As mentioned previously, before you begin looking into financial investment opportunities, the groundwork must be properly laid. Once all of your ducks are in a row, so to speak, then, you can look into utilizing your funds to make money. In the meantime, you have set up your budget and are following that daily / weekly. You record incomes and expenditures. You track things daily / weekly in a system of sorts. Before buying impulsively, you consider if you have the money for said item. In addition, you do everything you can to avoid debt. No longer do you reach for your plastic. Cash is your new best friend. Also, you have an emergency fund set up. Furthermore, you have just finished climbing out of debt. Yes, this is quite the process, but now you have financial freedom. Before jumping into those financial investment opportunities, consider one more area. This is your savings plan. Again, the reason your savings comes after the climb out of the hole is ...

You’ve graduated from budgeting 101. You have effectively set up a budget that functions properly and that you evaluate on a regular basis. You now track all expenses and incomes. You save receipts and record expenditures. You plan for upcoming events and annual events. You check this budget on a weekly basis. You are now ready for the next part of preparing for a financial investment opportunity. The next step is to get out of debt. As mentioned in previous articles, before investing any monies, you need to be sure that you are not losing monies to high interest debts. By this, I mean that it back tracks to save money at a lower interest rate than how fast / how high your debt is accruing interest. Before paying off your debt, set up an emergency fund. This will help you to avoid going into debt if emergencies arise. Always keep a default amount in this account and only use it in times of emergency. Evaluate your debt to income ratio. What ...

Individuals often feel overwhelmed when it comes to thinking about retirement and planning financially for the future. They’re not sure where to begin when it comes to investments. When is the right time? How do I decide what to invest my money in or what the best financial investment opportunity is? Is the best opportunity best for everyone or does it cater on an individual basis? Are there different types of investments? What is the process? How do I do it? Do I hire on a financial advisor or a stockbroker? How can I best prepare for the future? Well, if you find yourself in the category above, do not fret. You are not alone. This article will be the first of a series of articles to address these questions. When is the right time to invest for my future? While many financial advisors will tell you to begin investing today, we’re going to take a little bit of a different approach. Yes, today is the right time to begin preparing ...

The black market is noted as the “underground economy.” It refers to not only legal activities in industries, but in which illegal activities take place (i.e. paying people under the table or not withholding taxes), and it also encompasses illegal activities, such as drug dealing and the sex industry. What is sold on the black market? Today, a wide variety of goods can be found on the black market. Stolen organs, which are also illegally sold, can be found. Drugs—both street and prescription can be found. People have even gone as far as entering veterinarian drugs on the market as well. Prostitution and the sex slave industry are big ones. Mail bride orders exist today. Weapons make up a big market. The list encompasses jewelry, clothing, and anything else illegally obtained. Where is the black market? The black market is said to be smallest in free economies and run deeply in corrupt economies, where various goods and services are restricted. However, many would argue that it runs just as deeply here in the United States, ...

Cost management refers to the controls a company uses in order to cut costs and improve overall company profitability. Cost management teams typically establish budgets, review and analyze current spending accounts, research new ways to save money and cut back, and observe cost of operations, processes, and product development. This information is, then, passed on to other managerial staff to make / support decisions in cutting costs and improving the overall profitability. While cost management teams utilize various forms of accounting principles and tools, cost accounting is the general form of accounting used to establish / understand the operational expenses behind running a company. Cost accounting, typically, looks at three general areas. These include: raw materials, labor, and indirect expenses / overhead. Raw materials include any materials used to produce products, which the company markets to sell, by laborers. Some examples of raw materials might encompass lumber, nails, and siding to build a house for a construction company. These are the materials needed in order to construct the home. Labor is the work done by men ...

Ponzi schemes are defined as “fraudulent investment operations that pay returns to separate investors from their own money or money paid by subsequent investors (1).”  Charles Ponzi, who the scheme is named for, became noted for this type of scandal in 1920, though critics claim he was not the first to commit such a fraudulent act. His scheme revolved around investments in foreign postage coupons.  He told consumers that this investment could give a 50 percent return rate in a matter of 45 days.  Such coupons could then be redeemed in the United States for much higher amounts (after having been purchased for low costs overseas), and as a result, investors’ money could be doubled.  Eventually, the middle-class society had invested millions and millions of dollars in “Ponzi notes.”  His scandal worked for some time because individuals did not all cash in their coupons at once.  He only had to give enough cash to those wanted to redeem their coupons.  Eventually, the Boston Post, and a financial journalist grew suspicious of Ponzi’s quick money.  Sure enough, Charles Ponzi was convicted of ...

Getting out of debt is possible, but requires some discipline and key steps.  An individual must feel motivated and keep these motives at the forefront of his mind.  He must realize that most debts do not happen over night, but rather, an individual accrues them over time.  As a result, these debts are going to take some time to pay off and an individual must exercise the utmost patience.  Sacrifice plays a key role.  Once an individual obtains clearance from this burden, constant re-evaluation is necessary. Step #1   Admit there is a problem.  If an individual cannot admit he is digging deeper into the vicious cycle and black hole of debt, getting out will be impossible.  If a spouse is involved, that party needs to be aware of the problem too and take responsibility for the debts incurred. Step#2   Stop spending.  This may seem really difficult, because most debt and excessive spending perpetuates other spending; however, this is possible.  Freeze credit cards in a chunk of ice.  Cut up credit cards.  Do what has to be done in order to keep oneself ...

“A stock market is a public market for the trading of company stock and derivatives at an agreed price (1).”  Owning stock in a company, means owning a portion of a company.  One must purchase shares in order to do so.  A company issues shares in order to finance growth (i.e. build more buildings, increase number of employees, or develop new products).  Consumers buy shares and then, the company has new capital to work with.  Of course, a board exists to decide where these funds go.  Although the stock market is not a physical place, the financial district exists on Wall Street in New York City, New York, and as a result, the stock market is often referred to as “Wall Street.”  At the end of 2008, the world stock exchange was said to be roughly $36.6 trillion in actual value and the total world derivatives market was estimated at $791 trillion face value. Each country has its own stock exchange, while an overall world stock exchange exists simultaneously. Some of the international stock exchanges include: NASDAQ (North & South America), ...

According to Wikipedia, “A bond is a debt security (3).”  Basically, the bond issuer (usually the government or a financial institution) issues a bond to a consumer for a fixed interest rate and a set maturity date.  At the end of the year, or halfway through the year (depending on what payouts the contract of the bond states), the issuer (also referred to as the borrower or debtor) pays the consumer (the lender) interest on the bond.  At the maturity date, the borrower must repay the lender the full amount of the bond. Bonds are different than stocks, because they actually guarantee a return.  Consumers can lose money or gain money on a stock indefinitely.  A stock reaches maturity at the time of selling.  However, with a bond, the consumer goes in, knowing what and when interest gains will be made and also knowing that he will receive the principle amount of the bond back at the maturity date.  There are some bonds, which have an indefinite maturity date.  These bonds are called consol bonds.  Another difference between bonds and stocks ...

Wikipedia defines budgeting as a list of all planned expenses and revenues.  Budgeting is the key to success and building a solid financial foundation.  Unlike popular myth, which says budgets are constricting, budgets offer financial freedom from debt and wasted expense.  Without budgeting, consumers often do not realize where their money goes and find themselves in binds when emergencies arise.  Sometimes, if consumers do not afford time for proper planning, overspending occurs, leaving less than enough funds to pay for monthly bills. What is the first step in budgeting? Before this can be accomplished, it becomes imperative to include all spending members in the budget.  If married, spouses need to communicate about incomes and expenditures.  Both individuals need to set goals in what is to be attained from said budgets.  What do you want to save for?  How much do you need to save?  What plans do you have for the future?  What plans do you have for each month?  What changes do you forecast on the horizon?  What debts do you owe? Other questions to consider, include: How will you be held ...