When making out a monthly budget, some people forget to allocate a portion of their income to their emergency fund. They might think that this is fine for the short-term, but it definitely is not sustainable for the long-term. Having a certain amount of cash set aside is essential in case any unforeseen circumstances were
Month: May 2020
Bull vs. Bear When dealing with the terms ‘bear’ and ‘bull’ in regard to the stock market, it is important to be able to differentiate between the two. These words are describing the behavior of the market, and correspondingly, how well your portfolio will fare that day. Bear market A bear market means that the
When you are starting the hunt for your first house, there is a lot of work to do. You have to finalize your budget, look through listings, go back and forth with your realtor, and check out open houses. However, there is one more step that many people neglect to do; get pre-approved for a
Wednesday broke the two day gain streak for the Dow Jones and the S&P 500, however, the NASDAQ saw positive numbers for the third day in a row. The Dow Jones fell by 0.9%, and the S&P 500 by 0.7%. The NASDAQ rose by 0.5% by the end of the day. The number of Americans
Tuesday’s news saw investors increasingly optimistic about plans to reopen the economy sooner than expected. The Dow closed the day at 0.6% higher, while the S&P 500 rose by 0.9%. The NASDAQ increased by 1.1%. Tuesday’s close brought the second day in a row of gains for these indexes. Wendy’s stole headlines today as they
Understanding Financial Scams In this technologically savvy world, hackers are unfortunately getting better at fooling people with their scams. Sometimes it is very difficult to tell when something is a scam, or legitimate. Common scams typically take the form of phone calls or emails, as this is the easiest way to trick somebody. Many scams
The stock market is incredibly volatile and has risen and plummeted without warning. A stock market correction occurs when stock prices have dropped between 10% – 19.99% from their most recent high peak. This could either happen to an individual asset, or to an entire index, which is measuring a group of assets. A stock
What is an IRA? An Individual Retirement Account (IRA), is an investment account that allows for certain tax benefits. An IRA will contain many different types of investments, including stocks, bonds, ETFs, and mutual funds. The purpose of an IRA is specifically to save for retirement. This means that if you try to withdraw the
Monday’s closing saw a slight increase in major stocks, after the tumble at the end of last week. The Dow increased by 0.1%, the S&P increased by 0.4% and the NASDAQ rose by 1.2% today. Among fears of the Coronavirus’ second wave, the US Treasury Department announced that their estimated loan for this quarter will
When thinking about the concept of work and earning money, typically people will picture a dull, monotonous process. They do not picture work as something that they can enjoy. However, this luckily is a false ideology. People can earn money simply through hobbies that they already enjoy doing, thereby turning work into pleasure. Meet the
Which is Better? Many people still do not know the result of the age-old argument of buying a house versus renting. Overall, it depends on the person’s financial goals. Buying a house is more beneficial in the long-term while renting is easier in the short-term. Benefits of Buying a House When people buy houses, it
Getting Started With the recent catastrophic pandemic sweeping through the United States, many employees have been put out of work or been forced to reduce their hours. Luckily, the government has been able to provide some financial assistance for those who have had their employment affected by the virus. However, for many people, this just
The Basics When getting an understanding of how the stock market works, it is a good idea to become aware of all the different components. By doing so, it will make more sense to you how everything plays its part to work together. An exchange-traded fund (ETF) is a combination of securities such as stocks,
The American Debt With the cost of living increasing annually, and salaries not being correspondingly raised, there is no question that Americans are in more debt now than they have ever been. More and more people are living off credit card debt, and only being able to make the minimum interest payment each month. The
Friday’s stock market brought a troubled end to the week, with the Dow Jones dropping 2.56% and the NASDAQ dropping 3.20%. The S&P 500 also fell, with a drop of 2.81%. These decreases contributed to erasing all the gains that Wall Street had earned this week. Earlier today, President Trump threatened to impose additional tariffs
Overview It is no secret that the cost of post-secondary education in the United States is at an all-time high. The price of tuition, accommodation, and books is staggering, and many college students are struggling. Luckily, there are a few tax breaks that are designed to help students get by. May students are not aware
What is a merger? When two separate companies decide to join together to make one, this is known as a merger. These are quite common in business, as mergers bring plenty of benefits. Employees can sometimes feel nervous when they hear the word ‘merger’, but it is not a negative term. It may be a
Is Day Trading Worth It? When working within the stock market, there are many different approaches that can be taken. Some people prefer to play the waiting game and hang onto their shares for as long as possible. The opposite of this is known as day trading. Day traders are people who buy and sell
The Balancing Act As of the beginning of 2020, the average American household had $137,063 in debt. This debt could be comprised of mortgages, car loans, student loans, credit card debt, etc. People will sometimes wonder which area they should focus on. Should they pay off certain loans, or should they start saving right away?
Impact on Students The pandemic that recently hit the United States brought despair and misfortune to many thousands of people, in all age groups. The effects on older adults are more obvious, but college students are feeling the negative repercussions of the virus as well. The United States government is willing to assist college students