-star fan
club, index funds currently attract only 20 percent of new investment
dollars, which means that 80 percent of investors are still buying
individual stocks and actively managed funds.
|
|
Written by Paul Merriman
|
|
May 17, 2007 |
Annuities—fixed and variable—are insurance contracts that enable investors to set aside money that grows inside an insurance contract without generating current tax liability. My biggest complaint is with variable annuities. Variable annuities are valuable tools for some situations. However, I believe that 90 percent of the variable annuities sold are not the best solutions for the people who buy them.
|
|
Written by Paul Merriman
|
|
May 17, 2007 |
|
Editor's note:
This article is out of date. A new version of this article can be found here
When you reach retirement, four major decisions will determine the bulk of your financial future. This article is about two of those decisions:
• How much money do you need or want from your retirement portfolio?
• Do you need a fixed income or can you tolerate a variable income?
|
|
Written by Paul Merriman
|
|
January 24, 2007 |
|
Exchange-traded funds have become a major product in the investment world. In the following article, Paul Merriman tells what they are and helps you decide whether they are right for you.
|
|
|
<< Start < Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next > End >>
|
