High Income With No Investment

By Melvin Polatnick

Having a degree as a guidance counselor is no guarantee that its holder will have the ability to help others. Many times the person with the degree will need guidance themselves. If they felt confident in their ability to guide others they would not waste precious time going to college. But would become very wealthy at an early age. That is what I like most about being a Life skills coach there is no diploma or certification needed to get into this business, the only thing that counts are results.

There are people that are born leaders. They are blessed with a sense of direction that is unshakable. Even if they chose not to be financially or socially successful that earthly focus is still with them. Some have decided to become a Life Skills Coach to help those that have lost their way. They know that they have innate abilities, and don't need certification from people who sell their diplomas to anyone that can afford to buy one.

The Life skills Coach has many enemies. Most are college graduates that don't want to see people giving guidance without paying their dues. Some of those graduates have spent over eight years in college and have paid over one hundred thousand dollars to earn a diploma. They feel that they alone should have the opportunity to sell their guidance. Our sympathy is with them, but it is wrong to interfere with a business person who has a natural talent to help others without having a diploma.

To those that have a natural talent to help the bewildered and misled there is a calling for you.
Print up some business cards stating your title as a Life Skills Coach and pass them out to people you believe need your help. Many after looking into your eyes will instinctively understand that you can help them. Also put a small add in your local newspaper stating your specialty. It might be helping people stop smoking or any other bad habit. You will soon have your appointment calendar filled. There is no large investment in this small business, it can be run from your home with the kitchen table as your desk.

If you can help just a few people quit smoking or lose weight those happy people will tell others about your talents. Even without a diploma or certification you will be recognized. Most of all, you will be your own boss in a successful business, and will have earned the right to call yourself a Life Skills Coach.

melpol

Retired and single recluse

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Melvin_Polatnick

The Big Investment Mistakes Made in Retirement

By Shelby Smith

Taking too much risk with your investment:

We all want the highest interest rate possible and the lowest risk possible - unfortunately these are competing objectives. High rates always spell high risk BUT high risk does not always spell high rates. You should know that risk and reward are traveling companions: if you want low risk you've got to settle for low rates and if you want the chance of making high rates you've got to accept high risk.

Most people work a lifetime to save enough so they can have a comfortable retirement - the last thing in the world they want is to lose their retirement nest egg in bad investments. So why is it that most retirees have all their money in mutual funds, stock, bonds, a diversified portfolio of securities, variable annuities, etc.? All these things carry the risk of loss - yeah I know that "in the long run" you'll do a lot better than with a safe money alternative. BUT, in retirement you don't have a long run. A great economist once said, "in the long run we're all dead".

In the closing years of the 1900's and up until 2002 the stock market was roaring upward - would-be-retirees were making loads of paper profits and looking forward to retirement next year. Out of the blue came the dot.com bust and a market meltdown - over the next two years the S&P lost half its value, the DJIA sank like a rock and the poor NASDAQ stocks lost 80% of their value (that's where most of the dot.coms were traded). Instead of retiring, or continuing to be retired, many "risk taker" had to change plans or go back to work as Walmart greeters, taxi drivers or whatever they could get in the depressed employment environment. Can this ever happen again?

Look around you: sub-prime problems, foreclosures shore to shore, the dollar losing ground at an alarming rate, inflation picking up, real estate activity grinding to a halt, economic recession being mentioned often, bank stocks losing half their value, major corporation turning to China and the UAE for capital infusion to stay solvent, record federal deficits, commodity prices shooting upward and lots more of gloom and doom. I don't want to be negative...but there are storm clouds gathering and you don't have an risk umbrella if you've put your retirement money in the market.

The first big mistake retirees (or would-be-retirees in the red zone before retirement) make is they have taken too much risk with them retirement money.

What can you do? Find a financial adviser quick if you don't know how to lower your risk without one. Examine every retirement investment you have and make sure the money you'll be using in the next 10-15 years is in rock solid saving places like bank CDs (for use in years 1 - 5) or fixed annuities (for use in years 6 - 15). If you don't like either for-the-first-half-of-your-retirement money, you can continue to keep your money at risk and hope for the best.

Putting your money only in short-term bank CDs:

Many of you have all your retirement money in 6-months CDs because you want safety and are afraid you'll need it all very soon. The good news is that you've got safety and ready access...the bad news is that this is costing you a king's ransom.

Generally, the longer you commit you money the higher the rate of interest you'll earn - that's why 5-year CDs pay more than 3-months CDs. You should space, or ladder, your money so that it comes due at about the same time you think you'll need it. Yes, you may guess wrong sometime but the penalty will be a lot less than if you always keep your money short and liquid.

Let's say you now have $150,000 in short-term bank CDs that you've earmarked for retirement. You think you'll need about $15,000 a year of this money to cover expenses above your Social Security, pension (if you have one) and other income. Here how a CD ladder could work. Put $15,000 in a money market account (can get anytime you want without penalty), $15,000 in a one, two, three and four year bank CD. You now set so that every year for the next five you'll have access to $15,000 (plus interest which will keep you up with inflation) to cover your needs.

What do you do with the other $75,000? Why not look into a five year tax-deferred fixed annuity? You'll pay no taxes on the interest you earn in the annuity until you withdraw it (that means triple compounding: interest on principal, interest on interest and interest on money you would have paid in taxes) and you'll have rock solid safety because your principal and interest is guaranteed by a major insurance company. The same insurance company that insures you home, life, health, business, car and everything else of value. Oh yes, you'll probably get a much better earnings rate than if you put the money in a bank CD.

Yes, you will lose the opportunity to hit it out of the park with a high flying stock your brother-in-law told you about but you'll also avoid the risk that goes with that high flying stock. When you annuity matures in five years you an annuitize (take an income) over the next five years or do another 5-year bank CD ladder.

Retirement is a time to keep what you've got rather than trying to double or triple your money in a short period of time. But, you can err by being too safe and too liquid with everything in short-term bank CDs. Retirement is also a time to reassess your risk and make sure you can afford the worse case outcome. That's why money in the market don't make sense unless you've got a lot more money than you'll need for retirement.

If you think the market can't turn around and bite you, check out the following links:

http://www.fool.com/investing/dividends-income/2007/03/21/a-market-crash-is-coming.aspx
http://mutualfunds.about.com/cs/history/a/marketcrash.htm
http://finance.yahoo.com/expert/article/richricher/26878

Also check out my blog: http://www.theretirementpros.com/blog

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Shelby_Smith

5 Questions To Ask Before You Buy Investment Property

By Alexandria Anderson

Deciding to buy investment property is one of the best decisions you will ever make for your future. However, it isn't something you can decide to do one day and then rush out and do the next. There is a process that you have to learn and lots of information to digest. If you think you have done that already and you are now prepared to go out and make your first purchase, here are five questions to ask that will help you to prepare.

What type of investment property are you interested in? Are you interested in a duplex, multi-unit complex, or perhaps just a single family home? Are you interested in commercial real estate? What about undeveloped land? How you answer this question will determine other things that you do later, such as how you go about financing your investment. It is also best to focus on a particular type of property so you don't go on wild goose chases and so your team knows what they need to clue you in on.

What area am I interested in? Are you going to invest in the city where you live? If not, what part of the country do you want to invest in? The Internet is the best resource for determining what area of the country you would like to put your time and resources into. Ken McElroy, author of “The ABCs of Real Estate Investing,” calls this Level I research. Later, when you have determined a part of the country and a city in which to look, you will need to decide what neighborhood interests you. You will find that during McElroy's Level II and Level III research.

Do you have a financing strategy? The type of property you are looking for (as well as your own assets) will determine how you can make your purchase. If it is a small property such as a house, you may want to pay for it outright. However, even if you don't have the money to pay for it, if it is a piece of property that has made money in the past, the bank will probably give you the finacing you need. They know that they will make money on the deal regardless of what happens to your investment. If you are looking at a large property that you can't afford outright, you will probably be able to find other investors to partner with you.

Is my team in place? You can't do this successfully without a team. That is simply because of the large amount of work involved, and so many different types of expertise needed, that you simply can't do it all. There is not enough time for you to become proficient enough with real estate law and accounting, plus broker your own deals and manage your own properties. You have to delegate. That is why McElroy recommends you start with an attorney, an accountant, a broker and a property manager. After that, you may also need appraisers, tax consultants, a surveyor, a structural engineer, an architect, an estate planner and more.

How much do you have to spend on repairs? This is essential. Knowing this will help you determine what areas to look around in because some areas may be full of old buildings or some newer buildings may actually be in need of a lot of upgrades. You will want to what you are getting into and whether you can handle it.

This isn't a a complete list of questions. Once you embark on your real estate investing adventure, you will find a never-ending list that you will need to address. But these will get you going on the road to asking yourself the right kinds of questions. Sometimes asking the right questions is more important than the answers themselves.

About the Author: Alex Anderson is a licensed Realtor from Minneapolis, MN who specializes in Minnesota Investment Property. Visit her website at
http://minnesota.greatinvestmentproperty.com for more information on Minnesota Real Estate Investing.

The BumbleRide Flyer Stroller: A Smart Investment For Families

By Melanie Atkinson

The BumbleRide Flyer stroller is great for parents with one child. You need to have a stroller that works well in any environment, inside or out, and this stroller from bumbleride does both with ease. The BumbleRide single stroller is lightweight coming in at only nineteen pounds, and carries a capacity weight of forty-five pounds. You can easily bring this stroller out from storage to use everyday. The stroller comes well equipped with a hood, a spacious shopping basket underneath, and an adjustable handle. A BumbleRide rain cover is also available.

The Flyer stroller handle moves either direction easily changing baby's' view from front to back.
The stroller looks great either way and works just as well from birth to the time the child reaches forty-five pounds. The BumbleRide stroller comes well equipped with a hood, a spacious shopping basket underneath, and an adjustable handle. The handle can switch from side to side and lengthwise increasing the strollers overall maneuverability. Whether you are short or tall this stroller fits you comfortably and you actually want to push it. Plus, it comes with interchangeable fabrics, which gives you a whole new look quickly and easily.

You can change fabrics when one gets older or dirty, or simply change when you want a new look. The BumbleRide Flyer stroller is great for second and third babies of either gender because changing the look is simple and fast. This stroller will work in any environment indoor or out, and will maneuver well in both situations.

There is even a sunshade for your lengthy afternoon or morning walks with your little one. With several options you can zip it up completely or leave some room to see your baby's face. The sunshade zips off when needed as well. The sunshade even has a hole to watch your baby inside the stroller as you happily "stroll" around.

The cup holder comes off when you are not using it and makes it a bit easier to fold down and store. The BumbleRide Flyer stroller truly is great for new moms that want the best of the best for their bundles of joy. It will grow with your family and be something you can use for the rest of your time as a mom. You can use it with any infant seat you wish because the car seat adapter is universal. This means that you can carry your newborn with you in any car seat you happen to have. The Flyer stroller from BumbleRide will hold your newborn without an infant car seat or inside the car seat of your choice.

With unlimited options and maneuverability, the BumbleRide Flyer stroller is truly a smart investment for any family on the go.

Find out more information about the Bumbleride Flyer Stroller and Bumbleride Strollers at StrollandGo.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Melanie_Atkinson