How to download facebook videos

Just do the following steps

1) Download the Mozilla Firefox addon Greasemonkey from the following link.
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/748/?application=firefox&id=748

2) Restart Mozilla Firefox Browser.

Paste a picture in Gmail

First we need to enable the Insert Image Feature in Gmail. For that
1) Go to Settings->Labs->Inserting images.

2) Set the Enable Option.

3) Save Changes.

4) Now you can see the new option Insert Images while composing a new Mail.

Free PDF Editor + PDF Exporter = Open Office

 Most of us are using .pdf format files on a daily basis. Usually we are depending on Acrobat Reader for reading PDF Files. But when we want to edit a PDF file we need the professional version of Acrobat reader. If you cannot afford a professional version of acrobat reader this article is just for you.

I have been using Open office for the last two years. But today only i came to know about the PDF import extension available in Open Office. Here are the steps to prepare your open office to edit a PDF File.

Best Free Screen Capturing Tool - PicPick

 Do you need an all-in-one program that provides
1) Screen capture tool
2) Intuitive image editor
3) Color picker
4) Color palette
5) Pixel ruler
6) Protractor
7) Crosshair and even a whiteboard.

as freeware for personal use. Then PicPick is for you. PicPick is full of features and also user friendly for creating snapshots, which is very useful for software developers, graphic designers and even home users.

Free screen recording tool - Expression Encoder

Do you want to prepare a video tutorial in Windws?

For that you need a goo screen recording tool. One of the best screen recording tool i came across is Microsoft Expression Encoder and it is can be download for FREE. This tool is really great to produce high quality screencast videos.

Want to Draw on a Web Page ?

Do you ever thought of sharing webpages with the interesting pictures or write ups beight marked using a big circle or pointing via an arrow. Here is an excellent tool to do this, Markup.io

Starting by renting when you move to a new city is defeat ?

Due to migration or a Job Change, its likely that at some point in our life we need to move to an unfamiliar place. Beginning a new chapter of our life in a new place can be an exciting and memorable, but it can also be rough on our finance management. Many of the expenses associated with a major move are unavoidable, but there’s one major mistake that is easy to avoid: buying a home immediately upon arriving.

Looking for a Rented Home ?

Owning a house is every ones dream. But, its wise to build our home only after raising enough money for the down payment. During the accumulation phase most of us need to rent a flat or house. Here are some of the tips to keep in mind before renting a property.

How Common Wealth Games [CWG] related to personal finance

Have you seeen the opening ceremony to the Commonwealth Games (CWG) ? Owesome right..?


Is that created over one day ? definitely not.
Its the result of months and years of planning, implementing and achieving the goal on time. Here let us analyze how CWG related to personal finance.

1. Start early: The CWG were awarded to Delhi in 2003, but only by 2008 the authorities started some meaningful activities. It is this delay that cause the nation to embarrassment. So this is the best lesson that all of us should learn to achieve our financial goals - Start Early

How to make 10 lakh in 5 years ?

This is in response to a question from one of the mytipstowardswealthy blog reader.

"How can I make 10 lakh in 5 years to use as a down payment for my new apartment. I can take calculated risk. I want to know how much i want to invest now to meet this goal ?"

I just try with the compound interest calculator. As per my analysis there are two methods to achieve this goal.
1) Invest Lump-sum
2) Invest via SIP

Did you give the PAN Card number ?

If you haven't given your PAN card number the TDS rates wold be double ie 20% instead of 10%. 

You can find the TDS deductions in your
1. Pay Slip
2. Bank Statement

Growth Vs Divident Option

Most investors has the common confusion in selecting a proper option while starting Mutual Fund investment. Mainly there are three options
1. Growth
2. Dividend
3. Dividend Reinvestment.

Real Estate: Right time to Buy ?

With the recent surge in the stock market people are afraid to do fresh invest in stock market. Now the next option is to invest in Real Estate.

Is it the right time to invest in Real Estate ?

There are mainly two options for a new real estate investor.

1. Residential Sector
2. Commercial sector

Mukesh Ambani

According to the Forbes India Rich List, Mukesh Ambani became the richest person in the world, surpassing software giant Bill Gates, business tycoon Carlos Slim Helu and the famous investment guru Warren Buffett. Courtesy to the bull run in the stock market.

Emergency Fund

Life is full of surprises. 

We should always expect the unexpected in the form of accidents, diseases, expensive equipment [TV, Washing machine] repair, job loss, car repair etc and that is why emergency fund is a must for each of us.

Now my concern is 

1. How Big Should be the Emergency Fund?

2. How to start ?

What a small investor may do under this market condition ?

For the last one month markets are doing extremely well. The main reason is that more than $10 billion of foreign institutional investor [FII] money has come in the past seven months only. Also the corporate earning are growing at a compound annual rate of 25% in the next few years.

So my concern is:
1. What a small investor may do under this market condition ?

How to select Best Health Insurance

Now a days, medical expenditure has incremented to such a large extend that health insurance has become a necessity and an essential expense for the well being of our family. 

Types of mediclaim policies
Mainly there are two options available:  

1. Floater policy:
Here we take the policy for the entire family. Usually family means Husband, Wife and Kids. That means parents are not included in floated policies. The sum assured can be utilized by any member of the family. Here usually the maximum sum assured in a year is Rs 10 lakh.

2. Individual policy:
Here each member may take individual medical insurance. Special discounts are given if individual policies are taken for the entire family. Here parents are also included in the definition of the family. Usually the maximum sum assured in a year is Rs 10 lakh for each individual.

How to select Best Car Insurance

Here are some of the Tips while selecting a Car Insurance.


1. Try to get a quote from reputed public sector companies like

1.1National Insurance Co. Ltd
1.2 United India Insurance Co.
1.3 The New India Assurance Co. Ltd
1.4 The Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd.

They have wide networks and their insurance quotes are reasonable too.

Gold ETF - Best Alternative than Physical Gold.

In India Gold is considered as a traditional method of asset. It is considered as the real money because gold price will always follow the inflation rates.

Usually people in India used to buy gold in the form of jewellery, coins and bars. But, with the introduction of Gold ETF [ Exchange Traded Funds ] in 2007, investors are provided with a smart means to invest in gold.

Run-In you NEW car

Congratulations, to be a proud owner of the NEW car.

Now get yourself ready to run-in your new car. Here are some of my tips.

1. Read the user manual. The time spend is really worthy. because how you treat your new car engine will definitely affect its performance, efficiency and life.

Best Mutual funds

I just made a search for Best Equity Diversified funds, for Large Cap, Mid Cap and Multi Cap in the following websites

1. http://www.valueresearchonline.com/
2. http://www.moneycontrol.com/
3. http://www.mutualfundsindia.com/

Here are the results i got.

The Extraordinary Power of Compound Interest

What is the best way to ensure your financial success ?

As per Burton Malkiel in The Random Walk Guide to Investing. - “The amount of capital you start with is not nearly as important as getting started early,”. He also mention that  "Procrastination is the natural assassin of opportunity."  


Even modest returns can generate real wealth given enough time and dedication. That is the miracle of compound interest. Hearing this many questions come to our mind

1. Why is it important to start early ?
2. How come a mere 8% annual return from PPF account help us to build a retirement corpus ?

Pay Yourself First

One of the basic advice of personal finance management is pay yourself first. All the financial books and personal finanace management blogs tell you to practice this.

But the truth is, it’s really hard. We can find hundreds of reasons like pay the phone bill, pay EMIs, buy a new LCD TV etc. We have tried this once or twice in the past, but it’s so easy to neglect this. Usually what may happen is that we never keep track of our expences, so when payday rolls around, there won't be any thing left with us.

The psychology of spending

We adapt to Stuff faster than we adapt to new experiences. We may buy a new iPod, and after few years we became adapt to that. But a cooking class, a vacation, an exhibition — these experiences are all complex and take time to digest, mentally and emotionally. When we do them with friends or loved ones, they become part of our relationships with those people, adding yet more layers to the experience and the memories that come out of it.

Frugal happiness seekers can make use these principles to their advantage. Actually it doesn’t take a lot of money to seek out new experiences. Just going for a walk down the beach with your wife can provide plenty of happiness, with no price tag attached. Always keep in mind that a series of small luxuries is worth more happiness than one large splurge.

Buying Stuff and Happiness.

As per Stephanie Rosenbloom "Increased spending on leisure, travel, and hobbies tends to make people more satisfied with their lives, but buying Stuff does not."

Its true that a lot of people are finding happiness by reversing from a consumer lifestyle. Now those people has more money to spend on what they loves because their needs are small. They may not buy Stuff or keep up a big apartment. They might swapped their cars (and of course car EMIs) for public transportation. We don’t have to spend a lot to be happy. In fact, simple living often leads to a richer life.

Mutual Fund Types - Investment Parameters

Tthe mutual funds can be broadly classified on the basis of investment parameters. Each category of funds is backed by an investment philosophy, which is pre-defined in the objectives of the fund. The investor can align his own investment needs with the funds objective and invest accordingly.

Mutual Fund Types - Nature

Based on NATURE mutual fund are of 3 types

1. Equity fund
2. Debt funds
3. Balanced funds

Mutual Fund Types - Structure

Wide variety of Mutual Fund Schemes exists to cater to the needs such as financial position, risk tolerance and return expectations etc. thus mutual funds has Variety of flavors, Being a collection of many stocks, an investors can go for picking a mutual fund might not be easy. There are over hundreds of mutual funds scheme to choose from. It is easier to think of mutual funds in categories, mentioned below.

Based on the STRUCTURE mutual fund are of 2 types.
1. Open - Ended Schemes
2. Close - Ended Schemes

Mutual Fund Basics.

If you are new to mutual funds or already started mutual funds without understanding the basics this article is exclusively for you.

First of all lets get familiarize where mutual fund houses are investing our money. They are investing our money into bonds and stocks.

1. Bonds
Bonds are basically the money which the government or a company may lend. Here the the government or the company will return an interest on the borrowed money. Bonds are usually done for a predetermined duration of time. Bonds are considered to be the least riskiest and less return means of investment method on the market.

2. Stocks
Stocks represent shares of ownership in a company. Examples of public companies include TCS, Reliance, HDFC etc. Stocks are considered to be the most common owned investment traded on the market. Since they fluctuate a lot they used to give more return and also most riskiest means of investment on the market.

Securities and Exchange Board of India – SEBI.
SEBI is the regulatory authorities who formulate policies to protect the interest of investors in Mutual Funds. It notified regulations in 1993 (fully revised in 1996) and issues guidelines from time to time. It is these regulations that control mutual funds promoted by public or by private sector entities even including those promoted by foreign entities. SEBI used to approve the Asset Management Company (AMC) and they will manage the funds by making investments in bonds or stocks.

Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI)
The AMFI reassures the investors in units of mutual funds that the mutual funds function within the strict regulatory framework. Its objective is to increase public awareness of the mutual fund industry. AMFI is also engaged in promoting best industry practices and updating professional standards  in diverse areas such as transparency, valuation, disclosure  etc.

Mutual Fund Working
A mutual fund allows investors to put their money with a predetermined investment objective. Each mutual fund will have a fund manager who is responsible for investing the accumulated money into specific securities (bonds or stocks). When we invest in a mutual fund, we are buying units hence becomes a shareholder of the typical fund.

For long term goals [> 3 yers ] mutual funds are considered as one of the best available form of investment. They cost efficient and also easy to invest in. Thus by putting money in a mutual fund, investors can purchase bonds or stocks with much lower trading costs than direct investment into stock market.

We can say the the main attraction to mutual funds is diversification performed by an expert fund manager, by minimizing risk and maximizing returns. Here the we are not paying the price for taking the risk, but are getting all the benifits of diversification done by the fund manager.

Diversification
Diversification is simply spreading out your money across different types of investments. Proper diversification reduces risk up to certain extent. The most basic level of diversification is to buy multiple stocks rather than just one stock. Mutual funds are set up to buy many stocks. Beyond that, you can diversify even more by purchasing different kinds of stocks, then adding bonds, then international, and so on.

If we try to do this ourself,it may take weeks to buy all these investments. But if we purchase a few mutual funds or set SIPs it could be done in a few hours. Here mutual funds automatically diversify our money into a predetermined category of investments (i.e. - growth companies, emerging, large size ,mid size companies, low-grade corporate bonds etc).

Pre-Delivery Check list for your NEW car

1. Am i waiting for the NEW car for the last few weeks or months ?
2. Is there anything i should do on the delivery day or even before registration the car

If YES, then this blog is exclusively for you.

As this is the most expensive machine you are buying in your life time, its better to take some precautions before driving away your brand new car. Here are some of the tips.

1. Before Registration:

Once the car is registered in your name, its your liability. So i strongly recommend visiting the dealerships stockyard and inspect your car prior to registration.  Check the car manufacturing month, year, especially when buying in the first quarter of any year. You can ask for the "Form 22" certificate (issued by the manufacturer).

Also check for any repair jobs, body damage. There are always chances for damage to some cars in transit. Also check the tax calculations on the dealership invoice. Many Indian dealerships used to overcharging for RTO lifetime tax.


2. Preparations:

2.1. Fix the date of delivery of your car and better reach the showroom only after the car has been ready. If we have a preference for a particular day / time (for auspicious reasons), inform the sales person.

2.2. Daylight: Its better to accept delivery in daylight, since dents may not be visible in the dark. Also we may not get good service in the evening since dealership agents are in a hurry to wrap the day up.

2.3. Documentation: Take the quotation documents to check whether all accessories that are offered are installed. Also take the advance receipt and remember to deduct that before the final settlement.

2.4. Payments: If any payment formalities are to be completed, take enough cash / credit card.

2.5. Third Person: It’s better to take a relative / friend who owns a similar car for suggestions, observations and comments.

2.6. Memories: Take a camera and remember to take snaps of you big moments.

2.7. Music: Carry a CD to check the working of the stereo.

2.8 Minimum four lemon to put under each the tyre just before the first drive, agarbatti, match box etc.



3. At the Showroom:

3.1 Get a Demo - Its the salesperson's job is to give you a full demo of your brand new car's features and how each one operates. Ask him to demonstrate the car fully, top to bottom, in order to understand how everything works on the vehicle. Get familiarized with switches, wiper operations, AC, Horn, Fuel indications, Hood parts, Stereo, internal lighting, seat adjustments etc

3.2 Visit the Service Department: Meet the Sales Manager and Service manager and also get familiarize with the service center facilities.

4. Final Inspection:

4.1 Inspect the car again: Something can happen between the pre-registration inspection and today. It’s best to walk around the car and confirm that the car is clean. Look for any defects in lights, water in lights, signs of repair work / damage such as paint difference, dents etc. Even the interiors should be super clean.

4.2 Check that all lights and electric accessories are working fine.

4.3 Confirm that all the accessories you are offered/ordered are fitted on the car.

4.4 Check that the spare wheel is fresh. And that all related tools (spanner, jack, jack lever) are present.

4.5 Check Wipers, floor matting, first-aid kit and hazard sign board are present.

4.6. Check the odometer reading. It should be less than 100 km.

4.7. Ensure that there is enough fuel in the car. At least to get you to the nearest petrol pump. Also most showrooms used to give FREE fuel coupon, ask whether they have such an offer.


4.8. If the car is already registered cross check your car's registration number on the R.C. Book, with the number plate.

Documentation:

Read the following paperwork carefully. There are chances for spelling mistakes.

1. Invoice. (Check that the Chassis and Engine number of the car matches with the Invoice).

2. Sales certificate.

3. All payment receipts.

4. Registration book or temporary certificate.

5. Insurance: Mostly they will issue a temporary Insurance if the car is not registered. Ensure that coverage is valid and active.

6. Original Pollution Under Control [PUC] certificate. This is valid for one year.

7. Owners Manual.

8. Duplicate Keys.

9. Original warranty with all relevant dealership stamps.

10. Extended Warranty (If opted for).

11. Warranty of third party items such as battery, tyres etc if available.

12. Roadside assistance Contact details.

13. Business cards of dealership and service personnel.


Don't forget to say Thanks to everyone. Drive Safe. Happy Driving.

Buying a NEW Car ?

The customer is King.

The automobile industry is getting more competitive day by day and now we can get all the international brand cars in a showrooms near by. Now if we just start thinking about buying car, we can expect a call from a car dealer. As this is the second most expensive purchase that most of us going to do in our life, let me just list some of the forethoughts and road map that we take while doing a car purchase.

1. Mind Work

1.1 Budget.
 Do some research about every brands value depreciation by looking at used car value in our city. Also try to collect information about fuel efficiency, service costs and insurance premiums. Also understand the terms EMI, Auto Loan, things needed for an auto loan, Banks with lowest interest rate, Floating Vs Fixed interest rate etc.

As per financial experts one can set the car budget equivalent to ones annual salary. Also its better to plan and save enough money say 50% or more as down payment before buying a car. Keep in mind CAR is a liability, 25% of its value will be reduced on the next day of the delivery. Another 10-20% will be reduced every year.

1.2 The right car:
Once the budget is ready we need to decide what sort of car best meets our needs. If our family is of four members there is no need to buy a large MUV like the Toyota Innova. Also consider how long we plan to keep our car and how our needs may change with time, kids can make a big difference here. Its always better to keep a new car for atleast for 8 to 10 years. So analyze our needs before we decide on a car.

1.3 Diesel or petrol:
This can be decide based on our future running per day. If we are doing more than 70 km per day diesel engine will be suitable and other wise chose only petrol engine. This is because Diesel engines are usually 1 lakh + more costly than petrol engine. Considering this and the difference in petrol and diesel price can be compensated in 3-4 years if the daily running of the car is more than 70 km.

2. Test Drive

2.1 Do it yourself:
Never buy a car jsut on our relatives opinion, even if it is that of an automotive expert. What is right for someone else may not be right for us; check details like the comfort of the driving position, engine responsiveness, boot space. A one-kilometer test drive may not be enough, go for a comprehensive test drive in traffic, on open roads and up and down hills.

Check turning radius, visibility and cornering efficiency etc. Even if you are not inclined toward any other choices, just do a test drive so that you may not regret in future.
  
2.2 Take a second opinion:
It can be valuable to bring a friend who own any car [better a different brand car] with you on the test drive. They can offer unbiased comments or opinions that will help you in making the right decision.

2.3 Everything in writing:
It’s a common practice that the dealers marketing agent to promise discounts, free accessories etc, but not deliver on the delivery day. Make certain that every commitment made by the dealer is written down and signed on their letter-head. The agent usually have a quota for free accessories for each customer. If we are smart we can get the maximum discount and accessories.

Its better to make then write the cost of all free accessories and ask for that much cash discount. With that discount you can select better accessories from a good accessories shop.

3. Fix the Deal

3.1 Shop around:
For the best deal, nothing can replace comparing one offer against another. Do research on dealers discounts, manufacturer price cuts, free accessories etc. You should also consider calling Sales Agents from different dealers for a quote, they work in a close collaboration with dealerships and survive on fringe margins.

3.2 Buy insurance ourself:
Dealerships got fat commissions on every insurance policy sold. Don't buy insurance coverage from the showroom, instead, shop around and take quotes from 3 - 4 insurance companies / agents. You stand to save anywhere between 20 - 40% on insurance by shopping yourself and bypassing the dealer here.

3.3 No Claim Bonus (NCB):
The NCB of our old car can be utilized while taking insurance for the new car. The old car must be sold or transferred to make this possible, this will save thousands on insurance premium. We can use the NCB even for any succeeding insurance premium but only once. So don't rush to sell your old car at a lower price to claim this benefit.

3.4  Exchange Bonus:
Once you have sell or exchanged your old car, just keep a copy of old RC book and New RC book and apply for exchange bonus. You can get this benefit within 6 months from the purchase of the new car. This will also save few thousands.

3.5 Check before registration:
You must do a pre-delivery checking before sending you car the Regional Transport Authority for registration. Always check for any dents, scratches, overall working etc and also note down the engine number. Once it is registered its your liability. Also its better to make the dealer to complete the registration formalities as doing that ourself will be a big headache. You can see a detailed Pre delivery check list at http://mytipstowardswealthy.blogspot.com/2010/09/pre-delivery-check-list-for-your-new.html

3.6 Accessories:
If you are buying accessories from showroom always compare prices between the showroom and accessories shop. Some dealerships used to charge 2-3 time more prices. Also verify the quality and brand of accessories.

Unique Identification Authority of India [UIDAI]

As per Nandan Nilekani, the chairman of UID project, UID is not just a number, but it is an identity.

1. What does this unique identification means ?

2. How the society is going to be benefited from this project ?

Within a few weeks we can expect the first set of unique identification numbers to be released. Then in the next 4 to 5 years UID project is supposed to come up with 600 million identifications.

Its around 13 months since they had announced for the first release and they had promised the first release within 12 – 18 months. Hence we can say the project is running as per the schedule.

The budget for this year is around 1900 crore and the overall budget is about 3000 crore for the first 10 million customers. As per Nilekani this is great value for money, because it is giving every Indian an acknowledgement of their existence by the state and this has huge social benefits.

We can consider the UID as a mobile identity. The advantages of UID can be like the advantages of mobile phone over land line. Here every Indian's identity can be verified at any place he is residing. Any body who has the UID will be allowed to open a no frills bank account and this may be sufficient for KYC [Know your client] for lumpsum investments in Mutual Funds too.

Virtual Stock Market Games

Do you have any plans to taste the stock market ?

YES ?

Then its better to know the bitter and sweet of investing our money into stock market through Virtual Stock Market Games. This help us
1. To know the concept of stock markets
2. How dangerous speculations can be.
3. How to pick a good company at the right price.

Here are the list of some of the Virtual Stock Market Games I came across.
1. http://sharebaazi.economictimes.indiatimes.com/
2. http://marketwiz.rediff.com/
3. http://moneybhai.moneycontrol.com/

First of all we need to register in one of the Virtual Stock Market games website. Sharebazzi used to give 2 lakh rupees, while moneybhai gives 25 lakhs virtual money for us to trade.

Now do some research by checking winners portfolio and gain some knowledge about companies and sector allocation strategies. At the beginning stage try selecting companies which you are more familiar . Its better not to invest in too many companies because gains from some companies will be nullified by losses from other companies.

Just try to select 4 good companies which are selling on loss. Never sell a company when it is on loss. Also dont be too gready. Set yourself an upper marging, say Rs10. When ever the stock you are holding crosses the upper margin sell it if you are interested in day trading otherwise hold good stocks for a long time you can see its growing.

These exercises are just to get rid of our fear from stock market. Also keep in mind don't make this as an addict. Just get familiarize with these games and gain some confidence in equity investment and also learn the danger of doing speculations in stock markets.

My advice is if you are very much confident in virtual stock market investing then only you should go for the real stock market investment using demat account. Till now I am not confident in direct stock market investment or Day trading. I always believe in Mutual Funds.

How to Start Mutual Fund investment ?

Many of my friends have investments in ULIPs, Pension plans, Life insurance endowment plans, Chit funds, FDs etc. I have a lot of online friends too which are investing in Mutual Funds, Stocks, ETFs, etc. Why is this difference in approach towards investmets?

I think the difference is because there are many agents and even our own relatives who are forcing us to invest in ULIPS, Pension plans and endowment policies, because they are getting hectic commission. But no one is there to direct us towards mutual funds since SEBI banned the entry load for MFs. If you are a fresh investors in Indian Mutual fund, then this article is exclusively for you.

1. How to Select a Best Mutual Fund ?
The first step of buying a mutual fund is to select a good mutual fund scheme, which itself is a tedious job. If you are not able to take a calculated decision, take the help of a good financial advisor. For others my advice is to visit Valueresearchonline.com website. This website is considers as an unbiased mutual fund rating agency.

a.First choose open ended funds

b.Select equity diversified category
 
c.Select 3/5 year return.

Now we can get a list of the Top 10 funds. From that select the 4 or 5 star rated mutual funds. The good thing here is that these people have done all the hard work to rate the best performing mutual fund. They are rating the funds based on past performance, performance with benchmark, performance with peers, fund manager, advanced portfolio stats and many more. So we don’t have to analyze all the above factors.

2. How to Buy Mutual Funds DIRECT + Online ?
We need to buy and sell MFs through the fund houses like HDFC, Reliance, DSP BR, IDFC, Birla Sun life, BNP Pariba etc. They are called AMCs [Asset Management Company]. Just search the web via Google and find out the website of the selected fund house or AMC.

Now download the MF application forms like
a. SIP form
b. ECS form
c. Online PIN request form etc.

Fill up those forms completely. Don't leave any questions blank, fill up PAN number, Nominee, Bank account number, E-mail ID, Signatures, and even the Bank IFSC code, SIP start date, end date, office telephone numbers etc.

SIP Registration date or SIP starting date = form submitted date + 30 working days.

Also DONT forget to mention the Broker code as DIRECT on top of the SIP enrollment form. If any of your friends have a broker code, put that code so that they will get a trail commision.

Most fund hose have tie ups with CAMS or Karvy which are mutual fund distribution house. In that case you go to the nearest CAMS/Karvy branch and submit the

a)Duly filled Application forms.
 
b)Crossed check for the first installment
 
c)Self attested copy of PAN card

Other wise go to the fund house directly. They will immediately return back an acknowledgement receipt. Now with in few weeks you will get an acknowledgement from the fund house with an alloted folio number, and online PIN number.

Don't worry the above steps are just one time hard work with respect to a fund house. With the folio number and PIN number you can purchase / redeem any number of funds with the fund house just by the comfort from our home. Here the main advantage is that we dont have to pay any commision to any broker or Bank for the monthly SIPs and no need of any demat account.

3. How to Buy Mutual Funds Broker + Online?
I am not joking, till now I dont have an online demat account. I always use the offline method to get folio number and then enjoy the online benefits. But now a days, most of the investors have an online demat account and they can buy the mutual funds online. Here are the list of some of the online demat services.

a. Sharekhan,
b. Indiabulls,
c. ICICIDirect,
d. Kotak Securities,
e. SBI Online Demat,
f. Motilal Oswal

Here we can place the MF purchase order, start SIP, stop SIPs online. The major disadvantage here is that we have to pay commission for even monthly SIPs to the broker. Some brokers may avoid commission for high volume investments. So for small investors the offline method will be more suitable.

Electronic payment modes

With the increasing popularity of Internet banking the various electronic payment modes are gaining huge popularity. The most popular modes are

1.RTGS
2.NEFT
3.ECS

RTGS - Real Time Gross Settlement

As the name indicates we can transfer funds in the real time. This is the most speediest mode of funds transfer currently available. However, the system is meant mainly for high-value transactions.

The minimum amount prescribed is 1 lakh. You have to pay small charge for this service.

For fund transfers between 1 lakh and 5 lakh, the fee is 25 per transaction. A transaction above 5 lakh will carry a fee of 50.

NEFT - National Electronic Funds Transfer

Under this system, the fund transfer takes place at designated time slots — six times a day during weekdays between 9 am and 5 pm, and thrice a day between 9 am and 12 pm on Saturdays.

Transactions up to 1 lakh will entail a fee of 5, while those exceeding 1 lakh will attract 25. Certain banks may charge even slightly more charges.

To transfer money through NEFT, we need certain details like
1)The beneficiary’s name
2)location of his/her bank branch,
3)IFSC code of the branch,
4)Account type
5)Account number.

ECS - Electronic Clearing Service

This is meant for payments of recurring nature such as Systematic Investment Plans (SIPs) in a mutual fund , Electricity bills, Telephone bills, EMI payments etc.

Here we need to inform our service provider, say, our Mutual Fund House, by submitting a form to confirm our willingness to make payment through ECS along with the application form for a new Folio number. This need to be done only once for a typical Fund house.

After that we can use of the Folio number to start / redeem SIPs using PIN numbers provide by Fund House and make full use of ECS. What’s more, most banks will execute our ECS instructions usually FREE of any service charges.

Goal Based Investments – A must to do in everyones life

All of us are working hard with different goals. One day we may dream about buying a car, the nest day we may think buying an apartment should be my first priority. But after visiting our friends BIG LCD TV we forget all our goals and rush to buy the TV during the festival seasons.

Now my concern is

   1. Do we need any investment goals in our life ?
   2. Should we set priorities to our goals ?

      Yes, we should have investment goals. The key to investment is to identify, prioritize and plan our goals and work towards it else we might lose track of our goals. If we haven't set any goals, we may be forced to divert our saving, like the case of BIG LCD TV. Hence every one should master the art of goal based investments and should also maintain a disciplined approach to keep saving.

How we may do goal based investing?

1. Write down the major events in our life which are our goals. Then set priority to these goals.

2. Calculate how many months/years it will take to realize every goal.

3. Calculate the cost involved to achieve each of these goals today.

For example, 25 year old Biju has two simple goals: an apartment in the next 20 years and a car in the next 3 years. Today the cost of a 2 bedroom apartment in Biju's area costs around Rs.30 lakh. And a car of his choice is around Rs. 5 lakh.

4.Calculate the impact of inflation as this will affect the real value of your savings.

For the goal of buying an apartment in next 20 years we may assume the rate of inflation based on the average inflation for the past few years, say 5 percent.

To buy a car in the next 3 years which is relatively a shorter duration the rate of inflation could be assumed to be around 3 percent.

Make use of the compound interest rate equation.

Saving require = Current cost * [ 1+ (Rate%/100) ] ^ Number of years.

Saving required for apartment = Rs. 80 lakh.

Saving required for car = Rs. 5.5 lakh.

5. Calculate the tax impact on our investments for each goal.

Biju's goal for APARTMENT is for long Term. Hence he can start a SIP in an equity diversified Mutual fund. Since there is no long term capital gain tax. This investment will be totally Tax Free. Here he can get 18-20% return for the long term investment in equities.

Bijus second goal, CAR is just 3 years away, hence a Recurring deposit with 6% rate of interest will be better. There is also no Tax liability for Recurring deposit.

6. Calculate how much to save every month.

Make use of the Future Value formula in excel. Take an excell sheet.

      1. Set first column as Rate of return.

      2. Set second column as Years From Now.

      3. Set third column as Amount needed per year.

      4. Set FV formula in fourth column, ie “=FV(A1;B1;C1)”.

      5. Now try changing 3rd column till we reach the required future value in fourth colum.

      6. Amount need each month = Obtained Amount needed per year / 12.

For Biju's case

      Amount need for apartment per month = Rs 4600 per month.

      Amount need for car per month = Rs 8300 per month.

7. Start investing for the specific goals.

Here the calculations mainly depend on two factors: the inflation rate and the rate of returns on his investment.

Here we can see the Amount need for apartment is much less, we may even think is it possible to buy an apartment of 80 lakhs after 20 years with Rs 4600/month. But this is possible, because that is the power of compound interest.

But since he want to buy a car in short term and hence he need more monthly installments via safer recurring deposit with lower interest rate.

Hence one should calculate the goals and priorities and most importantly do regular investments into different avenues like Mutual Funds via SIP, RD/Debt Funds and achieve our financial goals. Happy Investing.

Free Portfolio Monitoring and Management

Usually people used to have the following categories in their investments

1) Stocks

2) Mutual Funds

3) ULIPS

4) Bullions

5) Fixed Deposits


Then is it possible to monitor all these investments, SIP, their dates, NAV values, Daily returns, Overall Gains etc ?

Yes, It is possible to monitor all the investment parameters using an online portfolio management websites. Here are the links to few websites which i like,

1) http://www.moneycontrol.com/

2) http://new.valueresearchonline.com/


Just register in those websites and enter your investment details. Once you entered all the details, its super easy to monitor your investments. We can even use these websites for watching Stocks/Mutual Funds, getting alerts about present Sensex/ Nifty index up/downs etc.

We can also get the ranks, rating and comparison of Mutual funds. I use moneycontrol.com for monitoring my investments and use the Value Research Online [VRO] for keeping track of fund ratings. The VRO is considered as an independent and unbiased portfolio management website. Once we set the SIP dates in moneycontrol.com it will automatically add the investments on the investment dates. But VRO needs user interaction for adding each SIP.

Here we can also check our investment health status as a pie diagram and take a educated decission for the debt : equity exposure ratio. A rule of thumb for DEBT: EQUITY is AGE : (100 -AGE). That means when you are young you are capable of taking more risks and hence should have more exposure to Equity.

Once you approach your goals you should redeem/exit from equity and shift to debt. Its better to make this shift from equity to debt and vice versa in a Systematic Transfer Plan Approach [STP], by taking 2-3 years before your goals. Also we may need to consider debt funds only to meet short term goals, otherwise always go for 100% equity.


As a matter of caution, don't check your portfolio daily. This will give you only stress. Ideally Its better to review our portfolio only once in an year OR a maximum of twice in an year. This will help to Save Short term Tax as well as gives sufficient time to evaluate a Mutual fund or Stock.

Make use of these free online facilities and have an intelligent and successful portfolio. Happy Investing.

Fixed Deposit - To double our money ?

From my childhood days i used to hear that money can be doubled if we put it in Fixed deposit.

Is this really true ?, Yes its True.

But my concern is
1) Does FDs give a negative return
2) Should any one do FDs.
3) What are the factors which decide whether FD is suitable to me.

Answers:
1) Does FDs give a negative return:
Yes, On the basis of price index, Inflation is hovering around 9%. So for a depositor who is parking money in a bank FD with an annual rate of interest 8 %.

His actual return = Bank Interest Rate - Inflation = 7% - 8% = -1%
ie. a negative return !!.
If we consider the effect of Tax the return will be more negative.

2) Then anyone should do FDs ?
Yes, FDs are suitable for those who have short term goals [ < 3 years]. For short term goals it is not wise to take risk. For such cases FDs/Savings accound with Auto Sweep facility are the best means of investments.

3) What are the factors which decide whether FD is suitable to me.

The main factor which decide whether FD or Equities are the duration to reach our goals. For short term [ <3 years] always go for FDs.

If we have long Term goals then Equities are the best means of investment. Equities used to give an annualized return of 18-20% since the inception of stock market. Hence for the capital gain over a long period [ > 3 years ] equities are the best means of investment .

That means if we want to attain a positive return over a long period from our investment we should NOT go behind FDs because Inflation and Tax will eat out our investments in the long run.

"What If" - An excellent Rediff Tool

Till now i always used to hear from my family members and friends, Gold is the best method of investment. I used to tell them that this is simply ignorance and lack of financial education. But i was not able to convince them upto 100% satisfaction about this fact.

But today i came across an excellent Rediff Tool "what if". When i showed this to my friends they where really convinced and started thinking!!. Many Thanks to Rediff for introducing such an excellent investment tool.

Here we can enter any Mutual Fund or any Stock. Then set the duration of investment and do "Calculate". This will give a graph comparing our investment against NIFTY, Sensex, GOLD, Silver and SBI FD. We can also add any number of Mutual Funds or Stocks for comparison.

As "Seeing Is Believing", this tool will be really useful to anyone who is doing a lumpsum investment to gain confidence and compare the various investment options.

My Motivations

One year back i was very much shy to speak about creating wealth, money, investment, stock markets, mutual funds, insurance, retirement etc. During the last one year I read a lot about serious wealth creation. Now I believe I have some knowledge in investment, wealth creation, insurance, Tax, retirement planning, goal setting etc. Here are details of few sites which really help me to learn the basics of Wealth creation.

1) My Journey To Billionaire Club - Blog Review.
2) Traderji.com – Forum Review.
3) Investta.com – Forum Review.

You can also see the reviews of those websites via the above links.

Investta.com – Forum Review.

An excellent forum for Personal Finance, Investment, Business idea and much more. This forum was developed by Asav patel, developer of the popular blog “My Journey To Billionaire Club”. It is also moderated by Vikki Roy, a website flipper from Perth, Australia.

It is this forum and blog which really motivate me to start an online business in the form of this blog, which is capable of generating passive income in the long run. This forum really helped me
1) To take my financial investment decisions
2) To decide to stop my ULIPs
3) To Take term insurance instead of endowment policies
4) To Take mediclaim policies
5) To have an emergency fund
6) To start investing young etc etc.
Thus I can say investta is truly an Indian investment and personal finance forum.

The domain name investta.com was first registered on July 20, 2009.The top categories for investta.com includes
1) Business Ideas and Enterprenership
2) Investment opertunities
3) Personal Finance
4) Make money Online and Internet business.
To visit this forum, please go to http://www.investta.com/index.php

The most important thing I like about this forum is the layout and arrangement of various topics. I like the Template, widgets and layout of this forum very much. I used to get quick responses from this forum for all my queries. This really helped me to set my financial goals and have a balanced portfolio. Once I started reading investta I never feel that I was alone in the field of finance management. I could always find friends with similar mindset in this forum.

I suggest all the readers of “My Tips Towards Wealthy” to read the forum “investta”. I personally myself is a regular and permanent reader of this forum. I feel they are really faithful to keep their motto which say “It is our promise to the Investta members that we will be right back with the answers of all your queries in less than 24 hours (Usually in few hours). ”. Its worth spending some time daily in this forum.

Traderji.com – Forum Review.

I came across this site some 8 months back and this forum really helped me a lot to take my financial investment decisions. This is an Indian stock market forum for investors and traders.

The domain name traderji.com was first registered on December 06, 2002. According to Alexa, Traderji has a worldwide rank of 21,585, is ranked 1,229 in India, and has 112 external websites linking to it. Compared with Internet averages, the site's audience tends to be male; they are also disproportionately users with high earnings and have postgraduate educations.

Visitors to the site view an average of 5.7 unique pages per day. Traderji.com is one of the top 50,000 sites in the world and is in the chats and forums category has a relatively good traffic rank in the city of Pune.

The top categories for traderji.com includes Equities, Derivatives, Mutual Funds, ETF, General Trading, Trading Softwares, Borkers and General Chit chat. The High Impact Search Queries for traderji.com are demat, forex, intraday, trading, sbionline etc.To visit this forum, please go to http://www.traderji.com/

The most important thing I like about this forum is the layout and arrangement of various topics. I like the Template, widgets and layout of this forum very much. I used to get quick responses from this forum for most of my queries. It really helped me to maintain a balanced portfolio.

I suggest all the readers of “My Tips Towards Wealthy” to read the forum “Traderji”. I personally myself is a regular and permanent reader of this forum for the last 8 months.

My Journey To Billionaire Club - Blog Review.

I came across the Blog “My Journey To Billionaire Club” around 6 months back. Its a Financial Planning Blog with various topics on Personal Finance, Entrepreneurship and Business Ideas. “My Journey To Billionaire Club” was founded in March 2008 by a 24 years old MBBS student Asav Patel from Ahmedabad, India.

As per http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/myjourneytobillionaireclub.com, “My Journey To Billionaire Club” is ranked number 215,424 in the world. Compared with all internet users, it is more appealing to men. Its visitors also tend to consist of users browsing from home who have postgraduate educations. Visitors to this site view 1.7 unique pages each day on average. About 71% of its visitors are in India, where it has attained a traffic rank of 24,370.

As per http://www.freewebsitereport.org/www.myjourneytobillionaireclub.com, here are few statistics
Alexa Traffic Rank 215,174
Page Rank
Daily Page Views 5,112
Pages Daily Ad Revenue $15.34 USD
Monthly Ad Revenue $460 USD
Linked with 45 Websites

The most important thing I like about this Blog is the design. I like the Template, widgets and layout of this blog very much.

I have read most of the articles on “My Journey To Billionaire Club”, but still remains many more to read. The articles are very accurate and provides me the very basics information of investment and wealth creation. As Asav said this is really an “an Online Personal Finance Magazine”.

Now I suggest all those readers of “My Tips Towards Wealthy” to read the Blog “My Journey To Billionaire Club”. I personally myself is a regular and active reader of this Blog for the last 6 months.

Contact me

My name is George Neil, a software engineer and a finance planner from kerala, India. I have post-graduated from Kerala University with a masters in Electronics and Communication Engineering and graduated from CUSAT [Cochin university of science and technology] with bachelors in Electronics and Communication Engineering. My Field of Interests are QT, C++, OpenGL and of course financial planning.

Its my passion for financial education and financial planning which results in this blog. Now i am practicing financial planning and trying to educate others about personal finance. You can contact me anytime for any query or anything related to Investment, Insurance, Business, Retirement, Tax etc.
I can be contacted at georgeneils@gmail.com. You can also comment on this post or any other post of this blog.

My Systematic Investment Plans (SIP)

I started my SIPs with HDFC, IDFC, Reliance.

I have selected 4 funds

1) HDFC Tax Saver – G ( Growth Option ) - Large Cap
2) HDFC Top 200 – G ( Growth Option ) - Large Cap
3) IDFC Premier Equity Plan A – G ( Growth Option) – Mid Cap
4) Reliance Regular Savings Fund – G ( Growth Option) – Multi Cap

All are Equity Diversified 4-star and 5-star rated funds as per http://new.valueresearchonline.com/.

First one is ELSS to save Tax using Section 80C. Both 1, 2 can be considered as Large Cap Funds. 3rd  one is  Mid Cap and 4th one is Multi cap. All are having good track record and are also well managed funds during the last 3/5 years.

Till now its not clear whether DTC will consider ELSS as EEE[exempt, exempt, exempt from taxes]. If government made it EET then I will consider investing into Tax Saver only till March 2011. Any way I am planning to keep HDFC Top 200 for a long time somewhere between 20 to 30 years.

I am using the Investment Ratio as follows
Large Cap 60%
Mid Cap 30%
Multi Cap 10%

So I am balance with reference to investment ratio wise as well as AMC wise. The large cap funds will provide stable growth while the Mid cap funds provides aggressive growth and the Multi cap provides a balanced growth. Altogether my portfolio is Large Cap shifted and hence can be considered as a stable portfolio.

I may be using 3rd and 4th funds for my medium term goals after 5 years and 1st and 2nd funds will be used for long term goals. Since I have 5-20 years time horizon equity will be the best method to invest my money.

So here are my first steps to attain financial freedom. I hope others who have similar objective can get an idea how to invest money from this page.

Happy Investing !!