Advice Request About Investing

[Canada]

I have for lack of better words, won a small lottery, although it's a little more complex than that (but not much). I have no idea of what to do with money and have turned this task over to someone who should (it's their job). My only direction for this investing was "safe, with a 4-5% rate of return". It is now in a mix of preferred shares, bonds and mutual funds. It has not been long enough to really evaluate it's performance, but I am curious. Can you do better than 4-5% in a relatively safe way? ......and..... How would you recommend that a person such as myself start to educate themselves on investing? Is there a good book? a good course? just what would you recommend to get smarter about money?

The small lottery is about 400,000 cdn. I'm 48 years old, and don't want to go back home to work. Possible? I go through about 40,000 about per month on average.

I am sure this will draw some sarcasm from the crowd, but I hope to find some seriousness in some of the replies.

Thank you.

[David006]

lo...goodonya mate...best interest rates are in Oz right now...fly down and take a peek...

ps... Qantas may be a bit of a risk lol...

[Naam]

1. Can you do better than 4-5% in a relatively safe way? ......and.....

2. How would you recommend that a person such as myself start to educate themselves on investing? Is there a good book? a good course?

3. just what would you recommend to get smarter about money?

1. a lot of people with experience can do much better. unfortunately you can't.

2. virtually thousands of good books exist. the problem is that most (or all) of them have been written a few years ago and do not take the completely changed financial environment and its implications for decades to come into consideration.

3. for your sake i wish you find a good tutor friend who takes time (and NO money) to educate you about investing starting with "in the beginning the LORD said...". but that might be wishful thinking from my side.

the only advice i can give you is "read... read... read" e.g. financial forums but not necessarily the one in Thaivisa where you either find people who are not flexible and who's minds are set and focussed on one particular asset class or people who (sitting on cloud nine) bombard you with bits and pieces in a language you don't understand.

my two Satangs: start reading and then ask questions. you seem to be a decent chap who will (in my view) get answers because you master the art of posing polite questions.

[Naam]

"lo...goodonya mate...best interest rates are in Oz right now...fly down and take a peek..."

that kind of totally ignorant advice does not help the OP! that applies to "best interest rates" and especially to "fly down..". as OZ-Dollars can be bought and held in most banks anywhere on this planet!

it is correct that AUD presently provides satisfactory interest far above those of some other major currencies, however other currencies exist which pay much more. the question is "would the OP mind if the value of his assets lose 30+ percent within a few weeks or even a longer period depending on his "reference currency" or the fact that he is planning to live in Thailand switching to THB as new reference currency?"

disclaimer: i have nothing against AUD and invest in this currency on an in/out basis since more than two decades. in fact i am holding a rather big amount since beginning of this year. BUT i keep my finger on the trigger to get out within minutes if i deem it necessary.

[Robby nz]

You can get better interest rates in NZ from term deposits which are Govt Guaranteed.

If you are a non Resident you can arrange a withholding tax of only 2%.

Google "Marac", a company I use

[Naam]

You can get better interest rates in NZ from term deposits which are Govt Guaranteed.

If you are a non Resident you can arrange a withholding tax of only 2%.

Google "Marac", a company I use

there is no civilised country in which term deposits are presently not government guaranteed.

[nong38]

At the moment 4-5 % seems pretty good, rates are going to go up soon to control inflation so whats good today may not be tomorrow, on the other hand stocke markets are high so there may not be to much upside left, the boat sailed a couple of years ago to make the big killings, so I think now its a time for prudence and remember anyone can spend someone elses money. I am happy for you you have some luck in live, take of it and dont rush it a safe bet is a good bet, people always tell of their good bets, never of their bad ones.

I invested in the UK stock market, over the years madea good bit on take overs, then when the crisis happened, I think 3 invested folded, one lost 95%, one or two lost 80% but my good picks show overall I am 50% up over 10 years and drawing good dividends,but, that could all change tomorrow, stock markets are volotile and not always rational, I dont buy shares anymore, I had limited knowledge, thought I had lots and maybe I was just lucky, so be lucky.

[gemini81]

head to asia books and get Investment in Thiland, it'll give you lots of insight, a good starting place if you will...help you prioritize.

4 to 5 %?? thats only equal to the rate of yearly inflation! so that means you're gaining nothing. you need a professional to help you if you really hit the big jackpot.

just remember low risk low returns..like your 4% deal.

[CaptHaddock]

> The small lottery is about 400,000 cdn. I'm 48 years old, and don't want to go back home to work. Possible? I go through about 40,000 about per month on average.

It's unlikely that you can retire on 12 million baht at age 48 even in Thailand assuming that you want a Western standard of living.  You don't know how long you have to live.  According to the mortality tables at age 48 you have a life expectancy of roughly 30 years.  But that means a 50% chance of living longer.   If you could earn a constant 5% you would expend it all to zero with a monthly expenditure of 64k baht in 30 years.  Of course, it is certain that you will not earn a constant 5% for 30 years.  It will vary, probably by a lot.  And then, as others mentioned, inflation and exchange rates will further endanger your standard of living.

But you ask the right question in wanting to know where to start to educate yourself.  Naam's advice is good as far as it goes.  The best book that I have found on managing a portfolio during the distribution (vs. the accumulation) phase is:

"Unveling the Retirement Myth" by James Otar, another Canadian, as a matter of fact.   You can buy the book from his website:

http://www.retirementoptimizer.com/

I bought the pdf version, which is USD 5.99. This is a technical book that will appeal to engineering types since he backs up his analysis with graphs of backtests on historical data.  You will find it discouraging.  It's a lot harder than it looks.

 

[Canada]

thanks for the comments so far.....

to gemini.....yes I understand the inflation thing and that I am basically breaking even. Kind of why I think I should get a little more proactive about looking after the money.

I looked into the Marac thing. You can get 6.5 over 6months but it does not fall into the "guaranteed" category. A lower rate does though.

[LaoPo]

You can get better interest rates in NZ from term deposits which are Govt Guaranteed.

If you are a non Resident you can arrange a withholding tax of only 2%.

Google "Marac", a company I use

there is no civilised country in which term deposits are presently not government guaranteed.

But up to a maximum of € 100K in my own country. Not sure about other EU countries though.

Many investors in the Icesave Bank drama are still fighting in the UK, The Netherlands and Iceland to get their money back, over a € 100K in deposits.

They now attack the Central Bank of England and the Bank of TN sueing them that they should never have given the Iceland Bank a Bank permission in the UK and on EU mainland in the first place....and it looks like they're right.

However, it was pure greed by the investors themselves, trying to get 1 or 2% more....

The same as putting your money in AUD where the rates are high....yeah right

LaoPo

[bushwacker]

1. Can you do better than 4-5% in a relatively safe way? ......and.....

2. How would you recommend that a person such as myself start to educate themselves on investing? Is there a good book? a good course?

3. just what would you recommend to get smarter about money?

1. a lot of people with experience can do much better. unfortunately you can't.

2. virtually thousands of good books exist. the problem is that most (or all) of them have been written a few years ago and do not take the completely changed financial environment and its implications for decades to come into consideration.

3. for your sake i wish you find a good tutor friend who takes time (and NO money) to educate you about investing starting with "in the beginning the LORD said...". but that might be wishful thinking from my side.

the only advice i can give you is "read... read... read" e.g. financial forums but not necessarily the one in Thaivisa where you either find people who are not flexible and who's minds are set and focussed on one particular asset class or people who (sitting on cloud nine) bombard you with bits and pieces in a language you don't understand.

my two Satangs: start reading and then ask questions. you seem to be a decent chap who will (in my view) get answers because you master the art of posing polite questions.

Really good advice from Naam. I have noticed that Naam gives good advice. Thanks Naam. :jap:

[xylophone]

thanks for the comments so far.....

to gemini.....yes I understand the inflation thing and that I am basically breaking even. Kind of why I think I should get a little more proactive about looking after the money.

I looked into the Marac thing. You can get 6.5 over 6months but it does not fall into the "guaranteed" category. A lower rate does though.

I would steer clear of any NZ Finance company as there has been some major disasters with these over the past 2-3 years. NZ Banks, no problem and many NZ Bond offers are well rated. As with everything, do a lot of research before committing your funds.

As regards inflation, well you can begin to see the dilemma that many conservative investors face when investing..........how to be "safe", yet still beat inflation with the returns. The risk versus return saying states, "the higher the return, the higher the risk" and that has proven true, and never more than over the past three years.

It would be good to know what your actual "risk profile" is, i.e. you need to understand how comfortable you are with various levels of risk, because if you have not ascertained that before you invest, then you will be in for a bumpy ride and many sleepless nights. You can probably go online and source a risk profile relevant to investing and see exactly where you sit. Be honest with it because if you aren't the only person you are fooling is yourself.

in addition to the above, is the fact that the GFC has has changed the face of investing somewhat with the world facing a mixture of quantitative easing, austerity measures and the fact that the Asian countries are seemingly forging ahead regardless of these events. That being the case, inflation may well be a mixed bag depending upon where you invest, and what was the norm in the past may not be so in the future.

So, a lot to consider and may be too much for the novice. As with other advice, get to understand more about markets and investing and before you do anything else, as I previously said, know your own risk profile.

Good luck.

[bushwacker]

"I go through about 40,000 about per month on average.'

I am assuming that you mean 40,000 baht a month.

The best course and book that I have read is from the Canadian Securities Institute. It is the beginning course that people must take if they want to be licensed to sell stocks, bonds, mutuals etc. You can take the course online (i believe). It starts quite simply by explaining the building blocks of the financial system and quickly becomes detailed and at times complicated. If you were to go this route then you would need to read the book and then study it. Many chapters are good to read for a general understanding but do not need to be studied as they will not apply to you. Be assured that successful investing is not simple. The other book that I quite enjoyed was the Wealthy Barber for a simple and easy understanding of general ideas.

I am not clear on your current situation. If you are living in Thailand and have your money in Canada then you will be paying Canadian taxes. After gathering a little knowledge, maybe you would look into investing in Blue Chip, Old Economy, Unexciting, dividend paying stocks. Dividends are currently paying more than interest in many countries and in Canada have the advantage of the dividend tax credit. Stocks like BCE, CNR, RBC, TD and BNS are good examples. If you were to go this route then you would want to buy on a major dip or correction. The advantage of buying after a correction is you enjoy a quarterly dividend while you wait for the stock to move back to historical levels. Then if you sell you have a capital gain + the dividends up to the point that you sold. You could live in Thailand and do your trading online. These kinds of stocks will move slowly. But please do your due diligence before getting involved.

To determine if you can live off the $400,000 then you need to get a business calculator and do an annuity calculation. Let me help you out or atleast get you started ....

For your example:

beginning amount $400,000

age 48

die at age 85

interest or dividend at 4%

monthly payments to you

$0 left at your death

You could recieve or spend $1,721.82 per month. This is the amount based on the assumptions which are all held constant in your example. If the assumptions change then your payout changes. You can see at 30 baht to the dollar then this would be 51,654 Baht a month. NOT TO BAD AT ALL! To be conservative you would not want to spend your maximum to take care of surprises. In the future medical is usually the biggest surprise so start being smart now about protecting your health.

Also consider that if your annual interest is 0.0% then your monthly payout would be $900.90 or 27,000 baht. Can you live on this? The reason that I show you this amount is you do not need to take big risks with possible disastorous results.

This does not take into consideration any expenses like TAX. But if you were only earning about $30,000 in dividends in Canada then you would be paying no tax or next to no tax. In the last example the $900 a month would not be taxed as it is your capital ie not interest or dividend.

I hope this has helped you.

cheers

:jap:

[Robby nz]

I would steer clear of any NZ Finance company as there has been some major disasters with these over the past 2-3 years. NZ Banks, no problem and many NZ Bond offers are well rated. As with everything, do a lot of research before committing your funds.

Sure there have been a lot that went to the wall over the financial meltdown and I was caught with some myself.

The latest was south canterbury Finance and the Govt paid out in full including interest to ALL investers, not just the ones covered by the guarantee.

I think the ones that are left, and there is a list on the internet of those covered by the guarantee, are sound.

Even the banks will give you a pretty good interest rate over a longer term.

To me shares and some of the other financial stuff is just gambeling and a steady quarterly interest coming in at a rate that allows you to maintain your origional investment is a far better way to go.

But then I'm no financial guru.

Hay 400k canadian at 5% gives a return of of 20k canadian PA or about 590k baht that equates to about 49k baht a month.

Even if you knock the 9 off the end for costs it still leaves 40kB a month.

Enough to live on? Many do it on a lot less including me.

If you break your term deposits up and spread them over several banks and/or finance companies with terms of from 6mths to 5 yrs you can get a fair bit more than 5% in safety.

[Canada]

"I go through about 40,000 about per month on average.'

I am assuming that you mean 40,000 baht a month.

The best course and book that I have read is from the Canadian Securities Institute. It is the beginning course that people must take if they want to be licensed to sell stocks, bonds, mutuals etc. You can take the course online (i believe). It starts quite simply by explaining the building blocks of the financial system and quickly becomes detailed and at times complicated. If you were to go this route then you would need to read the book and then study it. Many chapters are good to read for a general understanding but do not need to be studied as they will not apply to you. Be assured that successful investing is not simple. The other book that I quite enjoyed was the Wealthy Barber for a simple and easy understanding of general ideas.

I am not clear on your current situation. If you are living in Thailand and have your money in Canada then you will be paying Canadian taxes. After gathering a little knowledge, maybe you would look into investing in Blue Chip, Old Economy, Unexciting, dividend paying stocks. Dividends are currently paying more than interest in many countries and in Canada have the advantage of the dividend tax credit. Stocks like BCE, CNR, RBC, TD and BNS are good examples. If you were to go this route then you would want to buy on a major dip or correction. The advantage of buying after a correction is you enjoy a quarterly dividend while you wait for the stock to move back to historical levels. Then if you sell you have a capital gain + the dividends up to the point that you sold. You could live in Thailand and do your trading online. These kinds of stocks will move slowly. But please do your due diligence before getting involved.

To determine if you can live off the $400,000 then you need to get a business calculator and do an annuity calculation. Let me help you out or atleast get you started ....

For your example:

beginning amount $400,000

age 48

die at age 85

interest or dividend at 4%

monthly payments to you

$0 left at your death

You could recieve or spend $1,721.82 per month. This is the amount based on the assumptions which are all held constant in your example. If the assumptions change then your payout changes. You can see at 30 baht to the dollar then this would be 51,654 Baht a month. NOT TO BAD AT ALL! To be conservative you would not want to spend your maximum to take care of surprises. In the future medical is usually the biggest surprise so start being smart now about protecting your health.

Also consider that if your annual interest is 0.0% then your monthly payout would be $900.90 or 27,000 baht. Can you live on this? The reason that I show you this amount is you do not need to take big risks with possible disastorous results.

This does not take into consideration any expenses like TAX. But if you were only earning about $30,000 in dividends in Canada then you would be paying no tax or next to no tax. In the last example the $900 a month would not be taxed as it is your capital ie not interest or dividend.

I hope this has helped you.

cheers

:jap:

Thank you.

Yes I mean baht per month.

And I wouldn't want to die having used all the money. There is at least one in line for some.

I think that I will take your advice and check out the Canadian Securities Course. That seems like a good idea.

I appreciate your suggestions and general helpfulness. Thank you.

BTW. Someone has PM'd me about some Financial something or whatever on Isle of Man guaranteeing 15% over two years.....what would you reply to that? I don't have the company info yet, but have requested it.

I have caught the general theme in most suggestions which is "study up, and don't do anything that you don't understand or have not researched". I am not in a big hurry to be parted with my money.

[bushwacker]

"I go through about 40,000 about per month on average.'

I am assuming that you mean 40,000 baht a month.

The best course and book that I have read is from the Canadian Securities Institute. It is the beginning course that people must take if they want to be licensed to sell stocks, bonds, mutuals etc. You can take the course online (i believe). It starts quite simply by explaining the building blocks of the financial system and quickly becomes detailed and at times complicated. If you were to go this route then you would need to read the book and then study it. Many chapters are good to read for a general understanding but do not need to be studied as they will not apply to you. Be assured that successful investing is not simple. The other book that I quite enjoyed was the Wealthy Barber for a simple and easy understanding of general ideas.

I am not clear on your current situation. If you are living in Thailand and have your money in Canada then you will be paying Canadian taxes. After gathering a little knowledge, maybe you would look into investing in Blue Chip, Old Economy, Unexciting, dividend paying stocks. Dividends are currently paying more than interest in many countries and in Canada have the advantage of the dividend tax credit. Stocks like BCE, CNR, RBC, TD and BNS are good examples. If you were to go this route then you would want to buy on a major dip or correction. The advantage of buying after a correction is you enjoy a quarterly dividend while you wait for the stock to move back to historical levels. Then if you sell you have a capital gain + the dividends up to the point that you sold. You could live in Thailand and do your trading online. These kinds of stocks will move slowly. But please do your due diligence before getting involved.

To determine if you can live off the $400,000 then you need to get a business calculator and do an annuity calculation. Let me help you out or atleast get you started ....

For your example:

beginning amount $400,000

age 48

die at age 85

interest or dividend at 4%

monthly payments to you

$0 left at your death

You could recieve or spend $1,721.82 per month. This is the amount based on the assumptions which are all held constant in your example. If the assumptions change then your payout changes. You can see at 30 baht to the dollar then this would be 51,654 Baht a month. NOT TO BAD AT ALL! To be conservative you would not want to spend your maximum to take care of surprises. In the future medical is usually the biggest surprise so start being smart now about protecting your health.

Also consider that if your annual interest is 0.0% then your monthly payout would be $900.90 or 27,000 baht. Can you live on this? The reason that I show you this amount is you do not need to take big risks with possible disastorous results.

This does not take into consideration any expenses like TAX. But if you were only earning about $30,000 in dividends in Canada then you would be paying no tax or next to no tax. In the last example the $900 a month would not be taxed as it is your capital ie not interest or dividend.

I hope this has helped you.

cheers

:jap:

Thank you.

Yes I mean baht per month.

And I wouldn't want to die having used all the money. There is at least one in line for some.

I think that I will take your advice and check out the Canadian Securities Course. That seems like a good idea.

I appreciate your suggestions and general helpfulness. Thank you.

BTW. Someone has PM'd me about some Financial something or whatever on Isle of Man guaranteeing 15% over two years.....what would you reply to that? I don't have the company info yet, but have requested it.

I have caught the general theme in most suggestions which is "study up, and don't do anything that you don't understand or have not researched". I am not in a big hurry to be parted with my money.

You ask such a little question but the answer is rather long winded.

First 15% over 2 years is 7.5% a year which is not out of the question.

2. Nothing in this world is guaranteed (except taxes and death .... as the saying goes). Remember a couple of years ago Nortel Networks. It moved from $15 to over $180 in less than 2 years. Every expert in Canada and the USA said it was a must have except 1 analyst .... he said DO NOT BUY AND IF YOU HAVE THEN SELL AND RUN FOR THE HILLS. The stock dropped like a rock and the experts were still saying what a great chance to buy in. It is now 20% off .... oh now 30% off ... oh 50% off .... what a great deal now it is 60% off .... well the stock is now trading at around 1 cent a share. Seems the executive of the company were telling lies. And there are many many examples of this story. Even countries that guarantee financial instruments go under or need bail outs. I am reminded of countries in the news like Greece.

Remember that the typical guaranteed investment (GIC, TBills etc) are paying about 1% if that.

3. I hear people talking about bonds that pay good returns of interest. In the financial industry the seller call these High Yield Bonds to the prospective customer and refer to them as Junk Bonds around the coffee station. They pay a high yield because they are JUNK and you need to pay a high rate of interest to get suckers .... sorry ... I mean investors to part with their money.

4. Before you invest, you must do more than study up and understand the investment. You must agree with the business model and the management assumptions. You must look at the investment and be able to say that you fully agree that this is a great business venture based on sound business facts. If you cannot do this then you are gambling like all the people that got stung during the technology bubble. There people were throwing money at IPO's with no knowledge of what they did or if they even had any revenue. In your situation you are buying into a revenue stream which means it has to be there, and in a solid foundation.

When you get the information on this investment do take a look. Before I invest, I want to know what the company has done and what is the likely outcome that the results will continue. I am not interested in putting any money in somebodies thoughts of what they plan on doing or think that they COULD DO. This reminds me of Ballard which was going to put a battery in every vehicle and eliminate the need for gasoline. The stock took off .... but the company never really produced much. Well maybe now they have done something but I watched it for 8 years and nothing. This high flying concept stock can now be bought very cheaply.

Another concern that i would have is the investment is in the Isle of Mann. Hmmm, what are the ramifications of that with all of their different laws. When you invest outside of your back yard, you must fully know and understand the rules of the game. If you went to England to play football, they would laugh at you when you show up wearing your helmet and shoulder pads .... if you understand my meaning.

I do not know where you currently have your money. Eventhough you might be living in Thailand, you are still required to pay Canadian Taxes. If you make money and do not claim it, then they can come after you until you die. And they are pretty good now at finding things out .... and getting better all the time. I say this because if you place money in say Austraila, they may pay higher interest but they will want to tax you as a foriegner and they have treaties with Canada to share information. When you make money you leave a paper trail forever. If the money is in the Isle of Mann, then you are OK for now as long as it stays there. If you move it then all the questions start coming. And Thailand also has a Tax Treaty with Canada. This is a major subject which I only have a little knowledge in ... so i will not speak more on it other than say any unclaimed income in Revenue Canada's eyes will result in future taxes, penalties and fines. So be careful.

Finally, I have pointed out in your case, based on your particular characteristics that you do not need to look for any sexy or off the radar type of investment. These are the places where people loose money. So to answer your question. If I were approached about this "Financial something", I would thank the person but tell them my money was all tied up (forever). Hihihihihihi

Cheers

:jap:

[ExpatJ]

As others have said- dont use or trust any foreign/farang financial advisors in Thailand (unless they work with one of the top global finance institutions- HSBC, ING, Goldman, etc)- most of the local expat financial advisors are paid on commission and will be trying to sell you exotic investments- i've had some of these guys in Thailand trying to sell me small bits of land outside Gatwick in London, student accommodation rooms in UK, etc etc. Also never use a financial advisor who calls you or contacts you first (as 99% of thailand based foreign advisors will do).

Now- my advice- infact what im actually doing myself - and im aiming for a minimum 10% ++ return within a year. first the background: The massive US printing of dollars thats going on now (aka quantitative easing) is causing money to flow into Asia and asian stocks markets and commodity prices to rise (as dollar falls in value, commodities rise).

• Invest in the thai stock exchange- The Thai SET has already increased 20-30% this year- i was lucky enough to buy in in January and have made 50% return, believe it or not, on the SET since then (cash in bank, not just paper profits)- but its still likely to increase alot in the coming months (i hope for another 10% + return as mentioned above ) so im actually increasing my stock investments - you could buy into a mutual fund covering thai stocks or meet a stock borker to ask for his advice (try SCBS securities, or Kim Eng- ) on specific stocks.
• Im also moving about 15-20% of my savings into gold (buying them from local gold shop here in thailand)- gold has increased alot, but is likely to increase even more as average americans in particular begin looking for ways to hedge against a weak dollar/inflation. Traditionally gold goes up as dollar goes down. I suspect that China may also begin buying gold in a big way based on what i have been reading in the papers.
• I also bought into the indonesian stock market to spread my stock investment risks between thailand and indo. I bought into an Indonesian mutual fund last week (BNP Paribus Solaris) that invests in small and mid cap indonesian stocks
• I am also looking for a commodities mutual fund here in Thailand.
• I also suggest buying a mid range or low range condo in bangkok for renting out (or to live yourself)- that should give you a regular cash stream every month). I have a condo in Jakarta for renting out that has given useful cash inflows every month (well at least since the tenants moved out 2 months ago!).
• This doesn't apply to you as you have canadian dollars- but since my savings are in US $ i am basically moving these $ into Baht i.e. thai stocks and gold.

Caveat- there are /is bubbles forming in Asian stocks markets and gold- but given the world is awash with dollars right now looking for high returns, the markets/gold will increase for at least a few months- so be constantly checking your investments in order to sell before the crash/correction in asian stocks markets/gold. Then if you can get out anywhere near the top, hoard your cash and re buy in again a month (s) or so later and ride the wave back up again.

Edited November 7, 2010 by ExpatJ

[bushwacker]

This is beautiful. I enjoyed reading the comments from ExpatJ and we have a market because everyone thinks differently. I have been investing for over 20 years and I would not risk my money on the investments that have been suggested. That does not mean that they are not good. It means that ExpatJ has a much higher risk tolerance than me. He might have a lot more money also.

One very good point that ExpatJ is making is that you must diversify. In his explanation of what he is doing you will see that he is spreading his money around so if one area goes down, hopefully the other areas will go up and he will be left with a net gain. I am not sure with your question on the Isle of Mann if you were looking to only invest 10% of your money. I was afraid that maybe you were looking at the entire 400,000. DO NOT DO THAT!!!!

But, I think for your position (i.e. asking are there any good books to start reading to gain an understanding), you are years away from this kind of investment. I am a life time away!!!!

A friend of mine, a widow went to a financial planner at Smith Barney in the USA. She knew next to nothing about finances. She wanted interest bareing, secure investments. The advicer bought without her knowledge, high risk stock mutual funds and IPO's. She lost 3/4 of her money in a matter of months and the planner falsified documents to show that she was given permission to buy the investmensts. All of the USA government agencies set up to protect the consumer pissed around and eventually said there was nothing they could do. So be very careful with whom you deal with and have a good understanding of the markets before you jump in.

[flying]

BTW. Someone has PM'd me about some Financial something or whatever on Isle of Man guaranteeing 15% over two years.....what would you reply to that? I don't have the company info yet, but have requested it.

When ever I hear some bank somewhere is offering considerably more than others I tend to think back to Icesave.

Perhaps not the exact same thing?

But does stick out in my mind as I recall all the offers being so much better than the rest at the start of this crisis. I think it was 5-6%

[MrRichard2009]

If I were you I would keep things liquid as possible and wait for the next market bear market and begin to take a bit more risk as your youngish, and keep working ..... NO sensible financial manager would say you have enough to retire on. No pension , no insurance outside Ca , Your options are to live a basic poverty lifestyle because you don't want to work and go broke eventually , or , use the monies 15-20 years in the future to add to your pension and be able to live a much better lifestyle. I can assure you that bills here and bills there will eat away at your nest egg until you realize it was a bad decision but your to old to do anything about it.

You could retire on 100,000 if you wanted to, the question is in 15 years when you can't change your mind would you still be happy about it.

"Safe" investments will provide larger returns in the future as rates rise, sounds like your adviser is doing the normal diversifying, if you do about average and with a little luck and a small amount in riskier stocks after the next bear market you should have about 1.6 million and a pension in your 60's ...... A lot better way to go than spending the rest of your life trying to maintain a 40,000 bht per month lifestyle that trust me will backslide over time and become harder and harder to the point of being not sensible to try unless you take more risk than is sensible for a 60 year old with no pension and your 40,000 will become 30,000 then 25,000 ..... ect

IT is possible to take that money and do just fine but the odds are against it and failure would lead to you being at the mercy of government handouts and broke instead of being more sensible and living just fine.

Why not compromise ....... take a year off then go back to work

[ExpatJ]

This is beautiful. I enjoyed reading the comments from ExpatJ and we have a market because everyone thinks differently. I have been investing for over 20 years and I would not risk my money on the investments that have been suggested. That does not mean that they are not good. It means that ExpatJ has a much higher risk tolerance than me. He might have a lot more money also.

One very good point that ExpatJ is making is that you must diversify. In his explanation of what he is doing you will see that he is spreading his money around so if one area goes down, hopefully the other areas will go up and he will be left with a net gain. I am not sure with your question on the Isle of Mann if you were looking to only invest 10% of your money. I was afraid that maybe you were looking at the entire 400,000. DO NOT DO THAT!!!!

But, I think for your position (i.e. asking are there any good books to start reading to gain an understanding), you are years away from this kind of investment. I am a life time away!!!!

A friend of mine, a widow went to a financial planner at Smith Barney in the USA. She knew next to nothing about finances. She wanted interest bareing, secure investments. The advicer bought without her knowledge, high risk stock mutual funds and IPO's. She lost 3/4 of her money in a matter of months and the planner falsified documents to show that she was given permission to buy the investmensts. All of the USA government agencies set up to protect the consumer pissed around and eventually said there was nothing they could do. So be very careful with whom you deal with and have a good understanding of the markets before you jump in.

yes you are correct- i have a highish risk profile- i have just turned 40 so am willing to take this risk to try and build up a good foundation for retirement.

[Canada]

If I were you I would keep things liquid as possible and wait for the next market bear market and begin to take a bit more risk as your youngish, and keep working ..... NO sensible financial manager would say you have enough to retire on. No pension , no insurance outside Ca , Your options are to live a basic poverty lifestyle because you don't want to work and go broke eventually , or , use the monies 15-20 years in the future to add to your pension and be able to live a much better lifestyle. I can assure you that bills here and bills there will eat away at your nest egg until you realize it was a bad decision but your to old to do anything about it.

You could retire on 100,000 if you wanted to, the question is in 15 years when you can't change your mind would you still be happy about it.

"Safe" investments will provide larger returns in the future as rates rise, sounds like your adviser is doing the normal diversifying, if you do about average and with a little luck and a small amount in riskier stocks after the next bear market you should have about 1.6 million and a pension in your 60's ...... A lot better way to go than spending the rest of your life trying to maintain a 40,000 bht per month lifestyle that trust me will backslide over time and become harder and harder to the point of being not sensible to try unless you take more risk than is sensible for a 60 year old with no pension and your 40,000 will become 30,000 then 25,000 ..... ect

IT is possible to take that money and do just fine but the odds are against it and failure would lead to you being at the mercy of government handouts and broke instead of being more sensible and living just fine.

Why not compromise ....... take a year off then go back to work

Well into that year now, and considering my options. Going back to work is one of them. Problem is, is that I was a tradesman. Got deleted through advancements in technology. Not sure what to do at my age. Not old, don't feel old, but.....time is getting on. Looking at forced retraining or educating of some sort.

Thanks for your thoughts

[Naam]

BTW. Someone has PM'd me about some Financial something or whatever on Isle of Man guaranteeing 15% over two years.....what would you reply to that? I don't have the company info yet, but have requested it.

When ever I hear some bank somewhere is offering considerably more than others I tend to think back to Icesave.

Perhaps not the exact same thing?

But does stick out in my mind as I recall all the offers being so much better than the rest at the start of this crisis. I think it was 5-6%

"some financial something"

[Canada]

BTW. Someone has PM'd me about some Financial something or whatever on Isle of Man guaranteeing 15% over two years.....what would you reply to that? I don't have the company info yet, but have requested it.

When ever I hear some bank somewhere is offering considerably more than others I tend to think back to Icesave.

Perhaps not the exact same thing?

But does stick out in my mind as I recall all the offers being so much better than the rest at the start of this crisis. I think it was 5-6%

"some financial something"

you like that do you????

I didn't have the information yet. I have it now. Do you want it? Promises very nice returns......

[Naam]

BTW. Someone has PM'd me about some Financial something or whatever on Isle of Man guaranteeing 15% over two years.....what would you reply to that? I don't have the company info yet, but have requested it.

When ever I hear some bank somewhere is offering considerably more than others I tend to think back to Icesave.

Perhaps not the exact same thing?

But does stick out in my mind as I recall all the offers being so much better than the rest at the start of this crisis. I think it was 5-6%

"some financial something"

you like that do you????

I didn't have the information yet. I have it now. Do you want it? Promises very nice returns......

thank you, but NO thank you :jap:

[GuestHouse]

I'd second Naam's advice, there are some great dedicated money and investment websites around - Read Read and Read.

I can only improve on what he's said with one simple additional bit of advice.

Ignore any personal messages you receive here on TV offering to help you with your investment - Choose your investment advisors, don't let your investment advisors choose you.

[Naam]

Ignore any personal messages you receive here on TV offering to help you with your investment - Choose your investment advisors, don't let your investment advisors choose you.

= words of wisdom!

[Canada]

Thank you.

[aussiebebe]

Hi Canada,

you seem to have lots of questions;

How would you recommend that a person such as myself start to educate themselves on investing? Is there a good book? a good course? just what would you recommend to get smarter about money?

For all your basic questions there is a good US site called the Motley Fool, which has free information, or a premium paid service. It's written in simple and amusing language and should give you some pointers and, most crucially, a broad overview of all your options and potential pitfalls.

I would suggest a subscription to the Financial Times - probably best online if you are abroad - as like others have noted, investment advice from books may be obsolete, discredited or inaccurate. The FT is invaluable.

I would caution against online investment courses like currency trading etc - anyone selling a 'system' which worked would just be using it exclusively - how many billion did Soros make again?