Exchange-Traded Funds versus Mutual Funds Part 1 of 2 YOU have two options to diversify your stock portfolio: exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds. Both involve pooling money that becomes part of a big fund invested in a mix of different assets. Depending upon the mutual fund or ETF you buy, you can gain exposure…
THERE’S a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to harvest. There’s a time for everything. So states Ecclesiastes 3: “For everything, there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven… A time to kill and a time to heal; a time to tear…
Q: AFTER I came back from a two-month medical leave, my employer told me that my position was eliminated. However, I heard from a former coworker that the employer hired a person to replace me. Was I wrongfully fired? Can I still file a claim, considering that the firing occurred 11 months ago? A: The…
EXCHANGE-Traded Funds (ETFs) are created from the concept of pooled fund investing. ETFs buy a basket of securities for a pool of investors. These baskets offer benefits of a diversified portfolio. In other words, the pooled fund concept benefits from economies of scale, allowing managers to decrease transaction costs through large transactions with pooled investment capital….
DARREN Stemple worked as a “Business Development Representative” for RingCentral, Inc., a company which sells cloud-based telecommunications systems such as video and audio conferencing, and business app integration software. Its clients include healthcare, finance, real estate, retail stores, and enterprises all over the country and the world. Stemple’s main duty was to cold-call potential buyers…
ARE you currently struggling with debt problems and don’t know what to do? To most people, finding themselves in that situation is pretty scary. They constantly worry about their finances and wonder whether they will ever be able to get out of the financial mess that is causing them a lot of stress. But what…
ACCUMULATING debt is the easiest thing you can do in America. Even your dog can get credit cards with a fake social security number. If you are an immigrant and have just arrived, you will have no history of credit here. Chances are that in your country of origin, you probably had no credit card…
WHAT is an ETF? An ETF is a basket of securities that you can buy or sell through a brokerage firm on a stock exchange. Just like a stock, an ETF has a ticker symbol and intraday price data can be easily obtained during the course of the trading day. It allows you to access…
THE Japanese created Godzilla a long time ago. It’s a gigantic T-Rex on steroids that destroys Tokyo and the rest of Japan until someone comes to the rescue and kills it with nukes. Mr. Honda, the author, created the concept of Godzilla as a metaphor for the atomic bombs in 1954 when Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which were the recipients of…
NICHELLE Duffey worked as an in-home caregiver for Tender Heart Home Care Agency, LLC, a placement agency for caregivers. Duffey signed an agreement with Tender Heart stating that she is an “independent contractor” and “is in the business of providing care giving services in dwellings…” Rate sheets attached to the contract between Duffey and Tender…
ARE your growing debts starting to cause you sleepless nights? Are you trying hard to pay what you can every month but feel like you’re just running on a treadmill and not getting anywhere? Do you worry about your finances all the time and never have enough no matter how hard you work? If it’s…
Q: I am a full-time hourly employee. While we were told that we have a 30-minute unpaid lunch break every day, we usually cannot take breaks due to the heavy workload. But the employer still deducts 30 minutes for lunch from our work hours. Is this legal? A: No. If you did not take your…
CLIENTS are seniors. Wife is 67 and had just retired from a lifetime of being a registered nurse. She has social security benefits of $2100. Husband is 67 and has social security of $700. So together, they have social security of $2,800. They don’t own a house. They live with their daughter and they pay…
DIVERSIFICATION – investing in different stocks in different sectors – avoids that old danger zone of putting all your eggs in one basket. Loading up on just one stock puts you at great risk. Let’s discuss diversification and three different approaches to diversification for different types of investors. 1. Passive method: Buy market indexes or mutual…
ARE you always worried about not having enough money for yourself and your family no matter how hard you work? Do you live paycheck to paycheck with no savings? Is the problem why your income is never enough is the fact that you have gotten yourself in a situation where you are simply drowning in…
RON Carter worked for XPO Last Mile, Inc. (“XPO”) as a delivery driver. XPO provides delivery services to retail merchants like Home Depot, Lowe’s, and Macy’s. These companies contract with XPO to provide delivery and basic installation of newly purchased appliances, and removal of old appliances from their customers’ homes. Carter and drivers like him…
THE end of Sears, Roebuck & Co. predicted by Warren Buffett 14 years ago. I personally find it ironic that the iconic retailer that started mail order catalog was displaced by modern-day Amazon using the same delivery by mail that Sears once pioneered. Buffett was once asked about hedge fund manager Edward Lampert and his…
The clients are 63 and 64. They are young seniors. Up to 65, you are a young senior in my book. You can get senior discounts at Golden Corral for a satisfying buffet. Last time I went there, half of the patrons looked like they were over 65. A lot of them looked like they…
LET’S learn a few things from the greatest investor of all time – Warren Buffett. It’s OK If You Don’t Know Much About Investing. Most investors do not have business degrees. Most do not take courses in stock investing. Warren Buffett wrote in his 2013 letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders: I have good news for…
CHAPTER 7 is called the fresh start because it wipes out all dischargeable debt while allowing the debtor to keep most, if not all, of his assets. Meanwhile, Chapter 13 is the reorganization of debtor’s financial affairs because he or she is allowed to restructure debts with partial or no payments. In Chapter 7, the…
CHASTITY Jones, is a 42-year-old single mother, who worked as a sales accountant Hologram USA and FilmOn.TV, companies owned by billionaire Alkiviades David. FilmOn.TV Networks is an online television service and Hologram USA operates a hologram theater in Hollywood that has produced holographic images of entertainers Billie Holiday, Jackie Wilson and Bernie Mac. Jones said…
Lesson No. 1: Be Frugal Warren Buffett is a multi-billionaire; yet, he lives simply. He still lives in the same modest house in Omaha, Nebraska that he bought 50 years ago. He drives his own car. His simple life affords him more to invest. He demands this same quality from managers. Buffett is wary of…
CHASTITY Jones, is a 42-year-old single mother, who worked as a sales accountant Hologram USA and FilmOn.TV, companies owned by billionaire Alkiviades David. FilmOn.TV Networks is an online television service and Hologram USA operates a hologram theater in Hollywood that has produced holographic images of entertainers Billie Holiday, Jackie Wilson and Bernie Mac. Jones said…
LET’S give bankruptcy a historical and legal perspective. Right now, when we say bankruptcy law, we refer to the federal law called the “Bankruptcy Code” of 2005. Creditors did a lot of lobbying in Congress to fashion the 2005 bankruptcy Code to enhance their interests. Thus, the 2005 Bankruptcy Code incorporates the “means test,” which…
WARREN Buffett, the world’s greatest investor, loves value stocks – stocks that are trading below their intrinsic value. He uses investing tenets which are categorized in the areas of business, management, financial measures and value. Value Buffett seeks a company’s intrinsic (built in, inherent) value. He projects future earnings and discounts them back to the…
ARE you constantly worried about your finances because of debts that you can no longer afford to pay? If you are in more debt that you can repay, you may be overwhelmed and don’t know what to do. If you’ve tried to solve your debt problems on your own but nothing has worked up to…
KIMBERLEE Gutierrez worked as a patient registration clerk for Dignity Health for 9 years. Kimberlee had a history of mental disability, which worsened when she was violently attacked by an ex-boyfriend. She took a medical leave of absence for her disability. When she returned to work, she claimed that she faced discrimination. When she tried…
MANY people who need debt relief are afraid to file for Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 because they fear that life after bankruptcy will be difficult. The fear is that bankruptcy will prevent them from getting new credit cards, buying a car, buying a house. Some even believe that they won’t be able to freely…
6. Avoid Leverage That Amplifies Stress During A Market Crash: Sure, there’s stress during a crash – lots of it. Add margins (meaning loans that you incurred to buy more stocks) and you get more stress. Those loans have to be paid – right in the middle of a market crash. Malo. 7. Don’t Try…
WHEN people are going through financial difficulty and are unable to pay their bills, their first reaction is often to ignore their debts and avoid contact with creditors. They think that by doing this, somehow the creditors will simply give up and go away. Bad news: This rarely works. Then one day they get a…
