Football season is coming! Those teams hoping to make it to the top can’t just rely on a good offense. They know they’ll need a great defense as well. It is the same way when it comes to managing your money. With several major issues affecting the markets, it may be time to add some defensive plays to your portfolio playbook.

Oil

The price of oil affects more than how much you pay for gas. It impacts the price of just about everything you buy. Whether something is shipped by freighter, rail, air or truck, it is affected by the price of oil. Thus, rising oil prices become a brake on the economic engine.

That means oil prices can impact your investments-in fact some of the recent market turmoil can be attributed to the price of oil. Professional investors recognize that rising costs will cut businesses’ profitability. So traders aren’t willing to pay as much for stocks in general.

This doesn’t mean you should go buy energy-related stocks. With a $10-$15 a barrel terrorism premium in the price of oil, prices could quickly decline as more supplies come on-line and as world uncertainty levels off. If you own these stocks, hold them but take profits if prices begin to decline.

Interest rates

The Federal Reserve recently raised its target Federal Funds rate from 1.25% to 1.5%. We should be in a rising interest rate environment for the next several years. Currently, short-term rates are increasing faster than long-term rates.

This is another area where it makes sense to play a little defense. Instead of buying a 10-year bond that might pay 5%, put that money into a Certificate of Deposit that matures in 6 or 9 months. Currently, short-term Certificates of Deposit yield as much as 2% and are directly guaranteed by the U. S. Government. By the time they come due, interest rates could be 1% higher. At that point you can switch to offense, lengthen your maturities and have a dependable income stream.

The Election

The stock market hates uncertainty. Pension and mutual fund managers, who literally control trillions of dollars of investments, invest based on expectations of how the economy and particular companies will grow over the next several years. The faster the growth, the more these managers are willing to pay for a share of stock today.

The difficulty comes when current events cause them to question those growth assumptions. The close presidential race has created uncertainty in the market. If these managers had a better indication of who the winner would be, they could better determine the impact and invest accordingly. They don’t, so investment decisions are made more cautiously. In other words, they are playing defense instead of offense.

Recently, the daily number of shares being traded in the stock market has been below normal. Buyers are content to sit on the sidelines and watch. If the market drops low enough, they will step in and pick through the bargains. There is so much money on the sidelines that when they decide to put it to work the markets could recover quickly.

Terrorism

Many investors are concerned about the effects of terrorism, and rightly so. The Republican convention makes an attractive target. The threat level has been raised in the New York financial district. Terrorists were able to influence Spain’s elections through the Madrid bombing.

For those who are retired or near retirement, your ability to sleep at night is a good indicator of your comfort level with your current investments. If preserving what you have is a higher priority than growing it and you aren’t able to sleep at night, then you may want to reduce your risk.

For my clients who are concerned about terrorism, we have been playing defense for the last several months. I have reduced the percentage that they have exposed to the stock market and have used Exchange-Traded Funds for the money that remains. They still have some exposure to the market, but we can move money to safety in a matter of minutes.

The markets will always move up and down. And long-term, the prospects of the economy are still quite positive. Playing both offense and defense will help ensure you aren’t on the losing end of the financial game.

Nationally-syndicated financial columnist and Certified Financial Planner® Jeffrey Voudrie provides personal, in-depth money management services and advice to select private clients throughout the USA. He’ll answer your financial question - FREE at http://www.guardingyourwealth.com

Do “we”?

I know I don’t, therefore the definition of “we” is defeated.

As much as I hate to quote my dad (because that implies he was right about something) I have to give credit where credit is due when it was my dad that told me “Trust is something that is earned, not given.”

So, for the record; Dad, you were and are right.

I, like many Americans, watch or read the news every day. I feel that I can safely say that 99% of the time there is something in the news where some person is declaring their “trust” in god because it was he that saved a life or took that life for some inexplicable reason. “God works in mysterious ways.”

What I fail to comprehend is why this trust exists.

If trust is something that is earned, then how can any person of faith or reason trust in God.

Being that trust is earned, and lost much faster than it is earned.

I could effectively cite tens of thousands of incidents where “acts of god” would be considered untrustworthy.

For example; An act of god caused a Tsunami that killed 100,000 people today. That is horrible, yet immediately dismissed as God has a purpose and works in mysterious ways.

Now take the exact same principle, but reveal it be a human; A man set off a nuclear weapon in the ocean that created a Tsunami that killed 100,000 people today.

That would be an act of pure evil and nearly every person on the planet would see it as an act of evil and mass murder.

This is what I find confusing; 100,000 people are dead. In either scenario there is a clear path of blame and guilt plus the clear intent to commit mass murder. Yet one is evil and the other is divine, heavenly intervention.

Now it is no secret that I do not believe in god or subscribe to any of the mythologies that plague our planet.

There are numerous natural events that have exterminated far more life on this planet than any human could ever achieve. However there have been dozens of humans that have done their absolute best to exterminate as many fellow humans as was physically possible.

Though Hitler has a large body count, it pales in comparison to the those piled up by the popes of history. Hitler was easily responsible for killing more than 6 million.

But compared to the popes, he was an amateur. Seriously, Hitler had Automatic weapons, trains, radios, telephones and horseless carriages. He had brought the assembly line into play for the purpose of mass murder. While that is horrific he was far more technologically advanced than the popes of the dark ages. Hitler’s Minions could easily execute thousands of people per day with a handful of soldiers. Where as the mass murders of old had to go and kill people one on one and one at a time. They could kill thousands of humans per day, but it took thousands of people to do it.

Now think of Pope Pious, the inventor of the phrase ‘Kill them all, God will know his own’ This SAINT, was directly responsible for the mass murder of over 1 million. He did this in an age of no electricity, horse drawn wagons and primitive blunt weapons. He killed 1/6th as many people as Hitler in time when it took hundreds of times the effort to do the killing. He did it all in the name of god, because he trusted god.

God, if he exists, allowed this to happen, in his name. Therefore he is just as guilty as the get away drive from a bank robbery.

So if trust is earned, god has a lot of work to do in order to get it back. He has spent thousands of years violating the trust in ways beyond even his wildest imagination. He will have to work twice as hard and four times as long to get it back. Life should become twice as fruitful with no killing for the next 8 thousand years. That would be a good start.

Obviously he has made no progress as of late. As recently as 1984 we had Catholic Priests and Nuns participating in the mass murder of the Tutsi in Rwanda by gun and machete. They even murdered those that came to their church to seek safety and shelter! They actively participated in the systematic face to face murder of nearly 2 million men, women and children.

Where was god then? Off somewhere doing “mysterious work” no doubt.

A while back I ran through the book Holy Horrors with a calculator and with very little effort I came up with a staggering number of people murdered in the name of god, the majority by those that are now called “saints”.

The number was 36,000,000.

If god exists then he should be imprisoned in the bowels of hell for all of eternity. After all, Thou shall not kill.

Also “In God We Trust” should be removed from anything and everything, for trust is lost far more easily than it is earned and there is no way that trust has been earned.

Also, let us not forget that a point needs to be made here about the major and most significant accomplices of these acts of genocide.

The Catholic church owes the world an immense apology. The Vatican should show shame for it alleged saints that have such huge body counts. Either they should be consistent and declare Adolf Hitler a saint or they should posthumously revoke the sainthood of every mass murdering pope, excommunicate them, cremate their remains and scatter their ashes on unholy ground while condemning them to eternity in hell where they belong.

The Catholic Church needs to admit their participation and acts of endorsement of Adolph Hitler and the Nazi’s. They are just a guilty in that genocide. They had a chance to make a difference, yet became willing participants for their share of the gold.

The Catholic Church should melt down all of it’s gold and silver, sell all of it’s treasure and start feeding and clothing the poor that they have spent centuries taking advantage of and enslaving with guilt while the priest live in gilded palaces and their followers starve and die of disease and poverty.

The Catholic Church is the perfect example of hypocrisy and evil; It is the Rome of old.

According to these people man was made in the image of God, Since our acts define us, so do his acts define him; god is obviously evil, therefore look to the mirror - there is the face of evil, the face of god.

It may seem unbelievable but it’s possible to make hundreds of thousands of dollars in a matter of hours-legally and tax-free. To see if you qualify, read on.

I recently met with a successful dentist and his wife. They were in their mid 60’s and had worked for years to achieve a level of wealth that would allow them a comfortable lifestyle. Including real estate, investments, retirement accounts and life insurance, their net worth was approximately 3 million dollars.

The dentist made approximately $200,000 per year from his dental practice. In less than an hour, I was able to show them how he could make 4 years worth of income in only about 8 hours. If you’ve been successful and have achieved this level of wealth, this opportunity may apply to you as well.

They have successfully run a dental practice for almost 30 years and have put money away each year into a retirement account to provide for their future. They purchased a home and an office building and sacrificed for years to pay off the mortgages to own them free and clear. They followed the right steps and accumulated wealth. But in the midst of working so hard to acquire that wealth, they overlooked one thing-how to make sure that wealth wasn’t squandered when they passed away.

Believe it or not, this dentist and his wife who were worth over 3 million dollars don’t even have a Last Will and Testament. That oversight could cost them $800,000 and means that their estate will be tied up in Probate when they die.

The courts and attorneys will be involved in the process. It could take a year or longer before their assets passed to their children. Probate alone could cost tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees.

Since they don’t have a Last Will and Testament, it will be up to the State to decide who will receive their assets at their death. This can often lead to the inheritance being divided differently than is desired. And there’s nothing the surviving family members can do about it.

That’s not the worst part of it. Their lack of planning could result in almost $800,000 of the estate being lost to Federal Estate Taxes and State Inheritance Taxes. Think how long they worked and sacrificed and saved to accumulate $800,000. Yet it could be lost–going to the Federal and State governments instead of to their heirs.

Fortunately, it’s not too late for this couple. They can make over $100,000 per hour-almost 4 years annual income-in about 8 hours or less, just by taking the time to have a Last Will and Testament drafted, signed and witnessed. That’s it. It’s that easy. Legal, tax-free money that otherwise will be lost.

A Last Will and Testament only costs $500-$1,000 and can include the language necessary to save almost $800,000 in estate taxes. A Last Will and Testament will still require their estate to go through probate though.

With a little additional work and an additional $500-$1,000, a Living Trust can be drafted in addition to their Last Will and Testament. Any assets transferred into the Living Trust would avoid Probate, be easily managed should they become incapacitated and settled at their death without involving attorneys or the courts.

Many people find it easy to procrastinate when it comes to having a Last Will and Testament or a Living Trust drafted. They recognize the need, but the day-to-day pressures of life force it to the back burner.

If you had the ability to make several hundred thousand dollars in just a few hours, wouldn’t you make time to do it? If you’ve successfully accumulated wealth and haven’t taken the time to put your estate documents in place, you have the ability to make many times your annual income in just a few hours. So don’t delay. Take action today to get a Last Will and Testament and a Living Trust. You and your heirs will be glad you did.

Nationally-syndicated financial columnist and Certified Financial Planner® Jeffrey Voudrie provides personal, in-depth money management services and advice to select private clients throughout the USA. He’ll answer your financial question - FREE at http://www.guardingyourwealth.com

Have the low interest rates available lately tempted you to reach for higher rates in new places? Low interest rate environments always make it difficult for those who rely on the income from their investments to support their lifestyle. But before you start searching for sources that provide a greater return, it is vital that you understand that it’s not the yield that matters.

I have a client who recently retired with well over a million dollars. He needs to earn roughly 6% a year on his investments to allow him to maintain his lifestyle without using his principal. With rates on short-term Certificates of Deposit paying only around 2% and the 10-year Treasury Note only paying 4.25%, it is a challenge for him to get the income he desires. In his frustration with these low rates he has been tempted to reach for higher yields.

“Jeff, there’s got to be something better. What about these bonds I see in the Wall Street Journal? There are some that are yielding over 7%.”

These rates only tell a part of the story. When analyzing income oriented-investments, the yield quoted in the newspaper may be considerably different than the return you actually receive.

Understanding the relationship of the quoted yield and the price of the bond is the first step in calculating your actual return. The yield often quoted in newspapers is referred to as the coupon rate. If a bond has a coupon rate of 7%, the issuing company will pay whoever owns each $1,000 bond $70 per year in interest. But your return is based on how much you paid for that bond. For instance, right now you would have to pay $1,400 for that bond, which means that your yield would actually be 5%, not 7%. This is called your yield to maturity.

But you must also consider the yield to call. Many bonds are callable, which means they can be paid off early. Some can be called as early as a few months after issue, others years later. If you pay more than $1,000 per bond and it is taken away from you early, your return can be substantially less than the yield to maturity. For instance, if you buy a 7% 10-year corporate bond, callable at face value in 5 years, it would cost you $1,200 per thousand dollar bond. This would give you a yield to maturity of 4.5% but a yield to call of only 2.7%.

The reason the yield to call is so much less than the yield to maturity is because you ‘lose’ the premium you paid for the bond over a shorter period of time. So, in this example, you ‘lose’ the $200 extra per bond over 5 years instead of over 10 years. That’s a reduction of $400 per year as opposed to $200 per year. The yield to call takes these factors into account.

Our example discussed the effect of paying more than $1,000 per bond. When paying a ‘premium’ the yield to call will always be lower than the yield to maturity. If you pay less than $1,000 per bond you still receive $1,000 when it comes due. So instead of ‘losing’ that difference you are actually earning it. So on ‘discount’ bonds, the yield to call will always be higher than the yield to maturity.

Instead of looking at the coupon rate, it is better to look at the yield to worst. Yield to worst is the lowest return you would have in the event the bond either lasted until maturity or was called early. The yield to worst only includes the effects of paying more or less than the face value of the bond and the call provisions. It does not include other factors that could affect the overall value of the bond or the issuers ability to repay it at maturity.

When my client found out that the yield to worst on those 7% bonds in the newspaper was actually 4%, he realized they weren’t as good of a deal as he thought. So when looking for income-oriented investments, remember it’s not the yield that matters.

Nationally-syndicated financial columnist and Certified Financial Planner® Jeffrey Voudrie provides personal, in-depth money management services and advice to select private clients throughout the USA. He’ll answer your financial question - FREE at http://www.guardingyourwealth.com

Is your financial advisor a bum or a shining star? Read on and I’ll show you a simple way to find out!

I often see people fail to properly manage their relationship with their investment advisor. Your opinion of your advisor should be based on an objective standard such as the performance of your investments instead of a subjective standard like “He’s so nice.”

Would you continue to go to the same dentist if your teeth started falling out? No. Would you have the same person mow your yard if they always missed spots and let it grow to your knees before they mowed it? Probably not–unless you were using it for hay!

Then apply the same objective standard to your financial advisor. Your opinion of them should be based on the performance of the investments they recommend, not on their personality. You can easily invest in what are called “index funds” on your own. And it costs you very little. So doesn’t it make sense that you would only want to pay for an advisor if they consistently did better than what you could do on your own?

Unbelievable, 70-80% of the people I meet with would have done better investing on their own than with their current advisor!

So the question is, if you are currently using an advisor, how did he or she do compared to what you could have done on your own? Most of you have no idea because your advisor won’t tell you! Most advisors don’t want you to know.

If you work with a professional advisor you should sit down with them and decide on a standard, a benchmark that will be used to measure their performance. Then you should expect (or demand) your advisor to give you a quarterly report that clearly shows you how much you paid in commissions and fees, the performance of your portfolio in percentage terms and the performance of the benchmark.

That way you get to see in clear black and white what happened with your money. It allows you to objectively measure how good or bad your advisor is doing. By the way, most likely your advisor doesn’t currently give you this kind of a report. They may not even have access to one. If that’s the case, it may be an indication of the quality of your advisor or their recommendations.

John and Belinda found this out the hard way. They had been faithfully putting money away each year for retirement, following the advice of some ‘professional’. Come to find out, the performance of their investment was terrible. Over 80% of other similar investments consistently did better than theirs!

They thought their ‘professional’ was doing a good job because she was so friendly and seemed to know what she was doing. John and Belinda failed to measure the performance of the advisor’s recommendations against an objective standard. If they had they could have retired years sooner.

Can you see how having that kind of an objective standard puts you in control? You won’t have to wonder how good your advisor is. You won’t have to base your view of them on a subjective opinion. More importantly, it will let you know whether or not you are on track to reach your goals. I provide a report like this to my clients and they love it.

If your current advisor isn’t using a benchmark to measure his or her performance, I would set an appointment and ask them flat out, “How has my account performed as compared to the industry benchmark?” Demand a IMRA-compliant report that provides return information on your specific account. If they aren’t holding themselves to some kind of standard, maybe you should consider finding a new advisor who will.

Remember: it’s your money. Don’t just assume your advisor is doing a good job for you. Make them prove it. It’s a great way to find out if you are working with a bum or a shining star.

Nationally-syndicated financial columnist and Certified Financial Planner® Jeffrey Voudrie provides personal, in-depth money management services and advice to select private clients throughout the USA. He’ll answer your financial question - FREE at http://www.guardingyourwealth.com

Recently, I interviewed Ms. Brenda Watson C.N.C. about her new book, the Fiber 35 Diet. She is a knowledgable individual with a tremendous background in Alternative Medicine.

KJ: Why did you write Fiber 35 Diet?

BW: Fiber 35 Diet is my 4th book. Prior to its publication I was a self-published author and particularly focused on digestive disorders with Dr. Leonard Smith.

I’ve always known about the benefit of fiber in diet. Between the age of 42 and 48 I gained weight, even though I was into naturopathy.

KJ: Why?

BW: Fiber rich diets have been found to be the best. I had eaten too much protein. So, I completed a large deal of research regarding fiber intake. People don’t count fiber. Dr. Dennis Burkett went to Africa to study the African diet, which includes 60-80g fiber a day. The indigenous people there are free from digestive problems, hemorrhoids, heart disease varicose veins, bowel disease, diverticulitis, diabetes…. Americans need to count their fiber intake.

BW: The average fiber supplement delivers 3-5g. I hadn’t been eating whole grains. So, I began to count the grams of fiber I ate.

You need 35g for good health. A study at the University of California showed that more CCK is produced after eating a high fiber meal, just like when eating a high fat meal.

My personal venture turned into the fiber flush effect. The fiber flush effect is based on an average of 7 calories being excreted for every gram of fiber consumed. The average American eats 10 to 12g of fiber a day, flushing approximately 70-84 calories. This needs to be increased to 35g of fiber daily. Less calories are absorbed this way.

BW: I also made the mistake of not weighing myself. It’s good to do this, once or twice a week.

KJ: I rarely do this myself.

BW: You need to get a baseline of calories per your body weight to have an idea of your needed caloric intake. You can follow a formula to determine your necessary caloric intake in the Fiber 35 Diet book. I also outline the necessary amount of daily exercise to burn calories. The main thing, however, is to count fiber grams not calories.

It also is extremely important to read the labels of food purchases. Do not buy anything under 3 grams of fiber per serving. For example, a whole wheat wrap should usually contain 3-7 grams of fiber. Multi-grain does not always mean whole grain.

KJ: Who do you perceive your typical reader to be?

BW: Women, aged 35 and up

KJ: What significant health problems do you believe Americans face due to their lack of fiber?

BW: $120 billion is spent on medical care for digestive problems each year.

Increased fiber means reduced: heart attacks, diverticulitis, irritable bowel syndrome, reflux and GERD, to name a few.

KJ: You state in the introduction that 35g of fiber daily will help drop weight and reduce the chances of developing heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, diabetes, and cancer.

Fiber 35-What does 35 grams of fiber a day look like?

BW:

Breakfast–7g orange, 8g steel cut oats rather than regular oats

Lunch- 10g salad of romaine, spinach, walnuts, chickpeas and chicken

Snack- 4g hummus (2T), with celery and carrots, or flax crackers

Dinner- salmon, 11g acorn squash and kale

The total is around 35g-40g of fiber.

KJ: That’s easy!

BW: People need options. A health food store will have shake drinks with fiber and protein in them and there are some good fiber bars too.

KJ: What are our best sources of fiber?

BW: Raw veggies and whole grains. Read the labels. People with digestive disorders made lightly steam their vegetables.

KJ: Which foods are our enemies?

BW: Sugar and processed foods.

KJ: Not long ago, cancer was the worst word I could hear on a daily basis. Today it is an everyday word. From your perspective, what are the top “to do” items for cancer avoidance?

BW: Detox and eat a plant-based organic diet. A specific program using herbs, detox, water, fiber, and infrared sauna should be followed. Infrared sauna is widely used by holistic doctors in clinics and is very safe. An infrared sauna produces radiant heat, and the heat creates sweating; the patient sweats out heavy metals and other toxins.

KJ: I understand that several years ago you yourself struggled with health issues.

BW: About 20 years ago. I became interested in naturopathy and became a colon hydrotherapist.

In 1990 I began a clinic apprenticeship, and from 1993-1998 I owned 5 holistic clinics.

KJ: I read that you are also a Naturopathic Doctor. How is naturopathy different from the mainstream medical establishment?

BW: Herbs are studied as well as neutriceuticals, ie. vitamins and antioxidants.

KJ: Are you part of alternative medicine?

BW: Yes, Dr. Leonard Smith, an associate professor at the University of Miami, and I have worked together during the holistic movement. We aim to educate the patient using a holistic approach.

KJ: Has alternative medicine gone mainstream?

BW: Yes, but the media is still behind in this. In New York City for example, there is a lack of awareness by the media in general.

KJ: Today’s consumer recognizes that organic foods are superior to those treated with pesticides. Some people cannot afford organics. Any recommendations for this group?

BW: Buy the washes for veggies for fruits; use natural home products like vinegar and baking soda.

A study called the Toxic Body Burden was completed using volunteers. The average toxins within each person was 91. Our bodies aren’t detoxing as well as we think they are.

Recently, a phasing out of the dry cleaning solvent perchloroethylene (perc) in California has been made law. The chemicals are known carcinogens and have been linked to bladder, esophageal and other cancers. Several people living in a building above a dry cleaning business had become ill, and an investigation was begun.

KJ: When you were writing the Fiber 35 Diet, how much research did you put into it?

BW: 2 years worth

KJ: The book states that an individual goes through 3 phases. Phase 1 and 2 shed pounds by eating fiber and exercising. Phase 3 is a lifetime maintenance program.

How long do Phases 1 and 2 take?

BW: Phase 1 lasts approximately 1-2 weeks and Phase 2 takes around 1 month.

No one is ever under 1200 calories.

KJ: Is a colon cleanse necessary? If so, why?

BW: Not always, this is only necessary when an individual is constipated. A person needs to move the bowels every day, and very well.

When constipation occurs, I recommend a 7 day or 14 day cleanse. Constipation effects the ability to lose weight. It slows the metabolic rate, which results in overeating and leads to autointoxication (self-poisoning).

KJ: In a nutshell, what is the difference between your diet book and the others?

BW: Fiber 35 Diet is well-rounded, is not a fad, involves sound research, and is simplistic. Most meals can be assembled in less than 30 minutes and I provide a once-a-week shopping list. It’s a no-brainer.

Lifestyle is important too as well as exercise.

On my PBS special I highlight a 20 minute upper and lower exercise DVD for a total body workout. The same routine is in the Fiber 35 Diet book. It utilizes resistance bands which can be used by anyone with neck and back issues.

KJ: Brenda, thank you, and much success with your new book, Fiber 35 Diet.

BW: Thank you.

BasilandSpice is authored by Kelly Jad’on. She reviews best selling books and interviews their authors on the subjects of diet, weight loss, health, nutrition, and fitness. Her website, http://www.BasilandSpice.com is interactive and features new content daily.

Most families at some point decide to introduce a pet or animal to their family home at some point in their lives. Although cats, dogs, rabbits, gerbils, fish and other small animals are the most common family pet it is becoming less unusual for families to look at bringing home exotic pets.

Exotic pets may seem more exciting and different however unless your are fully prepared and understand enough about the exotic pets you choose bringing one home could end in disaster.

Generally speaking, the more exotic the pet the more education you will need and it will probably require more expensive housing and food. When you are looking for exotic pets do your research before you shop, you may find you purchase an animal on impulse that you know little about and does not fit your family surroundings.

It is extremely important to do plenty of research on exotic pets before you decide what sort you want. You can find plenty of information on the internet simply type in the animal you are look for and read as much as you can to see if this animal suits you. You can also visit your local library and borrow books on exotic pets.

It may be helpful to visit a few pet shops to seek advise about exotic pets, make sure you are aware of all the special requirements they need.

Things To Ask

What sort of housing do they require, including the size and shape?
What sort of food do they eat and how often should they be fed?
Are they prone to any type of diseases or problems you should look out for?
Do they require any special equipment such as a UV light or heat mat?
How long is their life expectancy?
Do they need any type of vaccinations?
Do you need any sort of licence to own this type of animal?

If you have children it may be worth finding out how much your exotic pet likes to be interacted with. If you have chosen an animal that does not like to be handled will your family be happy with a pet that can only be looked at and not touched?

If you have other pets already you will need to know if the new addition will upset your existing animals and how they will get along. You may need to set up alternative measures if they need to be kept well away from each other.

Buying exotic pets is not as easy as it seems but if you are fully aware of everything that it needs and have prepared a loving home with the correct facilities there is no reason why you should not enjoy having one.

Allen Jesson writes for several sites that specialize in Pets, training for dogs and salt water and fresh water aquariums

So you’re looking for tips on fast weight loss.

The first thing you need to do before embarking on this journey is check that your idea is sensible and safe. Consult with your physician or health professional. You’re better off being alive and slightly overweight than rushing the process and wrecking your health.

Start your fast weight loss journey by writing a food journal. Write down everything you eat or drink. Be honest in this process - you’re only cheating yourself if you miss out those chocolate cakes!

Analyze your food journal and see whether what you are eating is sensible. Could you swap those potato chips for a piece of fruit? Would it make more sense to eat a banana on it’s own rather than slug down a complete smoothie containing six or seven items of fruit? Do you really need to be drinking all those sugar laden soft drinks?

Talking of soft drinks, swapping to diet drinks may not be a good idea either, considering all the artificial flavors and additives. Take a week off soft drinks and substitute pure water instead.

Drop the caffeine. You’ll cut out the hidden calories in that latte and your body will welcome the break from this legal drug. If you’re a heavy caffeine user, reduce your intake gradually otherwise you’re likely to encounter withdrawal symptoms.

Eat little and often. Don’t let yourself get hungry. Our survival mechanism kicks in if we start to starve ourselves. It’s far better to keep your body’s hunger satisfied on a regular basis.

Exercise portion control. Don’t let yourself be talked into the “super size” option. And don’t be afraid to leave some food on your plate.

Get more tips on fast weight loss at Smart and Effective Weight Loss

It’s time someone stands up and says it: The Buy and Hold philosophy of investing is inherently dangerous for those who are retired or near retirement. It is responsible for literally millions of retirees being forced to go back to work. Yet the Financial Services industry, whose profits are built on the Buy and Hold philosophy, refuses to make changes necessary to better serve these investors.

Let’s face the facts. Someone who invested $100,000 in an S&P 500 index fund at the beginning of 2000 and left it alone would have less than $78,000 today, over four and a half YEARS later!

Invariably, investors called their brokers because they were concerned about their money losing value. Almost every time they heard the worn out mantra, “Just hang in there, it’ll come back.”

Sure, but how long will the investor have to wait? Five years? Ten years? That may be fine for someone who is 20 or 30 years old and is saving for retirement. But people who’re retired can’t forgo a return on their investment for 10 years!

For most of them, the gain off their nest egg is what supplements Social Security. They depend on their nest egg to maintain the comfortable lifestyle they worked and sacrificed so long to achieve. It’s the money they use to travel and buy gifts for their grandchildren.

What’s more, they’re tired of standing by and watching their broker do nothing while they lose 30% of their hard-earned money. Because their financial advisor failed to take action, they’re the ones paying the price.

I speak with people all across the country that are retired. Each of them feels BETRAYED by their financial advisors. They are frustrated that their brokers just don’t get it-the brokers don’t understand.

Here’s just one example: If you tell a broker that you want your investment to go up when the market goes up they consider you a growth-oriented investor. The way they see it, if you want an investment that has the potential of going up 20% in the good times then you’ll also be comfortable with that same investment going down 20% during the bad times.

That’s not what my clients mean when they say they want their money to grow! They mean they want their money to go up in the good times but they don’t want to lose it during the bad times. The industry sees that as you changing your objective. I see it as common sense!

The fortunes of the financial services industry depend on the Buy and Hold philosophy. It is to their advantage that investors believe and follow that philosophy. If investors don’t, it could force the industry to have to change the entire way it does business.

Currently, the people who manage your money are separated from you by the people designed to sell you investment products. That’s the problem. You expect your broker, agent or advisor to watch your money and to make changes to help you protect it in the bad times. That’s not their job. They aren’t trained to make those decisions. In fact, the efficiency of the system is based on them NOT making those decisions.

If you believe in Buy and Hold then your broker, agent or advisor doesn’t have to know how to manage money. If you believe in Buy and Hold, the broker, agent or advisor doesn’t have to spend time watching your portfolio. Instead, they focus on selling product. Unless the financial services industry recognizes the extent to which investors are dissatisfied, they risk alienating the very people they are supposed to serve.

Innovation isn’t dead, though. For instance, my firm has developed solutions designed to grow wealth during the good times while significantly limiting the potential for loss. We’ve invested tens of thousands of dollars developing proprietary systems that allow us to manage your money. Our approach is so unique that 5 Patents are pending before the U. S. Patent and Trademark office.

So, if you’re retired, beware of the Buy and Hold philosophy and those advisors who follow it. It’s your money and lifestyle at risk, not theirs.

Nationally-syndicated financial columnist and Certified Financial Planner® Jeffrey Voudrie provides personal, in-depth money management services and advice to select private clients throughout the USA. He’ll answer your financial question - FREE at http://www.guardingyourwealth.com

You’ve won a new car!” Who wouldn’t like to hear those words, be it from Bob Barker or Pat Sajek, or like over 200 lucky audience members, from Oprah Winfrey? Mega-instant winners are raking in the goodies with monster home re-models, complete body makeovers and million dollar prizes. But when the bright lights fade and the TV cameras are gone, the winner can feel like a loser with an enormous tax bill.

A recent Wall Street Journal article pointed out the tax consequences these prize-winners face. Even someone in the lowest state and federal tax brackets who won a car on Oprah would owe an extra $6000 in taxes. If they were in the highest bracket, they’d have to shell out an extra $12,000. Even someone below the poverty level would lose $4000 in refundable tax benefits and have to pay over $1000 in taxes!

Few of us will ever win the lottery or reality TV show jackpot, but there are hidden tax consequences to the actions used to help our children or avoid probate. Every day well-meaning parents or grandparents take what seem to be innocent, yet generous actions without the slightest hint at the Pandora’s box they’ve just created.

“If I put my son’s name on the deed to the house, then he’ll get it right away when I die and avoid probate,” many reason. In the same way, a child’s name is added to CDs, bank accounts, brokerage accounts and the like. This is often done for estate issues. Those doing so don’t realize the tax consequences of their actions.

In the eyes of Uncle Sam, you just gave your child a gift. And that means you owe your dear Uncle some serious dough. For instance, put your son’s name on your home that’s valued at $300,000, and you just gave your son $150,000. That means you could owe Federal and State gift taxes equaling tens of thousands of dollars! The same goes for adding his name to your CDs or your brokerage accounts.

There are other tax consequences. When your son sold the house, he could owe capital gains taxes based on your cost basis-potentially losing tens of thousands of dollars more in taxes. Most of the time, these taxes can be avoided through proper planning.

There are other consequences to adding a child’s name to an asset. Doing so exposes that asset to the claims of the child’s creditors and to possible loss in a divorce! In the above example, if the son is sued or declares bankruptcy, the parents’ home could be lost, leaving them out on the street.

There are emotional consequences, too. I’ve talked to many widows who live in fear of their children kicking them out of their own home. When their husband died, it seemed like a good idea to add a child’s name to the deed. Now the relationship with the child is strained and the widow’s health is deteriorating. With the child’s name on the deed, the widow is no longer in control of her own home.

You may be saying to yourself, “I did that a few years ago and Uncle Sam hasn’t come knocking at my door. We don’t have to worry about that.” Tell that to the man I talked to who added a child’s name to the deed of his house almost ten years ago. Now the state is coming after him for $13,000 in taxes and penalties. Since many states are facing budget crisis, their pursuit of unpaid taxes has increased. They may not catch you right away, but there’s a good chance they will eventually.

There are better ways to avoid Probate without all the tax consequences. Gifts can be made in smaller amounts over several years. You can name beneficiaries on bank or brokerage accounts so that they avoid Probate yet don’t expose the asset to a child’s creditors. A Living Trust can be used for real estate and Powers of Attorney will provide for the management of your assets should you become incompetent.

So don’t lose money from hidden tax consequences of adding a child’s name to an asset. It’s too easy to accomplish the same thing without all the headaches.

Nationally-syndicated financial columnist and Certified Financial Planner® Jeffrey Voudrie provides personal, in-depth money management services and advice to select private clients throughout the USA. He’ll answer your financial question - FREE at http://www.guardingyourwealth.com