When I first started renting, I was asked to provide a ‘guarantor’ of security before my landlord would take me on as a tenant. Being young and lacking experience, I called a relative, got their agreement to use them and then thought no more about it. Essentially, I was offering a ‘guarantee’ that if I […]
I’m a big advocate of investing in entrepreneurs. I’ve written time and time again that when done well, private investments can produce returns which far outperform regular market instruments. In my mind; it’s a no brainer. Banks, advisers, accountants, financiers; they all want their cut – but dealing directly with an entrepreneur removes these added
A few weeks ago, I was engaged in an email chain with one of my readers who asked me whether I thought he should be using his paycheque to pay down debts or to invest in income-producing assets. This sort of sent alarm bells ringing for me, as I’m clearly not a financial advisor, so
Reader Question: Should I pay down debts or should I invest my money? Read More »
When I graduated from Oxford Brookes University in 2013, I was enthusiastic about gaining experience and building my financial assets, but like many my age had more debt on my credit cards than in in my bank account. I wasn’t struggling to pay the bills or feed myself; I certainly never went on debt-fuelled spending
At a recent dinner with a friend, we were talking about my blog when my friend asked me a pretty simple question; I’ve always had the view that savings and investments are a good way to protect myself from the uncertainties of life. Given that you lost your parents early on, how do you view
Reader question: How much money should I be saving in my 20s? Read More »
Anyone that’s been reading this blog for a while will have noticed that a significant proportion of my articles are about investments; the ones I love, the ones I hate and how my readers can help to improve their finances through strategies like building a passive income. Consequently, when I talk about investments, most
When the financial services sector (and most global economies) fell off a cliff in 2007/08, savings rates fell with them. Several years (and many interest cuts) later, I decided to take the plunge and invest some money with Zopa Loans. At the time, I wasn’t sure whether the company would survive or if I’d ever
Ever since my parents passed away, I’ve aspired to own my own property – not as an investment, but as a home. Consequently, I’ve spent many years squirreling money away to put towards a deposit and eagerly reading any information I could find on the financing of property deals. When I was younger, I assumed
For many people, achieving income from savings and investments has been a struggle for the better part of ten years. With interest rates at record lows of 0.25%, the interest from cash deposits is negligible and unlikely to improve soon. The search for income is becoming increasingly difficult in an environment of low-interest rates, but that
The search for income in an environment of low interest rates Read More »
Have you ever wondered how to go about analysing a Cap Rate for an investment ? Are you trying to figure out what NOI means? Do you want to know how to calculate the various types of ROI, like Cash-on-Cash Return and Total Return? If so, no need to struggle alone – I’ve written what
An introduction to Real Estate Investment Analysis Read More »
The ability to acquire income generating assets is an essential part of achieving financial independence. If you can generate enough income from your savings, investments and business ventures, you can effectively ‘retire’ from the 9-5 grind of every day employment. For many people, this might seem like a pipe-dream, but it’s a serious goal of
There are many criteria I consider when making an investment in a stock. Among them is the price relative to historical value; does it look cheap, or is it at an ‘all-time high’? In theory, if I believe a company to be solid, short-term fluctuations in price are meaningless, so a falling value only encourages
I generally try to avoid too much controversy on this blog. Admittedly, I might occasionally pen a provocative opinion piece, but by and large, I try to stick to informative articles. Earlier this week, I took a call from now investor who really, really wasn’t ready for an investment in his business. That might sound
Are you ready to start seeking investment in your business? Read More »
I’ve written before about my approach to investing and trying to create an income producing portfolio of assets. It’s been difficult to find stable and secure investments over the last few years; especially if you’re trying to find income producing investments. Naturally, my search for income isn’t restricted to a single asset class, but historically,
Thoughts on creating an income producing portfolio Read More »
In my opinion, the key to achieving financial freedom is becoming financially literate. Becoming financially literate is the best way you can achieve ‘quick wins’ financially, and move yourself towards the future you want. As investment and business are rarely taught well in an academic context, financial literacy is pretty poor for most of our society.
