AIA Chiangmai

Unbeknownst to 98% of working people, the 40 year plan is over. Statistics show that by age 65 less than 2% of Americans can truly retire in comfort without the help of family members or the government. The lackluster performance of the stock market over the past 6 years has dashed many people’s hopes of retiring early. It used to be that you could get a great education, get a great job and settle with a company by 25 years of age, keep your nose clean, work your way to the top, invest in your companies stock and by age 65 retire the company you sacrificed for will take care of your retirement and medical expenses for life.

For many now this is just wishful thinking and a pipe dream.

Today’s norms:

The harsh reality is: Corporate down-sizing (e.g. Gillette, Ford, and GM). Corporate bankruptcies - Enron, Worldcom). Company’s robbing company pension plans and judges are allowing it to happen just ask people working for the airlines, illegal insider stock trading, age discrimination, companies cannot afford to pay health insurance premiums because they have sky-rocketed and people are living longer.

Other forces: World Instability, unfettered nuclear proliferation, Sept 11th, natural disasters all cooked together.

Yes, the poor performance of the stock market, lower interest rates and the real estate boom have contributed greatly to people looking for alternative investment strategies such as self directed investing of retirement funds in real estate.

The Internet, information proliferation, people’s ability to share information, online financial software, and real time stock quotes.

Benefits of investing with self directed ira funds:

Stimulates the economy It is great for recession proofing an economy. Money from retirement funds keep construction crews working

With the ability to look outside the stock market, you may find alternative investment vehicles that are safer with higher returns which will allow you to make up for lost time.

Permits true retirement diversification and wealth accumulation in tangible assets.

Global investing With your self directed IRA, you can invest in international real estate.

Granted self directing your retirement portfolio is not for everyone. But what are your legitimate alternatives?

Joshua Geary is an avid writer, business strategist and online marketing consultant. For more information on how to turn your Self Directed IRA into a wealth building money magnet visit http://www.MyRealEstateIra.com

Tags: investing, investment, investments, pension, real estate, regulations, rules, self directed ira, wealthinvesting, investment, investments, pension, real estate, regulations, rules, self directed ira, wealth

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You have a lock on your house. You have a lock on your car. You have a lock on your tool shed. Do you have a lock to protect your stock market investments?

Maybe you have a safe at home for your valuables such as jewelry, rare coins, special documents and even stock certificates. Wait a minute. Is that stock certificate protected just because it is surrounded with 3 inches of steel? Not really. The problem is that its value does fluctuate every day. It is OK so long as it is increasing because that is why you bought it. The broker told you to put it away and forget about it.

I hate to tell you this, but in the last 3 years that stock you own whether in your safe deposit box or in your account at the brokerage house might be worth a lot less. Wouldn’t it be nice if there were some way you could protect that investment from a big loss? You can, but you will have to pay a premium, but you can set the amount of the premium yourself.

Some stocks you don’t have to worry about. Isn’t that true? You know, it’s good ole AT&T. Mom bought that years ago and gave it to me when it was $55 per share. She said not to worry as it will go up and be there for retirement. Huh? You just looked and it is $14.00. Can’t be, but it is. Now don’t you wish you had bought some of that stock investment insurance? I bet your broker didn’t tell you about it. They never do because you might end up with cash and take it out of your account and he wouldn’t be able to make some nice commissions.

Most folks never heard of stock insurance. It has been there for years and years. Here is how it works. Call you your broker and tell him to enter an order for this stock with a loss protection and you are willing to pay a premium of 10% (you can set the percentage amount for more or less) and you want it to stay there until you cancel it. No, you don’t have to send him a check. He might be a little puzzled at first until he realizes you are talking about on Open Stop Loss Order. He can enter that for you. If you had put that in place when AT&T was selling at $55 you would have sold out at $49.50 and today you would be about $3,500 richer for each 100 shares. (P.S. Brokers don’t like to do this and will try to talk you out of it.)

You can do this with any listed stock to protect from loss of your investments. When you consider that the overall market is down about 40% in the last 3 years that 10% premium looks darn good.

A stop-loss order should never be lowered and should always be raised to follow a stock price up as it increases. It is not too late to do it. Call your broker today.

(c) 2005

Al Thomas’ best selling book, “If It Doesn’t
Go Up, Don’t Buy It!” has helped thousands
of people make money and keep their profits with
his simple 2-step method. Read the first chapter
to receive his market letter for 3 months at
www.mutualfundmagic.com to discover why he’s
the man that Wall Street does not want you to
know.

Tags: dividends, investing, investment portfolio, investments, mutual funds, stock broker, stock market, stocksdividends, investing, investment portfolio, investments, mutual funds, stock broker, stock market, stocks

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Money makes the world go round, as they say, and while the whole world is full of those crisp or wilted paper bills it seems that they like to slip right through our hands so quickly.

People who know how to make a dollar or two with ease enter the world of finance, which is the business of managing your money and your other assets. If you’ve got a bank account, finance is involved.

If you’re considering an investment to support your future, you’re thinking in terms of finance. Maybe it’s on our minds 24/7. After all, we need money to survive, and most of our lives is spent on making it. Not just stockbrokers or bankers or investors, the so-called money-jugglers of society.

The thing is, finance is really for everyone. If you’ve got money, then you have to involve your brain in the act of finance or money-managing to get the most bang for your buck. Otherwise, you will splurge and you will wonder where in the world the money went.

The best time to start learning about finance is the time you start to receive money. Think about it. When you received a check in the mail from your grandma as your birthday present, weren’t you already thinking of what you were going to spend it all on?

That is the essence of finance, although that very act may have been insensible and financially disagreeable; hey, you were just a kid, after all.

Maybe you were a smart kid, one who knew how money goes. Maybe you’ve stashed it in your secret hiding place. Maybe you started to go into business by selling lemonade (although maybe you drank more than half of it too). Maybe you gave some away to your favorite charity. Yup, that was finance too. We all know better now, don’t we?

It hasn’t changed much; we go out to make money, we spend some, we save some, until we have enough to make a couple of major purchases such as homes or vacations. Only we know a bit more. And we’ve understood more of the finance jargon that sometimes rolls on the tongue.

Investments. Assets. Loans. Benefits. Mortgage. Insurance. Knowlege is power, as they say, and knowledge on how to finance will lead you to finance greater amounts of money in the future. So study up. Take finance management classes. Follow the stock market. Listen in on discussions.

Finance also includes self-discipline. Sometimes you have to keep yourself from small pleasures in order to attain the bigger more important things. Finance means that you need to set your priorities straight. Sacrifice may seem like a lot at the moment but the end will justify the means.

Finance is planning ahead. For your future. For your future’s future. For your financial safety and stability. Because it is a very difficult thing to get by in this world without the proper resources. It is preparation for the unknown. Managing your finances mean decreasing the number of worry lines on your face.

So if you’ve got money, if you’re planning to make money, or if you’re thinking about money, well then, you’re thinking about finance. Just keep in mind not just to think about finance, but to think about it wisely, too.

James Monahan is the owner and Senior Editor of
FinanceWebs.com and writes expert
articles about finances.

Tags: assets, benefits, Finance, insurance, investments, Loans, mortgageassets, benefits, Finance, insurance, investments, Loans, mortgage

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