Performance Update On My Rollover IRA
September 17, 2009 by Erik Folgate
Filed under Investing, Stocks
If you’ve been following my “experiment” with my Rollover IRA ETF funds, then you know it’s been doing pretty well. In fact, a friend of mine told me that he has a friend who actually followed suit and invested in the same ETF’s as me! While this scares me a little bit, I am sure he is pleased with the 46% gain on his money since March. Here is the breakdown:
(March 1st 2009 – Present)
BND: VANGUARD TOTAL BOND MARKET – (1.34 %) loss
Help A Reader: From Buying A House to Selling Wholesale Goods on eBay
September 3, 2009 by Erik Folgate
Filed under Investing, Real Estate
I answer all of these questions with what I would do, so don’t take my word as gospel. Surround yourself with a team of professionals that you trust like a financial planner, accountant, good real estate agent, and attorney, before you make any final decisions such as these.
I am looking into purchasing a house for 80K. Payments are about 680 a month with insurance and taxes already included.
In order to tell you if I think buying this house would be a good idea, I’d need to know more information. If $680 a month would be no more than 25 to 30% of your take-home pay, then I think it’s a good deal. If not, then stay away from buying for now.
Why Rich People Go Broke
August 19, 2009 by Erik Folgate
Filed under Insurance, Investing, Spending and Saving
I was reading Sports Illustrated, and I came across this statistic:
78% of former NFL players go bankrupt or are under major money stress due to joblessness within 2 years after retirement. 60% of NBA players are broke within 5 years after retirement.
Does that surprise you? It didn’t surprise me that a lot professional athletes end up squandering their wealth after they retire, but this number really caught my attention. How can it be that almost 4 out of 5 NFL players bo bankrupt? I think there are several reasons for this:
Should You Pay For Your Child To Go To College?
July 29, 2009 by Erik Folgate
Filed under College, Investing, Spending and Saving
Answering the questions of “should I pay for my child to go to college?” is a daunting task, but it should always be dictated by your personal and financial situation. Did you set up a college savings fund for your child when they were a baby? Did you not save a dime for your child’s education? Are the grandparents going to help with paying for college? The answer to these questions will help determine where your child should be attending college and if you’ll be paying for it. The decision brings with it a lot of emotions on your part and the part of the child. Your child will have their mind made up about where they want to go, but if you’re paying for it, you have the final say. Here are a few things to consider.
Update On My IRA Account
July 27, 2009 by Erik Folgate
Filed under Investing, Stocks
If you haven’t noticed, the stock market has been doing very well lately. It has had a few ups and downs in the past 8 weeks, but overall, it has performed great in 2009. My IRA took a strong dive in 2008 like many others, mainly because I did not have it properly diversified. I had everything in very aggressive growth stock mutual funds in a 401(k) with my former company. Once I left that company, I rolled the money into an IRA, and since the amount was not too signficant, I decided to experiment with Exchange Traded Funds.
The Way2Save Savings Plan By Wachovia
July 17, 2009 by Erik Folgate
Filed under Banking, Investing, Spending and Saving
I was talking with a friend the other day about the Way2Save Wachovia savings plan, and he has had a great experience with it so far. He and his wife were able to save almost $2,000 in less than a year without consciously making an effort to save on a consistent basis. Bank of America had a “Keep the Change” savings program that is similar to this, and I am sure other banks have similar plans, but after reading about Wachovia’s program, I think it’s one of the better automatic savings plans for people that have a hard time saving money. Here’s how it works:
How To Manage An Inheritance Or Lump Sum Of Money
July 3, 2009 by Erik Folgate
Filed under Investing
At some point in our lives, we ponder the question, “What would you do if you were given a large sum of money?” We usually answer the question with a bunch of wishful thoughts like traveling around the world or buying a boat. We don’t like thinking about being responsible with a large sum of money. I think this is because many of us never think that we’ll ever run into a windfall of money. However, it could be more feasible than you think. Baby Boomers were a very successful generation, and as they pass away, their children will inherit large sums of money and assets. Many people feel burdened with the responsibility of managing the money, so here is a list of things to do with the money that you won’t regret.
How To Save Money Buying An LCD TV
June 25, 2009 by Erik Folgate
Filed under Investing, Spending and Saving
During the summer, you will find great deals on LCD and Plasma TV’s, because manufacturers and retailers are looking to get rid of their older models to bring in new ones. As with any electronic device, manufacturers roll out a better model with more features every year to make consumers never be content with what they have. Apple does an amazing job with this tactic, and it’s one of the only things that annoys me about their company. The fact that the iPhone doesn’t have an FM radio, MMS text messages, and just recently got video playback is ridiculous. They have been adding one or two features to their iPods for the past five years, when they had the capability of adding all of the features from the beginning.
Tax Considerations For Self-Employed Income
June 16, 2009 by Erik Folgate
Filed under Investing
I was talking with one of my best friends today, and he was asking for my opinion about SEP retirement accounts, and how he can reduce the taxes taken from the self-employed income he earns throughout the year. He does some public speaking and lectures that earn him some side income throughout the year, and he noticed that the money he made in 2008 was taxed at about a 30% rate. He was asking me if it was wise to open a SEP account and contribute the maximum amount to it in order to reduce his taxable self-employment income. There are a few things to consider here…
Adjusting Your Portfolio for Inflation
June 2, 2009 by Erik Folgate
Filed under Investing
The reason many investors are skeptical about this stock market rally is because a little word called INFLATION has not reared its ugly head on our country’s economy. Don’t believe anyone when they say that inflation will not take it’s toll on our economy in the long term. We have spent money that we don’t have, so that means we printed money out of thin air without any backing. Check out this graph from the Heritage Foundation:
