Many investors believe their risk appetite falls under three categories: low, medium and risk. They also assume risk appetite refers to “how much risk we can handle”. Both these notions are incorrect. Unfortunately, risk appetites cannot be quantified. Although expensive questionnaires with objective questions like “What will you do if the stock market crashes by…
Continue reading →A reader asks, “Thanks to the invaluable learnings in Freefincal articles/talks, after the last 3-4 years of sustained effort (nearly all of it after missing the Covid times in the market), I am close to bringing my target distribution from a ~0%: ~100% to 60%: 40% (Equity: Debt). I have tried to do it as…
Continue reading →In response to our article – Parag Parikh Dynamic Asset Allocation Fund: Who should invest? – many readers are not clear about the taxation status of the fund. Some even claim that it will be taxed as per slab. In this article, we explain the fund’s taxation status. Note: Tax rules change often. The rules mentioned…
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 →Parag Parikh, Dynamic Asset Allocation Fund, is an open-ended dynamic asset allocation fund launching on Feb 20th. We discuss who can consider investing in the fund. According to the scheme flyer, “The fund will predominantly invest in debt instruments and endeavour to maintain equity allocation between 35% and 65%* (some of it will be hedged…
Continue reading →College students often ask me: “What is the best way to start trading?”. They probably expect me to belt out learning resources and the best demat account. But I usually disappoint them with the following response. To make significant money from trading, one needs significant capital, which college students are unlikely to have. Trading involves…
Continue reading →Here is a money management checklist for young earners to start investing right. This is aimed at those about to start their careers or those who have started working in the last few years. Use your first paycheck and make your parents and the rest of the family happy. Use your second paycheck to get…
Continue reading →In April 2023, 31-year-old Abhineeth shared his plans for achieving financial independence and buying/constructing a decent house for his family. In his second audit, he shares how he rebuilt his finances after a personal tragedy. About this series: I am grateful to readers for sharing intimate details about their financial lives for the benefit of readers….
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 to understand how tracking a midcap index or the Nifty 100, 500 differs from tracking the Sensex or…
Continue reading →We recently received two questions which would be interesting to discuss together: (1) How much do I need to retire at 40 in India? (2) What should be the portfolio size in terms of x(annual expenses) so that we could maintain 60:40 post FIRE/retirement (at early ages like 35-40)? How big must one have so…
Continue reading →A reader has multiple questions on goal-based investing, and we address them inline below. “I am 32 years old and have been investing in MF for the past three years, PPF for the past 9 yrs, and SSY for the past 5 yrs. I have two doubts about goal-based investments”. “1) I have mapped my…
Continue reading →SEBI-registered flat fee-only advisor Swapnil Kendhe explains the pitfalls of conventional retirement planning calculations. About the author: Swapnil is a SEBI Registered Investment Advisor and is one of the sought-after advisors on the freefincal fee-only financial planners’ list. You can learn more about him and his service via his website, Vivektaru. His story: Becoming a competent & capable financial advisor:…
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 →Here are a few personal finance milestones that can help you gauge “where you stand today” on the road to wealth. We will assume the basics like insurance, emergency fund, and goal planning are in place. If not, we recommend this free e-book: Re-assemble Step by Step Money Management Basics. 1. Your Liquid Networth exceeds…
Continue reading →We do not need intelligence to make money. We do need the smarts to make money. We need clarity, discipline, confidence, or conviction to stay the course. Today we have many free and paid materials on managing our money. One could learn to DIY from scratch without professional financial advice. However, very few are successful….
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