Investments
How to Start Investing: A Brief Guide for Beginner Investors

Why should you start investing? Most people can’t realistically retire on Social Security benefits alone. Experts actually recommend investing around 10%-15% of your gross income in a retirement fund.
Investing also helps you generate passive income. This means your money works for you, instead of you working for your money.
Most of all, investing is fun! There are many ways to invest your money, from stocks to precious metals. You don’t have to sacrifice your own personal style to invest.
Are you ready to start investing? Are you unsure how to begin? Read on for our essential guide to investing for beginners!
Table of Contents
Start Now Even if You Start Small
Out of all the tips for new investors, “start now” sounds like the most obvious. This financial advice isn’t being figurative, however.
Start investing literally today, even if it’s a small investment. Every day you delay investing, you lose valuable money from compound interest.
Need convincing? If you start a fund with $100 and only contribute $100 per month, a 6% annual interest rate will still gain you $95,444.17 over 30 years.
If your contribution is $200 a month but you only invest over 20 years, however, that amount decreases to $88,606.13. You just lost out on over $6,800 in savings, even though you actually contributed $1,000 more into this investment fund. Investing sooner is investing better.
Research Your Investment Options
Starting an investment portfolio can be a little daunting at first. There are many investment choices, and everyone has their own theories on what’s best.
The best strategy for beginners is usually passive investing, so you don’t have to directly manage everything first. This allows you to make contributions while you’re still learning.
The risk is also lower while the stability is higher. You may still need to diversify your portfolio eventually with active investing to see higher returns, however.
Examples of “low maintenance” investments for beginners include:
- Mutual funds
- REITs
- ETFs
- High-yield savings
- Certificates of deposit
Both REITs (real estate) and ETFs (precious metals) invest your money in physical assets, but you don’t directly own them yourself. You can also invest in real estate and precious metals directly.
For example, many people combine their coin collection hobby with an investment portfolio and purchase precious. Visit here to learn more!
Budget For Your Investments
Once you decide what to invest in, it’s time to determine how much you want to invest. You can do yourself and your investment portfolio a favor by setting up automatic contributions.
Automatic contributions take the money out before you have a chance to spend it. Without this setup, you risk forgetting or impulse buying money away from your monthly investment budget.
You can also help your investment budget by paying off your debt- and keeping it off. Like inflation, the interest accrued on debt can quickly negate your investment interest.
If a $1,000 investment earns 6% per year, for example, but your $2,000 credit card debt has a 12% APR, you aren’t actually earning as much money over the long haul as it seems. And once your debt is paid off, you can also re-budget your debt payments into your investments.
Don’t Delay On Your Future: Start Investing Today
Everyone starts out as a beginner investor. The greatest “trick” to investing is simply to start investing, even if you start out in something small and low maintenance.
Our blog offers the latest leading-edge information in business and tech. Check out more of our articles to learn additional financial tips!
Investments
Driving Value: How to Choose Car Insurance

There’s nothing like the freedom hitting the open road can bring, but there’s a lot one needs to worry about as a responsible driver. If you’re new to driving, there are a number of requirements you’ll need to meet, and perhaps the most important is car insurance.
Nearly all states in the US have legal requirements for auto insurance. You legally can’t get behind the wheel without having some sort of policy in place. If you’re unsure of how to choose car insurance, you’re certainly not alone, as picking out the proper policy can be a real challenge.
What should you consider when taking on this kind of task? Read on and we’ll walk you through what you need to know.
Table of Contents
Understanding Your State’s Laws
As we mentioned, depending on where you live, there will be different requirements surrounding the insurance you need to have. Most states set certain minimums for auto insurance. You’ll need to have a policy in place that meets these minimums.
Auto insurance generally covers a few different areas. There’s collision coverage, coverage for the physical damage done by the accident, and coverage allocated to medical care and damage done to the drivers caught in the wreckage.
An especially comprehensive insurance package will also cover you if your car is broken into or stolen, though the state will likely not require this kind of coverage for you to legally drive.
The minimum requirements for auto insurance are not the same state to state. That means in order to ensure you are legally covered, you’ll need to do some research on the laws regarding this matter in the state in which you reside.
Look Into Discounts
Many auto insurance companies want to take on drivers they think are responsible and less likely to get into an accident. If you have a solid driven history, you might be able to get a discount on what you pay the insurance company.
Known as a good driver discount, this can help save you a decent amount of money per month. If you think you might be eligible for such a discount, you should be sure to inquire when first getting a quote from any auto insurance company.
There are other discounts you can look into as well, depending on your background and status as a driver. There are some discounts available for student drivers, where insurance companies are hoping to get customers early on in their driving careers.
Some occupations and professions get special auto discounts, though these will vary from company to company. If you’re looking to insure multiple cars at once, you can get a discount as well from many establishments.
Not all insurance companies will offer the same type of discounts, so it’s important to do your research and to compare quotes where you can. You never know which one will offer you the deal that you just can’t turn down.
Read the Reviews
When it comes to getting an insurance policy to match your car value, you’ll want to shop around. The best way to get a sense of whether a certain insurance provider is a good fit is to see how other customers who have come before you feel about them.
The internet has made this easier than ever before, allowing you to easily pop online and see what other people think of the insurance company in question. You should pay special notice to those customers who did need to put in a claim and what their overall experience was.
If they had a quick and easy time putting a claim through, that’s a better indication that you will as well.
Insurance providers that garner great reviews, like Theinsurancestops.com, can help ensure you get the service and care that you need.
Even better than online reviews? Ask friends and family about their auto insurance providers. If anyone is thrilled with their provider, that’s a good indication that they might be a business worth working with.
Your friend or family member might even be able to get you a referral.
Have Your Materials Ready
Getting the proper insurance policy for you is about making the best use of your time. The more efficiently you can move through the research part of the process, the more quotes you can obtain and the better deal you can score.
That means having all your materials ready to go is an all-important factor.
You should prepare a document before you start reaching out to car insurance companies that has all the info they might need to provide you quote. That will include a scan of your driver’s license, a VIN number for your vehicle, and the make, model, and mileage of it.
If you’re switching from a previous auto insurance policy, they’ll likely want to see paperwork from your former policy as well. Any reporting on incidents, accidents, or a lack thereof will also be helpful in getting the best quote possible.
If you have these materials ready to go, you can get a quote turned back around to you quite efficiently.
How to Choose Car Insurance
If you’re looking to score a great deal on car insurance, you’ll want to get very familiar with the above tips and tricks.
Learning how to choose car insurance requires a little work, but with the proper technique, you can land a policy that’s going to leave you and your bank account feeling secure.
Need more auto advice and information? Keep scrolling our blog for more.
Investments
Proven Tips to Choose a Reserve Study Company

A homeowner association should have well-estimated and sufficient reserve funds to maintain the assets of the community and make it a happy-living place for the homeowners. That’s where a reserve study Company can help an HOA to make an informed decision of how much amount should it keep in a reserve fund to carry out repair and maintenance activities without any financial hurdle.
But determining the health of the assets, estimating when it will require repair and how much money will be needed is not easy. It can get complex and on top of that, there is a little margin of error. That’s why it’s important to hire a good HOA management company to eliminate the possibility of any trouble.
But the important question is how to determine which company is the right company to hire with so many options out there? Here are some tips to consider to help you find the right company, and ditch those making just false claims.
- Experience & Know-how
It’s a matter of the wellness of the community and its people, so the homeowner association definitely can’t afford to take a risk in this matter. In fact, that’s the reason you are hiring a firm because you don’t want to face any lapse. So, hiring an unqualified and inexperienced firm for a reserve study is out of the question.
Check out the portfolio of the concerned company, and see how many projects they have served so far. You can also conduct interviews and ask them relevant questions to know their knowledge. Don’t let some random people mess up your future plans and the community’s well-being.
- Procedure and Process
Besides experience, the procedure and process of the hired company also play an important role when it’s about getting the best estimation of the condition of the assets and funds required. Obviously, you don’t want a firm that just analyzes the condition verbally without using standard procedures. It’s just a waste of money!
So, the best thing is to check their documented procedure or ask them about it if they don’t have a document. That way you will find out the company really does what it says or it’s just a verbal play to get clients.
- Online Reviews
Online reviews are one of the best criteria to know the quality of services of a business. A firm can tell a lie, testimonials on the website can also be made up, but the company can’t buy so many people to give fake reviews. So, if a company has many online reviews, it’s a signal that real people are behind these reviews. You can check them out. Don’t rely on a few reviews. Read 10-15 reviews to get a clear picture of the quality of services of the company. If people are talking good about them, they are worth considering, otherwise, just move on to the next option.
- Budget
You want the best reserve study company under your belt, but remember all the best things have a price. So, even if you want the best, you should keep an eye on your budget. How much can you spend? That’s one of the most important questions you should ask yourself.
You can play smart to minimize the expenditure. Like, it costs you more when you hire two different firms, one for the physical analysis and the other one for financial analysis. So, you can find a midway. Like, you can hire a firm that can conduct both analyses. This will save you money and you can hire a better firm in the same budget that you might have wasted on two.
- Location
It’s better to hire a company that operates near your location. It can help you in the long run. For example, you can easily visit the office when required. It bridges the communication gap that helps in smooth working. It also means the selected company will also know about the local dynamics and conditions that will help to give a better estimation of the condition.
Conclusion
A reserve study is very important for an HOA and a community, so don’t take hiring of a reserve study company lightly. Instead of hiring any company, you find online, it’s better if you do thorough research and analyzes the goods and bads of the company before hiring them. After all, it’s a matter of the wellness of the community, so you should hire the right company with the right knowledge and work ethics for the best outcomes.
Health
Get the Best Individual Health Insurance Plan at Best Price in Switzerland

Every Franc counts when you earn. Therefore, one must spend every Franc judiciously. Switzerland, the land of the best healthcare system, is responsible for choosing its residents’ quality of medical care. While you have to select the most suitable plan, you don’t need to worry as the tool available offers easy health insurance comparison in Switzerland. Here are tips on how to get the best individual health insurance plan.
You may be a permanent citizen of Switzerland or a temporary resident; everyone must be under medical cover. If you are an expatriate, you are legally bound to take out at least the basic health insurance cover within three months after your arrival. If you fail to do so, the local authority will assign you a health insurance plan, which might be of a higher premium.
Table of Contents
- 1 What is Individual Health Insurance System in Switzerland?
- 2 How Do I Get the Best Price on Individual Supplementary Insurance Cover?
- 3 Control the Deductible
- 4 Cash in on Your Age
- 5 Draw Benefit from the Canton’s Laws
- 6 Switch Insurers to Get the Best Individual Insurance Price
- 7 Split or Combine Basic and Supplementary Insurance to Get Best Price
- 8 Exclude Accident Cover to Lower the Price of Your Individual Insurance
- 9 Pay Lump Sum to Get the Best Insurance Price
What is Individual Health Insurance System in Switzerland?
You can understand Health insurance in Switzerland like this:
There is this basic insurance, which is mandatory. This insurance is your right, and no insurer can refuse to grant it to you. You are entitled to all the essential medical facilities under this cover, such as consultation from general practitioners, nursing services, psychiatric care, accidents and trauma treatment, ailments, and maternity. The price of this insurance cover is the same across insurers. Law does not permit to make profits on the basic health cover.
Then there is supplementary insurance, which you can add as a top-up on the basic insurance cover. You can select a plan that works best for you according to your affordability and needs. It is this insurance cover where you strike good deals and get discounts.
How Do I Get the Best Price on Individual Supplementary Insurance Cover?
Unlike basic insurance, you have the flexibility to design the insurance cover, the deductible, the premium, the services you are entitled to, and hence your yearly expense on your medical needs.
A supplementary insurance cover is a combination of two essential parts, a deductible and a premium amount. The lowest deductible that you can pay is CHF 300. It is mainly the deductible amount that decides the premium. The more the deductible amount, the lower is the premium. Let’s now see how to control premium effectively.
Control the Deductible
Under what conditions should you increase the deductible and decrease the premium and vice versa?
If you are fit as a fiddle and do not require medical help frequently, raise the deductible to reduce the recurrent price of the premium. The highest deductible that you can opt for is CHF 2,500 approximately.
Cash in on Your Age
With health insurers, this is a global practice that the younger you are, the better insurance premium costs you enjoy. It applies to the Switzerland insurance market as well. Insurance companies see young, disease-free customers as a profit proposition and hence lucrative insurance costs. The mantra, thus, is to take out supplementary insurance as early as you can.
Draw Benefit from the Canton’s Laws
Every canton in Switzerland has its regulations around the deduction of premium. After you have calibrated the premium versus the deductible you are comfortable paying, find out the deductions permitted in your canton and lower the price of your individual insurance. This is your privilege, as it is for almost 25%–30% of the residents who benefit from canton-specific laws.
Switch Insurers to Get the Best Individual Insurance Price
You have all the opportunity and legal right to explore insurers for discounts and features they offer at a designated time in a calendar year and get the best price for your individual health insurance. Insurers are bound to communicate the premium to you by the end of September. You can choose to stick to the insurer or move to another one for a better deal. You must complete this process of intimating the insurer for termination of the insurance and signing up with the new insurer by the end of December.
Split or Combine Basic and Supplementary Insurance to Get Best Price
You have another lever to get the best insurance price in the market. This lever works by exploiting the option to merge or split your basic and supplementary insurance. Here is how you can perform this comparison [Website in French -> —evaluate the overall price of your individual insurance; if a single insurance provider gives you both the basic and the supplementary insurance versus two different providers letting you enjoy a better deal.
Exclude Accident Cover to Lower the Price of Your Individual Insurance
Here is another tip to reduce the price of your insurance. If you are employed for a minimum of eight hours a week, you do not need to pay for occupational and nonoccupational accidents. Your employer bears this expense.
Pay Lump Sum to Get the Best Insurance Price
The payment terms you decide with your insurance provider impact the price of your insurance. You can choose to pay 100% in advance or pay semiannually instead of annually. The benefit you draw from such payment terms is discounts that most insurers extend to the customers.
There are plenty of modes to control the price of your health insurance. Invest a little bit of time evaluating the options for better savings on your individual health insurance plan.
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