Updated Articles and Resources

By Joshua Kennon, About.com Guide since 2001

How Can Negative Working Capital Be Good? Video Created: Thursday, January 12, 2012 Updated: Thursday, May 24, 2012
Working capital is a sign of a successful business, especially if it is managed correctly. Here are a few tips on the benefits of negative working capitol.
Dividend Tax Rates Might Increase from 15% to 43.4% on January 1st, 2013 Created: Monday, April 30, 2012 Updated: Monday, April 30, 2012
With the current dividend tax structure set to expire, it is possible investors might be facing an unthinkable 43.4% dividend tax on their passive income as soon as January of 2013.
Dividend Reinvestment Programs, or DRIPs, Could Be Your Portfolio's Best Friend Created: Wednesday, February 29, 2012 Updated: Monday, April 30, 2012
A dividend reinvestment program, or dividend reinvestment plan, is often called a DRIP. These low-cost or no-cost accounts allow you to buy shares of stock directly from a company through a sponso...
What Is Dividend Investing? Created: Monday, October 25, 2010 Updated: Monday, April 30, 2012
Dividend investing is a special type of investing strategy that involves buying a collection of stocks with high dividend yields. Typically, dividend investors only want stocks with dividends that...
Dividend Tax - The Political Debate Created: Monday, May 19, 2003 Updated: Monday, April 30, 2012
The dividend tax has come under fire lately as Congress considers President Bush's proposal to phase it out. This article presents both sides of the dividend tax debate and discusses one of the pro...
Before You Begin Investing, You Need to Figure Out Why You Want to Invest Created: Monday, April 30, 2012 Updated: Monday, April 30, 2012
Before you begin investing your money for the first time, you need to figure out what you are trying to accomplish. Do you want more income? Do you want to grow your net worth? Why are you inves...
Measure Your Investing Success By Your Annual Passive Income Created: Monday, April 30, 2012 Updated: Monday, April 30, 2012
One of the best ways to measure your success at investing is to look at the passive income you generate each year from your stocks, bonds, real estate, private businesses, and other assets. There ...
How Can Someone Live Off Their Investments? Created: Wednesday, March 03, 2010 Updated: Monday, April 30, 2012
The goal of most investors is to get to the point that they can live off their money. This is called income investing. The art of income investing involves learning how to tell how
101 Things You Always Wanted to Know About Stocks (But Were Too Afraid to Ask) Created: Monday, March 01, 2010 Updated: Monday, April 30, 2012
Everyone talks about stocks but few people understand them. This investing for beginners guide was put together so you could learn the 101 most frequently asked questions about stocks and the stoc...
Introduction to Passive Income - How to Make Money By Creating Passive Income Created: Sunday, March 29, 2009 Updated: Monday, April 30, 2012
The key to success is something known as passive income which is money earned without much time or effort. In fact, passive income is even taxed differently than active income. This article discu...
Six Steps to Retire Rich Created: Tuesday, June 01, 2004 Updated: Monday, April 30, 2012
These simple six steps to retire rich will help you ensure your golden years are spent comfortably. This article is part of the investing retirement center.
Opening a Roth IRA for Kids Can Help Your Children Build Serious Wealth Created: Sunday, April 29, 2012 Updated: Sunday, April 29, 2012
Opening a Roth IRA for kids can be one of the best ways to help your children invest their money, saving cash tax-free to grow for decades as it generates dividends, interest income, and rental inc...
Investing Lessons from Scrooge McDuck - How Scrooge McDuck Can Teach You to Be a Better Investor Created: Sunday, July 27, 2008 Updated: Sunday, April 29, 2012
Scrooge McDuck is the richest duck in the world and a major influence on me growing up in my question to build a fortune of my own. As a light hearted addition to the hundreds of articles in the s...
How to Become Wealthy Created: Monday, June 02, 2003 Updated: Sunday, April 29, 2012
These nine financial keys will help you get on the road to financial freedom, build wealth, and become rich.
Invest in What You Know Created: Friday, May 23, 2003 Updated: Sunday, April 29, 2012
Investing in companies you are familiar with and understand is one of the keys to success in the stock market. Often, a trip to the mall or shopping center can yield investment ideas.
Earning Yields and the Price-to-Earning Ratio of Blue Chip Stocks Created: Sunday, April 29, 2012 Updated: Sunday, April 29, 2012
Six years ago, we talked about the executive compensation at Home Depot and how the real reason behind the stock's slide was due to the low earnings yield, not management. Now, six years later, we...
Is a Full Service Broker Right for You - What You Should Expect from a Full Service Brokerage Firm Created: Thursday, September 20, 2007 Updated: Sunday, April 29, 2012
How do you know if the extra costs of a full service broker are right for you? For novice investors with sufficient assets, these relationships can be beneficial because they protect them from the...
Why Home Depot Shareholders Have Lost Their Mind Created: Monday, June 05, 2006 Updated: Sunday, April 29, 2012
On Thursday, May 25th, 2006, a firestorm of controversy was ignited in the media when the Board of Directors for Home Depot, the second largest retailer on the planet and one of the thirty stocks i...
Index Funds - The Dumb Money Almost Always Wins Created: Thursday, July 10, 2003 Updated: Sunday, April 29, 2012
Index funds provide a way for individual investors to match the overall returns of the stock market instead of buying mutual funds or hiring advisors to try to beat the market. This article explain...
Stock Dividend Yields vs. Treasury Yields Created: Thursday, October 30, 2008 Updated: Sunday, April 29, 2012
One way to calculate the relative value of stocks is to compare the dividend yield on a group of solid, blue chip companies to the interest yield you could earn by investing in Treasury bills, bond...
Understanding the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) Created: Tuesday, June 09, 2009 Updated: Sunday, April 29, 2012
Have you ever wondered how the Dow Jones Industrial Average is calculated? Or how about the name of the thirty Dow components that make up the DJIA? In a few minutes, you'll discover the history ...
Investing in Equity Funds Versus Investing in Individual Stocks Created: Monday, February 27, 2012 Updated: Friday, March 30, 2012
Picking individual stocks or investing in an equity fund can be a tough decision. Here are some things to help you decide which approach could be right for your family.
5 Things You Should Know About 401(k) Loans Created: Thursday, March 29, 2012 Updated: Thursday, March 29, 2012
It ia almost always a mistake to take a 401(k) loan against your retirement assets. If you need convincing, here are five reasons why you are probably making a huge mistake if you tap your nest eg..
What Is a 401(k)? Created: Monday, March 26, 2012 Updated: Thursday, March 29, 2012
If you have ever asked,
I Have Used Up My Emergency Funds. What Should I Do? Created: Friday, March 11, 2011 Updated: Thursday, March 29, 2012
If you have used your emergency fund money, what do you do? Here are some ideas.
Ten Part Guide to Beat the Market Created: Saturday, April 28, 2007 Updated: Thursday, March 29, 2012
Truly successful investors have certain traits and characteristics that allow them a better chance of generating higher after-tax returns than the broader stock market indices such as the S&P 500 a..
How to Deal with Forced Retirement Created: Thursday, December 14, 2006 Updated: Thursday, March 29, 2012
According to a new study by Sun Life Financial, more than 20% of American workers are subject to forced retirement by layoffs, cutbacks, and shutdowns. In an age where pensions have gone by the way..
Never stop contributing to your 401k – Even in a Crisis Created: Monday, November 12, 2007 Updated: Thursday, March 29, 2012
Always contribute to your 401k even if you are in financial trouble. It may seem counterintuitive, but there are actually three reasons that continuing your regular contributions to your retiremen..
What Is a 401(k) Contribution Limit? Created: Thursday, March 29, 2012 Updated: Thursday, March 29, 2012
You can't just save as much money as you want in your 401(k) because Congress has put contribution limits on your annual elective deferrals. This year, for example, the 401(k) contribution limits ..
Understanding Your 403(b) Plan - An Introduction to the 403(b) Account Created: Monday, March 30, 2009 Updated: Thursday, March 29, 2012
The 403(b) plan is a type of qualified retirement plan offered to employees of non-profits, educational institutions, and some self-employed ministers. The 403(b) plan is often compared to a 401(k..
The Complete Financial Portfolio - 10 Steps to Building a Complete Financial Portfolio Created: Tuesday, March 15, 2005 Updated: Thursday, March 29, 2012
In ten simple steps, you can begin building a complete financial portfolio. The complete financial portfolio includes yoru 401k, brokerage accounts, house, car, student loans, credit card debt, and..
Understanding Your Rollover IRA - A Guide to the Rollover IRA Created: Tuesday, March 17, 2009 Updated: Thursday, March 29, 2012
When you change jobs, one option is to move your old 401(k) plan into a rollover IRA with a brokerage firm. This offers several advantages because a rollover IRA will allow you to invest in stocks..

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