Since I write a lot about personal finance on this website, and I?ve written hundreds of articles on investing on other sites, I frequently get questions about investment advice. My advice ? to the extent that I even give it ? is very guarded, and always framed with generous disclaimers. The fact is… Continue Reading

Americans long ago came to the realization that Wall Street had detached itself from Main Street. That is, the stock market operates in a universe that's completely distinct from the real world economic experience of most Americans. That detachment has been so accepted, that it?s virtually taken for… Continue Reading

Trading currencies and commodities can yield very high revenues under the right circumstances, but there are a number of factors that can cut into these profits. There is no more valuable tool for a trader than knowledge, and if you know where these costs can come in you may be able to take steps to… Continue Reading

To help you build the best possible portfolio for yourself, here?s a closer look at EFTs (exchange-traded funds), index funds, and active investing. Each of these investment opportunities has its benefits and drawbacks, and knowing the differences between them will help you create a profitable and d… Continue Reading

A lot has happened in the past few weeks. We have finally chosen two front running presidential candidates and Britain has voted to exit the European Union. We've now settled into the lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer, but with a stock market hovering in record territory. All of this makes me think t… Continue Reading

Investment is a big broad world with lots of methods for different kinds of people. You probably need to invest if you want to have a comfortable financial life in the future, especially during retirement. But contrary to what you might hear from investment advisers on TV and radio, there are more t… Continue Reading

A large number of people look to investing as a means to supplement their income or increase their wealth. The markets seem to offer dazzling opportunities for profit, and although the risks are undeniable, those who can stomach the risk are often drawn in. One of the most common misconceptions t… Continue Reading

If small investors are following the preferred investment handbook - buy-and-hold, dollar cost average, etc. - why do they seem to fare worse than large investors in down markets? In fact, small investors get clobbered in bear markets. I think there are whole bunch of reasons why this is true and… Continue Reading

As millennials grow older, that generation of young people born between the early 1980s and the early 2000s, they are clearly a force to be reckoned with by the rest of society. A larger generation than even the baby boomers, the U.S. Labor Bureau predicts that, by next year, millennials will be the… Continue Reading

I was having a discussion with some Valuation-Informed Indexing skeptics when the words popped out of my head -- ?An S&P 500 priced at 1,000 when the PE10 value is 30 is the same as an S&P 500 priced at 500 when the PE10 value is 15.? That?s a pretty darn simple way of making the essentia… Continue Reading