This  is absolutely not true.

Because the truth is, economic recessions or it’s uglier cousin, economic depressions, are just the perfect opportunities that anyone with vision can take advantage of to become not just rich – but  filthy rich!

For the record no less than America’s second richest person alive, Warren Buffet whose personal fortune reached a dizzying $48 billion before he decided to give back to the society $31 billion can attest to this.

Warren Buffet built his massive fortune buying businesses and properties that most people had given up as lost.  To many businessmen, he is the great rescuer who bailed them out of their economic miseries.

But of course Warren Buffet saw more than rescuing them out of their economic woes. If he sees no value or potential in their businesses, he sees no reason to buy them.

But what exactly does he know that ordinary mortals don’t usually know about economic downturns?

First and foremost, economic downturns don’t last. During bad times, Prophets of Doom would say the worst things about the economy.

Of course things are bad. But they only remain bad to a certain point. This is because of the thing called Economic Cycle.

Economic Cycles are periods in history of booms and busts. Economic cycles are the hallmarks of laissez faire system.  Economic cycles behave just like the seasons.

And just like the seasons,  the climate always changes. And just like the seasons you can predict a downturn or an upturn.

What happened just after just the turn of 20th century was a classic example of an economic boom suddenly gone bust.

In the roaring 20’s people thought that there was no stopping to the prosperous times. Until one day, people started dumping stocks at such a frenzy that it sent the whole world in probably the worst economic depression in history.

By all means the signs of a coming collapse were present. Stocks were at all time high. In fact unreasonably high. And people were living beyond their means.

The same thing happened again with the housing market in 2007. Just a couple of years ago, the sense of affluence was everywhere with home values skyrocketing.

Because of the high cost of home ownership many Americans were forced to borrow beyond their means. The result was a credit crisis that sent the world reeling again in another round of recession.

So the question now is if we could predict an economic downturn, could we also predict an economic upturn?

The answer is yes.

If you religiously watch CNBC or read CNNmoney.com, you’d find that home prices had already gone low enough to attract the buyers back.

But how low it could get is the question. Prospective home buyers are still in the sidelines waiting for better bargains. The question this time is when will they decide that the price is already right enough to make them buy?

An ETF, or Exchange Trade Fund, tracks an index and trades on the stock market. An ETF is a combination of many types of securities like stocks and bonds, among others. They allow for a more diversified portfolio than just one singular stock would.

ETFs have many similarities to stocks:

* They are an investment
* Bought and sold on a stock exchange
* Can be traded during trading hours
* Their prices can change throughout the day
* Are bought through brokerage accounts on and offline

They also have many differences from stocks:

* They have a basis in securities
* Already offer diversification to a portfolio
* You can buy a whole portfolio in just one ETF
* Most often have less volatility

ETFs: The Alternative to Mutual Funds

Timing: Mutual prices can change from the time you choose to buy to the time the price is calculated at the end of the day. This is not true with ETFs. When you see a price, it is the current market price.

Trading Flexibility: With ETFs you have many choices on how to invest. You can buy long or sale short, buy or sell ETF options, buy on margin or even consider arbitrage options.

Performance: Some ETFs will pay out regularly which helps to increase your overall earnings. On top of this, ETFs usually perform better over an extended period of time than mutual funds.

Transparency: Mutual Funds only disclose how much they are really worth quarterly or even semi-annually. ETFs are, in effect, transparent. They show you everything about the underlying index on a daily basis.

Cost Efficiency: Mutual Funds usually cost more in up-keep due to the excessive management and administrative fees. Therefore, ETFs are looked at as a more cost-efficient choice.

Tax Efficiency: Mutual Funds have no cap on their capital gains. Therefore, in the end, they could cause more problems when it comes to tax time. On top of that, ETF shareholders decide when to sale or buy so they have more control over how much they make and have to claim for their taxes.

No Minimum Investment: Mutual Funds have minimum amount you must invest. This is not true with ETFs.

Looking for more wealth building strategies and tips? Visit us at Global Mutual Funds – Australia’s pre-eminent provider of global investment product alternatives and solutions. Find out what you need to know about equities, options trading, and how exchange traded funds can help build your long term wealth.

However, starting a gold coin collection is not as easy; after all, gold itself is rather expensive. But, to make this easier, there are different weights of coins that are available for you to buy. This makes it easier find coins that will fit within the price range you have set.

The best place to look when you are first starting your gold coin investment is a coin dealer. Quite often, these dealers know exactly what is going on with the market of gold coins and should be able to help you find a reputable person to buy coins from, if they themselves do not have what you are looking for. Make sure whomever you buy from is a legitimate business.

Trust your dealer, but also look for a second opinion. There are many dealers and sellers online that can be easily researched with just a little extra time taken. Seek out reviews and testimonials from others who have used their services.

Don’t be quick to purchase from the cheapest seller. There are many unscrupulous sellers out there looking to make a quick buck off an inexperienced buyer. Again, make sure they are a legitimate business before you complete any transaction – especially one online.

In general, gold is an excellent investment. Not only is there a wealth of information posted online and in newspapers daily to keep track of its value, but also in general it should keep its value. This means that while it may not increase in value quickly or in spikes, it should not go down in value as well. This is why collecting gold coins one of the strongest investments you could possibly make. Since little knowledge of the gold market is required to get your feet wet, collecting gold coins is the perfect starting point for all aspiring coin collectors.

So get out there and start collecting. You’ll then on your way to building a very strong investment that also is appealing to look at!

To find out how to build a perfect coin collection kit for your new gold coins, as well as other essential coin collector tips and advice, visit us at GuidesToCoins.com.

When someone is seeking investment advice, the subject of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) often arises since they are becoming a popular investment vehicle. ETFs are a great way for someone with a small amount to invest to get a decent investment. In order to use this type of investment to your advantage, you have to understand how they work.

You are probably familiar with mutual funds because they are more common. Mutual funds and ETFs are similar in some respects. Like a mutual, an EFT holds multiple investments within it. Unlike these funds, ETFs are traded through an exchange, like NYSE, and are not purchased from an issuing company. Other differences are the redemption structure and the tax efficiency.

ETFs have some distinct benefits that mutual funds do not have. Here are five of benefits:

1 – ETFs are an attractive investment because of intraday pricing. This means they are traded on an active stock exchange so the sales are immediate and not based on the price at the close of trading. Essentially

this means you could purchase ETFs at a reduced price or get a premium when selling them.

2 – Tax efficiency makes ETFs much more attractive than mutual funds. When a fund is sold, there is typically a capital gains distribution. When you sell an ETF, there are no gains to be distributed. However if a major component of the ETF is changed, it may trigger a distribution of gains.

3 – Exchange-traded funds are beneficial because they have much lower fees than mutual funds. Since an ETF is a no-load fund, you do not pay redemption fees when you decide to liquidate it. They also tend to have much lower annual fees. Although rare, on occasion the fee can be higher.

4 – Unlike many mutual funds, exchange-traded funds do not require a minimum investment. With a fund, you often have to invest at least $2,500 dollars. Since this is not true of ETFs, they are great to diversify your investments.

5 – Another major benefit of exchange-traded funds is their liquidity. That means you are able to keep your portfolio balanced by using your ETFs for the liquid component. You can even set a limit just as you would with stocks, which makes for more flexible trading that you could never get with a mutual. Remember to check your ETF, because they do not have all this liquidity.

Although the points laid out are benefits, they can quickly become liabilities. So remember to be careful when buying and selling ETFs. They are a great way to diversifying a smaller investment but do require you to ensure they are managed well.

Looking for more wealth building strategies and tips? Visit us at Global Mutual Funds – Australia’s pre-eminent provider of global investment product alternatives and solutions. Find out what you need to know about equities, options trading, and how exchange traded funds (EFT’s) can help build your long term wealth.

Australians wanting to get back the trail fees deducted from their superannuation, personal insurances, managed funds, cash management trusts and margin lending now have a simple solution. 

MyMoney – in a few very simple steps – gives consumers who do not want or need advice on their existing financial products the ability to receive refunds on the trail fees they might not even realise they are paying, let alone get access to. 

Anyone with superannuation, life insurance or managed funds can have  these trail fees paid to them immediately by using My Money Australia (www.mymoney.com.au), a major consumer innovation that offers consumers the ability to receive cash refunds on the trail fees they are charged by banks, fund managers and insurance companies. 

“Consumers do not generally realise that, even if they receive no advice from a financial planner, they are very likely to be still paying trail fees that can’t be switched off,” the Managing Director of MyMoney Australia, Graham Chee, said. 

How does it work? Put simply, MyMoney gives consumers control over their trail fee payments that they did not have before. 

“Consumers can, however, take control of these trail fees as long as they go to a holder of an Australian Financial Services Licence,” Chee said. “By simply nominating MyMoney, an AFSL-holder, as your financial adviser, we collect your trail fees and pay them back to you, direct to your bank account. Everything else about your investments remains the same,” he said. 

Some of the key features of MyMoney that make it so attractive are: 

• No joining fee
• No minimum annual fee
• Administration fee automatically comes out of trail fees
• Maximum annual fee of $240 per family account

Online registration is quick, easy and free, and MyMoney has kept to an absolute minimum the amount of paperwork investors need to complete in order to activate their account. 

MyMoney clients have 24/7 online access to their refund balance information, and receive a monthly activity statement as well as their monthly direct bank account payments. The service is risk and hassle-free and completely transparent. 

MyMoney has been built by professionals who are leaders in the development of trail fee  management systems and who fully understand the needs and expectations of investors and financial planners when it comes to fees payments. 

“There is no effect on investors’ existing financial products and the direct monthly payments into our clients’ bank accounts makes MyMoney particularly easy,” Chee said.

By licensing intellectual property, such as: trademarks, copyright, logos, designs, patents, domain names and business processes (for example), you can create new foundations for your business’s revenue and wealth. Technology and pharmaceutical companies have known this for decades. Unfortunately, it’s taken other industries and businesses a long time to catch up –largely due to a lack of imagination, experience and professional advice.

However, it’s never too late because the market place is continually evolving and changing. This includes a shift in recent times away from traditional assets such as plant, raw materials, etc, to the commercialisation of IP as the main source of a company’s wealth. The crucial point here is that companies and businesses are finally beginning to realise that unlike other assets, which depreciate, IP assets actually appreciate.

Today, competition in the market place is all about innovation and re-invention. To stay ahead of the pack, businesses rely on the use of technology and processes, which are subject to copyright and patent laws. By entering into licensing agreements and royalty contracts, businesses are free to continue to manufacture products and service their clients. The owners of the IP profit form an ongoing revenue stream and the licensees profit from the technological and marketing edge these IPs provide.

Commercialising IP is especially relevant to businesses that are under resourced or under financed to further develop the IP themselves or carry it to another level in the marketplace. By commercialising IP your business can benefit beyond the local market. The potential of commercialised IP should be examined in a global context. New products and services are being created and manufactured all over the globe as a direct result of intellectual property invented half a world away.

One of the most obvious examples of IP in the global marketplace is the use of brand names and logos – collectively referred to as Trademarks. These are intangible assets, that is, they are not the type of assets you can touch in a physical sense. However, their value comes from the fact that they possess highly valuable brand name recognition. The positive effect of this can be seen on the company’s annual bottom-line profits and sales. The strength of high recognition brand names and logos is often credited as the driving force behind global sales of many international companies. In other words, the brand name sells itself.