Before we kick off this week’s selection of interesting links, a quick bookkeeping note. The five winners of The MoneySense Guide to Retiring Wealthy giveaway were Catherine, Jim, Jessica, Stella and Libores. The winners will be receiving the Guide shortly. Thanks to everyone for entering. Hopefully, we can hold another giveaway soon.
Many investors are worried about the “new normal” of below average economic growth and hence stock market returns. In the following short video, Professor Ken French explains why these fears are probably overblown (hat tip to Cameron Passmore of PWL Capital for the link):
- Tom Bradley of Steadyhand Funds writes a perceptive column on investing in the Globe and Mail. The folks at the mutual fund company have grouped his columns into related investing themes in a new book called It’s Not Rocket Science. It is available for free in PDF and e-book here.
- Many broad-market index funds already have very low turnover but traders exploit index additions and deletions by front running index funds. Jason Zweig writes in The Wall Street Journal that new indexes are being introduced next year by the Center for Research in Security Prices that will have even less turnover and make it harder to front run.
- Get ready to pay even more for insuring your home. CBC News reported that insurance companies are facing an unprecedented growth in claims for flooded basements due to changing weather patterns.
- Canadian Money Forum members discuss whether it is time to exit equities. Listening to talking heads of TV may be injurious to your financial health.
- Canadian Couch Potato has some useful pointers on operating a US dollar RRSP account.
- Money Smarts Blog sorts out the different financial planning designations your advisor might have.
- With 2010 rapidly coming to a close, Larry MacDonald offers some year-end tax-related opportunities.
- Michael James says that there is a dead simple way to invest for most regular folks. I concur. The downside is you don’t get to brag about the winners in your portfolio (and keep mum on the losers!).
- Million Dollar Journey featured a guest post that says investors shouldn’t forget that stock markets also go up. While I buy the claim that stocks are suitable investments for the long-term, beware any claims that stock markets don’t have two losing decades in a row.
- Canadian Financial Stuff says that there are some gifts you should never ever buy for your kids.
- Financial Highway featured a guest post on three low-cost but amazing places in the world to live and work from.
- Jim Yih takes to task a recent report that said that the record debt levels that Canadians carry these days may not be a big problem. The best debt, in Jim’s opinion, is having no debt at all.
I’m unable to highlight all the articles worth checking out in my weekly round up but you can check them out through my Twitter feed. Have a great weekend everyone!
