The Sun's Financial Diary » Carnival

Welcome to The Carnival of Investing of January 15, 2007, the day that we commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Before I begin the representation of the Carnival, I'd like to cite the following from Dr. King's speech on August 28, 1963:

I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.

This is our hope.

Now let the Carnival begin!

Investment strategy

Don't put your eggs in one basket! That's the advice Queercent gives to new investors. "One basket" doesn't mean only one stock. One industry is also "one basket." A well diversified portfolio is key for successful investment. Just like people in the real estate business know location, location, location, we investors should always keep diversification, diversification, diversification in our minds because it's our friend, says William Wallets at A Financial Revolution. He also shows what a diversified portfolio should contain.

ETFs, or exchange traded funds, are hot and 2006 has seen record ETF issuances. Should you or shouldn't you invest in ETFs? Wise Bread lays out the pros and cons of investing in ETFs. Read the post and see if they are the right investment vehicle for you. Separately, Tom at ETFtrends offers his insights on how the ETF world will shape up in 2007, a must read whether you are already an ETF fan or just about to start.

Target or lifecycle funds are ideal for people who trust the fund managers to pick the right mix at the right time for them. If, however, you have the time and energy, you may as well achieve the same result by doing the balancing yourself. Trent at The Simple Dollar offers his approach to create his own target fund.

Building Wealth One BRIC at a time, yes. But that BRIC isn't the one used to build the Great Wall. What is it exactly? Michael tells you the story of investing in B(razil) R(ussia) I(ndia) C(hina) and how the BRIC can help you build your wealth.

The Dogs of the Dow theory had some good times in the last decade before everybody jumped on the bandwagon and killed it. Now since the theory is much less favorable, maybe it's time to revisit it. Jim at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity did just that and found the theory is quite easy to implement.

Investing in stocks or playing FOREX games? Moneymonk compares these two as he mulls whether to step into FOREX trading. The conclusion he draws can serve as a reference for you as well if you are considering the same move.

Got to love the dividends! But you know they can work out even better for you if the distributions are reinvested. The problem is not every brokerage firm offers this option. If you do have this problem, Tag at Everyday Money will tell you an alternative to make dividends work for you is called dividend reinvestment plan (DRIP).

Do you believe there's a correlation between following the trend and losing money in the stock market? If you have a second thought on the way you invest, be sure to check out what Praveen has found out.

Money and life

Many of us probably won't even consider the idea of seeking professional assistance after involving in minor incidents such as getting a speeding ticket or being overcharged for a repair work. But there may be a cost-efficient way to handle these cases that you are not aware of. Money Walks show us how using a pre-paid legal service can actually save money, an interesting idea should be further explored.

Free Money Finance had an interesting discussion on whether you will be better off if you buy a term life insurance and invest the difference that you would otherwise pay for a more expensive policy which has the investment option. What's your take on this issue? It's not too late to join the discussion.

Apparently, buy high and sell low isn't the only way to lose money in the stock market. TJP at Investor Trip says he found another nine ways to shrink your wallet (if that's what you really want to do), guaranteed!

The Digerati Life shows us some statistics on what our net worth should be given the age and income level. Why it matters? Because it can give us a sense of where we are now and how far we still need to go.

Burningchrome at SmartCoolRich looks at emergency fund from another angle and explains why money equals power, the power that can put you in a better position when the unexpected happens.

And "Your own intentions, your own thoughts, your own decisions and the choices you’ve made, they all cause your current reality to become manifest." This is a quote from Scott Lee's How the Poor Get Rich.

What to buy

The housing market may have cooled down a little bit, but real estate investment trust (REIT) remains hot. Dividend Money takes a look at REIT and offers a long list of REIT stocks that pay hefty dividends. If you are looking to build a well diversified portfolio, you may find real estate desires a place as ExtremePerspective argues why you should invest in real estate.

Frugal looked at USO and tells you why you shouldn't buy this stock unless you want to be buried alive (I know I don't want that). From his analysis, you may reach exactly the same conclusion.

Read this post before you jump into the biotech industry! BioHealth Investor demonstrates that thirty years of history isn't something you can ignore. Before you buy, know what you are buying.

Market Poetry gives us a dozen reasons (yes, there are twelve) why GOOG isn't a keeper, in a fun way.

For the golden years

How many of you have left your old 401(k) account with your previous employer when you changed job? If you think the only way to deal with those money is to leave where they were, then you are wrong. Ben at Money Smart Life will tell you there are other alternatives. But whatever you do, you have to follow the rules.

Though the calendar year of 2007 began 15 days ago, the deadline for making your 2006 IRA contribution won't arrive three months later. Henry at Binary Dollar reminds us there are still plenty of time to max out 2006 IRA contribution. The only drawback is that you won't enjoy the tax benefit, if there's any, till you fill your 2007 tax return.

And don't forget to re-examine your investment portfolio every year! Jim at My Retirement Blog urges us to keep this as part of the retirement resolution.

Technologies that change our life

The Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas last week didn't just bring us iPhone which Steve Job claimed to be the "ultimate digital device" that will change the way we communicate and entertain, Steve at Debt Free also sees the financial impact of indows Vista.

The markets start trading at 9:30 am in the morning, but you won't see any price change of your holdings until 9:50 am if you use free quote from, for example, Yahoo! Finance. That may soon change as Google is testing the idea of free real-time quote. That sounds convenient. But The Money Tortoise tells us why we couldn't care less about the delay.

For everything else

Priya linked bankruptcy and churches.

Bryan has an update on Million Dollar Savings Club.

Valih presents the first step to start to work from home.

Harrison has a place with video tutorials to help you get into the FOREX field.

Jacqueline reveals a bit of history of gold depository and its role in modern day trading.

Steven makes the case why big companies like Walmart have to turn to use commercials to restore their public images.

Paul at ExtremePerspective shares with us his experience in commodity future trading, and called it "one of my life's expensive lessons."

Finally, do forget to participate the next edition of The Carnival of Investing at Journey to Financial Freedom. Submit your story now!

*Photo from Richard P. Weiss and MSN Encarta.

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Carnival of Investing: Call for Submissions

Sun — Tue, 09 Jan 2007 18:07:03 +0000

Original post on The Sun’s Financial Diary

Carnival of Investing: Call for Submissions

The next edition of Carnival of Investing will be held at The Sun's Financial Diary on January 15th, 2007 (Binary Dollar is hosting the current edition). I hereby call all investors around the blogosphere for participations. This call is to solicit your posts on all aspects of investing such as your investment strategies, your portfolio managements, your stock picks, your mutual fund analysis, your comments on the economy/markets, and your thoughts on profitable trading of stocks, ETFs, commodities, or FOREX.

The deadline for your article to be included in the coming Carnival of Investing is this Sunday, but don't wait till the last minute. To submit your story, use this link.

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Here Comes Carnival of Personal Finance No. 82

Sun — Mon, 08 Jan 2007 21:44:05 +0000

Original post on The Sun’s Financial Diary

Here Comes Carnival of Personal Finance No. 82

J.D at Get Rich Slowly is hosting the 82nd edition of Carnival of Personal Finance. Not just that the articles are great (and there are many of them), J.D's personal touch on the Carnival, financial superheros from comic books, has made the reading more enjoyable. Out of the 92 submissions, I found several are interesting:

Mini-E: Challenging Conventional Wisdom on the Emergency Fund by English Major
Estimate Your Overall Personal Rate of Return by The Finance Buff
Is Your 401(k) Insured Against Electronic Theft? by Free The Drones
Start 2007 Off Right By Reviewing Your W-4 Exemptions by Generation X Finance

But be sure to check the rest of the Carnival. No matter what your flavor is, you can always find something that's right for you.

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The First Carnival of Personal Finance of 2007

Sun — Tue, 02 Jan 2007 22:00:18 +0000

Original post on The Sun’s Financial Diary

The First Carnival of Personal Finance of 2007

is now available at Mighty Bargain Hunter. Carnival host John did an excellent job by adding comments to all the submissions, making article selections much easier than with just a title. Articles that I found useful are

Living Without a Budget by Living Almost Large
Uncle Sam’s Revenge II: Allowances & Exemptions by A Financial Revolution
5 Keys to Getting Good Buys on Great Stocks by Debt Free
Questions to Ask Your Prospective Employer in an Interview by My Financial Journey

Of course, you can always find your own favorites from the Carnival as there are 44 articles for you to choose from.

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Check Out the Latest Carnival of Personal Finance

Sun — Tue, 26 Dec 2006 19:52:21 +0000

Original post on The Sun’s Financial Diary

Check Out the Latest Carnival of Personal Finance

Carnival of Personal Finance #81 is now up at My Personal Finance Blog. Among the articles submitted to the Carnival, I like

Are you on track? How do you stack up? By Queercents
What Can A Postage Stamp Teach Us? By The Money Tortoise
Truth About Interest Rates By Becoming & Staying Debt Free
My Wealth Builder – Goal Setting By My Wealth Builder

Of course, I like my own entry, Active vs. Passive — My Funds vs. Vanguard Funds in Fees and Returns, as well :D.

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The Carnival of Investing is UP

Sun — Mon, 11 Dec 2006 15:11:22 +0000

Original post on The Sun’s Financial Diary

The Carnival of Investing is UP

TJP at InvestorTrip is hosting the latest edition of The Carnival of Investing, which covers broad areas of investing, from investment basics to portfolio management to fund/stock analysis. My entry, China Play: A Comparison of FXI, PGJ, and MCHFX, was made to the Editor's picks. For the complete list of articles, please visit InvestorTrip.

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The Carnival of Personal Finance is Available

Sun — Mon, 11 Dec 2006 02:41:16 +0000

Original post on The Sun’s Financial Diary

The Carnival of Personal Finance is Available

at Kirkwalsh.com. The latest edition of Carnival features some year-end tax moves as well as articles on budgeting, career, credit, debt, economy, frugality, investing, money management, and other topics. Go check them out.

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Carnival of Personal Finance #77 is Up

Sun — Mon, 04 Dec 2006 14:57:06 +0000

Original post on The Sun’s Financial Diary

Carnival of Personal Finance #77 is Up

The latest Carnival of Personal Finance #77 is up at Money and Values. Go check out all the excellent articles in five categories.

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Carnival Of Personal Finance #75 is UP

Sun — Mon, 20 Nov 2006 02:57:25 +0000

Original post on The Sun’s Financial Diary

Carnival Of Personal Finance #75 is UP

at Everybody Loves Your Money and, believe or not, the dealer got 63 articles for you to choose from. Go check them out!

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My First Carnival of Personal Finance Participation

Sun — Sat, 18 Nov 2006 15:24:18 +0000

Original post on The Sun’s Financial Diary

My First Carnival of Personal Finance Participation

I have been reading posts on Pfblogs for almost four months and the Carnival of Personal Finance is no stranger to me. However, so far my only participation (if I can call it "participation" at all) was reading posts selected by the editor. I never attempted to submit any entry to the carnival, though I thought I had a couple of good ones in the past two months.

Well, this is about to change as I submitted two entries to the next issue of Carnival of Personal Finance , hosted at Everybody Loves Your Money. The two entries are

Am I paying too much for my 401(k)? in which I took a look at the fees I paid for the four mutual funds in my 401(k) account and explained what those fees are and how and where you can check yours.
401(k) performance: Traders vs Rebalancer, an entry that I wrote based on a recent study on 401(k) performance between those who trade actively in their 401(k) accounts and those who simply rebalance their accounts periodically. I also showed an example of how to rebalance a simple portfolio.

Whether my posts will make into the carnival or not is not important. What's important is the participation (not those just-reading kind of participation). To see how you can participate, click here and read the submission guidelines.

If you enjoy reading this post, subscribe the RSS feed.

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