Recently, I attended a gathering where the discussion turned to personal finance. Someone inquired about the best place to begin. Predictably, responses such as “security analysis” and “intelligent investor” punctuated the conversation. Many also pointed to blogs that repeat phrases Buffett and Munger popularised, with “investor” as a common theme in their titles, paired with…
Continue reading →This article compares my stock portfolio with an equivalent investment in a Nifty index fund and the Nifty 100 Low Volatility 30 TR index. We post this comparison each month. Before we begin, new readers need to appreciate the context of these investments. I started direct equity investing only after achieving a comfortable level of…
Continue reading →I have tracked the amount invested in my goal portfolio for over 12 years. It has been a life and game changer for my family. Whether you track your spending or not, tracking your investment amount is crucial. Today, I can invest more for retirement than my target investment. That was not the case when…
Continue reading →A reader asks, “I read your posts and blogs a lot. I try and declutter my portfolio and follow the kiss principle. If an actively managed mid-cap fund has a lower expense ratio almost equal to an index fund, provides better downside protection, and beats the benchmark index, should we still consider switching to the…
Continue reading →These are the freefincal handpicked list of mutual funds for Jan-Mar 2024. New and old investors can use it according to their specific needs. The list is called “PlumbLine” and has been published since September 2017 for beginners to accompany the freefincal robo advisor tool. Most important! Plumbline is a mix of my opinions +…
Continue reading →This is a debt mutual fund screener for portfolio selection, tracking, and learning. It also includes hybrid funds that invest in bonds. It will satisfy investors who wish to invest in money market funds, banking PSU funds, etc. The credit quality of the bonds in the portfolio and the bond maturity profile can be tracked….
Continue reading →A reader asks, “For those who don’t have a compulsory NPS deduction at the workplace, what would be a good option? a. aggressive hybrid fund. b. nifty 50 ETF+ conservative hybrid fund+/- gold ETF or c. nifty 50 etf + gilt fund +/- gold ETF?” Regular readers may know that we have always recommended against…
Continue reading →I evaluate the performance of my retirement portfolio and my son’s future portfolio each year in a personal finance audit. This is the 11th edition. Published from 2013 onwards, these audits provide a sense of accountability and ensure I do not fall prey to fear of missing out, preventing bad investment decisions. They also point…
Continue reading →A reader asks, “How to perform a portfolio audit? What are the steps? What should be the frequency? How to achieve it without impacting your core day-to-day job/business? Ideally, how many goal-based portfolios an individual should have at max?” A portfolio audit comes after proper goal-based financial planning and implementation of the plan. We recommend…
Continue reading →This index fund screener is based on tracking error and returns difference wrt benchmarks (aka tracking difference). The screener will help users evaluate how efficiently an index fund has tracked its underlying benchmark. It will also help a understand how tracking a midcap index or the Nifty 100, 500 differs from tracking the Sensex or…
Continue reading →“I have a long-term investment goal and a moderate risk appetite. Which mutual funds should I select?” This is a query often seen on personal finance forums. We delve into what actions should be taken by investors in such scenarios. However, when asked the seemingly simple follow-up question, “What does a moderate risk appetite entail?”…
Continue reading →We recently recorded an episode on women and investing for the Let’s Get Rich with Pattu podcast (it should be released when this article is published). As I prepared for it, I realised that it was my fault that my wife was not interested in personal finance. My wife says, “As long as I have…
Continue reading →This ETF screener is based on tracking errors and tracking differences (ETF return minus index return). The screener will help users evaluate how efficiently an ETF has tracked its underlying benchmark. Update: 76 ETFs are now covered. The tracking error is the ETF’s standard deviation minus index monthly return differences. The lower the tracking error,…
Continue reading →We explore the efficacy of using DSP Nifty Smallcap250 Quality 50 Index Fund as a low-cost alternative to active small cap funds
Continue reading →It should be evident to most of us that those with a non-permanent or corporate job should not rely on their group health insurance or group life insurance because they can lose the job anytime and become uninsured. I have heard stories of those who became hospitalised the day after they left the job or…
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