Category: investments

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Ask M-Network: Move Retirement Account Or Stay Where I Am?

My Two Dollars reader Bud sent in the following question to the M-Network’s new feature “Ask The M-Network“:

“I just turned 57 today. I retired from a company 2 years ago. I took a lump sum and gave it to Fidelity in a managed account. Needless to say I am down 30+%. My question is or should I say I’m looking for direction whether I should remove it out of the managed account to save the cost of paying Fidelity to manage it and just invested in Fidelity or Vanguard index funds. I would at least be saving the quarterly expense.”

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investments
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A Primer On Lending And Borrowing With Lending Club.

Social lending is the process of enabling people to lend directly to and borrow directly from other people without using a bank. It really is a genius idea and one I wish I had thought of! Lending Club was one of the first to get in this game, and after a quick filing and reorg with the SEC, they are back and ready to help you borrow and lend money. Now they offer SEC registered notes to credit worthy borrowers by giving returns to investors (like me) with returns stated from 6.69-19.37%. That’s pretty good with the economy the way that it is! (Here is a great story at NPR on how Lending Club works out for both borrowers and lenders alike in this tight credit market.)

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investments
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Socially Responsible Investing: Can You Make Money?

Over at the NRDC site, they have a very interesting article about socially responsible investing. Some might immediately think that you could never make as much money investing in “green” ventures as big bad companies, but as it turns out, you can come close. At the expense of possibly losing a percentage point or 2, you can invest in companies or funds that only invest in responsible companies; ones that have nothing to do with the oil companies or cigarette makers, leaving your fingers free of any “dirty money”. This is what the article says about those people who might be willing to lose a percentage point on their investments:

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investments
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3 Easy Steps To Get Started With Investing.

A recent article at Kiplinger.com laid out three simple steps to get started with investing, and I figured I would mention them here with my thoughts on each for anyone thinking of jumping into this strange market we have right now. Granted, it might not be the best time to begin investing, but at the same time stocks are cheap – and if you can learn quickly, invest in what you know and use, and can stomach a possible loss (at least for a while), now might actually be a very good time to start investing. Let’s take a look at what 3 steps they say to follow…

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investments
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Time To Buy Stock In Gambling, Alcohol & Tobacco Companies.

You know what always does well in down times? Vice. Since things are looking like they are only going to get worse for the foreseeable future, now might be the time to start buying stock in casinos, cigarette makers and distilleries, no?

When it comes to investing there is no proof that being a “goody two shoes” increases total return. In fact, if you try to inject your conscience into your investing, don’t be surprised if you miss out on some great returns. Just check out the Vice Fund (VICEX), which focuses its investments on companies dealing in alcohol, weapons, gambling and tobacco. ..So-called sin stocks tend to be recession-proof because no matter the economic environment, demand for things like booze, cigarettes and casinos typically holds steady. The following attractively priced sin stocks may not make you feel good about yourself–until you look over to the gain/loss column of your brokerage statement.

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investments
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