“Residential housing is a tough business.” These were the words told to me by two extremely wealthy real estate moguls from New York — right after I bought my first rental property.  #-ad_banner-#I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I knew several people who were making a killing buying, renting and flipping houses. And I figured I would get my piece of the pie. I was guiding these wealthy New Yorkers and a handful of other successful businessmen down a 100-mile stretch of whitewater — through the largest wilderness area in the lower 48. Six days in the middle of… Read More

“Residential housing is a tough business.” These were the words told to me by two extremely wealthy real estate moguls from New York — right after I bought my first rental property.  #-ad_banner-#I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I knew several people who were making a killing buying, renting and flipping houses. And I figured I would get my piece of the pie. I was guiding these wealthy New Yorkers and a handful of other successful businessmen down a 100-mile stretch of whitewater — through the largest wilderness area in the lower 48. Six days in the middle of nowhere with no connection to the outside world is a great way to get to know and pick the brains of some of America’s elite. I took self-made millionaires, CEOs, hedge funders and top executives down the river — my mother even once took Jimmy Carter and George H.W. Bush down.  In short, it was a great way to meet interesting people and receive great advice. So one night in camp I was curious as to why these two New Yorkers thought residential housing was such a tough business, especially when it contradicted with pretty much everything I had heard… Read More

Last month, we had Dave Forest, one of the Chief Investment Strategists for StreetAuthority, fly all the way from his home base in Vancouver, British Columbia to St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas. There he presented on the topic of “investments you can hold for the rest of your life.” Around the office, we’ve been calling them simply, “Forever Stocks.” Dave also gave attendees a glimpse at his brand new list of The 10 Best Stocks to Hold Forever. I’ll tell you how you can be among the first in line to get your hands on… Read More

Last month, we had Dave Forest, one of the Chief Investment Strategists for StreetAuthority, fly all the way from his home base in Vancouver, British Columbia to St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas. There he presented on the topic of “investments you can hold for the rest of your life.” Around the office, we’ve been calling them simply, “Forever Stocks.” Dave also gave attendees a glimpse at his brand new list of The 10 Best Stocks to Hold Forever. I’ll tell you how you can be among the first in line to get your hands on this report in a moment. #-ad_banner-#​But suffice it to say, it was an incredible event. Long-time StreetAuthority readers may be familiar with our concept of Forever Stocks. In fact, it’s been the most popular piece of research in our company’s history. Put simply, when you invest in Forever Stocks, you no longer have to worry about inflation, deflation, bear markets or recessions. And our original list of Forever Stocks has been an investor’s dream. Since we recommended them back in July 2011, these stocks have beaten the market… Read More

If I time it just right, I can cut across three lanes of oncoming traffic to escape the bustling rush hour that plagues me every day on my way to work. Once I veer off the main road into this quiet residential neighborhood lined with oak trees, I keep an eye out for any “For Sale” signs. I like to stay informed with the happenings of the local residential market. And what I’ve noticed over the past few weeks has been, quite frankly, pretty shocking. #-ad_banner-#You see, here in the Austin market, it can often be only a matter of… Read More

If I time it just right, I can cut across three lanes of oncoming traffic to escape the bustling rush hour that plagues me every day on my way to work. Once I veer off the main road into this quiet residential neighborhood lined with oak trees, I keep an eye out for any “For Sale” signs. I like to stay informed with the happenings of the local residential market. And what I’ve noticed over the past few weeks has been, quite frankly, pretty shocking. #-ad_banner-#You see, here in the Austin market, it can often be only a matter of days before an offer is made when a house comes to the market. For example, one house with a sticker price of around $650,000 was only up for five days before a “pending” sign was hanging beneath the “For Sale” sign. Soon the sign was taken down all together and within around 40 days, cars were parked in the driveway. (Keep in mind it typically takes at least 30 days to close on a mortgage.) Talking with one of my mortgage lending buddies, he said this was how it was all over Austin. It wasn’t uncommon for a house to… Read More

My colleague Amy Calistri of The Daily Paycheck has been getting quite a few questions regarding her portfolio.  #-ad_banner-#To date, her Daily Paycheck portfolio has received a mind-boggling total of 1,747 dividend payments since she first started back in 2009. The total for these payments comes to $72,266.67. Not bad. And in the last 12 months, her portfolio has received 407 dividend payments for a total of $17,035.91 — for an average of $1,419.66 per month. Some of her readers may have a hard time understanding how she’s been able to earn so many dividends and in such a short… Read More

My colleague Amy Calistri of The Daily Paycheck has been getting quite a few questions regarding her portfolio.  #-ad_banner-#To date, her Daily Paycheck portfolio has received a mind-boggling total of 1,747 dividend payments since she first started back in 2009. The total for these payments comes to $72,266.67. Not bad. And in the last 12 months, her portfolio has received 407 dividend payments for a total of $17,035.91 — for an average of $1,419.66 per month. Some of her readers may have a hard time understanding how she’s been able to earn so many dividends and in such a short amount of time.   In fact, Amy recently received a question from a reader about how Amy has been able to quickly accumulate more shares of stocks she owns… without having to “buy” them. Q. I’m confused how stock purchases are made in The Daily Paycheck portfolio. For example, in the last two months, 29 shares of Gabelli Multimedia Trust (NYSE: GGT), 12 shares of of Wells Fargo Advantage Global Dividend Opportunity (NYSE: EOD) and 10 shares of Nuveen Real Estate Income Fund (NYSE: JRS) appeared. Surely these cannot all be due to reinvesting? Am I missing something?… Read More

750 plus days and counting… That’s how long it’s been since the market’s last 10% pullback. We might not have to wait very long for next market correction… and personally, I can’t wait for that day to come. We came close during the recent market turbulence, but didn’t quite breach the 10% mark — the S&P 500 pulled back only 7.4%. While it was a nice time to load up on some of my favorite companies, I’m still patiently waiting for the real correction to come. See, when the market gives you a gift, you take it. But it’s always… Read More

750 plus days and counting… That’s how long it’s been since the market’s last 10% pullback. We might not have to wait very long for next market correction… and personally, I can’t wait for that day to come. We came close during the recent market turbulence, but didn’t quite breach the 10% mark — the S&P 500 pulled back only 7.4%. While it was a nice time to load up on some of my favorite companies, I’m still patiently waiting for the real correction to come. See, when the market gives you a gift, you take it. But it’s always important to make sure you have a plan in place. And my plan is simple — I will load up on what my colleague Dave Forest refers to as “The World’s Greatest Businesses.” #-ad_banner-#A couple of stocks are currently at the top of my shopping list… The first company on my list will come as no surprise to regular readers of StreetAuthority Daily — we last wrote about it back in August. Topping my list is computer chip giant Intel (Nasdaq: INTC). Now I know this seems like a boring, stodgy tech company, but it’s simply too good to pass… Read More

Growing up I swore to myself that I never wanted to be a rancher or farmer — moving irrigation pipe, caring for cattle, bucking bales of hay — needless to say the work was strenuous. But the older I get, the more I find myself yearning for the back-breaking work and solitude that comes with the gig. Luckily, I still have a close connection to it. Growing up in a tiny village in the northwest, ranching and farming is — next to mining — probably the largest employer. And my father keeps a pulse on the agriculture business, as it… Read More

Growing up I swore to myself that I never wanted to be a rancher or farmer — moving irrigation pipe, caring for cattle, bucking bales of hay — needless to say the work was strenuous. But the older I get, the more I find myself yearning for the back-breaking work and solitude that comes with the gig. Luckily, I still have a close connection to it. Growing up in a tiny village in the northwest, ranching and farming is — next to mining — probably the largest employer. And my father keeps a pulse on the agriculture business, as it directly affects his business. So I do my best to pick his brain about happenings in the agricultural business. And when we recently talked I was particularly interested in what was going on in the corn and wheat sectors. What he told me was exactly what I wanted to hear… Right now, there’s a ton of supply in the corn and wheat markets. Thanks to exceptional growing conditions this year. In its most recent report, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced corn production came in at a record-high 14.5 billion bushels. And this is how it’s been all… Read More

So far 2014 has been the year of IPOs. According to Renaissance Capital, “In terms of proceeds, 2014 is now the biggest year for the IPO market since 2000, when 406 companies raised $97 billion.” To give you an idea of just how big this year has been, look at the Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) IPO from last month. On September 19th, Alibaba broke records, raising $25 billion — making it the largest IPO in history. So with the world’s biggest… Read More

So far 2014 has been the year of IPOs. According to Renaissance Capital, “In terms of proceeds, 2014 is now the biggest year for the IPO market since 2000, when 406 companies raised $97 billion.” To give you an idea of just how big this year has been, look at the Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) IPO from last month. On September 19th, Alibaba broke records, raising $25 billion — making it the largest IPO in history. So with the world’s biggest IPO last month and the most IPO activity in dollar terms since the tech boom, many investors may be wondering, “should I buy into the next hot IPO?” #-ad_banner-#​No. Put simply, investing in IPOs is a loser’s game. Whenever a hot IPO is being pushed onto the public, I generally don’t partake, because typically the money has already been made. Let me explain… First, a quick rundown on what it takes for a company to go public. Most companies looking to go public bring in underwriters to help navigate… Read More

It could be one of the greatest innovations to come out of the financial crisis, and it’s gaining ground in almost every aspect of our lives — from transportation and hospitality to financial transactions. I’m talking about the “sharing economy.” #-ad_banner-#Companies like Airbnb, Uber, Lyft and Kickstarter are the major household names in this burgeoning space, but there’s one peer-to-peer company that could disrupt the very way we borrow money. In fact, my colleague Andy Obermueller of Game-Changing Stocks calls it “The Next Big Thing in Finance.” But… Read More

It could be one of the greatest innovations to come out of the financial crisis, and it’s gaining ground in almost every aspect of our lives — from transportation and hospitality to financial transactions. I’m talking about the “sharing economy.” #-ad_banner-#Companies like Airbnb, Uber, Lyft and Kickstarter are the major household names in this burgeoning space, but there’s one peer-to-peer company that could disrupt the very way we borrow money. In fact, my colleague Andy Obermueller of Game-Changing Stocks calls it “The Next Big Thing in Finance.” But before I get to it, I want to share a little history about the company, because it’s something everyone can relate to. The fight against credit cards It all started in 2006 when an infuriated Renaud Laplanche opened his credit card statement and noticed his 16.99% interest rate was astronomical in comparison to the measly 0.48% interest rate he earned from his savings account at the same bank. How could there be such an extreme difference between the two rates? Was the current banking system really the most efficient way for… Read More

On March 11, 2011, a massive 9.0-magnitude earthquake erupted about 45 miles east of the Japanese coast. The earthquake let loose a huge tsunami that struck the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant and caused a reactor meltdown. This was the worst nuclear disaster since the 1986 Chernobyl incident and caused bitter backlash against the nuclear power industry around the world. Japan immediately shut down its remaining nuclear plants and Germany followed suit. Both countries vowed to be nuclear free by 2030 and 2022, respectively. Was this the end to atomic energy?… Read More

On March 11, 2011, a massive 9.0-magnitude earthquake erupted about 45 miles east of the Japanese coast. The earthquake let loose a huge tsunami that struck the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant and caused a reactor meltdown. This was the worst nuclear disaster since the 1986 Chernobyl incident and caused bitter backlash against the nuclear power industry around the world. Japan immediately shut down its remaining nuclear plants and Germany followed suit. Both countries vowed to be nuclear free by 2030 and 2022, respectively. Was this the end to atomic energy? As you can see from the chart below, major uranium producer Cameco (NYSE: CCJ) plummeted on the news:   But here’s where the story gets interesting… The Fukushima nuclear incident in Japan — an event that singlehandedly sparked a 50% plunge in uranium prices and raised speculation about the “end of atomic energy” — has actually had no impact whatsoever on global uranium demand. You see, most of Japan’s nuclear fuel is purchased under long-term supply agreements. Uranium fuel is thus delivered regularly to utilities there. Here’s… Read More

A couple weeks ago in StreetAuthority Daily, we talked about some of Corporate America’s latest financial engineering involving a frenzy of share buybacks. #-ad_banner-#​The basic story: many companies are taking advantage of historically low interest rates to borrow money and then in turn use it to buy back shares of their own stock. But that’s not the only financial engineering that’s been going on lately… In fact, this other trick that Corporate America is employing has been a hot-debate on Capitol Hill. You may have heard it in the headlines recently. It’s called “corporate… Read More

A couple weeks ago in StreetAuthority Daily, we talked about some of Corporate America’s latest financial engineering involving a frenzy of share buybacks. #-ad_banner-#​The basic story: many companies are taking advantage of historically low interest rates to borrow money and then in turn use it to buy back shares of their own stock. But that’s not the only financial engineering that’s been going on lately… In fact, this other trick that Corporate America is employing has been a hot-debate on Capitol Hill. You may have heard it in the headlines recently. It’s called “corporate inversion” or “tax inversion.” But what you haven’t heard is how it’s led to triple-digit gains for investors in the past. Our resident expert in international investing and Chief Investment Strategist of High-Yield International, Mike Vodicka, recently gave a great explanation of what an inversion is: Corporate taxes are gaining renewed attention because of a (formerly) little-known tax strategy called a tax inversion. Tax inversion occurs when a company headquartered in the United States purchases an international competitor in a country with a lower corporate tax rate. It then relocates its corporate headquarters to that… Read More