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We Are Living in the Midst of One of the Biggest Bond Bubbles in History

September 24, 2010 By 8 Comments
McDonald's Bond Certificate Corporate Debentures

Today, I was sitting at the dining room table, drinking a cup of coffee and wearing my Brooks Brothers pajamas watching the stock market skyrocket when it occurred to me that, given the secret project and some other things going on at the business, I want to build some cash and bond reserves at one of the individual operating companies; maybe put aside money a little at a time, let it build and do something fun with it three or four years from now, like design and build a row of townhouses or … [Read more...]

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Stock Market Finishes with Worst August Since 2001

August 31, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Investments

The stock market crash this month was the worst August since 2001.  At times, it was, to paraphrase Buffett, "like a bird flying into the middle of a badminton match." The long-term investment accounts were unscathed (there, in fact, we love falling prices) but the speculation accounts took a beating.  For now, it's all on paper due to most of the maturities in our derivatives coming up in January. I joked with my dad yesterday that if I were to sell all of the businesses and take a very … [Read more...]

Filed Under: My Businesses, Stock Market Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

A $1,000,000 Municipal Bond Dilemma

August 30, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Municipal Bonds and Muncipal Bond Investments

Those of you who follow my writings at About.com, a division of The New York Times, know that I've written about municipal bonds at the Investing for Beginners site including one article that detailed some ways to help you determine if a specific municipal bond was "safe". At the wedding this weekend, I was discussing a family friend, who shall remain nameless, who is in his 80's and has more than $1,000,000 parked in municipal bonds.  As many of you know, this means he earns tax-free … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Municipal Bonds, Saving Money Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Response to What Is Probably the Most Ignorant Message I’ve Received In 10 Years of Writing Finance Articles

July 26, 2010 By 2 Comments

A reader named Medusa wrote me and, to keep it short, explained that I shouldn't believe people should be rich because the Bible is against rich people, that I was going to die a miserable, lonely old man with no one who loved me because I saved my money instead of spending it, and that after reading a profile I wrote based on Federal Reserve data of the Capitalist Class in the United States, she was starting to consider the possibility that the rich were nothing but oppressors who steal from … [Read more...]

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Using Cash to Increase Your Value Investing Returns

January 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Cash In Your Value Investing Portfolio

One of the least discussed secrets of great practitioners of the value investing strategy is the use of cash, cash equivalents, and bonds to augment returns.  From Benjamin Graham and Warren Buffett to Wallace Weitz and Marty Whitman, intelligent use of excess funds has as much to do with growing your capital over the long run as does selecting individual common stocks.  We're going to look at some of the techniques that have been used by value investors to manage their reserves, and the role … [Read more...]

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Asset Positioning Asset Allocation Strategy

December 10, 2009 By Leave a Comment
Asset Positioning Asset Class

Did you know there is a unique tax strategy that can help improve your asset allocation investing by keeping more money in your pocket? It's called asset positioning and it can be practiced by virtually anyone with investments.  I once wrote about asset positioning over at Investing for Beginners at About.com, a division of The New York Times, even though it is more of an intermediate investing concept rather than one for total newbies. What Is Asset Positioning? Asset positioning, or asset … [Read more...]

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