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We are just about to close on the selling of our home of 19 years and I was wondering what the appreciation was over the past two decades. This was inspired because my realtor keeps reminding me of how much I paid compared to our selling price. The actual cost can get really complicated ( considering home improvements, tax benefits, repairs and maintenance, etc.) but I wanted to keep it simple. I took our purchase price as the present value and our selling price minus realtor fees and updates to the house for selling as our future value. The 19 years of compounding yields a whopping 2.2% return on our house. I know all of you finance people want to look at my investment (down payment) and calculate the return based on that, with tax advantage on interest, also calculating in home repairs and maintenance, but that gets complicated really fast, and I don't have all of those records (shame on me). But this shows that our house appreciated an average of 2.2% over 19 years or about the...

Peregrine Financial Group and a missing $200 million? Cedar Falls, Iowa, the Heartland, where corn is tall and people are honest. It's of small towns where people leave their keys in their cars and they don't lock their front doors. Embezzlement of this nature happens in New York, Greece, but not in Iowa. Peregrine Financial Group was an Iowa-based brokerage firm and the CEO allegedly used $200 million of his clients’ money to keep the business going. He attempted suicide and confessed to embezzling in his suicide note. If this can happen in Iowa, it can happen in your neighborhood and with you investment counselor. I do not want to imply that all financial advisors are dishonest, but the few bad ones remind us to keep on our toes. A few basic points to keep in mind as you talk to your financial professional: 1. No one is going to be or should be more concerned about your financial wellbeing than you. It is your money and your future. You need to take responsibility for your fi...

So you want to buy shares of Facebook with their Initial Public Offering (IPO)? Good luck. An IPO is where a private company or closely held company, like Facebook, offers shares to the general public for the first time and that stock is then traded on a stock exchange. Friday’s ‘All Things Considered’ on National Public Radio did a great job of explaining how IPOs work and why companies go public in their article “ Facebook’s IPO and the Average Investor .” When a company goes public, it works with an investment bank to price shares of its soon-to-be issued stock and to decide how many shares to issue. The initial price is a combination of science and art. The science is calculating the value of the company including potential future income (part art), and the real art is forecasting what investors will pay for the stock. Investment banks will sell large blocks of stock from the IPO to its best customers. These are usually large institutional investors and their high dollar customers...

“Make sure your seatbelt is securely fastened and keep your hands and feet inside the vehicle at all times.”  This is what you hear as you get on an amusement park roller coaster. Maybe your stock broker or financial advisor should also say this when you begin to invest in the stock market. In the spirit of full disclosure, should we formally address the stock market by its thrill ride name? There is Disney’s The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror , Kings Island’s The Beast , Six Flags Great Adventure’s Kingda Ka , the Stratosphere Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas has Insanity , and the king of amusement park roller-coasters, Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio has Disaster Transport , Iron Dragon , Maverick , Mean Streak , Millennium Force , Raptor , Top Thrill Dragster and Wicked Twister . Any one of these names fit the gyrations, the ups and downs of the stock market. Even with your seat belt securely fastened, it is a good time to reassess your risk tolerance and which investment optio...

The Dow Jones industrials dropped 634 points Monday. Gold is at a record high. Farm land prices are high. There is uncertainty in the housing markets, stock markets, bond markets, international government debt, and the world-wide economy. The big question--where to invest? When the markets are so volatile, let it ride out and instead turn to make investments in what you can control: your time. Now is the time to invest in yourself and time with your family and friends. It is time to reassess your skills, abilities, and how you spend your time. It is time to become more self-sufficient. Some ideas of self-investing in turbulent times: • Grow a garden or visit farmer markets; can or freeze fresh vegetables for the winter months. Nothing tastes better than corn chowder or lasagna on a winter day made with fresh frozen sweet corn or tomatoes that you grew. • Cut firewood. If you have a wood burning fireplace or wood stove, cut and stock up on wood for the winter. This can be a family event...

Our assumptions are that no one cares more about your financial future than you. So if you need and/or want help in making wise financial decisions, who can you trust with your money and your financial welfare? Most of us pick a financial advisor by asking a friend or relative. We might also stop in our bank, talk to our insurance agent, or hear about financial advisors that advertise in print, radio, television, or social networks. Many financial advisors will have letters behind their name to signify a specialty or that they have passed specific test and accreditation. Here is just a sample of the most common certifications you will see associated with financial advisors: AEP - Accredited Estate Planner CDFA - Certified Divorce Financial Analyst CFA - Chartered Financial Analyst CFP - Certified Financial Planner ChFC - Chartered Financial Consultant CLU - Chartered Life Underwriter CMFC - Certified Mutual Fund Counselor CPA - Certified Public Accountant CRC - Certified Retir...