How Companies Like Procter & Gamble Can Change Your Retirement

It wasn’t all that long ago that retirees could count on decent yields from stable, fixed-income investments. Ten years ago, it was easy to find 5% yields even from short-term government treasury bills. This arguably made retirement planning easier than it is today: Retirees could count on rock-solid payouts and protection of principal. All they needed to do was plug the numbers into a retirement planning program to see if they had the resources to retire. They didn’t need to worry much about fluctuations in asset prices or cuts in dividends.

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Dividend Growth Model: How to Calculate Stock Intrinsic Value

Determining the intrinsic stock value of a company is decidedly one of the most difficult things in trading. Even experienced traders have problems with certain valuation metrics. Despite the difficulties encountered, being able to tell if a certain stock is valuable for trading or not is crucial to the entire process and business. The dividend growth model is one of the many used in establishing a stock’s value. Here are the basics involved in this type of calculations as well as some pointers for future reference, should you desire to delve into this yourself.

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Know Your Risk Tolerance Level Before Investing

If we have learned nothing else from the recent economic crunch, it should be that we need to not only avoid making overly risky investment decisions ourselves, but avoid working with financial institutions that take excessive risks, as well. The recession was caused, in very great part, by institutions that became blinded by the prospects for a big win, while at the same time, failing to take responsibility for the losses that so often accompany taking ill-advised risks with investors’ money.

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Projected Growth Rate: How to Estimate Your Earnings

The Cambridge Dictionary defines ‘projected growth rate’ as the estimated pace at which something will be growing in the foreseeable future. It’s a generous definition, as is apparent—one that applies equally well to macroeconomics (GDP projected growth rate) and corporate finance (dividend projected growth rate).

For the purposes of this post, we’ll be looking at various formulas and terms employed to calculate projected growth rates for company sales and dividends. We’ll be looking both at growth in terms of percentages, as well as at real dollars, and use previous performances to help you get to an accurate a guesstimate as possible.

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Are Dividends the Best Retirement Planning Strategy?

Planning ahead, especially when it involves money is never easy to do. However, there comes a time when all the plans and savings you’ve made will decide your lifestyle. That time is called ‘retirement’. Statistics show that 6 out of 10 people have never even thought about what they’re going to do regarding money when they’re retired, and that is not the appropriate attitude. Therefore, if you’ve come to terms with the fact that your future depends on the decisions you make now, here’s a brief guide on what you need to know about retirement planning strategies. Also, we are going to discuss whether dividends are the best option for you or not.

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All You Need to Know About Qualified Dividends

When you decide to start trading or investing in a company or other, the things you’re most interested in are dividends. They represent items that will generate revenue from your trading. However, one thing all beginner traders need to know is that not all dividends are the same. The differences might seem small at first glance, but they actually have a big impact on your returns. Here is a short guide on qualified dividends and what sets them apart from the rest.

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How to Achieve a Retirement Income by Age 40

Did you know that one third of Americans are worried they’re never going to achieve a retirement income? Meanwhile, some weirdos out there, me included, are ‘retiring’ in their 30s. How do we manage to do this? Isn’t retirement supposed to be something that happens to you right before you kick the bucket, at the end of a long, strenuous lifetime spent working?

No.

I decided it wouldn’t be that way for me, which is why I managed to quit the 9 to 5 job I didn’t like at 32. Of course, just because I did it like that doesn’t mean that you have to do it as early as me. You might find my kind of plan too taxing. Maybe you’re one of those folks who likes to indulge a little while they’re young.

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How to Retire and Not Outlive Your Money

It’s one of the biggest fears people have: outliving their money. An incredible 61% of baby boomers fear outliving their money more than they fear death! But so many are doing nothing about it or they’re simply not sure what to do.

Let’s first lay out the fundamental issue here. The problem is that most people will not have enough retirement income to cover their expenses.

It’s Not Easy to Generate Income in Retirement Today

Interest rates are historically low. That is probably the biggest problem when it comes to retirement income. With 30 year treasury yields barely beating inflation, how can anybody be expected to use bonds for retirement income?

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How to Become a Successful Dividend Growth Investor

As the year commenced, you might have set some new goals for yourself as far as finance goes. If one of your new goals refers to dividend trading, the path you might want to consider is dividend growth investing. Your bank account is almost positive to benefit from this initiative, as long as you know what you have to do. Indeed, it takes time, patience, and some studying of the market, but the results will make it all worth it. Here are the basic steps, as well as some tips and tricks on how to become a successful dividend growth investor.

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How to Generate Passive Income for Financial Independence

Passive income has become much of a buzzword of late, as the prospect of making money while sitting on the beach, sipping cocktails, is understandably appealing to many. However, the reality of passive incomes is a bit more complex than that—by the standards of both the IRS and numerous investors.

In a day and age where talk of living wages is becoming increasingly impassioned, it’s only natural that many find it appealing to retire young, because they already have enough money to live on for the rest of their lives. But before you get even remotely close to this prospect, you need to understand what passive income is, what it is not, and what are some sound ideas of generating one for yourself.

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5 Steps To Retire In 12 Years

My underlying purpose of starting this blog is to document my journey on my way to retiring early. I am not sure if everyone out there really has a dream or desire to get out of the rat race early, if at all. It’s not necessarily a noble goal and I don’t really try to push it on anyone. Some people really like their career, and other people don’t mind working. Others genuinely enjoy having a nice house, big car and lots of stuff and are willing to work for it. I don’t think any of these traits are negatives. I simply don’t share them. If you share my desire to retire young and spend more time relaxing and less working then follow along as I share my list of five steps to take if you want to retire early.

My personal journey started last year at 28 years old. I have a goal to be financially independent by 40 years old. That makes my journey 12 years long. I’m going to put a road map together for others who have such a goal.

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How to Come up with a Retirement Plan that Works

Nobody really likes retirement planning: it’s a source of stress and anxiety, as well as the main reason financial planners never really run out of business. Today’s economic climate is not exactly conducive for saving, so a lot of people worry that they’re not going to be able to balance the kind of life they are living right now, with the kind of life they want to live further down the line.

However, retiring on time doesn’t have to be a hassle. In fact, I’m actually living proof that you can ‘retire’ a whole lot earlier than the typical age. All you need to do is come armed with a plan that works for you, your income level, and your needs.

Join me as I dole out a couple of commonsensical tips and tricks for a hassle-free retirement and also walk you through some of the most popular types of retirement plans out there. And, don’t worry, I’ll explain them in plain English, so you can actually understand what each of them is all about!

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How to Achieve Financial Freedom: Expert Dividend Investing Tips

At some point in life, I realized I didn’t want to work the daily grind forever. I knew I wanted to quit the soul-sucking job I had at the time as soon as possible and not work another hour that I didn’t want to work. That’s when I discovered the powerful concept of financial freedom.

What is financial freedom?

Financial freedom can be anything you want it to be, so long as it involves having the kind of money you need in order to live the life you dream of for yourself. It means not compromising, living within your means, and getting rid of financial sources of worry.

In today’s post, I will be focusing on helping you create a sound, functional plan for financial freedom, and also offer a couple of simple tips for beginner dividend growth investor. Finally, I’ll leave you off with some of my favorite inspirational quotes on financial freedom. Trust me, it’s not that hard to achieve. If I can do it, so can you!

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My Dividend Growth Portfolio – Different DGI Approach

After introducing myself, I now want to present my dividend growth portfolio. It will give you an idea of how I manage my portfolio and will definitely give you another vision of dividend growth investing as I don’t exactly follow the classic dividend investing model.

I’m not claiming to have the best investment strategy, far from it. I think a good investment strategy is a combination of both a solid set of investing rules and a style that will fit with your knowledge and personality. There are many good investment strategies that will lead you to your financial objectives. The best investing strategy is the one that helps you sleep at night 

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Top 10 High Dividend Stocks to Invest in Now

When trading stocks, you have two options – you either do it yourself, or you hire a broker to do it for you. Either way, it’s an unpredictable business. That means you could lose money, or you could win enough never to have to work again. The key is to know which stocks, REITs or ETFs, to invest in, because the more successful they are, the more dividends you’ll receive. This is why we’ve compiled for you a short list of the best high dividend stocks to invest in. From Warren Buffet tips to forecasts for 2016, this guide has it all.

High Dividend Paying Stocks Recommended by Warren Buffet

If Warren Buffet recommends something, you know it has to be good. If there is one thing this man knows, that is money and business. Therefore, here are his top choices, pulled out from Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway portfolio.

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Is The First $100K The Hardest?

My, my. Feels good to write this article!

Munger has said that accumulating the first $100,000 from a standing start, with no seed money, is the most difficult part of building wealth. Making the first million was the next big hurdle. To do that a person must consistently underspend his income. Getting wealthy, he explains, is like rolling a snowball. It helps to start on top of a long hill—start early and try to roll that snowball for a very long time. It helps to live a long life.

– From the book, Damn Right: Behind The Scenes With Berkshire Hathaway Billionaire Charlie Munger

As if Munger needed any confirmation from me, but I’m here to tell you that the first $100,000 is definitely the most difficult aspect of building wealth.

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Create Your Own Miniature Berkshire Hathaway

One of the very first things I did when I initially started investigating investing and a potential strategy that could work for me and my goals was read about Warren Buffett. Of course, it’s almost impossible not to run into the guy and his amazing story as a general citizen, let alone as someone who’s actively seeking knowledge about how to go about investing in a successful manner.

I won’t bore you with all the details of his life, but I’m currently re-reading his biography,“The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life”, and I can’t help but continue to find inspiration in what he’s done and how he’s gone about doing it.

While I’d like to write a lengthier post someday specifically pointing out some great concepts about Warren’s personal life, I’d like to discuss the transformative business decision to take control of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK.B) and how it can apply to regular investors like you and I.

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Sector Allocation As It Pertains To Dividend Growth Investing

Sector allocation is an aspect of the dividend growth investing strategy that I’ve been meaning to discuss for some time now.

But now that I have some time to sit down and really address this, I hope it provides you readers a ton of value.

I brought this subject up very quickly when I reviewed Personal Capital a few months ago, but I didn’t really go any further than just casually mentioning my “ideal” allocation to sectors within my own portfolio over the long term. So I’m going to take some time today to flesh that ideal allocation out, what sectors you might want to strongly look at, and how to think about sector allocation as it relates to building out your portfolio.

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What’s The Bigger Sacrifice: Living Below Your Means Or Working For Most Of Your Life?

I’ve often received emails and comments on this blog over the years relating to the sacrifice involved in aggressively pursuing financial independence. While often not criticizing in nature, I think people have this preconceived notion in their mind about what sacrifice really is.

See, I won’t lie to you and tell you I haven’t sacrificed over the years to get to where I’m at. You don’t build a portfolio well into the six figures in four years on an income under $60k (at times WELL under that mark) by accident. It’s been a long, hard journey. I’ve had to get up extra early in the morning to make sure I could catch the bus. I ate ramen noodles for a year straight for lunch at work. I got pelted with rocks and bugs in the face on days I rode my 49cc scooter. I’ve worked over 50 hours per week at my day job, and then come home only to spend countless hours writing about this lifestyle on this blog, as I’ve been absolutely committed to spreading the message and inspiring others all while documenting my own journey. I’ve also spent a ton of time managing my portfolio and researching investments over the years.

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Freedom Fund Update – November 2015

Well, the time has come to update the Freedom Fund once again as we start another month. The Freedom Fund is my portfolio, and I think it’s aptly named. My portfolio is my way to freedom; freedom from a job I don’t desire to purchase goods I don’t need to impress neighbors I don’t care about. This journey is all about freedom and flexibility. One day, the dividend income this portfolio generates will fully cover my expenses and my time will be completely my own. What could you possibly want to own more than your time?

I’m extremely fortunate that I’m able to post these updates every single month, which shows the power of monthly contributions to investments because of the high savings rate I maintain. It shows how a relatively large sum of money can be built through the power of time, patience and perseverance.

It’s important to keep in mind that while updating the overall value of my portfolio is important for historical reference and keeping track of total return, as well as giving context to the dividend income I earn, my main focus is on the rising dividend income stream the Fund provides.

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