Archive for July, 2009

Questions about stock investments and its many terminologies will often include a query about who might be the best candidate to be involved in this business called stock investing.

It’s a sensible question that often people from the outside will usually ask. So who can do well in this kind of business? Well, this kind of business knows no social class, age and sex. This is open for everyone who wants to know more about the business and of course open to people and would-be investors who may want to earn money thru a series of stock investing decisions.

Picking up stocks and investing in stocks is one of the best things that can happen to any person.

This is the avenue that a person can take in order to reach his financial goals and in order to safeguard the future of his family as well. Here is another reason why interested persons should invest; stock investing means that a person may need to work for the rest of his life. And in order to make this happen, money shouldn’t remain in the pocket rather it should be invested in many stocks.

By making this money move for you makes sure that your money will earn more money from you. It usually doesn’t matter where a person places its money; a person can invest in stocks, bonds, mutual funds, options and futures. A person can also invest in precious metals, real estate or a person can start his own small business. Or these can be done in combination, or what is known as the diversification of assets or portfolio.

Actually there are a number of portfolio types out there and someone who should invest in these different types of portfolios should learn to match his strengths, objectives and motivations. For example if it’s about money market portfolios, the personality that should invest is the ones seeking a stable share price and interest income.

This is also great for investors who may want a parking place for cash while waiting for other opportunities for long term investments. If it’s all about short term bond portfolios, then the personality that should invest here is the one that seeks a high level of interest income, and someone who may accept moderate fluctuations in the share price. If the opportunity is the intermediate-term bond portfolios, then someone who is seeking the high and relatively stable income. This should also meet the needs and the capabilities of those people who are willing to accept the moderate fluctuations in the share price.

If the opportunity in front is about long-term bond portfolios, then the person that should make the investment move is someone who is seeking a stable level of interest income, the one who is seeking a significant fluctuations in the share price and the investor who wants to balance the risk of the portfolio containing the stocks. Stock investing is open to all; yet it is suggested as well that the prospective investor should ask himself what he really wants so that the proper match may be made in the market.

Recently one of my clients asked me what I thought about a book on tax lien investing. The book that he asked me about is one that I do recommend on my web site. The name of the book is Profit by Investing in Tax Liens, by Larry Loftis. The problem with books about investing in tax liens and tax deeds is that every state is very different and there is no book in print that I’m aware of that does justice to every state in the U.S. My goal in this article is to give you a short review of some of the books that I’m familiar with and point out the pros and cons of each one.

Let’s start with the book already mentioned, Profit by Investing in Tax Liens by Larry Loftis. Mr. Loftis is an attorney in Florida, and I do find that the best books on tax lien investing are written by lawyers that are also tax lien investors. Mr. Loftis has personally purchased tax liens in nine states and the District of Columbia. In addition he has also either attended tax sales or bid on over-counter liens or deeds in four other states. He or a member of his staff has either interviewed or spoken with tax sale officials from all 50 states. This is probably the most comprehensive and accurate book on the market that I am aware of. It’s great for anyone that is just getting started in tax lien or tax deed investing and wants to know the basics. The drawback is that for some states there is very little information given. As I said earlier, there is no one book that does justice to every state. What I like about this book is that the author didn’t just look up the state statutes in each state (even though he is a lawyer), but contacted county tax offices in every state to find out what actually takes place. I give this one two thumbs up for beginners and one thumb up for experienced investors in tax lien investing.

Another book written by an attorney is The 16% Solution, by Joel S. Moskowitz. Though this book is written by an attorney, it was first published back in 1992, and last copyrighted in 1994, more than 10 years before Profit by Investing in Tax Liens. What I like about this book is that it does not attempt to cover both tax lien and tax deed investing but concentrates on only tax lien investing. As little as four years ago, this was the only book that I could find in print on tax lien investing. Even then, though, this book was already outdated. Not only does each state have different rules when it comes to tax lien and tax deed investing, but these laws and procedures are constantly changing. This book is still good to read and have in your library, but only as an introduction to tax lien investing. Any state specific information is outdated (it doesn’t give too much state specific information anyway), and any contact information is probably no good. I give this book one thumb up for beginners, no thumbs up for experienced investors in tax lien investing.

I’ve heard that the state of New Jersey is the second most popular state for tax lien investing. I don’t know if that’s still true, but I do know that NJ has the most complicated law and procedures for tax lien investing. It is also one of the most profitable and most competitive states to invest in. Until 2005, there was no book in print that discussed tax lien investing in New Jersey accurately. That’s the year that Tax Liens: The Complete Guide to Investing in New Jersey Tax Liens, by Michael Pellegrino, was published. Mr. Pellgrino isn’t just an attorney in New Jersey; he’s an attorney that specializes in tax liens. He specializes in tax lien foreclosures and related litigation, so he really knows the ins and outs of tax lien investing in New Jersey. Although this book doesn’t cover everything for the experienced investor, it does cover what you need to know to get started with tax lien investing in New Jersey. What I love about this book is that it concentrates on tax lien investing in one state, thus it covers what happens in that state more thoroughly than any of the other books about tax liens. This is a must have for anyone that is thinking of investing in New Jersey tax liens and a good reference for experienced investors in that state. I give this book two thumbs up, for both beginning and experienced investors in New Jersey.

When I first started investing a few years ago there was only one book in print about tax lien investing. Today there are several. There are more available than were mentioned here in this article. I want to caution you before you purchase other books that are written on this subject. There is only one other author I know of that I would recommend even though I haven’t read her books. That author is Lillian Villanova and the reason that I would recommend her books is that I know she is an experienced tax lien investor. In fact, I believe that she makes her living with tax liens; she is experienced in more than one state, and has taught others how to invest in tax liens. This is important because there are a few people out there writing books on tax lien investing that have limited experience. They buy a couple of tax liens, do a little research and then write a book. This is not the kind of advice or knowledge that you need in order to buy profitable tax liens. You want to learn from a real expert, who knows what the pitfalls are and can steer you away from them. Maybe that’s why all of the books that I recommend on my web site are written by attorneys.

Jason needed to know that his investments were doing more than just putting money into his own pockets. It’s not that he minded making money… on the contrary, he truly appreciated making wise investments and improving his family’s financial picture. It was just that there were more important things than money to Jason.

Jason knew that somewhere there was an investment vehicle that would allow him to realize his ROI (return on investment) goals, AND contribute to the greater good. He set about searching the internet, talking to friends and other investors, looking for an investment that combined social responsibility and a high rate of return.

Jason looked at something called “Green Funds.” He soon discovered that these mutual funds aided the environment, but didn’t necessarily improve the lives of people. Not Jason’s cup of tea, and he was more familiar with real estate than mutual funds, so he kept looking.

Living in Detroit meant that Jason lived in a real estate market filled with foreclosures, and he briefly considered helping people whose houses were either in or about to be in foreclosure. He thought that by buying these people’s houses – at a serious discount – he could stop the foreclosure process and help them preserve their credit record.

The more he thought about it though, the more Jason realized that wasn’t the kind of “help” he wanted to offer people. He knew that even though he was helping them avoid the stigma of foreclosure and keep their credit record clean, the reality was that after they sold their house to Jason, many of them were left without a home of their own, and without the equity they had given away to Jason.

It wasn’t that Jason thought they would be better off without him, which wasn’t the case at all. It was simply that he believed the assistance he was offering was incomplete in some way, and that there had to be a better way. Jason was looking for an investment in which ALL parties benefitted, a true win-win-win. He was discovering that an investment like that was very hard to come by.

Undeterred, Jason kept searching. Then, one evening as he was channel surfing, Jason stumbled across the program 20/20 and became interested as John Stossel talked about a young man named Ephren Taylor. The report focused on “Winning In America” and Taylor was featured as a highly successful investor and entrepreneur. Something Taylor said during the 20/20 interview sparked Jason’s interest.

”Ephren Taylor was talking about not just making money,” Jason explains, “but actually returning something back to urban communities, rebuilding them and making money at the same time. That intrigued me.”

Jason followed up on the 20/20 report by researching Ephren Taylor on the internet. He discovered that Taylor became a millionaire while still a teenager by creating and selling video games to his high school classmates, and is the nation’s youngest African-American CEO of a publically traded company.

Jason also found that Taylor and his company, City Capital Corporation, had pioneered a first-of-it’s-kind, socially responsible real estate investing program that combined the dual goals of double-digit ROI for the investors and the rebuilding of our nation’s urban areas. Jason felt like he was finally getting somewhere!

He also learned that the program was unique in another way as well. Investors could of course participate by putting their cash into the program, and City Capital would use the funds to obtain and rehabilitate urban homes. They would then find willing and well-qualified working-class families who needed housing, and these families became the buyers for the rehabbed homes.

But there were two other ways investors could participate. First, by tapping into a powerful but under-utilized source of capital, Ephren Taylor had come up with a way for individual investors to use their retirement funds – in the form of self-directed IRAs! This opened up a completely new wellspring of investment dollars that would otherwise be lying dormant in mutual funds and treasury bills, not doing anyone much good at all.

The second unique way investors could participate was by using only their good credit. Credit investors – those with a credit score over 700 and annual income over $70,000 – could participate by “loaning” city Capital and it’s investor-partners the leverage of their good credit rating, effectively securing low rate financing for the urban properties and working families in the program.

This astounded Jason with it’s simplicity and creativity.

”By allowing people to use their IRAs, or even just their good credit,” Jason observes, “Ephren Taylor effectively opened the door to investors and sources of capital most investment vehicles completely ignore. That’s pure genius.”

One other thing about City Capital’s socially conscious program greatly impressed Jason.

”Ephren Taylor and City Capital have gotten one crucial component of their program exactly right,” Jason states. “They target middle class homes in working-family neighborhoods. There are thousands of these kinds of homes in every city in America, waiting to be rehabbed, and they are affordable for millions of working families.”

What that means, according to Jason, is that City Capital and it’s investor-partners will literally never run out of homes to invest in, or families to sell them to.

”Every business should have such an endless supply of cheap, easy to obtain inventory AND ready-and-willing-to-buy customers,” says Jason. “That makes for a can’t fail combination.”

Jason’s research led him to conclude that Ephren Taylor and City Capital Corporation were worthy of a serious look, with the end result being that Jason became an IRA investor. After just two years, Jason has invested in seven homes in two different cities. The results speak for themselves.

”I’ve realized double-digit returns on my investment, and at the same time I’ve been able to help rebuild two urban neighborhoods, providing safe, affordable housing for seven families. I especially appreciate how Ephren goes after whole streets, not just one house here, one house there. That can change the face of an entire neighborhood.”

Jason has recommended the socially responsible real estate investing program to several of his investor acquaintances, and many have since become involved. When someone asks him about Ephren Taylor, City Capital, or the investing program, Jason is happy to tell them the straight story.

He explains, “I can’t think of another program, another company, or another man I would recommend as highly as City Capital or Ephren Taylor. Their socially conscious program is exactly what I was looking for, and my family’s financial picture has improved greatly because of it. You should definitely check out this opportunity for yourself.”

The good news is, you can learn all you need to know for free by visiting Socially Responsible Real Estate Investing. Who knows? You may run into Jason one day soon.

“Most people are too busy living their life to realizing that to put life in their living they spend planning their lives.”

Frequently I am asked the question, “What is a good investment to make?” You too may have often asked this question.

Just keep reading and you will soon find out what I’m bullish about when it comes to investing and why.

Unfortunately, when persons ask this question they are usually not prepared to invest. You see in order to invest you must first have money. That’s right you need money to invest and you can only get money to invest by saving a portion of your income every pay for this purpose. If you have no savings, then you can have no investment. You can’t invest what you don’t have.

So the first step in investing is to save some money! Not every now and then, but consistently and systematically. You should save a portion of every pay cheque you get. Here’s a simply formula that I like and that will help you get started. After receiving your pay check why not start setting aside 10% for saving, 10% for investing and 10% for giving (tithes), and then manage your expenses so that they are covered by the reminding 70 percent of your pay. And if you need help, “Taking Control of Your Money” workbook is a great resource to get you started

I know as you read this you are probably feeling that it won’t work for you but even if you have no money, or heavily in debt, it’s important to start now to correct your situation and come up with a plan to cut your expenses and maximize your savings. You have absolutely nothing to lose and everything to gain by trying this formula. So why not decide today to take time out and begin to properly managing your money! It’s one of your most important resources.

Secondly, you must realize that investing is risky business. You can lose your money. Therefore, you should only invest from money that you can afford to lose. That is why following the recommended formula is so important, as it separates your savings from your investment funds.

Now that you have some money to invest, let me tell you about aninvestment that I am bullish about. It is a product outside of stocks and mutual funds that allows you to:

1. Make “risk free”investments by guarantying your Principle.
2. Make money on your money while diversifying your investmentchoices.
3. Get a guaranteed return on your investment.
4. Provide an immediate inheritance for your family
5. Continue to provide for your loved ones even after you die.
6. Create future income with minimal monthly contributions.
7. Guarantees repayment of loans.
8. Make “penalty free” withdrawal of cash.
9. Get low interest loans.

The only investment product that provides all these comforts is a Whole Life Insurance policy. It is an invaluable tool and you should be sure to include it as the foundation of your investment portfolio.

A Whole Life insurance policy has both an insurance component and a savings component called cash values. It provides life insurance protection for your family in the event that you die, but it also accumulates cash value over time which makes it an excellent source of savings and for funding future needs such as making a down payment on a home, paying off a mortgage early, retirement funding, starting a business, or funding your children’s education. You pay one easy monthly premium for the insurance policy, a part of that premium is used to pay for the insurance coverage and the remaining part of the premium goes toward the investment savings. This savings portion of thepolicy is invested in one or more investment vehicles (stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc.) that the insurance company select and the investments chosen will generally provide a better rate of return than a bank savings account. Also the cash value of your policy is available to you if you need money.

In addition to the protection and savings provided, you can restassured that your premiums will not exceed your returns. In the earlier years, your account will not reflect this, as there are certain items such as reserves that must be established at the onset of a policy. As well as administrative and commission expenses which are higher in the earlier years but in a few years your cash value should begin to grow and with the help of compound interest continues to grow.

I must caution you that all whole life policies do not offer the same rate of returns or low interest rate on loans. That is why reading the free reports:

1. “The Truth about Life Insurance and Why You Don’t Need “One” and
2. “Your Best Bet for 2008 and Beyond”, are tools that will enhance your understanding.

The more you understand just how valuable a Whole Life Insurance policy could be to your life, the less you will think about delaying its inclusion in your investment plans. You don’t realize it yet but after a few short minutes of reading these report you’ll realize that it’s a good investment to make!

“Most people are so busy knocking themselves out trying to do everything they think they should do, that they never get around to doing what they want or need to do.”

Copyright © 2001 – 2009 – Glenn S. Ferguson

Imagine a share advertisement declaring, “A 100% guarantee: you will lose every single penny invested here!” And if you found millions of people investing all their life’s savings in such a share, wouldn’t you lament their misfortune and imprudence? But isn’t this what almost all of us are doing? We are born with a death sentence written on our bodies.

Despite all scientific advancement, the death rate was, is and will always be 100%; everyone who is born has to die without exception. And yet almost everyone spends his entire life pandering to the demands of the body and its extensions. Sometimes people imagine that death is a very peaceful end to all our life’s struggles. But let’s consider: here in this life, when we lose a small amount of our hard-earned money, we feel so distressed. Then at death, when we lose everything that we have given our sweat, blood, heart and life to obtain, how much more will be our suffering?

The Garuda Purana, an ancient Vedic scripture, compares the agony of death to the pain of 40,000 simultaneous scorpion bites.

But hold on – there’s also good news. Each of us has the power to save ourselves from this enormous suffering. We are all eternal souls, beloved children of God, temporarily situated in material bodies. Our bodies have to die but we don’t have to suffer at death. The pain at death is wholly due to the agony of losing all that is very dear to our hearts. If during our lifetime, we have made God our dearmost object, then death will not separate, but unite us, with our object of love.

Love for God is natural for us but is currently dormant in our hearts. This sleeping love can be most easily awakened by the divine sound of the holy names of God. The state of conditioned life in the material world is just like a man lying unconscious, having been bitten by a snake. This is because both such unconscious states can be ended by the sound of a mantra.” When a man is snake-bitten he does not die immediately, but first becomes unconscious and remains in a comatose condition. Anyone who is in the material world is also sleeping, as he is ignorant of his actual self or his actual duty and his relationship with God

So materialistic life means that one is bitten by the snake of maya, illusion, and thus, without any Krishna consciousness, he is almost dead. Now, the so-called dead man bitten by a snake can be brought back again to life by the chanting of some mantra. There are expert chanters of these mantras who can perform this feat. Similarly, one can be brought back into Krishna consciousness from the deadly unconscious state of material life by hearing of the holy names of the Lord.

Therefore every moment utilized in chanting the names of God is like an investment in our eternal bank account, which we can draw on in our future lives. An intelligent executive always saves to prepare for his future retirements, however pressing the present demands for money are. Similarly a wise person invests time in serving God to prepare for his inevitable death and afterlife, no matter how busy he is.

Srila Prabhupada, the founder of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), gave a prominent Mumbai businessman precious insights into transcendental business, “In the ledger of your life, all the time you have spent on your body, is loss and all the time you have spent for Krishna (God) is profit.” Therefore just as a materially shrewd businessman carefully counts every note he earns, let us carefully count every name of God we chant. This is the process of Bhakti-yoga, it is so simple, pure and easy that a child can practice without difficulty. One can begin by simply chanting Holy Names of God.

Krishna is very merciful to those who engage in His service, by chanting His divine names, and He helps in various ways that devotee who is fully surrendered to Him so he can understand Him as He is. The Lord gives such a devotee sufficient intelligence so that ultimately the devotee can attain Him in His spiritual kingdom. Therefore any amount of energy we expend in Krishna consciousness or service to the Lord remains our eternal benefit or credit that will carry us to next destination after death.