How to Pick Hot Stocks in 2007 Good Growth Stocks to Buy - Top Technology Stocks

By Bill Carter

The stock market should present you with a lot of hot stocks in 2007. Many of them are going to be new technology stocks that come from the nanotech, biotech, voip, healthcare, homeland defense or internet sectors.
Most of them might seem promising, but the truth is that a good number of these trading & investing opportunities could be extremely risky, while others are simply not as good as they look. That's why it's very important to know how to choose among the best especially if you want to day trade them.
When you know how to pick and approach the best hot stock trading opportunities, you are able to generate a consistent and respectable amount of money in a very short period of time.
Experienced day traders recognize that trading hot stocks on momentum can be the fastest way to make money in the stock market.
You don't necessarily have to trade momentum hot stocks all the time. But you can learn how to take advantage of them when you encounter the best opportunities for going long or for shorting them to make money when they are poised to fall down.
If You decide to day trade stocks just keep always in mind that for a trader to survive and be consistently profitable, its necessary to keep things as simple as possible. To much confusion and technical indicators will most of the time make you slow in your decisions and froze you up when a good opportunity is right in front of your screen.
In the end, stock market day trading is all about picking the best daily stock opportunities and following your buy and sell signals with ease and simplicity. Once you learn to master your trading decisions, you can aspire to produce consistent profitable results.

Do-it-Yourself Retirement Plan

By Rex Truman

For your retirement plan, do you have to rely on financial advisers? Or can you build your own retirement plan? Yes, it is possible to run your own retirement plan, and in many countries you are allowed to do so.

But building a retirement plan takes time and effort – it is no good just putting your money into one thing like a group of equities and leave them alone. You might scan the financial pages of the paper one day to find your retirement plan had lost 30-50% of its value!

To build your own retirement plan, you will need to spend, say, an hour a week managing it, and more time reading.

How does the Big Picture affect your retirement plan?

The reason you need to keep in touch with what is happening in the investment world is that you need to see the Big Picture well to make your retirement plan work. What do I mean?

You need to know:

1. Whether the economy is growing or flagging or in recession.

2.

What is expected to happen with inflation over the next two years or so – and keep getting it right.

3.

Is the stock market in an uptrend, going sideway, or going down – these trends can last from one to 10 years.

4.

How high are interest rates relative to inflation.

Here are some examples. If real inflation was zero, and interest rates were 10% - you might just stick bonds in your retirement plan. It would be that simple.

Alternatively, if you knew that the stock market had just embarked on an uptrend that would last ten years – then you might put good quality stocks in your retirement plan.

If inflation is growing, and likely to grow in the future, then you might want to put lots of property, gold and/or silver coins or bullion and collectibles in your retirement plan.

These are just extreme examples. However, life is rarely like that, while investment advisers – who are mostly salesmen – will tell you that the outlook is good for stocks whatever is happening. Generally, it is necessary to have some of your retirement plan invested in government bonds, some in stocks and some in property bonds. If the stock market is weak, then a Bear Fund may be appropriate.

If you are prepared to study the stock market, and follow the long trends, it may be worth managing your own retirement plan. However, you should seek professional advice whatever you do.

Disclaimer: This information is not intended as investment advice, but is intended to show how things can behave differently at different times. Do not use this information as investment advice for your retirement plan or anything else – consult a professional advisor.

Gold Investment Versus Alchemy – Turning Dross Into Gold!

by: Charles Goodwin

I’m often asked if Gold is a good investment and I invariably answer that gold may well be a good long term investment for an investor but I am a wealth creator and the very word “investment” is simply not part of my wealth creation vocabulary.

This statement usually results in a very perplexed look on my questioner’s face.

And so it was with Walter. Walter is a financially struggling bank employee and came to me to learn about wealth creation. (Yes I assure you, there are tens of thousands of financially struggling bank employees out there.)

‘Charles, so you are saying that if you had a spare $25,000.00 you would not even consider exchanging it for gold bullion?’

‘My dear chap, why would a wealth creator swap one asset (money) valued at $25,000.00 for another asset (gold) also valued at $25,000.00? Rather pointless exercise don’t you think?’

‘But gold may rise in value and your money might devalue – isn’t gold a hedge against such occurrences?’

‘Yet equally, gold could go down in price and the currency strengthen – surely what you are contemplating is just a form of gambling, is it not?’

‘On that logic all investment is a form of gambling, as prices of any share or commodity can go down as well as up. That is why one needs to weigh the risks.’

‘Exactly so – and that is why I am a wealth creator and not an investor or speculator. Investors and speculators hope and pray for some future event to occur, whereas a wealth creator insists on increasing one’s wealth at the point of purchase.’

‘But Charles you can’t buy gold bullion at wholesale rates – as you well know the spot price is fixed daily.’

‘Who said anything about paying wholesale price for it – I would prefer to be an alchemist and turn dross into gold.’

Walter’s young moon face went red with frustration. ‘Oh come Charles, please be serious with me and stop toying. I truly want to be wealthy one day and on a bank teller’s salary alone, I can’t see that happening.’

‘Oh but I am being serious. Turning dross into gold is a very enjoyable hobby – the challenge is not whether one can accomplish the task – merely how quickly one can accomplish each stage of the goal one sets for one’s self.’

‘An enjoyable hobby! … But how on earth do you do that?’

‘Simply by making the conscious decision to become a wealth creator – develop your own part time wealth program and stick to it. Besides my book The Secrets Of Wealth Creation Revealed, I’ve written many free articles that are now all over the web. Study them and then begin your wealth program ASAP! There are a thousand and one ways to accomplish the task of turning dross into gold. It’s a matter of first knowing the principles, secondly establishing an easily managed workable plan - then thirdly, having the fortitude to stick at it.’

‘You mentioned setting “goal stages” could you give me an abbreviated example of how one goes about the process?’

‘Well if your desire is to amass gold then if I were you, I would have a clean out boot or yard sale of all superfluous items in my possession (dross) to raise some initial capital. I would take that small amount of money and taking my time (because time is virtually immaterial to the success of this endeavor) haunt charity shops, other peoples yard and boot sales, auctions etc and buy items that I know I can resell at several times the price I paid.

I would keep a list of the expected realizable value of such items (wealth total) and keep buying and selling till that list total becomes about $9,000.00 in value. Now I know to you that may sound difficult to achieve right now but please understand, if you are working on 200% minimum mark up, this can be accomplished so quickly. That is $150.00 in sales becomes $450.00 which becomes $1,350.00 which becomes $4,050.00 which becomes over $12,140.00 and so on.

Now as I said, once that total of goods on hand passes $9,000.00, stage 2 of my wealth plan would come into effect. That is, I would then save the proceeds of the next approx $3,000.00 of sales (depending on current spot price) and purchase a 5 ounce gold bar.

The realizable value of the remainder of stock would still be a minimum of $6,000.00. My next task would be to quickly increase this total back up to $9,000.00 and then repeat the gold purchase. You can continue this process until you feel you have amassed enough gold.

You will find as you learn and gain experience, wealth creating will become your second nature. Opportunities will materialize all around you. Soon you will be running in and buying gold bars at least twice a month. People will think you have the Midas touch and you will be able to say ‘No it isn’t that at all – It is all the result of Alchemy and my dear old friend Charles Goodwin!’

Do not worry about the spot price fluctuating. Merely stay detached and consider that you are simply turning dross into gold and of course that is exactly what you are doing. If you have any doubts in your own abilities divide all the figures by 5 and initially buy an ounce of gold at a time. I can assure you the journey is both exciting and interesting. You will learn so much upon this journey and then one day the penny will drop and you will suddenly realize that the world is now your oyster. You can create as much wealth as you desire.’

‘Charles, forgive me – but may I ask the obvious question. You have shown me a fool proof way to amass great wealth, what do I do about taxation?’

‘I am a wealth guru as well as a mystic! Would I leave you floundering without a tax plan equally as simple and equally as effective? No of course I wouldn’t. But at some stage you will simply have to beg, borrow or steal a copy of (or dare I say it – even buy a copy!) The Secret Of Wealth Creation Revealed and truly – all will be revealed!’

The Importance Of Making A Will

by: Benedict Rohan

Please note: this article applies to residents of England, Wales and Northern Ireland and is provided for general information only. It does not constitute financial advice.

It’s not something that anyone likes to think about, but deciding what happens to your estate when you die is crucially important for ensuring that your loved ones are looked after when you’re gone and that your assets are distributed as you would have wished.

Many people think that wills are only necessary for people with a great deal of wealth, but this isn’t the case. There are certain laws governing how a person’s estate is divided if they die ‘intestate’ (i.e. without a will), which might not be what you would expect or intend. For example, if you’re not married or in a civil partnership, even if you co-habit with your partner, they will not be entitled to inherit anything from you unless you specifically mention them in your will. Even if you are married, without children, your spouse will not inherit your entire estate – other living relatives such as your parents and siblings will be entitled to a share. Also, if your circumstances change, for example if you get married, divorced or remarried or have children, this could make your estate more complicated to settle. Another important point to bear in mind is that if you don’t have a will, you won’t have a named executor to carry out the administration of your estate and the responsibility will fall upon your beneficiaries, whom you may deem unsuitable to handle your affairs.

Making a will has other advantages too – planning your estate and who will inherit may help you to minimize the impact of the inheritance tax laws.

To make a will, you must be 18 years of age or older. You must be considered to be of sound mind and it should be written without pressure from any other party. A will must be recorded in writing, and it needs to be signed by yourself in the presence of two witnesses, who must also sign. Beneficiaries of the will and married partners of beneficiaries cannot act as witnesses. If they do, the will won’t be invalidated, but their inheritance will be. The completed and signed will can be kept anywhere you want – at home, at your bank, at your solicitor’s office, at a Probate Sub-registry, a District Registry or the Family Division Registry of the High Court.

The big question for many people is whether it’s necessary to employ a solicitor to set up a will. The answer is no, but it is certainly recommended, particularly if your estate and personal circumstances are rather complex. It’s also easy to make seemingly simple mistakes which could end up having significant consequences. Common errors are not understanding what has to be done to make a will legally valid, changing the will without having it signed by witnesses, failing to make alterations in the event of a change in personal circumstances, forgetting about parts of your estate, or not taking into account that the beneficiary might die before inheriting.

Solicitor charges for setting up a will can vary between solicitors and will also depend on how complex your estate is. If you’re a member of a trade union, your membership may entitle you to a free will-writing service or free legal advice. You can bring down costs by considering in advance what your assets are and to whom you would like to leave them – whether family, friends or charity. This will include property, possessions, bank accounts, insurance policies, pensions and shares.

Also think about who you want to appoint as executor of your estate and who you want to look after your children should you die before they reach the age of 18.

You should certainly consider using a solicitor if you have complicated personal circumstances, for example if you live with someone who isn’t your spouse or civil partner, if you have a dependant who is unable to look after themselves, if you have a business or own property abroad, if you don’t live in the UK or aren’t a UK citizen, or if you have lots of family members who may make claims on your estate, such as ex-spouses or children from previous marriages.

If you don’t want to use a solicitor, it’s possible to purchase ‘DIY’ will kits from many high street stationers and bookshops or online providers, which will provide basic guidance.

Remember to make amendments your will any time you have a change in circumstances such as marriage, remarriage, divorce, civil partnership or the birth or adoption of children. You’ll need to be careful in how you amend your will to ensure that it remains valid. It’s not possible to write alterations onto an existing will. Instead you must either write what’s known as a ‘codicil’ or draw up a new will entirely. A codicil is like an addendum to your will. It doesn’t replace the original will, but makes alterations to one or more of the sections.

Only the person who created the original will can make a codicil, and it must be signed and witnessed in the same way as the original will (although not necessarily by the same witnesses). It’s only suitable for making small and uncomplicated changes such as increasing or decreasing the amount of money left to a beneficiary, adding a new beneficiary or changing the executor. You can add as many codicils as you want to your will, but if you have lots of amendments or complex changes it’s best to start afresh with a new will altogether. When you draw up your new will, you should insert a clause at the beginning to explain that this new will revokes all previous wills and codicils. Your old will is no longer valid after you do this (and have your new will signed and witnessed), and you should therefore destroy it. You must destroy it yourself too, or have it destroyed in your presence – otherwise it may still be considered valid.

Your will may be challenged if a person feels that it hasn’t left them with adequate provision or they don’t believe it to be valid – for example, if it hasn’t been drawn up in line with the legal requirements outline above.