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Best Investment Books Investors Must Read

March 7, 2013

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Jon

A new round of investment books are churned out after every major market event offering a new way to invest. Market crashes and asset bubbles are prime opportunities for the book industry to offer up some new or long forgotten investment strategy.

Too often, the books pry on your fear, greed, and wallet. It always ends up being time or asset specific, short-term focused advice, with just a hint of get rich quick to it.

The best investment books are timeless.

Thankfully, a few great investors were also teachers willing to share their knowledge, experience, and practical advice. Something every investor needs from time to time. And they did it in a way investors at any level could learn.

Besides, it’s still cheaper to pick up a book then to learn from experience alone. And self-education is a great way to learn about investing. Continue Reading…
Happy Hour: Sequester And BRK Dividend?

March 1, 2013

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Jon

Welcome to the end of the week and another edition of Happy Hour! Just sit back, relax, and enjoy your end of the week roundup of all things interesting in the land of money.

Sequester

The image of the end is nigh with the sequester is playing out on news channels today. The heart string are being pulled. And the political ploys and threats of government agency shutdown and closure abound. But should you really be worried? In the grand scheme of things, the answer is…no. Will it impact the economy? Sure. It won’t end it. As the Tax Foundation so eloquently puts it: Continue Reading…
Ally Bank Review: The Best Online Bank?

February 28, 2013

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Jon
The transition to online banking has been underway for years. It’s become so accepted that brick and mortar banks now offer most of the same features – online account access, bill pay, and even mobile banking to appease customers. Yet, they still fall short when compared to Ally and other online banks.

The reality is we are moving to a bank anywhere platform. Yet there will always be a few simple things we want from our bank.

That is why I started shopping around for a new bank last year. My criteria was simple and convenient:
- The bank had to offer good checking and savings accounts. I wanted simplicity, so no separate accounts in multiple banks.
- Both accounts needed to be no fee and free checking. If that’s not too much to ask.
- Make deposits from home. Let’s be honest, running to bank is not convenient.
- No ATM fees. Stalking an ATM network to avoid fees – not convenient.
- A decent interest rate.
That includes all the standard bells and whistles you get with checking and savings accounts these days – free debit card, online bill pay, balance alerts, and FDIC insurance. Continue Reading…
Happy Hour: Facebook Outrage And Smarter Homes

February 22, 2013

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Jon

Welcome to the end of the week and another edition of Happy Hour! Just sit back, relax, and enjoy your end of the week roundup of all things interesting in the land of money.

Facebook Outrage

It’s always a good thing to know the whole story. Earlier this week, Facebook took a lot of flack (should be used to it by now) over their lack of taxation. A result of going public last year provided the company with a healthy tax refund. Nothing out of the ordinary really. This happens all the time. When a company goes public and employees have a vested interest in said company (read exercised stock options), those options are considered a business expense.

Instead of telling the whole story, the media and an advocacy group wants to focus solely on the refund. Which really isn’t a story. In 2011, the IRS issued $318 billion in tax refunds. Yet, somehow, Facebook’s $429 million refund is outrageous.

What wasn’t covered, was the billions in taxes paid due to those exercised stock options. As the tax foundation points out, Zuckerberg alone will pay close to $2 billion in taxes for 2012.

I’m curious if their outraged by their own tax refunds too. Continue Reading…
Market Euphoria Is Where Things Stand

February 19, 2013

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Jon

I don’t read charts. I can’t predict the short-term future any more than you. Yet at certain times, the market reaches a point where short-term direction seems obvious and easy to predict. The hard part is pinpointing the time.

So why try to time it perfectly. If you know it will happen eventually, plan for it now. It’s like filling sandbags after a flood, when the Weather Channel warned you for weeks.

I can’t predict the short-term any better than this: either the market continues this trek higher or it has a moment of clarity and relaxes until better information tells it where to go. For now, the signs seem to point higher with some concerns to consider.

What’s Working

My first thought is irrationality. Continue Reading…
Happy Hour: Overhyped And When Meteors Attack

February 15, 2013

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Jon

Welcome to the end of the week and another edition of Happy Hour! Just sit back, relax, and enjoy your end of the week roundup of all things interesting in the land of money.

Overhyped

We read into things. We raise expectations. We over hype possibilities. Businesses are built around products that help us cut down our daily tasks. Think TV dinners and the 8 minute exercise video. It simplifies things. Makes it easier. It frees up time. And the possibilities become endless.

Except it doesn’t.

At the same time this is happening, other businesses are being built around products that distract us from that free time. That drain every free second of our attention.

Which brings us to Facebook. The biggest of the time sucks created in the past decade. With glazed eyes and rose-colored glasses we bit. Wasting more time on the site than any other. In the process, over hyped its possibilities and potential for what it could do. Not what it does. Continue Reading…

Best Investment Books Investors Must Read

Happy Hour: Sequester And BRK Dividend?

Sequester

Ally Bank Review: The Best Online Bank?

Happy Hour: Facebook Outrage And Smarter Homes

Facebook Outrage

Market Euphoria Is Where Things Stand

What’s Working

Happy Hour: Overhyped And When Meteors Attack

Overhyped