October 2009: Net Worth, Stock Loss, and New Home Update

By MoneyBlueBook

Well gang, it's time for another networth update. For those unfamiliar with these reports, I've been calculating my net worth and tracking my financial progress for a few years now. The personal balance sheet numbers I report on these updates are not meant to be boastful or intended to be wantonly exhibitionist (although unfortunately I understand how they might come off as such). The purpose of following my networth changes over time is actually to inspire and encourage readers to do the same for themselves. These periodic progress updates are not only great ways to help one track the successful self accumulation of monetary assets over time, but they help to ensure, encourage, and remind oneself of the importance of routine accountability of personal financial decisions. Coupled with free online budgeting tools and my NetworthIQ.com account, I use them all to chart my finances and keep myself consistently on the right track. The issue of money and income has always been a rather taboo subject among people, but it's too important to not pay regular attention to.

Yes, I Am Still Upbeat For The Future: Things Will Get Better In Time

Wow, what a roller coaster ride of a month in terms of the stock market. One minute the Dow is breaking past the psychological 10,000 mark and soaring to new bullish heights - the next, the entire stock market is sinking like a rock. In terms of economic volatility as a function of gains and losses, the last few weeks have definitely not been

By MoneyBlueBook

Update: Get 100 Free Trades With This E-Trade Promo Offer I Just Found

Back when I first started getting serious about investing during college, E-Trade was one of the very first online brokerage firms that I opened a trading account with. My inaugural entry into the world of investing occurred around the time of the dot com bubble in 1999 - when E-Trade wasn't exactly known for its cheap commissions or discounted fees. At the time, one couldn't really consider E-Trade a true discount broker - as back then, the firm catered more to the savvier advanced traders who were willing to pay substantially more for exclusive access to premium research and stock tracking tools. But over the years, with the rise in the popularity of Internet based discount brokers offering supremely low cost options for cheap stock trades, E-Trade's fee commission structure has gradually fallen to where it is now today. Fortunately, despite the fall in pricing over time, the firm has not sacrificed any of its premium account features but rather has continued to grow and steadily outpace its competition in terms of building a better online product for typical do-it-yourself investors like you and I.

Today, while ETrade isn't the cheapest discount brokerage around, it's one of the top online investment solutions for those looking to reap the maximum product offerings available without having to fork over the rip off fees and hefty commissions levied down by most of those big name full service brokerages on Wall

By MoneyBlueBook

Update: Finally Feeling Bullish and Hopeful For The Future Once Again

Despite the fact that historically, the month of September has traditionally been a down month for stock market investors - after months of sitting on the sidelines and hoarding online savings account cash, I've finally pulled the trigger and re-entered the market en masse. Rather than take the often advised path of investing in small bite size chunks through dollar cost averaging, I decided to plow all of my investment cash into long term equity positions simultaneously. I don't plan to pull out of my newly invested positions anytime soon and am very determined to stay the course for the very long haul - in excess of 5 years or longer. Despite the recent run up in the market, stock market prices are still at historical once-in-a-lifetime lows - and I have every intention to double or triple my investments in the next 5 years. The irrational fear and gloom of pending economic depression that gripped the whole world back in spring 2009 has mercifully passed and it now appears the beaten down economy is finally back on the track towards recovery.

Of course, this is not to say that we are anywhere close to experiencing a traditional bull market anytime soon that's punctuated by rising employment numbers and increased consumer spending, but at the very least, the specter of a crippled financial system kamikaz-ing into an irreversible death spiral has disappeared - and replaced by faint glimmers of hope. Who knows if President Barack

By MoneyBlueBook

Reviews Of Cheap Stock Trade Offers At Discount Brokerage Firms

Anyone who has ever invested in the stock market before knows that one of the biggest potential drains on one's rate of return is the amount of money spent on expensive commissions and trading fees, paid out to brokerage firms. Regardless of whether one only performs equity, option, or bond trades a few times a year - or engages in heavy duty non stop day trading - broker fees have a nasty and rather surreptitious way of chipping into one's investment profits over time.

Back in the day when I opened my Roth IRA account and started investing for the very first time, brokerage commissions for equity trades were in the $20-30 range. That was how much I paid in the way of transaction fees for a single stock transaction back then - for an account that barely broke $500 at the time. These days, with the emergence of deep discount online brokerages like TradeKing and Zecco - for the same amount of money, one can now buy, sell, and transact securities two to three times over.

Of course, while many of these emerging top online brokers are able to offer their customers extremely low fees and discounted charges for investment transactions, bear in mind that they can do so because they offer their account holders substantially less in the way of investment tools, premium research material, and customer service support. While���� not always the case, you generally get what you pay for. Premium high end

By MoneyBlueBook

As the economy steadily recovers from the devastating recession that has gripped the nation for months, stock market prices that were previously beaten down into the depths of generational lows are finally starting to rise again. With opportunities afoot, it's perhaps time for those of us who have been cautiously hoarding cash on the sidelines to consider jumping back in again. Stock prices are extremely cheap right now, and tremendous long term gains are ripe for the taking. If you have been contemplating the prospect of getting back into the market again or perhaps getting started with investing for the very first time, now may be the time to consider opening up a new discount broker account. In the hopes of earning your business, a host of online brokerage firms are now offering consumers extraordinarily low prices for cheap stock trades - without scrimping much in the way of premium brokerage amenities and features.

One of the most highly touted low cost brokerages in the market today is Scottrade, a brokerage firm with which I have retained an investment account with for years now. While certainly the company's website design and palette choices aren't exactly the prettiest or most intuitive around, the firm's online trading tools and statistical reporting features are more than sufficient to satisfy the discerning needs of most run of the mill investors.

Scottrade's Best Features: Low Broker Commissions, Low Account Minimums, and No Hidden Maintenance Fees

Compared to all-in-one brokerage giants like E-Trade or Charles Schwab that

By MoneyBlueBook

Review of SmartMoney Magazine's Top Discount Brokerages Below

While I have written about the best online discount brokers in the past - reviewing what I believe to be the top brokerage companies out there for new stock and fund investors - it's always good to check out what the financial experts have to say on the subject. For almost two decades now, the editors at SmartMoney Magazine have been reviewing and releasing their annual list of the best stock brokerage companies, thoroughly researching and comparing the candidates based on a variety of key competitive factors. For customers and broker firms alike, their award wining list is always a popular read.

In this year's 18th annual broker survey, SmartMoney updated its ranked list of the best and worst brokers after conducting a variety of performance based tests and undercover research as well as reviewing the responses to surveys by the online brokerages themselves. As the folks at Smart Money remarked in this year's review - "no detail was too small" - as they poked and prodded the various available trading tools and features, even going so far as to go incognito - calling customer support lines and posing as prospective brokerage customers, while jotting down comments in regards to the quality of the phone service they received. For new and seasoned investors, this list serves as an excellent jumping off point for those on the fence and not sure which investment broker to go with or to switch to. While the exact sequencing order of the rankings