A reader asks, “how do we decide the right rate of inflation to be used in financial planning calculations?” Let us first address the easy part: “What inflation rate NOT to use!” Financial planning is a personalized exercise. All inputs and assumptions should reflect our personal circumstances. Therefore the rate of inflation we assume has…
Continue reading →In this edition of the debt fund profile, we look at ICICI Prudential Savings Fund. This is an open-ended Low Duration debt scheme investing in instruments such that the Macaulay duration of the Portfolio is between 6 months and 12 Months. The fund’s category, “Low Duration”, gives one the impression that it is suitable for…
Continue reading →I have been tracking the amount I invest for my goals for more than 11 years. It has been a life and game changer for my family. Whether you track your spending or not, I believe tracking the amount we invest is crucial. Today I can invest more for retirement than my target investment. That…
Continue reading →It is quite easy to see extreme reactions to many aspects of personal money management. Yield-chasing or seeking to invest in high-interest rate fixed income products is no different. Many investors vehemently believe that there is no place for risk in a portfolio. “We have enough risk from equity, so why take on more risk…
Continue reading →Before Twitter announced massive (~ 50%) layoffs after Elon Musk’s acquisition, financial services company Stripe announced a 14% layoff. Transport company Lyft followed with a 13% layoff, and on 9th November 2022, Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, announced that it would cut 13% of its workforce. Earlier, Amazon announced that it would freeze…
Continue reading →A few weeks ago, in response to our article, “My salary is low, is financial independence an impossible dream for me?”, reader and contributor Anand Vaidya pointed out, “those with low incomes are often more irresponsible with money and expenses. I can share two examples” So we invited him to do so along with lessons…
Continue reading →Two readers have the following questions. “Given the relative performance between Indian and US markets, my asset allocation is running low on international equity exposure. (1) Should I now increase my international equity exposure?” “(2) Is there any ideal rebalance frequency (identified via backtesting)? I’ve usually encountered rules such as – rebalancing once a year/…
Continue reading →This edition of the fund performance report looks at ICICI Prudential Value Discovery Fund. One of the best-known value-oriented funds in the country with one of the best-known fund managers, Sankaran Naren. Naren was fund manager up to Feb 2011. He got back on the team in Jan 2021, perhaps to help the fund back…
Continue reading →Since there is no limit on the number of sectoral or thematic mutual funds an AMC can produce, they do just that! And these have huge fees and are marketed as the next big theme to profit from. But how consistent are they in beating a large cap index? Let us find out. Note: These…
Continue reading →A reader asks, “I am 30 years of age. We are a family of 5 ( blessed with a kid two months back). I am the only earning member. My house is in Ahmedabad (native), and I work in Bangalore. My monthly expenses are about 50k currently. Expenses for the kid might increase after a…
Continue reading →In this article, we share a risk assessment spreadsheet created by Suresh Murugan and discuss how it naturally works as a family crisis management cheat sheet. Suresh is no stranger to crisis. He met an accident the day he got married and learned key money lessons. Since this personal financial audit was shared with readers,…
Continue reading →We review the performance consistency of HDFC Pension Fund Scheme E – NPS TIER I measured against Nifty 50 TRI and UTI Nifty 50 TRI. The scheme was launched in Aug 2013 and currently has an AUM of little over Rs. 15 thousand crores- the highest AUM in the E segment for non-govt. subscribers. In…
Continue reading →A reader asks, “I have a question regarding Taxation on withdrawal of SIP mutual fund units. Can you throw some light on how the units would be taxed?” First, it must be understood that the SIP is just an automated way of buying mutual funds units each month (typically). However you buy mutual fund units…
Continue reading →Two readers recently asked us similar questions. One asked, “Is it possible for the Indian stock market to again go through 10 years of poor returns?” The reference is to the ten years of a sideways market after the Harshad Mehta scandal broke. For details, see: (a) Sensex at 50,000 & lessons from the 42-year journey (b) Sensex…
Continue reading →Three readers sent us similar requests over the past couple of weeks. One wanted to know if it is worth booking Rs. 1 lakh capital gains from equity or equity mutual funds each year to lower LTCG tax. Another wanted us to illustrate how to compute the necessary units for such an exercise. Yet another…
Continue reading →A reader asks, “Sir, my boyfriend and I are about to get married. Both of us want to have children. Can you please write an article on how to prepare for parenthood financially?” Although I welcome and admire it, most people may dislike this line of thinking. For them, childbirth is a gift and should…
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