All tagged SmartShares
This week I received an email from someone who has stumbled upon the big wide world of investing and at the age of 40 has suddenly had their mind blown with the possibilities. He specifically asked about index funds and I also knew I had met a kindred spirit when he said: “compound interest is a new favourite term”.
Sharesies has lowered the barriers to entry for those wanting to enter the share market and they set about serving a previously underserved demographic. Sharesies has helped people see that becoming a share investor is another viable way to grow your wealth in New Zealand. They are now giving you the chance to buy shares in individual companies and spend as little or as much as you like.
Since January 2016 I’ve been drip feeding money into the SmartShares NZ Top 50 fund (FNZ) on a monthly basis. I thought it might be interesting for you to actually see what someone else’s ACTUAL investment looks like because chances are that no one else is going to show you their account balance ;-)
Every week I receive one or two emails specifically asking about how to help children invest and there are often comments on various social media about whether you even should help your kids and if you do, whether you should tell them about it. Over the years we’ve evolved an investment methodology for our daughter that appears to be working so I thought I would share with you what we do in our own whare and that might give you some tips for what you can do in your own household.
I interviewed a bloke for an upcoming episode of my podcast and he had a lot to say about investing in individual shares and why he used to buy them, but now no longer does. He took the advice of a good friend when she told him, back in the 1980s, just buy into today’s equivalent of an index fund and let time in the market be your money’s best friend. Low and behold, she was correct.
Every single day I receive emails from YOU about anything and everything that is playing on your mind in regards to money and I absolutely love responding to them. This week I thought that I would just give you a snippet of the queries I get because to me they are one of the main reasons I blog, to interact with other people who are thinking about PF.
When I realised that in order to become an investor I didn’t have to learn how to pick stocks it was like the clouds had parted and the sun had finally come out. And I have American John C. Bogle to thank for that. Last week he passed away at the age of 89 but he leaves a huge legacy behind and I know that in years to come many will still be learning from him, just like I did.
Since I began investing in index funds I have been thinking of selling my shares in Meridian Energy because they are the only individual shares I own now. But then I procrastinated, then I got busy, then I got a dividend payout and then I actually took a much closer look at them because I realised that this has happened, a steady rise in their share price.
The Barefoot Investor by Australian Scott Pape is an excellent book and it has been instrumental in changing the financial direction of not just Australians but also of Kiwis. Many people have asked me to work out what the Kiwi equivalents are of the providers he recommends. I’m not saying this is a conclusive list, but I’ve given it my best shot.
