fund distributions

Most taxes are pretty simple to understand.  The more you earn the more you pay.  But in the investment world, it can be far more complicated than that.  Despite the massive losses in the market this year, many mutual fund investments are expected to pay capital gain distributions. The last time I checked, nobody likes [...]

Investing in the stock market is a risky business if you don’t know what you’re doing.  Even if you do, it’s possible to lose a lot of money — e.g., Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, etc.  Personally, I have moved away from individual stock picking for many years now, and embrace investing mechanics that [...]

This is the 7th issue of the Ask The Expert column by Larry Swedroe. You can see Larry’s full biography and important disclaimer below. If you are interested in having your question answered by Larry, please send me an email via the contact page.
Now, let’s get to the questions and answers (please note that the [...]

This is the 4th issue of the Ask The Expert column by Larry Swedroe. You can see Larry’s full biography and important disclaimer below. If you are interested in having your question answered by Larry, please send me an email via the contact page.
Now, let’s get to the questions and answers (please note that the [...]

I’ve been investing since 1996. In the process, I have learned a lot, mainly from trial and error. I’d like to share my experience with you. Here are some of the mistakes I’ve made:

Not investing soon enough — I have been working part-time since my first year at college in 1991. If I had known [...]

Market timing does not work (1). However, there are still plenty of investors who believe in market timing, and a subset of these believe that January Effect and October Effect are real. In a true MythBusters‘ fashion, I did some historical data analysis and have a few statistical factoids to share with you. But first…
What [...]

After I wrote “The Weak Dollar is Killing Americans’ Wealth” for Consumerism Commentary last Thursday, I was still intrigued by this new perspective on wealth. As a visual person, I thought this alternative look at the same concept may be easier to grasp and would like to share it here.
Just press the big play button [...]

I mentioned previously that I made many financial mistakes in the past. One of the more serious ones was refinancing my mortgage from 30 years to 15 years in 2003 (about 4 years after I purchased my home). On the surface, I did a brilliant job of saving nearly $97,000 in interest expenses and ending [...]

In “Beating the S&P 500, part 1,” I showed you my my investment performance that beaten the S&P 500. In this post, I will show you another way to look at these numbers and reveal how I managed the feat.
Here is a different look at the numbers
The following table shows how $10,000 invested in my [...]

I want to share with you how I saved my first $250,000. Of course, your result will vary depending on your income, saving options, and ability to save.
Automatic-Investment Plan (AIP)
I started working in 1996 as a contract worker, so I didn’t have any 401k plan. Personally, I am not a budgeting type, so I had [...]