Viral Socialite

Many people are are buying as investments Obama memorabilia which celebrates his achievement as our first black president. Before you start spending your hard-earned cash on any Obama memorabilia, you might want to do a little research on what you are investing in.

Most presidential memorabilia increases in value (depending on what that president does, while in office). This is true of historic figures such as Lincoln, Kennedy, FDR and Reagan whose memorabilia has steadily increased in value over the years. Since Barack Obama has already made history by becoming our first black president, we are all hoping that anything having to do with him will increase in value.

The first thing you should do before investing in any Obama memorabilia is set a limit that you want to spend. Some things are fairly inexpensive, while other items are, well, outrageously priced.

EBay has a big hit on their hands when it comes to selling items that have a connection to Barack Obama. An example of this is the Mad Magazine cover that depicts an Obama-like Alfred Newman on the cover with a banner that says, “Yes We Can’t.” This particular item sold for $3500.00.

Also, If you were lucky enough to get one of Obama’s books containing his autograph, you may be holding a goldmine. An autographed copy of his books, titled “The Audacity of Hope” and “Dreams From My Father,” have been sold from anywhere between $399.00 to $2500.00.

One important thing you need to be aware of concerns Obama autographs. It is becoming increasingly evident that some of the Obama autographs have been proven to be counterfeit. Some of our less-than-upstanding citizens have seen how much they can make by selling these items and have become selfish. They are either hiring someone to forge or actually forging the signature of Obama themselves.

The hardest thing for those looking to buy memorabilia with Obama’s autograph is that his signature is hard to validate, because it is still considered somewhat new! So, beware of your purchase.

By: Alan LaMont

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In today’s economy, it seems like a lot of investments are risky with many companies reporting less than stellar returns. If you want to get started in investing but feel overwhelmed by the amount of decisions and other factors involved, then high yield mutual funds are an excellent choice even for those with little to no experience.

When the economy slows down and stock prices are going down, it makes sense to invest into stable industries that provide healthy dividends. Examples of mutual funds that pay high yields include utility companies as they are a fairly stable industry. Here are 5 tips to get you started.

1. Diversify – High yield mutual funds shouldn’t be your only investment as you also want to diversify into other holdings for reduced risk. You can literally find hundreds of different funds available that invest into specific assets ranging from only energy stocks to those that invest in large cap companies.

2. Risk factors involved – Keep in mind that high yield mutual funds also tend to be more aggressive so the fund may go down when the economy slows down or the company is unable to pay back its debts. Be sure to take risks factors into consideration before investing.

3. Use rating systems – Companies such as Morningstar use simple rating systems to rate individual funds based on a multitude of criteria. Be sure to thoroughly use these for your market research into how well a fund might perform in the future.

4. Decide on a load or no-load fund – Load funds charge a fee which is typically a percentage of your investment while no-load funds do not. Always try to find those do not charge a fee as this would mean a higher return on your investment.

5. Choose those that interest you – There are many different funds available for you to invest in and while you can choose the one that many recommend, choosing the one that interests you or that you are familiar with will enable you to make better decisions.

By: Bill Cook

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Bond funds make bond investing easy for average investors. Investing in bonds profitably could soon be a different story. The hazards of bond investing follow in no uncertain terms, in plain simple English.

The attraction of bond investing is that bonds pay the investor higher interest income than other investments. These securities represent long term debt to the issuer, which is usually a corporation or government entity. Example: XYZ issues bonds priced at $1000 each which pay $60 a year in interest and mature in 20 years. At maturity whoever owns that bond security gets the $1000 back and the security no longer exists. Throughout its 20-year life, the bond trades in the secondary market and its price fluctuates. Any investor who owns it can sell at will at the market price; and an investor in search of income can buy it in the bond market. Note this: the $60 a year in interest income is FIXED for the life of the bond and never changes. This gives you a 6% yield.

Now you know bond investing basics. Few average investors actually invest in individual bond issues like XYZ above. Instead, millions of Americans get into bond investing the easy way with bond funds. These funds pool investor money and manage a collection (portfolio) of these securities for their investors. When you invest money in a bond fund your money buys shares, and you then own a small part of a large portfolio of bonds. The fund actually owns the securities and buys and sells bonds on an ongoing basis. They pass the interest income on to investors in the form of dividends, and usually charge less than 1% a year for their services.

As a bond fund investor you can have your interest income send to you periodically or you can have these dividends reinvested automatically to buy more fund shares. The value or price of your shares will fluctuate along with the price fluctuations in the individual bonds held in the portfolio. You can buy or sell fund shares on any business day. You’re not locked in. Now you know bond fund investing basics. So, here’s the rest of the story. Remember, when you own bond funds you have an investment in bond securities. Whatever happens in the bond market and to the value of the bonds in your fund portfolio translates to gains and losses for you.

Let’s say you own shares in the most popular type of bond fund, an intermediate-term fund of high credit quality. The average bond security in the portfolio matures in a little less than 10 years. The fund is paying a dividend yield of 6%, and you’re happy with it vs. the 2% interest you might get from your bank. What could go wrong? Interest rates could go up. A couple of years from now new bond issues could be paying $90 a year in interest income for a $1000 bond, which translates to 9%. What do you think will happen to the price (value) of a 6% bond when investors can get 50% more interest income in new bond issues (9% vs. 6%)? The price will fall substantially for all existing bonds, including those in your bond fund.

Let’s put it this way: If you pay $667 for a bond that pays $60 a year in interest income you earn a current yield of 9%, because 9% of $667 equals $60. If 9% is the new going rate, any interested investor can either buy a new issue to get it or pay a reduced price (get a discount) for an existing issue in the bond market. Remember, bond prices fluctuate as these securities trade in the market.

Don’t dwell on the math if it confuses you, and please note that the above example suggesting that a 6% bond originally issued for $1000 paying $60 a year could fall to a value of $667 if rates for new similar bonds increase to 9%. It’s an oversimplification to emphasize this concept: the most important thing you must know about bond investing these days is that bond investors will lose big when interest rates go up significantly. When interest rates go up bonds and the bond funds that invest in them lose money, and so does the investor.

By: James Leitz

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Many people take to the internet every day in search of information about wind power contractors. They are looking for someone to build them a windmill that will provide their home or business with clean renewable energy.

In this article, I want to tell you about how you can build your own windmill very easily and avoid having to pay expensive wind power contractors. You can be your own!

Do you realize that anyone can make a home windmill for $200 or less? Well, it’s very true and people all over the world are exploring this new option of energy. Wind power is the fastest growing type of renewable energy in the world with annual growth rates of about 20%.

Wind power is amazing because it is made totally by a natural resource; the wind! This makes it clean renewable energy that is readily available at any time, to anyone. Also, having a windmill at home can save bundles of money! It is not uncommon for someone to totally completely eliminate their energy bill by using homemade windmills that take only a couple days to make.

With the proper building manual, a windmill can be built very quickly and for a very low price. The materials can be found easily and the windmill will provide energy for many years. It is truly one of the best investments that any homeowner or business owner can make.

People are finally starting to come around to wind power and many are taking advantages that come with making their own. It’s easy, saves money, and is good for the environment; seems like a pretty simple decision to me. Don’t waste your time with wind power contractors, take matters into your own hands.

By: George Moss

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