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Monday, September 15, 2008

Simple Strategies to Becoming an Ebay Top Seller

by Bombs

On eBay, there have been lots of successful sellers known as power sellers. And you surely want to be one of them. Well, who wouldn't? We all sure want to be successful and profitable in a business that barely needs you to leave home.
Here are some things you need to keep in mind when starting your own eBay business:

* Market Research. This is an important factor even in traditional businesses. You have to identify your target market and collect data that will help you determine what items are selling. With careful market study, you'd be able to see what the current demands are and what items will give you good profits.

* Study the Market Competition. As with traditional businesses, you will have competitions on eBay. In fact, lots of it. What you need to do is conduct a study about who sell this and who sell that and for how much. You should also watch out for the strategies of your possible competitions; learn from their tactics as well as the mistakes that they make.

* Have a Business Plan. After conducting market research and study on your possible competitions, it is time you device your own business plans and strategies. You can make even an informal outlines of your specific niche, your target market and what strategies are you going to take. Note your plans strong points and weak points; plan on how to strengthen the weak points. Budget estimates should also be included.

* Start small. It is not always good to invest all your money all at once. Start by investing small capital at first then see if your plans and strategies will work or not. So now that you are done surveying the eBay market and you have laid out your plans and strategies, it is time to start paving your way to becoming an eBay power seller. Here are the steps that you should take next:

* Get Your Product. Since you now know what items to sell, the next step for you do is to find a reliable supplier. It is best to compare 2 or more suppliers, this way you can choose who among them offer amicable terms and the best rates.

* Test Your Market Strategies. Be sure not to stick to one market plan and strategies. You can always try new one and innovate on your previous ones. If a strategy has some good results, try to improve it into something that will give you the booming success that you've always wanted.

* Expand. It is always good to expand your business once you know your ways on Ebay. You can start by setting goals and sales margin every week then try increasing them along the way.

* Make Use of Technology. As you have to write descriptions and emails, you can get bored on what you've always written. And so will buyers and viewers of your ads. Innovate by using software which can do these works for you; software which can add fun to post-purchase messages, responses to questions regarding your items as well as creating your item lists.

* Take Your Business Seriously. You can do this by having your business registered.

Selling on eBay need not be rocket science. You just have to know how things should be done; and be done the right way. And there's one thing that you should always keep in mind; DON'T GIVE UP! Remember, all businesses have to go through ups and downs before finally reaching the top. So, start selling now and be one of the many eBay millionaires!

About the Author
The author, Mr. Bombs owns Frent Megastore - an eBay power seller store. It provides various products such as quality electronics and gadgets like iPods and iPod accessories, computers and laptops and may more. Visit the store at http://stores.ebay.co.uk/FRENT-MegaStore.

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Smart Questions to Ask Before Purchasing a Condo

by Todd Levinson

Many homeowners find the condo lifestyle to be highly rewarding, and a smart investment. But there's some investigation to be done before a wise purchase is made. Here's a thorough list of questions to ask, at least consider before you go ahead and purchase a condo.

What is the age of the building?

Is the building air-conditioned?

What sort of security system is in place? Is it 24 hrs?

Is there a parking space included in the purchase price? (ask to see it!)

Is there guest parking, and if so what are the conditions of use?

Is the use of recreational facilities included in the purchase price, or monthly fees? Find out the terms of use for these facilities - are they strictly for the use of owners and their guests, or are they open to the public in any way?

Look into your unit's particular situation. See if it's situated near an elevator or garbage chute. You might second guess a purchase if you know you don't want to live with that sort of intrusion.

What fixtures and features are included in the purchase price?

Are pets allowed, and if so what kinds and sizes of animals are permitted and how many per unit?

Are there rental or lease restrictions on the unit?

Is the renter population over 10%? This may be worrisome if you're looking for a a place to call home. A high rental population has its own set of problems.

What sorts of renovations are permitted, if any?

What is the monthly maintenance fee, and what does this fee include?

To what extent does the condo association's insurance cover you? The insurance should be able to cover the cost of rebuilding the condo, if need be.

How much coverage is in the association's repair fund? The repair fund should be able to cover at least 10% of the cost of items that need replacing or repair.

Has the condo association had any legal issues? Go over the association's bylaws with a real estate lawyer and double check that their bylaws are consistent with state bylaws in which you're purchasing.

Read over the condo association's minutes, so as to get a real sense of the people on the board, and what sort of gripes and complaints have been lodged so far.
About the Author:
Philadelphia Real Estate Guide: Find Bella Vista PA real estate for sale. Search MLS listings in this unique Philadelphia market.

Saturday, September 13, 2008

Retirement Income Investment Planning - Step One

by Steve Selengut

Your retirement income investment plan starts now, right now, no matter how old or well heeled you happen to be.

Step One is to understand what a retirement plan is, and to identify the three large numbers you need to keep track of while you are developing your stash. With these three totals on your spreadsheet, it's much easier to develop long-range retirement income goals that make personal sense. A retirement plan is an income production plan. Guaranteed retirement income - projected expenses = the gap. No gap, add parents and children to the expense number. There's always a gap.

Employer provided pension plans, Social Security, and (always much too expensive) fixed annuity contracts, are retirement income providers. They are monthly income machines that you have paid dearly for but which may not be adequate to cover your retirement expenses--- most of us will need more income than our guaranteed benefits will provide.

And we need to develop these additional income sources while we are still earning some kind of income. The retirement plan is the investment process you employ to eliminate the gap between your projected guaranteed income and a conservative estimate of your retirement expenses. The sooner and smarter you invest before retirement, the easier the transition from full employment to full vacation will be. Smart investing involves separating your security selections by purpose, and monitoring their performance in the same way. You're never to young to start developing the income side of the portfolio.

Once you start to draw income at retirement, it is much more difficult to invest effectively and unemotionally. Since your income will need to remain secure and constant through several economic, market, and IRE (interest rate expectation) cycles, you really need to develop appropriate portfolio market value expectations if your program is to survive. You cannot afford to take your eye off the income ball, because income is the only thing you can spend without depleting the productive value of the assets in your investment portfolio.

Obvious? Yes, but only until the market value of your portfolio begins to shrink as a result of economic, market, and IRE cycles. If you invest properly, it (the income) should continue to grow in spite of changing market conditions and fluctuating market value numbers. You must learn to expect market value fluctuations and take advantage of them--- assuming, of course, that you are following appropriate quality, diversification and income generation standards.

Retirement income planning became more difficult for most of us around the time corporate America realized that defined benefit pension plans were far too expensive to manage and maintain. At around the same time, the Social Security trust fund somehow disappeared (Did it ever exist at all?), and more and more of our hard earned was needed to support our aging friends and relatives. Why haven't the myriad of defined contribution programs been able to fill the retirement income gap?

Because millions of totally investment-inexperienced people were given discretion over billions of investment dollars that could be tax detoured out of their paychecks and into IRAs, 401ks, 403bs, Thrift, Savings, Thrift/Savings Plans, etc. Self directed investment programs generated a need for an investment media; the investment media fueled the speculative juices of an emotional and naive mass of newbie investor/speculators; Wall Street created tens of thousands of new products and compound income schemes to sponge up the wayward dollars.

The Masters of the Universe were ROTFLOL while the Investment gods gaped in disbelief.

Defined Contribution plans are just not retirement plans--- even if your employee benefits department, the media, Wall Street, and Uncle assure you that they are. Most plans are difficult to self-manage with a retirement income objective. Still, these benefit plans are necessary and quite capable of taking you close to where you want to be. Their only drawback is the false sense of wealth and retirement security that they promote. Either the money has to be converted into an income portfolio--- a costly and time-consuming process--- or far too many mutual fund shares have to be sold to produce the spending money

Most people think of savings and investment programs as retirement plans, and rationalize away the need for additional, outside development of an income investment portfolio. This is because all of the information they receive speaks to market value growth instead of to income. It's very likely that less than half the money will ever be yours to spend! What, you say--- why? Here's an example. A NYC resident with a $3 million IRA retires with the expectation of maintaining her life style. Even invested for income alone, $15,000 per month is easy to generate. But how much more has to be disbursed to satisfy three levels of tax collection?

Next example. The same portfolio in equity mutual funds during a correction--- now you're dipping into principal!

Even though defined-contribution plans are excellent mechanisms for growing an investment portfolio with your hard earned, pre-tax, dollars, most plans and most plan participants worship the market value god to the exclusion of all others. Most people are too greedy and/or tax-averse to convert them into income producers during rallies--- when they can lock in a meaningful cash flow. Additionally, the counter productive IRC encourages our use of owned assets first--- a universally ignored phenomenon.

The "buy and hold" mutual fund mentality doesn't transition well from growth to income--- regardless of the fund category or description; the idea of helping people into a comfortable retirement hasn't stopped the tax collectors; the market cycle is just as likely to be down as up when your gold watch is presented. You have to do more, and less, to secure that comfortable retirement.

Step One of the retirement plan is developing a focus on income, and understanding that spending money and market value are not blood relatives. Step Two is developing the right combination of tax deferred and tax-exempt income--- among other things.
About the Author:
Steve Selengut Sanco Services Kiawa Golf Investment Seminars Author: "The Brainwashing of the American Investor: The Book that Wall Street Does Not Want YOU to Read" and "A Millionaire's Secret Investment Strategy".

Friday, September 12, 2008

SEO Marketing Type or Strategy

by Kavita

What is in SEO marketing that makes it so interesting and people are doing anything to keep it up and come up with newest strategies?
In the organic type of SEO marketing, there are greater click-troughs. A lot of people market this because of the organically grown search results that do more than what they were supposed to do with the sponsored results.

While the other search engines business is supported by some of the paid ads, there are many consumers who would choose the organic search results. The listings they provide are more related and can offer great depth of choices that are truly manageable.

While the paid ads can play a very vital role in SEO marketing strategy, the organic search will be able to add to the greater click-through rates when all the things get equal. This makes the websites meet their targeted traffic in the search engine rankings.

SEO marketing is very important because it is where ideas are being created by the people doing the websites. They must come up with great marketing ideas in order to compete with the thousands of websites in the different search engines.

Some do not even think of SEO marketing as a marketing strategy but a competition with the other web sites. Even though it is a foul play, they would still continue as long as their links and their ranks are increasing.

This is something overlooked by most marketers. Getting links and ranks can be done equally and black hat SEO may never work at all because there are rules in putting up a website that is user-friendly. They must not look at SEO as a competition because the quality of their services is wasted and sometimes wrongfully understood.

The power of branding is one marketing strategy which is practiced by large corporations. They are investing in this kind of resource and organic search to gain a lot of SEO marketing benefits in order to promote their brand.

The keywords are important to keep the sites linked to and visited by users. They need to know the best strategy on how to increase keyword density therefore letting them show up in the different search engines such as Yahoo, MSN and Google. If your company and brand displays on top of the search results, you can have the impression that your company is getting a lot of viewers and that it is important.

In SEO marketing, you need to get the trust of the viewers and customers. If you get greater trust, then you will get greater access and conversions. Most adults learn to apply a healthy amount of doubt when they see a commercial shown on TV. The same is for when they see an ad in the website.

So in order to correct their doubts, don't keep promising to them what you cannot do. Make sure that the services you are trying to describe to them are essential and can be done specially. You are paying high in getting links but be sure that your services are guaranteed with full service. Once you have gained the trust of your customers, you are sure to gain their trust all throughout but if you don't, do not expect that you are getting requests and orders.

Now, whatever SEO marketing type or strategy you are going to use, keep in mind that SEO is a very aggressive and competitive field. When you are using it with the best technology, knowledge is always the key to gain a competitive advantage.

If you are still new in the marketing field, there are a lot of techniques to get involved with and you seriously need to be creative so that you will rank in the different search engines if that is your goal. Don't let yourself get behind because you will not be ranking at all. There are thousands or even millions of websites that are competing and you will feel a very small pebble compared to them but nothing is impossible if you will try and think of marketing as a negotiable way to increase ranking. Don't get intimidated by the other websites because they will just pull you down.

About the Author
For more useful tips & hints, please browse for more information at our website: www.huge-niche-keywords.com, www.seo.infozabout.com

Thursday, September 11, 2008

Smart Investment Strategies For Online Trading

by Jim Brown

The financial services that an investor chooses to use will help them create smart investment strategies for online trading. They might choose to trade with an investment management company or they might choose to go it alone and trade on Wall Street with the help of an investment broker. Every decision that they make on their investments will have a direct impact on their financial future.

The smart investment strategies will begin with a definite plan. The planning phase of the investment process can be aided by the help of a financial professional who is thoroughly involved with the online trading world and knows which routes an investor can take to get the most out of the money that they are willing to invest. The investment strategies that are open to an investor can have a short-term or long-term effect on their financial future.

The smart investments will be ones that are diverse. An investor has a better chance of success if they choose to create an investment portfolio that contains well rounded numbers of stocks, bond, annuities, certificate of deposit accounts, and accounts for personal and business use. How aggressive the investor wants to be in his approach to building wealth will determine which smart investment strategies to take.

Some investors prefer to take the route of online trading because it is so quick and simple to do. The investor will be able to see all investment assets in every account that is created and be able to see in real-time the current prices of the stocks and bonds that make up a portion of their portfolio. The online trading investor has access to investment professional's 24-hours a day through the online forums and blogs that are on the online trading website.

The investor can determine what the smart investment strategies will pay off through the use of handy calculators posted on the online trading website. The investor can also use these calculators to determine if they have a solid investment platform to work with before they begin transacting trades online. These calculators can help the investor plan out a monthly budget or a budget strictly for business use.

The smartest investment strategies that an online trader can use are the ones that allow them to make sound business decisions that are strictly in line with an investment plan that has a prescribed goal attached to it. Most investors make decisions based on merit and feel that the smartest investment strategy that they can use is one that does not have emotion attached to it.

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

How to Invest in Luxury Real Estate

by Waylan Smart

Many have seen the headlines: Well-known old homes selling for record prices. Luxury townhomes appreciating in value even as other properties sit unsold. Reports that luxury properties in Midwestern states are attracting interest once reserved only for mansions on the coast. A prominent art-auction house investigating the possibility of marketing architectural landmarks as a new form of very expensive art.

Luxury real estate appears to be an appealing investment even in the economic climate of the moment. It is worth asking why this may be the case.

For one thing, the market for luxury homes benefits from a certain amount of what one might call "insulation."

Economic troubles that may affect the willingness of buyers and sellers at every other level to, well, buy and sell, do not necessarily reach the ultra-wealthy. Also, foreign investment is a factor. Quality of life factors continue to make the US a desirable second home for wealthy foreign nationals, with the higher education system attracting people from all over the world. As a result, foreign real estate investment may help keep the market for luxury real estate in good standing. Finally, consider that wealthy people may tend to pay for important purchases in cash, which means that fluctuating interest rates and credit-market problems hold no power.

What do savvy luxury real estate buyers do? How do they make sure their investments in luxury real estate prosper? There's never a simple formula, but experts suggest the following rules:

It's important to know what "luxury" means on a personal level, and to know which type of real estate is personally appealing. Generally luxury homes are defined as those costing over a million dollars in the United States, but the word may also mean a certain kind of neighborhood, greater access to the Great Outdoors, or a room where all one's fishing trophies can be displayed. Whether it is location, space, quality of furnishings, or any other factor, an educated buyer is often ready to rank their priorities.

Buyers may also take steps to ensure the real estate company they are working with knows these priorities as well. A contract may be used to ensure that luxury real estate buyers are getting what they want, top-to-bottom. For example, a buyer might specify in the contract specific language ("restaurant grade" kitchen fixtures, for example, or a library of however-many square feet, or with glassed-in shelves). On a related point, when touring a luxury development-where a "model home" is often used for tours for potential buyers, rather than the actual home to be bought-remember that the model home may not necessarily identical to the home that is purchased.

A real estate buyer will often coordinate pre-approval, to increase the speed and flexibility in buying properties. After all, these are the sort of properties that may require a buyer willing to "strike while the iron is hot." Luxury real estate attracts people with a lot of money to spend, a secure financial situation that makes them attractive borrowers (if borrowing proves necessary), and it tends to be advertised nationally rather than locally, so a lot of people may be interested in any given property. (As stated above, too, the number of likely buyers doesn't necessarily decrease when a market downturns-that's part of why it's luxury real estate.)

While knowing their priorities, today's buyers often keep an open mind. After all, the list of states that offer great luxury properties is expanding-it's no longer just about the two coasts. Buyers may know what is desired in a neighborhood, but they may also be prepared to find it in places where it wasn't expected. Prices are appreciating, according to one expert, in over 2500 areas.

Soave Enterprises is a diversified management and investment company founded by Detroit businessman Anthony Soave that provides strategic planning, financial and other management resources to its affiliated business ventures in the real estate, automotive retailing, beer distribution, scrap metal, industrial services and transportation industries, among others.

For more information on Tony Soave and Soave Enterprises, please visit http://www.soave.com.
About the Author:
Soave Enterprises diversified management and investment company founded by Detroit businessman Anthony Soave that provides strategic planning, financial and other management resources to its affiliated business ventures in the real estate, automotive retailing, beer distribution, scrap metal, industrial services and transportation industries, among others. For more information on Tony Soave and Soave Enterprises, please visit the website.

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Investment Solutions Company: for Smart Investment Decisions

by Anton Kadin

Every element on this earth keeps growing. This is the nature of the earth. There is no life without growth. Same is true for money also. If you can not make your money grow, if you can not make money out of your money, and if you can not save your money for long-term profit then it is useless. You must provide wings to your money so that it can make you fly. And you can do this through investments only. Various investment options are available in the market. You need not to get confused. Choose an investments solutions company to remove all the confusions.

An investment can be perceived as a saving and an additional income. Both these factors are necessary. Any form of property, either in cash or kind, which has the potential to grow in value can be an investment. These days various investment products are offered by the financial market and you can make a smart decision by opting for an investments solutions company. These days investment products are available in the form of funds which pool together people's money and are invested in a mixture of different investment solutions like equities, bonds or even property and cash.

An Investments Solutions Company can provide a fund manager who can look after these funds. Also, there are various other kinds of investments which are made by four variables cash, corporate bonds and gilts, equities and property. Some of these investment products are regular savings, cash ISA, lump sum investments, property, wrap accounts, distribution bonds, national savings certificates, investment bonds etc. These all investment products have different qualities and all of them need variable investment. But all of these are good investments.

And whatever investment product you choose make sure that it is fulfilling your investment needs. You must be saving good money. So, be a smart investor and opt for investments solutions company.

About the Author:
Anton kadin is an expert in the domain of asset management and investment solutions. Written from experience and with expertise, his write-ups provide guidance to individuals and businesses on Asset Management UK, Investments Solutions Company, wealth management company and financial planning services.

Monday, September 8, 2008

Alex Von Furstenberg Implements Smart Investment

by Val

Arrow Capital Management Implements Smart Investment

Saving money and then watching it grow is an involving and exciting scene but this requires knowing the right means of investing. You can seek advices on tax-efficient saving through an investment solutions company. A successful investment management company is a bunch of highly qualified finance professionals. Arrow Capital Management, LLC is New York's investment management corporation, which, under the leadership of its co-managing members Alex von Furstenberg, created a shock on the market and implemented their various protection plans.

Lately, W.P. Stewart & Co., Ltd. (NYSE:WPL) announced of its agreement to a strategic investment from Arrow Capital Management, LLC, through affiliated partnerships. a New York based investment management company has acquired up to 45% of the shares outstanding in W.P. Stewart through a combination of a tender offer and the purchase of primary shares from the W.P. Stewart & Co., Ltd. (NYSE:WPL) company.

After the transaction, its initiator, a successful co-managing investor Alex von Furstenberg said: "We are excited and honoured to invest in Bill Stewart and his team. Bill has a tremendous talent for investment, as demonstrated by his 30-plus year track record of over 17% annualized returns, which we believe is nearly incomparable in the investment management industry."

"We believe W.P. Stewart is uniquely well positioned to benefit from the current opportunity in large-cap growing companies. W.P. Stewart's holdings are industry-leading franchises that generate consistent and growing amounts of free cash flow. After nearly a decade of compression in valuation multiples, these high-quality companies now trade at only a modest premium to the market. These companies are particularly attractively valued relative to treasuries." Alex von Furstenberg said.

About the Author:J
ust a simple guy who like to do things well.

Sunday, September 7, 2008

Balanced Investment Strategy for Portfolio Management

by NobleTrading

Balanced investment strategy is perhaps the most followed and successful investment strategy for portfolio management. Its primary aim is to keep a balance between investment risk and return. A balanced investment strategy combines the merit of aggressive and defensive investing strategies.

Aggressive investment strategy involves investing in high return high risk investments with the sole purpose of maximizing return from investments. It involves allocating major portion of portfolio capital to invest in equities, equity based funds and highly volatile markets. Investors following aggressive investment strategy often look for comparatively short-term profiting and wish to invest more in growth stocks, and small caps and mid cap stocks. Advantages of aggressive investing include quick profit, high return over investment and no need of large portfolio capital. It can work really well for experienced investors and investors who are very strict in their money management. Disadvantages include high risk, high volatility in total portfolio value and no surety of profit. It less supports novice investors and investor looking for monthly earnings or living costs.

Defensive investment strategy is just opposite of aggressive investment; it’s purpose is to preserve the capital and ensure some return from investments. It involves investing in low profit low risk investments like bonds, money market funds, treasury notes, and equities with minimum price volatility and good dividends. Defensive investors look for long-term profits and/or monthly earnings. Advantages of defensive investment strategy include reduced risk, predictable income, better investment planning and diversification of portfolio. This strategy mainly suits beginners. Disadvantages include low return from investments and requirement of high capital investments.

In balanced investment strategy, the investor tries to keep a balance between his aggressive and defensive behaviors. It involves balancing of both return and risk by diversifying investments in both high return high risk and low return low risk investments. Balanced investors often follow a portfolio capital allocation rule telling how much to invest in equities and bonds and how much to invest in treasury notes, precious metals and funds. Usually one portion of portfolio is actively managed and other portion is left to grow automatically. Balanced investment strategy can be slightly aggressive or slightly defensive with respect to investments made.

The greatest advantage of balanced investment strategy is the diversification of portfolio and hedging against high total portfolio value volatility. It is good for investors looking for medium-term (3 to 5 years) profits. Other advantages include flexibility in portfolio management, better results with better capital investments, (almost) predictable income and manageable portfolio risk. Balanced investment strategy support both beginners and experienced investors and can be an option for monthly earnings for living.
About the Author:
NobleTrading is one of the leading Direct Access Trading Broker offering accesses to US and Canadian markets. Be a subscriber of daily updated NobleTrading stock trading blogs which offer quality information on investing and trading. Here is the blog post related to balanced investment portfolio management strategy.

Sunday, August 31, 2008

Making Money With Multi Family units

by Dan Carter


However,the same can't be said for how the market tracks its ups or downs (aka Timing). Is There Really A Down Time Of The Year for Real Estate?

Throughout much of the country, the market for single-family homes is seriously out of balance. As prices fall and inventories rise, that's changing. But, compared with rents, prices are still quite high, Price of the homes do not have the ability support properties to cover their mortgage and operating costs.

the need to avoid this segment of the market unless you have a chance to buy a property at a 30% or 40% discount from its previous price. Don't think this is out of the question. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, when the government liquidated the real-estate loan portfolios of bankrupt savings-and-loans, speculators picked up properties for just dimes on the dollar.

Managing a house that pays for itself is what it's all about. You can do it in one of two ways: Renting or "flipping." Renting is a "buy-and-hold" strategy, while flipping calls for quick turnarounds of fixer-uppers that can be spruced up and sold quickly.

But in the current environment renting is probably the more prudent path, although it can be very difficult to make a house pay for itself at today's prices. That's because if your house carries an 80% or 90% loan, the renter will have to pay more per month to rent the house than would be needed to buy it.

Single Family investing would be left to the flip market to take quick profits.

Buy to hold in this market should be in multifamily housing. Getting good buys and having more rents coming in to cover operating expenses.

A buyer with cash can drive a hard bargain and make out very well. And the worse the market, the better for the buyer. But don't get carried away. With this investment strategy you can easily build income to replace loss that you have suffered from not getting your annual increase to job losses.

Three things that are holding you back from making the decision to get out pursue new opportunities and earn what you are worth. Security, Procrastination, Fear. Need for security, fear of change, procrastination for getting things done are holding you back. You can not expect things to change, until you make some changes in how you go about getting important things completed.

By seeing how the real estate market is taking a pounding. Instead of listening to the media and fearing what they are reporting the timing is right to jump in and pick up some good deals and grow your net worth before the opportunity is lost. Not meaning there want be changes to make money from purchasing real estate later. It just now there are more bargain on the market with problems of high unemployment, mortgages tighten there lending practices. But all these down cycle are setting up to make it the perfect opportunity for the investor who seizes his chance now.

In the single family housing getting good buys will not be a handicap but holding on to the property in this unstable renter market fuel problems to keep tenants with all of the volatility in the job markets.

Purchasing 2-4 multi-units will give your best chance to buy and hold in this market. Large unit when available are also welcome by experience investor because the chance to cut your operating expenses decreases as you go up in size.

Checking the rental rate in your area will let you know which structure of home that would be best to buy and hold in this market.

As you move up in value you can buy the higher single family homes and hold rental in this market has maintained stability through out this down cycle in the real estate market.



About the Author
Finding your self stuck looking for away to make money and get financing look into investing into multi-famiy housing For more information contact on the forum @http://steamed-wolfen.blogspot.com, http://dealerdan.blogspot.com or call 1-877-818-5337

Saturday, August 30, 2008

Why investing can be riskier then trading

by Shaun Rosenberg

Everyone always says that the safest way to make money in the stock market is by investing for the long term. I don't believe it. In fact long term investors might have the disadvantage.
There are a number of reasons why trading can be a safer strategy then investing in the long term.

1. Traders can make money in all markets. Unlike a long term investor who only makes money in bulls market and loses money in a bears market, traders can take advantage of whatever the market does.

2. Strong companies don't have to go up. People seem to have a false image in their mine that if you own Disney stock and they make a sale your stock goes up. That is not necessarily true. You could buy a stock that makes loads of money with great fundamentals and still lose money. In fact Wal-Mart, Disney, Microsoft, and coke are all stocks that have huge earning but have not done anything except go down a little in the last 10 years.

3. Successful traders base their conclusion off of price, the trends and patterns of it. This is a much better way to grow your money because what you make money off of is ultimately what the stock does not what the company does.

4. The idea of holding onto a stock forever can actually hurt you. I have seen people with a long term prospective ride a $40 stock to a $10 stock because they are in it for the long term. As far as I am considered it not a good idea to hold a stock through a 75% decline in hopes that it might one day go up no matter what your time frame is.

5. Actively trading is a can give you higher returns. Think about it like this, if you are actively trading in the stock market you will be able to learn from your past trades. The more you learn the better a trader you will become. Where as someone who invest in the long term cannot use what they learned from their last trades into their new trades because your last trades lasted 40 years.

For more information about the stock market visit http://www.stocks-simplified.com


About the Author
When I was young I wanted to learn how to trade the stock market. So I traveled around the country listening to professional traders talk about how they are making money in the market. Now I understand how easy it is to make money in the stock market and started a site http://www.stocks-simplified.com to help others learn.

Friday, August 29, 2008

MLM Home Business - 10 Factors to MLM Success

by Kiran Sambih

You may be aware of the Pareto Principle, which is the 80/20 rule.
The rule is universal! Such as 20% of the population earn 80% of the wealth. 80% of your sales come from 20% of your sales staff, and so on, and so forth...

Let me tweak this a little bit... a more realistic approach to this principle, say for example in the MLM industry, is the 97/3 rule.

Only 3% of Network Marketers will make a full-time income from their businesses, it's a sad statement, and you need to do everything to ensure you are within the 3% who succeed.

Here are 10 factors to ensure you are within the 3% who are succeeding in their MLM Home business:

1. Desire To Succeed

It's no surprise that the great Napoleon Hill states that DESIRE is the starting point of all riches.

My guess is that you are in the MLM home business to have freedom to do what you want, when you want and achieve complete financial freedom with it.

This goal must not be a wish, hope or want, it MUST be a pulsating burning desire. Only when you have a burning desire for a particular goal, great things will start to happen. You are in the perfect mind-set to move forward...

2. What is your "WHY?"

Your "Why" is an extension to Desire.

Why are you in the MLM business? Is it for more money? More freedom of your own time? Escaping the Rat Race? Whatever your "WHY" is, be sure its so strong, that it will serve you in the tough times.

So many people quit in business, any business. Part of the reason is they didn't have a strong enough "Why" to succeed.

If you have a strong enough "WHY", it will help you break down the barriers and achieve greatness...

Now we have Burning Desire to succeed and a strong "WHY", its time to move onto...

3. Adding Value to your Prospects

The MLM Home business is not a selling business. It is a people business. You train and mentor your leads and potential prospects.

You must add value to your leads, prospects and down-line. You can do this by offering weekly training seminars, valuable information on how to run and successfully market an MLM home business, and pass on your OWN experience and knowledge to your prospects and down-line.

When you do this, you're instantly adding value to your target market, and they will be in a position to duplicate your business strategy and follow the path to success.

If you're a newbie, you may ask, how can I add value and train others when I am just starting out myself?! This takes us onto the next factor...

4. Get Educated!

Invest in some personal development books, Internet marketing books, MLM books, attend teleseminars for Home business, participate in MLM forums, and learn off those already in the industry.

Spend some time investing in your own knowledge. And everything you learn, put it into ACTION!

The more you learn and ACTION your knowledge, the more successful you will be in your MLM Home business. This in turn will make you more valuable to your target market, because you have knowledge on how to succeed.

And as you become more knowledgeable with theory and experience, you will start to position yourself as a valuable leader. In this business, people join those who they like and have a system in place that they can duplicate and help them succeed, or those people who are valuable leaders that can help them succeed in their MLM Home business.

5. Systemize

McDonald's is a Multi billion dollar franchise run by high school kids. This is possible because they have a SYSTEM in place.

There are three jobs the employees need to take care of:

1. Customer service

2. Take the order from the customer

3. Train the new employees to provide customer service and take orders.

This is all that it takes. McDonald's system takes care of the rest.

This is why McDonald's has succeeded; this level of duplication has created a such a predictable experience for the customer.

Your MLM home business should be no different.

So, first market YOURSELF (People join people, not businesses), secondly, market your SYSTEM, Thirdly, market your OPPORTUNITY.

So remember, always have a system in place, and market that system to your TARGET MARKET (Other Network Marketers).

Your business will be a huge success if you teach your down-line to follow the system you use to market your MLM home business franchise yourself.

6. Your Front-End Funded Proposal Concept

How can you ensure your cash flow doesn't run dry for your MLM Home business?

Market a front-end retail product (Less than $50) to your leads, which is related to your primary MLM opportunity. This has many benefits, the top two are:

· The retail sales will pay for your advertising costs and other business expenses, so you are breaking even, or in fact actually making a profit. This alone will ensure you don't run out of cash flow for your MLM home business. You will stay in the game in the long run financially to build your business and see the fruits of your labour.

· Your leads that buy the retail product from you will learn something of value, which will help them build a successful business. And, you have built trust, because they trusted you enough to purchase from you. These leads are more likely to join your main opportunity down the road.

7. Build Relationships

As well as building relationships with your leads and potential prospects as you train them to be successful MLM home business owners, you should be networking, and making friendships with other home business owners on a daily basis.

You can achieve this via social networking and adding valuable content to relevant forums.

Build your mastermind of contacts in your industry. You will create great friendships; great business partners, and learn a lot from like minded individuals. You all have a common Desire, and each of you will support one another on this exciting journey.

8. Your Back-End Primary MLM Business

After you have front-ended your funded proposal to your leads and built trust and a solid relationship with your leads, you will want to invite them to join you in your primary MLM home business opportunity.

This will build long term, residual wealth and increase net-worth over time.

9. Persistence, Persistence, Persistence!

Along your exciting journey in the MLM home business world, you will come across setbacks, mistakes, difficulties so on, and so forth. This is why building relationships will aid you; there will always be someone in your circle of friends who can help you.

Your goal here is to keep persisting! Keep persisting in your desire for success, and remember your "WHY." You owe it to yourself to be a success; you only get one shot at life, go and make it happen!

10. Enjoy yourself!

Last but not least, enjoy it! This is a great business, which offers great rewards. On your road to financial freedom, you meet like-minded people, make life long friendships, and you get to help others become a success along the way.

Now that's enjoyment!

About the Author
Kiran Sambih is a Winning Home-Based Business Owner who is dedicated to your success. Sign up for the FREE online 7-Day E-Marketing boot camp at: http://www.WinnersPersist.ws

Also visit his Winners Persist MLM Blog at http://www.WinnersPersist.com that is targeted to help other MLM business owners achieve success in their business.

Thursday, August 28, 2008

How Can You Buyback Social Security And Increase Your Monthly Income?

by Ken Himmler

How Can You Buyback Social Security And Increase Your Monthly Income?
For a long time, Social Security has been raising our rates at unprecedented increases. This has to do with the insecurity and loss of stability within the Social Security system. The Social Security system is in such disarray at this point that even David Walker has quit his post here in 2008. This is quite unfortunate because David Walker was one of the greatest proponents of the problems with Social Security. Social security, having its many pitfalls is still the most common retirement plans. There are lots of things that are not understood about this particular retirement option.. living retirement investments, retiremen,t retirement calculator retirement planning retirement calculators investments and investmenbanking I recently wrote another article, which you can read on iamllc.biz about the problems with Social Security. In addition, there are some links on iamllc.biz that will help you understand exactly how Social Security is computed, as well as some of the problems, regulations and rules.. One of the ways that we have been working with clients recently has been to do what is called a Social Security buyback. It may be worthwhile to consider this retirement plan but it bears a little clearing up. investments and investmenbanking 401k retirement military retirement retirement savings calculator retirement living individual retirement living individual .. living retirement investments, retiremen,t retirement calculator retirement planning retirement calculators investments and investmenbanking, retirement, investment Let me explain how this works. Social Security computes your income based upon the amount of years, quarters and income that you earn. It depends upon when you take your full Social Security retirement or if you take early Social Security retirement that determines your monthly income. The simple retirement calculation gives you a rough estimate of how much you will receive. military retirement calculator retirement savings retirement services military pay retirement age retirement banking & investment law retirement living individual investments and investmenbanking 401k retirement military retirement retirement savings calculator retirement living individual retirement living individual .. living retirement investments, retiremen,t However, there is a very little known fact within our Social Security system that allows you to buy back with a lump sum of money to a prior date. The reason that this is such a little known fact is that the government does nothing at all to promote it because it is in my opinion, a disadvantage to the Social Security system as a whole, if people could take early retirement and add a later date, they couldn't then buy back their Social Security to their current age without having to pay market increase rates. retirement living individual retirement accounts, retirement age, florida retirement, retirement planner, investment, military retirement calculator retirement savings retirement services military pay retirement age retirement banking & investment, retirement, investment, Now, the way that it works is you buy back with a lump sum of money back to the original date that you started taking Social Security or to whatever date may be most advantageous for you. This is in a sense very much like buying an annuity through an insurance company. With an annuity [you can read more about immediate annuities and other retirement plans by going to iamllc.biz] you put in a lump sum [this is an immediate annuity only not a deferred annuity] and the insurance company, based upon the option that you chose will give you a monthly income for either a stated period of time or for your lifetime and they can even base it upon one life or two lives. But to explain this investment and retirement concept I need to ramble off into another area so that you can really understand how Social Security buyback works. military retirement calculator retirement savings retirement services military pay retirement age retirement banking & investmentrailroad retirement board, disability retirement, job retirement, railroad retirement retirement living individual, retirement calculator retirement savings retirement services military pay retirement At Integrated Asset Management, our goal is to make sure that retirees do not outlive their assets. We do this by a number of different methods including using immediate annuities otherwise known as longevity insurance. When your goal as a conservative investor is to make sure that you live rich and stay wealthy your goal is to make sure that your money at least keeps up with inflation and taxes and doesn't run out before you run out of life. If you understand how these annuities work, then you understand that what Social Security is, it's essentially a social benefit around an immediate annuity strategy. By you structuring your retirement plan in such a way that you have a base income whether it be Social Security, pension plan or an annuity, you can then structure the rest of your assets in other areas whether it be real estate investment, stocks, 401k retirement plan or bonds. We want to make sure your investment strategy will meet your needs. simple retirement calculator, calculation retirement, railroad retirement board, disability retirement, , retirement board, disability retirement, job retirement, railroad retirement retirement living individual, retirement calculator retirement s

This is the main goal of Social Security to provide a minimal benefit for the rest of your life. Let's get back to the Social Security buyback strategy. By you giving Social Security a lump sum of money [just like the insurance company] we can compute how many years we can buyback to a specific age. Again, this is just like an immediate annuity through an insurance company [wherein as you give the insurance company a lump sum of money and they give you an annual income for life]. retirement planning calculator, continuing care retirement communities, center retirement retirement planner Retirement, retirement calculator retiremen, Retirement, retirement calculator retirement planning, retirement calculators, retirement, investment, retirement, florida retirement. Military retirement, retirement Let me give you an example of how this might work. Let's say that John retired at age 62, therefore he took early retirement from Social Security. Currently John is getting $1,000 per month at age 70. Now for the sake of simplicity let's make the assumption that John did not get any inflationary increases over the last 8 years. So John has received $12,000 per year for the last 8 years, so John has received a total of $96,000 from Social Security. If John currently took Social Security at age 70, let's further assume that he would get $1,700 per month as opposed to getting $1,000 per month because he took at age 62. This would be the case since he delayed 8 years of taking Social Security. By John investing/paying back Social Security - $96,000, he is now bought back or paid back Social Security and now would be eligible for taking his Social Security at age 70. At age 70, he would receive $1,700 per month or $8,400 more per year. The rate of return that he would receive would be greater than 8.6% by taking the $86,000 and dividing it into the $96,000 that he paid. Based upon inflation and market rates currently, in order for you to beat inflation and income tax, this may be the perfect answer for those low yielding CDs or under performing investments or stock market volatility. Retirement, retirement calculator retirement planning, retirement calculators, retirement quotes, retirement teacher, .Retirement, retirement calculator retirement planning, retirement calculators, retirement quotes, retirement teacher, Retirement, retirement calculator retirement planning, retirement calculators, retirement A word of warning, everyone is different based upon your health, your marital status and many other factors that are involved. Like most investment strategies, it is not advisable, let me state that again, not advisable for you simply to endeavor into this transactional Social Security before you have a professional analyst to make sure that this will work out to your benefit. The government will certainly not advise you as to whether this is a good benefit for you or not. We have been struggling with a way to find an analyst that would do these computations for clients because it is an onerous task trying to contact Social Security, get the computations and if it is successful, then to fill out the paper work and to deal with the Social Security administration. We have received numerous requests from clients on this, on a request to produce this analysis but have not been very successful in finding the qualified analysts that would do it for the right fee. Most analysts are looking to do this for a fee in between $1,500 to $2,000. We've felt that that has been out of line and therefore we have made the investment into the software that can do this analysis for our clients or prospective clients. We have reduced the fee down to $400 for the full analysis and communication with Social Security. If this is something that you'd be interested in looking into, you can contact us by going to iamllc.biz. 401k retirement military retirement retirement savings calculator, military retirement calculator retirement savings 401k retirement military retirement retirement savings calculator, military retirement calculator retirement savings In closing, I will tell you that this is at this point a very little known fact that you can do this for Social Security to the point that only approximately 100,000 people per year are actually doing this. That's a small-scale considering the number of people that are on Social Security. This is but one of the many investment strategies you may employ to make your wealth last through retirement. However, it might be a retirement plan that could help your investment stretch into your future. Retirement, retirement calculator retirement planning, retirement calculators, retirement quotes, retirement teacher *****


About the Author
Kenneth Himmler has been teaching and coaching individuals and businesses on proper wealth management techniques since 1984. In addition to being the radio show host of two radio programs for over ten years he has also been the writer for three newspapers and has numerous articles published in financial journals. Kenneth Himmler is also the author of Live Rich Stay Wealthy for Women Only which was published in October of 2006 in addition to other

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

There are Different Types of Investment Plans in the Market

by Jay Moncliff

Unlike many other forms of speculation, investing can actually be fun and it is a great way to plan for your family's financial future. Some people start their investing strategy small by using shares in higher risk areas, but move on to real estate when they have the funds. Any one of these can help assure the future financial needs of yourself or your family with the right attitude in place. I am sure you have already guessed that this piece is not going to give you all the information you need but it is hoped it will give the incentive to look further into this topic.

If you are considering the stock market then you will need to study the companies you wish to invest in otherwise you might as well throw your money away. While this is the traditional place to make money, there are many areas where a novice investor can stumble; let's face it even the professionals get it wrong here sometimes. Real estate is safer than the stock market and in the long term can bring great gains. For those who don't mind getting their hands dirty, home remodeling is the way forward by purchasing a run down property and then selling it on at a profit where the money can be used for another property to make more money.



There are however, many factors that should be considered before any attempt is made to invest in real estate; this is not the case with the next option. The term ‘armchair investor' is used for all those people that have dipped their toes into online trading; open to just about everyone it is currently the fastest growing sector. Anyone trading online can first check the companies they are interested in, their growth and performance for example before they decide to invest with them, all of which can be done quickly and easily. It is not uncommon for people to become addicted to this in the same way a gambler does so you must stick to your limits and not go beyond them.

Investing requires knowledge gained from research and training so if you are an impatient person this might not be the way for you to make money. Whatever field you find most interesting, the key to long term success is research, plain and simple. As usual, there is a huge amount of free information on the internet if you really want to learn more; remember, successful people do not use luck all the time! I know many people that thoroughly enjoy investing this way and having control over an investment portfolio; I also know a few who approached it the wrong way and lost large sums of money in the process so be one of the wise ones.

About the Author
Francisco Segura manages http://franchisephilippinesadvise.com/buy-a-franchise.html Buy A Franchise

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Go Zone truth and how you benefit

by Scott Allan

In my years of due diligence and overall business in the Go Zone, I like to think I know what I am talking about. As a unique trait as a builder, I have a good website presence and am on e-mail list of many builders and marketing companies. If I had a nickel for every "Go Zone Preconstruction" "MDA SRAP" "FORGIVABLE LOAN" e-mail I received I would have a small fortune. The crazy thing is that many builders such as myself are not originally from Mississippi. Very few builders have put the same amount of due diligence into the market as we have. That said, there is a lot that is ignored and investors only knowing half of the facts, if any at all. I recenly was solicited by a cold call from a marketer and when I asked them a question regarding the MDA, they didn't even know what MDA stood for.

First things first. Investors need to know the facts. First, the go zone is not for everyone. Passive investors and real estate professionals are the easiest to qualify. Most W-2 earners cannot qualify for the Go Zone.

The MDA Small Rental Assistance Program is not guaranteed. In fact, we've been waiting nearly 8 months for their decision on the first round. Hopefully if you are reading this we are into the second round and things are going much more smoothe.

If you are south of Interstate 10 and building on slab, please get an elevation certificate and be certain your builder is elevating the slab at least 17 inches above the street lip. It would be to your advantage to build compliant to FEMA's Advisory Base Flood Elevation and you will only confirm this through an elevation certificate and verification on the revised FEMA maps. Fortunately our models of construction comply with all of this as we want to give the investors and homeowners the best exit strategy possible in the future.

Financing is another misconception. There is no 100% financing anymore and lenders that fund over 85% at this point are likely very expensive and the good faith estimate should be read thoroughly. It would behoove you as an investor to buy your loan down to 80% Loan to Value. The nice thing is that most preconstruction opportunity will appraise higher than what your contract price is for. Your loan to Value is based off of the appraisal, allowing you financing 80% at much less than 20% down. In most cases you will pay about 10% down plus closing costs.

There are many issues that have arisen in the Go Zone. I am finding that investors are getting so overwhelmed by e-mails and conflicting stories that they are talking themselves out of a fantastic investment opportunity. There is a realistic demand for tens of thousands of homes in the damaged areas of Mississippi. Having a unique location, location, location will help you achieve a solid investment purchase.

Please call us at (239) 872-5107 for a free consultation. Of course we would love your business as builders, but we would like to start with educating you on the area and referring you to the proper professionals to speak about personal qualifications for financing and Go Zone. Please visit our website and try the links provided in this article to browse updated news on the Go zone and other emerging markets. Remember, real estate is the biggest engine to creating wealth. It today's economy, Go Zone Investing is one of the best rental markets available for your portfolio.



About the Author
Scott Allan has become a quick success story in real estate. Starting at age 23, Scott has been recognized as one of Keller Williams Realty top 10 agents in 2005. In 2006 he was hired by TFS, one of the largest construction lenders in the construction where he was real estate acquisition director and consulted on the construction level. Now, at age 29, Scott is part owner of a construction company and serves as a national speaker and real estate

Monday, August 25, 2008

How do Mutual Funds work

by Dilip

How Funds are sold
Mutual Funds primarily depend upon individual agents and distribution companies to market their schemes to the investors. Nowadays, they also market their schemes directly.

The individual agents who sell schemes of various Mutual Funds also act as financial advisors to many investors. Hence they are required to clear various examinations before acting as an agent. Many Mutual Funds prefer to deal with distribution agency than individual agents as it is easier to manage. These distribution agencies, with their highly qualified executives, will be able to offer better financial advice than individual agents to the investors.

Nowadays, the sales officers and other employees of the investment companies directly approach the investors (particularly the high net worth individuals and corporate clients) to sell different schemes. However, most of the sales of Mutual Funds happen through other distribution route than from marketing directly.

Investment Policies

Every Mutual Fund has a specified investment policy which will be described in the Mutual Fund's prospectus. A family of Mutual Funds will be managed by an Asset Management Company. This Asset Management Company will collect funds from investors and charge a management fee for operating them. They enable investors to invest across different market sectors and switch assets across funds while still benefiting from centralized record keeping.

The investment policies of different types of funds are as follows:

* Equity Funds. They invest in stock. However, they will hold 4% to 5% of their assets in money market securities to offer liquidity. Income funds will hold shares of firms giving high dividend yield and Growth funds will hold shares of firms that enable faster capital appreciation. Sector funds focus on a particular industry.

* Debt Funds. These funds invest in fixed-income securities. Different funds will concentrate on Treasury bills, corporate bonds, Mortgage-backed securities and other kinds of bonds. Some of the funds also specialize on maturity.

* Index Funds. Index funds buy shares that are included in a particular index in proportion to each share's representation in that index. Investing in index funds is a passive strategy because the investors need not do any security analysis.

* Money Market Funds. These funds invest in short-term low-risk instruments of the money market. Since the liquidity is high, some of the funds even offer cheque writing facilities to their investors. Apart from these funds there are many different varieties of funds with unique investment policies like the international funds which invest in different securities across the world, the balanced funds which minimize risk without compromising heavily on growth opportunities and current income and the flexible funds which depend on market timing.

For more information about how mutual funds work visit Mutual Funds and to know about investing in mutual funds visit Investing in Mutual Funds

About the Author
Dilip, young & dynamic has had exposure divergent fields- from astronomy to wireless local loop. He is sharp and quick to grasp complex concepts. His interest expands to management. He has a flair for finance with an MBA degree in a reputed institute and paternal banking background.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

Investing is the wise way to make more money

by Francisco Segura


If you have you ever thought about investing, was this because you have a family that you would like take care of or is it just the idea of making money? Some people start their investing strategy small by using shares in higher risk areas, but move on to real estate when they have the funds. It takes the right attitude however, to achieve this, and a careful approach (not reckless) should make money worries a thing of the past. The information set out here really is only a brief guide and more research will be required if this is something you are serious about.

Of course the most popular area to invest in is the stock market but caution is required with so many companies wanting your money; careful study is the key to long term success here. Although the stock market is a great place to make money, there is also a degree of risk involved. The safer option, and also one that can be used for long term profit as well, is real estate and buying a house can increase in value considerably. For those who don't mind getting their hands dirty, home remodeling is the way forward by purchasing a run down property and then selling it on at a profit where the money can be used for another property to make more money.



Before considering this option carry out some research because there is more involved than has been mentioned here; something that does is not so much of a problem with the next area to be looked at. The quickest way to get started is by doing it online and it is also the fastest growing sector of investment as it can be carried out by just about anyone providing they have a computer and an internet connection. Anyone doing this is called a ‘trader' and it is possible for them to carry out all the research on their own before they buy or sell within the market. While many people make a decent profit doing this you must be disciplined in your approach as it is easy to let it start ruling your life and wallet.

Whichever market you plan to work in, remember investing is a skill; true it can be learned but that often requires patience which is something many short term investors do not have. Whatever field you find most interesting, the key to long term success is research, plain and simple. For further information on the subject with some interesting case histories, simply visit the forums, blogs and websites that are a powerhouse of good advice. A final word of warning; investing is also a form of gambling and many people have become addicted and lost everything so make sure you are one of those that's a winner.

About the Author
Francisco Segura runs and operates http://www.forexhistoryforprofit.com/currency-converter-history.html Currency Converter History

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Growth Investing 101 - A Complete Strategy Review

by Odd Lot


MAJOR GOALS
Growth Investors are constantly trying to find tomorrow's strongest stocks. They look for companies in the early stages of their growth cycle that are already showing signs of dominance. When they find a promising stock, they buy it even if it has already experienced rapid price appreciation in the hopes of riding the wave as the company grows and attracts more and more investors. There isn't a lot of analysis involved in growth investing, it is a criteria based strategy. When I say criteria based, I mean Growth Investors are much more concerned with whether a company is exhibiting behavior that suggests it will be one of tomorrow's leaders than they are about the fundamental or technical aspects of a stock.

The criteria used to select growth stocks varies widely, but in general, Growth Investors are looking for companies with the potential to dominate their category and grow earnings and revenue exponentially for the next several years. Most growth stocks offer something that gives them a unique advantage such as a cutting-edge new technology (early Microsoft... Bill almost took over the world), visionary leader (Steve Jobs at Apple... Inventions that start with an "I"), a competitive advantage (e-Bay... will they ever have competition?), or a new and unique marketing approach (Starbucks... are you selling coffee or a lifestyle?).

INVESTMENT SELECTION METHODS

There is a little fundamental analysis and occasionally some technical analysis involved in evaluating potential growth stocks, but for the most part, Growth Investors are trying to evaluate a stock's competitive position in the market. They won't be scared away by poor fundamentals as long as their growth stock criteria are met. For example, if you have a startup with patents on a new technology, they are the first mover in a hot new industry, and they have a CEO with several successful startups under his belt, many Growth Investors will buy it even if it is in debt and losing money.

One of the fundamental metrics you will hear Growth Investors talk about a lot is the Price-to-Earnings Ratio or P/E Ratio. This simple calculation is the Earnings per Share divided by the Price of the stock and the reason they love this measure is it tells you today how investors think the stock will perform tomorrow. While some strategies would interpret a high P/E Ratio to mean a company is currently overvalued, a Growth Investor interprets this to mean that the company will earn much more in the future and that investors are simply pricing in those future earnings.

There isn't a set of rules to follow for identifying growth stocks but there are a few growth investing guiding principles that most Growth Investors adhere to. I mentioned that a growth company needs to be a leader in a new industry, so this tells you that a growth company needs to have a sustainable competitive advantage. This can come in the form of patents, new technology, deep pockets, or first mover advantage. You also know that the P/E ratio is important and this tells you that rapidly increasing earnings is a critical piece of the strategy. Something that goes hand-in-hand with rapid revenue growth is expense management. Revenue is great but if expenses are growing faster, profit margins begin to deteriorate, a common pitfall for many would-be growth stocks. Finally, if a stock is going to survive the competitive early stages of a business cycle and emerge as the clear winner, it has to have great management. Growth Investors always evaluate who is at the helm. They want to see leaders with successful track records, visionaries who are the best in their field or new and innovative business models.

This is a little off topic, but have you noticed that Growth Investing and Value Investing are basically opposing strategies? What a Value Investor would consider a great stock a Growth Investor would consider trash and vice versa. Does this mean that one strategy is right and one is wrong? No, they have both proven to be market beaters over long periods of time for investors that get good at implementing their strategy. However, this certainly strengthens my recommendation not to mix strategies, can you imagine a Growth/Value investor? Yikes.

RISKS

Growth investors will experience a lot more volatility than other strategies and the market. What does that mean? That means their stocks drop first and they drop the fastest during bearish periods. This is due to the nature of growth stocks, many are young companies with high P/E Ratios and are viewed as overvalued during market corrections and recessions. Growth Investors have to be willing to ride out losses until the market turns bullish again.

While Growth Investing is not as technically or analytically demanding as a strategy like Value Investing, it is still a very research intensive strategy. Growth Investors have to keep up with more than just the market, they have to know which industries, geographic regions, and stocks are hot and they also need be aware of new technologies, services and products quickly. Successful Growth Investors are constantly shifting to different types of stocks to make sure they stay invested where there is currently a lot of interest and innovation. There is an enormous amount of information available if you're trying to figure out what's "hot" in the market right now. Every web site, newspaper and magazine has a different opinion. Growth Investors have to be able to weed through all of this information and find the stocks that will be tomorrow's leaders.

Risk management is a tricky but critical component of Growth Investing. Many Growth Investors use buy limits and sell limits to stay disciplined and help deal with this constant balancing act. Properly set buy limits keep them from putting money into stocks that have already experienced most of their rally and also tell them when to take a profit. Properly set sell limits will tell them when to pull their cash out of stocks that have lost as much as they are willing to risk on that particular investment. Granted, this approach reduces your risk exposure to bad stocks, but it is disastrous if you set bad limits because growth investors lose big when their money is in cash during a rally. Growth Stocks will significantly outperform the market during bullish periods but not if your money is sitting on the sidelines.

This is not a buy-and-hold strategy, you will trade a LOT so transaction costs can add up very quickly. A good risk management program may even require that you buy and sell the same stock several times if it fluctuates through your buy or sell limits.

BENEFITS

Growth stocks grow much faster than other stocks, you will significantly outperform the market during bull markets. This is the goal, Growth Investors know that if they are invested in good growth stocks during rallies, their huge gains will more than make up for the losses they experience during bear markets.

Growth Investors that get very good at risk management are more likely to sell out near the top of a stock's growth cycle, avoid buying when it's too late to get in, and sell a stock when it no longer appears to be behaving like a growth stock. Great risk managers will have some protection against losses plus they will always have most of their money invested during market rallies.

Let's be honest, everyone wishes they had bought companies like Google, Microsoft, or Apple. Growth Investing is the strategy that gives you the best odds of hitting a home run. This is one of the few strategies that actively seeks the next powerhouse stock, the one that can grow from a startup to a Blue Chip. This factor draws more people to Growth Investing than any other, many investors want to try to buy companies that make them feel like they won the lottery.

LONG-TERM OUTLOOK

Growth investing isn't going anywhere, it's a very popular strategy that always draws an enormous number of investors looking for big gains during bull markets. Great Growth Investors will outperform investors implementing just about any other strategy. Most strategies are more conservative and provide much more protection against losses during bear markets but can't keep up with this strategy's explosive growth during bull markets because they aren't willing to take the risks involved.

One drawback of Growth Investing is that you will likely need to change strategies when you get close to retirement. As your portfolio gets much larger and as you get closer to the end of your career, capital preservation will become much more important than capital growth. Why? For example, imagine that you're only three years from retirement and a recession hits. Since you're a growth investor, your portfolio drops more rapidly than the market and you wind up losing 40% of your portfolio. If you're 15 years from retirement, no problem, you have plenty of recovery time, but since you're only three years away you are not likely to make up your losses and very unlikely to gain any more ground before your retirement date. You must then decide if you would rather work longer or manage to a tighter budget during retirement. Lose-Lose decisions are no fun, smarter investors switch to a more balanced investing strategy as they near retirement.

INVESTOR PROFILE

If you choose this strategy, do several hours of research per week for the first year or two so that you can more quickly develop a knack for identifying high potential growth stocks early in their growth cycle. Study history, it can tell you a lot about how great companies behaved and were viewed by the market early on. I can't stress research and work-ethic enough. There is so much hype in the media about what stocks and industries are "hot", and successful Growth Investors are able to ignore all the hype and find stellar companies hidden amongst the rubbish. You will have to put in a lot of hard work to refine your selection criteria and develop this talent.

You will need an iron will and a strong stomach to be a Growth Investor because you are guaranteed to take losses, often very quickly, during bear markets. Successful growth investors accept this volatility as a necessary evil and ride it out while they wait for the next rally to erase their losses. Risk management helps, but keep in mind that risk management for a Growth Investor is geared more towards timing the buying and selling of your growth stocks to maximize returns than it is toward protecting you when the market is going down. You will usually be fully invested in high-risk stocks when a bear market hits, you'll have to accept that there will be some rough patches. These fast and sometimes large losses make it very hard for all but the strongest Growth Investors to avoid making stupid investing mistakes like panicking and selling low.

A Growth Investor's goal is to identify tomorrow's greatest companies and sometimes this can feel like trying to find a needle in a haystack, you will inevitably pick losers, especially as a beginner. The only way to combat this is to continue refining your criteria and risk management techniques so that you pick fewer and fewer losers and get out of them more quickly as you gain experience.

You can expect spectacular gains from this strategy if you master it. Investors such as the late Al Frank crushed the market averages for over 25 years. Granted, in some years he lost as much as 40% of his portfolio but when the market turned he made it back quickly. Investors like Al do their homework. He was one of the most disciplined and hard working investors to ever practice Growth Investing. He did exhaustive research and never stopped refining his risk management and stock selection techniques throughout his long and successful investing career.

Thanks for reading! Check our site for links to these additional strategy reviews: - Value Investing: "I won't buy unless the stock is selling for less than it's worth." - Growth Investing: "I'm willing to take some risks for portfolio growth." - Income Investing: "This money has to last a long time, I'm playing it safe." - Mutual Fund Investing: "I want professional expertise guiding my portfolio." - Index Investing (Index Funds and ETFs): "I'll let the market do the work for me." - Momentum Investing: "I want to own hot stocks until they cool off." - Market Timing: "Ride the Bull and hide from the Bear." - Day Trading & Technical Analysis: "I have no fear of risk, I will take big chances for big gains."

Thanks for reading! Please check http://www.Money-and-Investing.com and http://blog.Money-and-Investing.com frequently, we are constantly adding new investing guides, tutorials and personal finance articles.


About the Author
Odd Lot is the Founder of both http://www.Money-and-Investing.com and http://blog.Money-and-Investing.com

Both sites are dedicated to educating investors, providing a steady stream of new and fun investing articles and education material, and encouraging investors to take the scary leap to self directed portfolios.

Friday, August 22, 2008

Feel the Fear of Being a Losing Trader

by Leroy Rushing


Emotions are something that every trader fears, but they should also feel the fear of being a losing trader. Nothing is worse than consistent losses, particularly when the rewards of your labor are the sole earnings for the month. Many unsuccessful traders find themselves in a position wondering where their next meal will come from, and certainly it won’t be from the thousands of dollars in losses that they have incurred.
Trading plan planner

A trading plan planner is the key to avoiding losses and creating profits. Trading plan planners help build a quality trading strategy around your own creative techniques. A trading plan planner should be the first stop for anyone serious about preserving trading capital. Knowing how to plan, what to plan for, and why you need a plan is often the fastest way to eliminate losses and produce consistent profits on a day to day basis.

Professional traders understand the importance of learning to plan. Losing traders all have one thing in common: either a losing plan or an inconsistent plan. A profitable plan used by an amateur who understands why consistency is important will prove profitable, while the same plan in the hands of a professional unconcerned about consistency will lose.

Master day trading

To master day trading involves not only understanding the financial markets, but also the many variables involved in professional trading and investing. While many think that knowing where to invest is the key to profitability, how and when are the two most important parts to creating profits. There are no true insider methods, but just trading discipline, which drives a trader to remain consistent and profitable.

Your own discipline

Trading discipline cuts straight to the bottom line. It is common that those who plan wisely and chart out each position do well, while the gambling trader fights just to keep his head above water. Uptrend, downtrend, or sideways trends abound, the disciplined trader can make money in any market â€" even those that aren’t a point of interest. It all comes down to understanding your own trading plan and having the discipline to follow it.

Traders who diverge from the path of planning and organization are quick to fail. Rather than focusing on creating profits, they’re looking for get rich quick investments and hoping to make a killing on one trade rather than produce long-term profits. Any trader serious about making money should instead look to the long term and the potential of everyday trading.


About the Author
Leroy Rushing is an active, professional day trader; trading coach; and author. He is the Founder and CEO of Trading EveryDay, a provider of educational trading products and services that are available worldwide. Trading EveryDay has complimentary/FREE products, a Tools of the Trade eBook and a Trading Room Report, that are downloadable for your convenience.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

If you want to invest, you need to research first


by Francisco Segura


Many people consider investing, after all you do not always need thousands of dollars to start this and there is less chance of big losses if you don't have that sort on money. Some people start their investing strategy small by using shares in higher risk areas, but move on to real estate when they have the funds. Any one of these can help assure the future financial needs of yourself or your family with the right attitude in place. The information set out here really is only a brief guide and more research will be required if this is something you are serious about.

If you are considering the stock market then you will need to study the companies you wish to invest in otherwise you might as well throw your money away. Over time, the stock market is a good bet for investors but it should really be viewed by novices as a long term proposition as a quick-buck is often only something the professionals will make. The safest place to place your money is in real estate; it might take many years for you to appreciate a decent return on your savings but when you do it will be big. Although many people purchase homes that are in need of remodeling, you can make a great deal of money by fixing them up and re-selling them but it isn't as simple as just buying a house, painting it, and then selling it on.



Before considering this option carry out some research because there is more involved than has been mentioned here; something that does is not so much of a problem with the next area to be looked at. The quickest way to get started is by doing it online and it is also the fastest growing sector of investment as it can be carried out by just about anyone providing they have a computer and an internet connection. Using your computer you can research the companies that are offering shares and have a good idea of their performance before you make a decision to invest in them. It is not uncommon for people to become addicted to this in the same way a gambler does so you must stick to your limits and not go beyond them.

A little training never hurt anyone so before you try your hand at investing, learn a little about the industry and research the subject first. It doesn't matter what sector you aim to invest in, research pays, after all how do you think wealthy investors got that way; by spinning a coin! As usual, there is a huge amount of free information on the internet if you really want to learn more; remember, successful people do not use luck all the time! A final word of warning; investing is also a form of gambling and many people have become addicted and lost everything so make sure you are one of those that's a winner.

About the Author
Francisco Segura runs and operates http://www.forexhistoryforprofit.com/currencies-history.html Currencies History

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Some Tips on Investing in Commercial Real Estate

by David Cowley

If there is any good thing that has come out of the recent crisis in the mortgage industry in the U.S., it is that some people who have always had an interest in investing in real estate are now finding that dropping prices are making it possible for them to do that. Today, investing in commercial real estate, whether it's residential properties to rent or office and industrial buildings, is quickly becoming a hot ticket item with some. Before you just jump in with both feet so to speak, consider the following tips and cautions.

First off, remember that unlike other investments you might make, commercial real estate is probably going to require quite a bit of your time and attention rather than just your investment dollars. If you're considering taking advantage of the foreclosure crisis by purchasing homes to rent out, this means making sure they're up to code, making needed repairs and remodels, finding tenants, collecting rent, taking care of ongoing repairs and maintenance, and so on. This is also true of office buildings or other commercial real estate. You need to manage tenants, take care of the property and hire landscapers and cleaners, and so on. Yes, you can hire someone to manage the property for you, but even so, there are many decisions that need to be made, invoices to approve, checks to sign, and wages to be paid. This means that no matter what, your investment in commercial real estate is going to be an investment of your time and energy, not just your money.

Another consideration you need to think about is whether or not your investment in any type of commercial real estate is going to be supported over time. When the economic situation in one area is so bad that there are vacancies in homes and office buildings, this means that there may not be enough populace in that area to support your investment. Sometimes buildings and homes are vacant for a reason! You need to seriously research the area in which you plan on investing; is the population growing or shrinking? What industry is in this area to support the population and your real estate investment? Are businesses coming into the area or leaving it? You need to do this research before you get caught up in the hype and excitement of rock bottom real estate prices.

Search the internet and read about real estate investment in Megapolitan Areas to determine if the area you are interested in has the growth potential you will need for a good return on your long term investment strategy. Perhaps you need information on Section 8 Housing. Again the internet is a great place to find information.

Yes, there have been those who have made a fortune in commercial real estate, but usually those millionaires are the exception to the rule. In reality, whether you're thinking of purchasing or building new, commercial real estate is unlike any other industry or investment out there. It requires a lot of research, determination, and commitment to make a success of it; be sure you're ready with all three of these before you invest your money in any venture.

About the Author
David Cowley has created numerous articles on real estate investing. He has also created a Web Site dedicated to real estate investing. Visit http://www.rgvre-team.com

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Learn How to Make Money by Stock Channeling

by Daniel Millions

If you are serious about succeeding at online stock trading and by succeeding I mean making tons and tons of money then this may be the most important article you read today.
Here's why: there's a little-known but extremely accurate stock market investment technique that actually eliminates the guesswork and uncertainty that accompanies online stock trading by telling exact stocks to buy, at what price you should buy them, and the exact price you should sell these stocks to ensure that you make a profit off of each and every trade that you make.

What's this technique called? It's called stock channeling and it may quite simply be one of the best ways to be truly successful at online stock trading.

Here's how stock channeling works: When a stock repeatedly moves up and down in waves between two parallel lines it is said to be a channeling stock. The upper trend line, or high price point, acts as resistance, and the lower trend line, or low price point, acts as support. The area between the two trend lines is the channel.

So all an investor has to do is buy a channeling stock when its price is near the bottom of the channel and sell it when its price rises to near the top of the channel. And since channeling stocks repeat their movements, investors can buy and sell and profit from a stock over and over again.

So why is stock channeling such a reliable investment technique? Because it relies on the market's natural tendency to trend. You see, when a stock starts to go up in price, some investors will always say that the stock price has gotten too high and they will sell their shares and take their profits. At the same time, other investors will also be inclined to say a stock is too high and they will decide to short the stock.

Then when a stock starts to go down, some investors will decide to start adding to their position and if it really goes down in price either the same people who were averaging down will load up on it or value investors will step in and say the stock is cheap, it's time to buy. Also at this time, those who shorted the stock may cover their short and take their profits.

All of these types of investor behaviors often work together to keep a stock channeling back and forth in price. However, channels don't last forever. Eventually a channel will be broken and probably a new one will be formed.

But until that happens, a channel can last for years and provide an investor with tremendous profits in the meantime. The key is finding stocks that are channeling so that you can invest in them and profit from them over and over again. Here is an example trade that shows the profit potential of investing in channeling stocks:

Let's say that an investor knows the stock of ABC Company is currently channeling so he buys 100 shares at the low price of $15 and then sells it at the high price of $18. Then this investor waits for the price to go back down to $15, where he buys it again and then he sells it again at $18. He does this two more times and in no time he's made a nice little profit of $1,200!

I'm sure I don't have to tell you that greed and fear are two of an investor's worst enemies and to be truly successful in the stock market you need to be able to keep your emotions out of it. Stock Channeling helps investors profit from the stock market by giving them strict buy and sell signals to follow for specific stocks that are channeling.

Stock channeling is by far one of the best ways to consistently profit from the stock market regardless of what kind of condition the market is in. It is the only investment strategy in existence that provides a clear and concise road map to exact stocks that you can profit from over and over again.


About the Author
Every stock trader that is ready to profit in the stock market repeatedly needs to check this out!

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