Top Ten Things to Do Before You Invest $1 | p. x |
Introduction | p. xi |
Getting Organized | p. 1 |
Laying the Foundation | p. 2 |
Taking Financial Inventory | p. 2 |
Building a Budget | p. 5 |
Leave Some Money for Investments | p. 8 |
Where to Cut Spending | p. 9 |
Do-It-Yourself Filing System | p. 10 |
The Next Step | p. 12 |
The Lay of the Land | p. 15 |
How Wall Street Works | p. 16 |
The NYSE | p. 17 |
The NASDAQ and the Amex | p. 20 |
What's in a Trade? | p. 21 |
The Stock Indexes | p. 22 |
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) | p. 23 |
Invest Like the Pros | p. 24 |
Ladies and Gentlemen, Start Your Portfolios | p. 27 |
Investment Cornerstones | p. 28 |
Why Good Poker Players Make Good Investors | p. 28 |
What's Your Tolerance for Risk? | p. 30 |
Different Types of Risk | p. 34 |
Diversification | p. 37 |
Understanding Asset Allocation | p. 37 |
Investor Profile | p. 40 |
All About Stocks | p. 43 |
Buy What You Know | p. 44 |
Stock Basics | p. 45 |
Types of Stocks | p. 47 |
Blue Chip and Growth Stocks | p. 48 |
Small-Cap and Large-Cap Stocks | p. 49 |
Cyclical, Defensive, and Value Stocks | p. 50 |
Income and Speculative Stocks and Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) | p. 51 |
Preferred Stocks | p. 51 |
Penny Stocks | p. 52 |
Stock Options | p. 54 |
Doing Your Homework | p. 57 |
Researching Stocks | p. 58 |
The Role of the Internet | p. 59 |
How the Great Ones Choose Stocks | p. 61 |
Understanding Great Companies | p. 62 |
Know the Basics | p. 64 |
Avoiding the Herd Mentality | p. 67 |
When to Sell | p. 69 |
Your Place in the Equation | p. 70 |
Taking the Leap | p. 73 |
Executing Stock Trades | p. 74 |
Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) | p. 77 |
Dividend Reinvestment Plans (DRIPs) | p. 79 |
Working with a Stockbroker | p. 79 |
Buying Bargain Stocks | p. 83 |
Stock Tables | p. 84 |
Stock Symbols | p. 85 |
Working with an Investment Club | p. 86 |
The Basics of Mutual Funds | p. 89 |
What Is a Mutual Fund? | p. 90 |
Fund Managers | p. 94 |
Loads, No Loads, and Operating Costs | p. 96 |
Fees and Expenses | p. 97 |
Hidden Costs | p. 98 |
Fund Reports | p. 99 |
Fund Trading Practices | p. 101 |
Stock Mutual Funds | p. 105 |
Benefits and Choices of Mutual Fund Stock Investing | p. 106 |
Growth Funds | p. 106 |
Value and Sector Funds | p. 107 |
International and Global Funds | p. 108 |
Index and Balanced Funds | p. 109 |
Asset Allocation Funds | p. 110 |
Socially Responsible Funds | p. 111 |
Large-Cap, Mid-Cap, and Small-Cap Funds | p. 112 |
Closed-End Mutual Funds | p. 113 |
Building Your Own Mutual Fund with Personal Portfolios | p. 114 |
Choosing the Right Fund Combination | p. 117 |
Risk Tolerance and Your Fund Portfolio | p. 118 |
Using Diversification to Minimize Risk | p. 119 |
Investing for Your Family | p. 120 |
Your Lifelong Fund Strategy | p. 121 |
Past Performance | p. 124 |
Reading the Prospectus | p. 126 |
Building Your Fund Profile | p. 128 |
Six Fund Investment Strategies You Can Swear By | p. 129 |
Tracking Your Fund's Performance | p. 131 |
How to Keep Tabs on Your Portfolio | p. 132 |
Economic Indicators: Part I | p. 135 |
Economic Indicators: Part II | p. 137 |
The Value of Asset Allocation | p. 139 |
When to Sell | p. 140 |
Does Dollar-Cost Averaging Really Work? | p. 141 |
Bond Basics | p. 143 |
What Are Bonds? | p. 144 |
The Value of Bonds in Your Portfolio | p. 145 |
Stocks Versus Bonds: Performance and Security | p. 146 |
Bond Yields | p. 148 |
Bond Credit Risks | p. 149 |
Bond Ratings | p. 151 |
How Are Bonds Priced? | p. 152 |
How to Buy Bonds | p. 153 |
Types of Bonds | p. 157 |
Overview of Bond Categories | p. 158 |
Corporate Bonds | p. 159 |
U.S. Treasury Securities | p. 160 |
High-Yield Bonds | p. 162 |
Municipal Bonds | p. 163 |
Mortgage-Backed Securities | p. 165 |
Zero Coupon Bonds | p. 166 |
Bond Mutual Funds | p. 166 |
Choosing Bond Funds That Work for You | p. 169 |
Creating Your Own Mutual Fund | p. 173 |
Mutual Funds in the Past | p. 174 |
Personal Portfolio Pluses | p. 175 |
Hidden Benefits | p. 176 |
Steps for Building Your Own Mutual Fund | p. 177 |
The High End of the Market: Separate Accounts | p. 179 |
Tread Carefully | p. 180 |
Socially Responsible Investing | p. 181 |
Doing Well by Doing Good | p. 182 |
What Is Socially Responsible Investing? | p. 184 |
Investing Versus Socially Responsible Investing | p. 186 |
Components of a Socially Responsible Portfolio | p. 188 |
The Best Ways to Build a Socially Responsible Portfolio | p. 189 |
Retirement Planning | p. 193 |
The Beauty of Tax-Deferred Investing | p. 194 |
Advantages of Investing Early and Often | p. 195 |
The 401 (k) Plan | p. 196 |
Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) | p. 200 |
Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) | p. 204 |
Stay Focused | p. 205 |
Ground Rules: Investing in Real Estate | p. 207 |
The Basics | p. 208 |
What to Look for in a New Property | p. 208 |
Location, Location, Location | p. 211 |
Buying and Selling Rental Properties | p. 213 |
What to Expect from a New Landlord | p. 215 |
Investing in Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) | p. 216 |
Cashing In on Collectibles | p. 221 |
Household Treasures | p. 222 |
The Vintage Collectibles Market | p. 222 |
The Contemporary Collectibles Market | p. 223 |
Collecting Art | p. 225 |
Setting Prices | p. 226 |
Auction Portals: eBay and Others | p. 228 |
Guidelines to eBay | p. 230 |
Teaming Up: Working with a Financial Advisor | p. 233 |
Go It Alone or Get Help? | p. 234 |
What Can You Expect from a Financial Advisor? | p. 235 |
Shopping for a Financial Advisor | p. 237 |
How Much Will You Pay? | p. 239 |
Where to Find an Advisor | p. 240 |
You, Your Portfolio, and Uncle Sam: Investing and Taxes | p. 243 |
Why Do Taxes Exist? | p. 244 |
How Taxes Impact Your Portfolio | p. 244 |
Types of Investment Taxes | p. 245 |
Creating an Investment Tax Strategy | p. 246 |
Tips for Reducing Your Investment Tax Liability | p. 248 |
Keep More of Your Own Money | p. 252 |
Online Investing: Resources, Road Maps, and Red Flags | p. 253 |
Your Portfolio and the Internet | p. 254 |
Best Practices of Internet Investing | p. 256 |
Is There a Downside? | p. 258 |
A Word to the Wise on Internet Scams | p. 259 |
The Ten Best Investment Web Sites | p. 261 |
The Big Picture | p. 262 |
Discount Brokers | p. 263 |
Investment Publications | p. 267 |
Investment Web Sites | p. 271 |
Glossary of Terms | p. 275 |
Index | p. 285 |
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