Michael Edesess learned early in his career that the investment industry's claims that it could beat market averages were simply not true. Professional investors, it seemed, could not predict stock prices better than the nearest cab driver. The Big Investment Lie helps readers cut through the thicket of hype in this perilous area, showing ho...
An insider’s account of how consumers are scammed by the investment advice industry, and how to avoid throwing your money away. The investment advice and management industry is built on fraud: the idea that professional advisors can predictably and consistently help you get a better rate of return on your investments. The industry sells us on this lie using manipulative tactics that are studied, refined, Wall Street-minted, Madison Avenue-packaged—and extraordinarily effective. Here, Michael Edesess exposes the shocking truth that, in fact, behind the success of nearly every prosperous investment professional lies not the ability to procure higher rates of return on investment for his or her clients but the ability to procure astoundingly high fees from those clients and nothing more. Through fascinating and sometimes humorous anecdotes and straightforward explanations of investment theory and scientific evidence, Edesess reveals just how badly investors are being scammed by The Big Investment Lie. He examines how the master salespeople that make up the industry sell their cleverly concocted distortions of truth—to the tune of $200 billion a year—to unsuspecting consumers who swallow them hook, line, and sinker. He then shines a spotlight on the true cost of the industry’s useless advice, showing that a prudent independent investor, following a conservative strategy, can reap anywhere from forty percent to over one hundred percent more than an investor who falls for The Big Investment Lie. Detailing the Ten New Commandments for Smart Investing—practical advice for how, where, and when to invest your money to maximize wealth—The Big Investment Lie provides the guidance you need to secure your financial future without throwing your hard-earned money away on the fraudulent investment advice industry.
In his book, Another Big Lie, author Tim Pagliara details the decade-long fight over the government's role in regulating a safe and sound mortgage market. At the heart of the story is the contrarian bet investors made to buy Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac--government sponsored entities, GSEs--securities in the heat of the mortgage crisis in late 2008. This is the story of how a select group of GSE investors exposed the government's theft of billions of dollars from the American dream of homeownership. Madison opined in the Federalist papers that "If Men were Angels" we wouldn't need government. And yet, in Another Big Lie, Pagliara examines what happens when all three branches of government--executive, legislative, and judicial--fail, exposing the truth about the housing market, a corrupt legislative process in the Senate, and the various attempts that tried and failed to blame the financial crisis on the GSEs.
Don’t believe the hype: Tips from financial professionals on recognizing and avoiding overpriced, overcomplicated, and overly risky investments. What if the most effective investment portfolio was also the easiest to manage and the least expensive? As the authors of this clear, practical, and enlightening book—part financial guide, part exposé—prove, there are just three simple rules you need to follow and only a few, very inexpensive investment products that are necessary for an ideal portfolio. The authors deftly bust investing’s myths—what they call investing’s Seven Deadly Temptations—and dispense with all the complicated, confusing, and self-serving advice of the Wall Street wolves. By embracing commonsense solutions and rejecting investments that seem enticing but are overpriced, needlessly complex, and risky, you’ll put not only yourself in a stronger position, but the entire economy as well
How strong was the American economy going into the present crisis? How strong will it be a year from now? How about five years from now? Investors and citizens around the world realize, as never before, that we were misled—lied to—about the stability of our financial system. But what now? John R. Talbott's ingenious new book, The 86 Biggest Lies on Wall Street, exposes the lies and then exposes us to the truth of what it will take to rebuild our economy. As a former investment banker at Goldman Sachs, Talbott knows firsthand how the financial system operates and what it will take to fix it. As the "oracle" who predicted the housing crisis in his 2003 book, The Coming Crash in the Housing Market, warned of a global banking crisis in his 2006 book, Sell Now, and called the election for Obama when the senator from Illinois was still the underdog in Obamanomics, Talbott' s revelations about how the Street and the economy really work are as clear-eyed and undeniable as his predictions and recommendations for our economic future are tough, sensible and exciting. We may ignore them at our own peril. What will people be talking about in years to come? To find out, read John Talbott now.
Managing your money can be stressful. And confusing and complicated advice from the financial industry just makes it harder. But as the authors of this clear, practical, and enlightening book—part financial guide, part exposé—prove, there are just three simple rules you need to follow and only a few investment products that are necessary for an ideal portfolio. That's it. And the authors dispense with all that “expert” advice by deftly debunking what they call investing's Seven Deadly Temptations. By embracing commonsense solutions and rejecting investments that seem enticing but are needlessly complex, overpriced, and risky, you'll put not only yourself in a stronger position but the entire economy as well.
Using other people s money is becoming an increasingly common practice. In fact, you have probably used other people s money at some point without even realizing it. Even Donald Trump used other people's money to finance his investments. Now, with this book, you too can knowingly use other people's money to increase your wealth. Using other people s money, or OPM, can be a risky strategy, but Using Other's People Money to Get Rich will show you how to downplay the risks, avoid the common pitfalls, and minimize your costs. You will learn about various sources of OPM, including lending institutions, venture capitalists, angel investors, the federal government, investment banks, savings and loan associations, insurance companies, and credit unions. You will also learn how to meet the source's investment criteria, which will help ensure that you acquire OPM for your needs. In addition, you will become knowledgeable about the benefits of using OPM, debt and equity transactions, performing due diligence and research, the short- and long-term costs, and securities laws. You will also learn how to use OPM to pay off debts and invest in paper assets, the stock market, rental properties, and part-time, home-based, or Web-based businesses. We spent hours interviewing investors to learn how they used OPM to make money, and here, we provide you with all the secrets, techniques, and strategies you need to know in order to make millions. Atlantic Publishing is a small, independent publishing company based in Ocala, Florida. Founded over twenty years ago in the company president's garage, Atlantic Publishing has grown to become a renowned resource for non-fiction books. Today, over 450 titles are in print covering subjects such as small business, healthy living, management, finance, careers, and real estate. Atlantic Publishing prides itself on producing award winning, high-quality manuals that give readers up-to-date, pertinent information, real-world examples, and case studies with expert advice. Every book has resources, contact information, and web sites of the products or companies discussed.
This book is for people who want to know what to do with the money they save: so that it’s there when they need it — to buy a home, pay for college, etc. — but also grows enough so they don’t outlive it. The investment industry is fixated on the importance of maintaining a “balance” of stocks and bonds, shifting to more bonds as one ages. This book challenges this belief by arguing that what’s actually important is to have just enough bonds and cash to support spending needs from a stable source, and to replenish these through the sale of stocks at propitious times when the stock market is not depressed. It features simple mathematical calculations, an explanation of basic financial objects like stocks, bonds, ladders, CDs, ETFs, or annuities, a discussion of how to evaluate financial risk, examinations of insurance, fraud deterrence, dollar cost averaging, benefits of a mortgage, risks of a pension, and general advice about healthcare. Although the book is written to be accessible to those with little or no prior knowledge of finance, the studies and conclusions presented here benefit a multitude of financial investors.
The questions every investor should ask before parting with their hard-earned cash This book serves as an advocate of the consumer and brings to light what insiders know about the side of the sales pitches that consumers don't, but need to hear. Stop the Investing Rip-Off reveals the questions every investor should ask during a financial sales pitch before they pull the trigger and buy the next mutual fund, stock, advisory service, or other investment product. Based on David Loeper's nearly twenty-five years of experience of seeing the inner workings of the industry, this updated edition of his classic book offers new strategies based on the performance of the stock market over the past two years. Sheds light on the oft unseen deceit of the financial services industry An updated and revised edition of the bestselling Stop the Investing Rip-Off Written by David Loeper who is regularly quoted in Kiplinger's Money and Investment News and regularity contributes to Forbes Intelligent Investing Stop the Investing Rip-Off, Revised and Updated is filled with advice for investors who want to avoid becoming victims of smooth talking salespeople and the effective advertising and marketing campaigns designed to evade reality and prey on your emotional desires.
Investing with the Trend provides an abundance of evidence for adapting a rules-based approach to investing by offering something most avoid, and that is to answer the “why” one would do it this way. It explains the need to try to participate in the good markets and avoid the bad markets, with cash being considered an asset class. The book is in three primary sections and tries to leave no stone unturned in offering almost 40 years of experience in the markets. Part I – The focus is on much of the misinformation in modern finance, the inappropriate use of Gaussian statistics, the faulty assumptions with Modern Portfolio Theory, and a host of other examples. The author attempts to explain each and offer justification for his often strong opinions. Part II – After a lead chapter on the merits of technical analysis, the author offers detailed research into trend analysis, showing how to identify if a market is trending or not and how to measure it. Further research involves the concept of Drawdown, which the author adamantly states is a better measure of investor risk than the oft used and terribly wrong use of volatility as determined by standard deviation. Part III – This is where he puts it all together and shows the reader all of the steps and details on how to create a rules-based trend following investment strategy. A solid disciplined strategy consists of three parts, a measure of what the market is actually doing, a set of rules and guidelines to tell you how to invest based upon that measurement, and the discipline to follow the strategy