Given life’s vagaries each of us would like to save and invest our hard-earned money to tide us through the rainy days, and the occasional black swan, when they come. Where we err though is to jump headlong into “investments†just because we need to be seen with the “crowd.†Someone in the next cubicle […]
I was itching to write that title. It’s been a while since I posted — yet again due to travel, this time a planned one — and by the time I got back there were some super-awesome comments on some of the recent posts. First up, reader Ashwin introduced me to the concept of a […]
About a week back, I received a PR email from IDBI Bank announcing the launch of their Floating Rate Term Deposit scheme. Thought I’d look it up and give you a quick review (a side effect being the evaluation of this scheme for it’s suitability in my ere portfolio). To begin with, if things such […]
About three months back, I first wrote about the possibility of including high dividend yield stocks as one component of my early retirement portfolio. That combined with the little known fact that D has a keen interest in equity trading (seriously, she just started trading one day out of the blue and has become quite […]
Since I’m now on the lookout for ways and means for generating a steady investment income each month, my eyes and ears perk up at the slightest sight and sound of any financial instrument that would let me achieve that. That’s how I got interested in the LIC Jeevan Akshay VI Immediate Annuity Plan. Thought […]
In my most recent early retirement update, I’d published the below chart — This chart illustrates potential monthly income earned and actual expenses incurred as a function of time over the past four-quarters. I’d explained these terms further by saying — When I say potential income, I am referring to any passive income plus the […]
Here’s a question that I often receive — Hi. I’ve recently started my career at a software firm. I earn Rs XX,000 per month. Being new to personal finance, I’m not aware of investment options for beginners. Could you please guide me towards suitable investment options? Whenever I see such a question or an equivalent […]
A few days back, I happened to see an ad for this Monthly Income Plan from MetLife, a life insurance company. In this plan, you’re supposed to pay the premiums for about 10-years and then post these 10-years of paying premiums you’re guaranteed a fixed monthly income for the next 15-years. As it always happens, […]
[Sorry if this topic seems a bit advanced and haywire in its presentation but I felt it’d be good to share with you.] I was reading-up on and strategizing the other day about the possibility of including high dividend yield stocks as one component of my early retirement portfolio. The general line of thought in […]
To date, I haven’t understood why some — actually many — financial experts advise you to not save-up your money in a Public Provident Fund account. Thankfully, I’m not in that camp of thought. I have always encouraged you to save the maximum allowed limit (currently Rs 100,000) each year in your PPF account. In […]
While early retirement is my primary goal, a common feedback that I hear from readers of the blog is that I am quite vague when it comes to specifying absolute amounts and absolute figures with respect to my own situation. I’d really love to share these figures with you but the very nature of the […]
For the first six-years of my professional career, I think I paid credit-card bills in the five-figures each year! I bought huge quantities of stuff that I simply threw away later. If instead, over these early six-years, I had saved Rs 70,000 each year in the Public Provident Fund (PPF) account that my mother had […]
In the past one year, my Fixed Maturity Plans (FMPs) have fared only slightly better than my Bank Fixed Deposits (FDs) of comparable tenure. A 1-year FMP from IDFC achieved an APR of 10.05% (equal to an APY of 10.44% with quarterly compounding). A 1-year FMP from SBI achieved an APR of 9.89% (equal to […]
I regularly receive emails where readers express their horror stories about LIC’s Jeevan Anand policy. Believing an agent’s (who often happens to be a neighbor/relative/friend) fictional stories of risk and return, they buy the policy only to discover that they need to pay exorbitant premiums for the next 20-years and that when they want to […]
The following is a guest post from reader Nikhil Shah and deals with the intricacies of investing in the soon to close investment opportunity in PFC’s Tax Free Bond Issue along with the income tax angle. Nikhil’s analysis also contains a very interesting perspective on how you can plan for major financial goals through this […]
Here’s how you can participate and win the Stock Market Book by Dalal Street Investment Journal this January. Simply leave a comment explaining what, in 2012, is your primary financial goal and why? Remember, the more detailed your entry the better are your chances of winning. And here’s a sample chapter from the book. I’ll […]
The following is a guest post from reader Nikhil Shah and deals with the intricacies of investing in the soon to close investment opportunity in NHAI’s Tax Free Bond Issue along with the income tax angle. Nikhil’s analysis also contains a very interesting perspective on how you can plan for major financial goals through this […]
The following is a guest post from reader Nikhil Shah and deals with the intricacies of investing in the soon to close investment opportunity in L&T’s Infrastructure Bond issue along with the income tax angle. Earlier this year, Nikhil had also put-up a detailed analysis of the previous L&T bond issue. Dear All, The year […]
A reader writes-in: Hope you are doing good. Need your ideas on saving for my child’s future. I have made a few investments for my kid’s education. But these are long-term investments which will give returns only after 18-years. In addition to this, I would like to have investments allocated exclusively for my child. These […]
A reader writes-in: Is it worth taking term insurance when you’re in your late 30’s? Let’s say I purchase term insurance for a sum assured of 50 lacs and for a period of 22-years. The yearly premium is around 18,000 which means I will be losing nearly 4 lacs by the end of the policy […]