The Simple Dollar posted a great article that is helping a member who is young figure out if he starts early, then when can he retire. If he start at the age of 20 years old, then he can retire early basically at about 42 years old. That will only mean that he will be getting the same salary that he has right now but he will be work free but still far from retiring rich.

If you were to take 20% of your annual income starting at age 20 and put it in a S&P 500 index fund, that index fund continues to grow at the long-term historical rate (12%), and you received a 4% raise each year, you could walk away from your job and live off the interest at age 41 matching your current salary, or quit at 43 and be able to give yourself a 4% “raise” each year from the interest, which is probably the better plan because it combats inflation. Raise the amount to 25% and you’re done at age 38 and able to live in perpetuity at age 40.

All he has to do is save 20% of each pay check and then invest into an index fund like the S&P 500 index fund, I prefer to use Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) but all the same.

The hardest part is saving that 20% or heaven help you if you can 25% per paycheck.

But like snow-flaking debt, why can’t you snowflake to a rich retirement? And of course, once you start to save and that compounded interest really kicks in, then you can be saving an extra couple thousand per year just on interest alone.

If you can save $20,000 and get 5% in interest, then you just gained an extra $1,000 for having your money sit there. That $1,000 will then help you reach another $20,000 that much quicker then before you know it, you are now getting an extra $2,000 per year.

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In this interview with Vanguard Eric Tyson, one of my favorite investment companies, Tyson states that most time people are there own worst enemies because they overspend and run themselves into debt.

The number one problem is overspending. Some Americans, frankly, are not savvy consumers. They lack the discipline to live within-or below-their means. They live in the moment, pursuing instant gratification instead of doing what’s in their long-term interest. They abuse credit cards, buy stocks without doing research, and generally have little or no idea how much they should be saving toward future goals.This isn’t especially surprising. We’re all bombarded by advertising 24-7, and it’s difficult to insulate yourself from the pressure to drive the “right” car, live in the “right” neighborhood, own the “right” stock, and so forth. Americans need to learn that giving in to that kind of pressure can have serious consequences to their financial well-being.

It is as simple as that. Easier said then done as well because it takes amazing will power to hold back on spending and to treat yourself or those that you love. So in the retrospect, try to maximize as much as you can the amount of money that you do not spend and constantly try to beat that amount. Then simply invest until your early retirement comes around.

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MSNBC ran an article on the top 10 tips to walking out of garage sales as the big winnner and thus huge money saving tips on the following:

1. Map out your route.
2. Know the drill.
3. Strategize about when and how to shop.
4. Remember, you’re after bargains.
5. Haggling can be good for you.
6. Take all sorts of items on a test drive.
7. Expect great deals on clothes.
8. Know when to say no.
9. Care for potential purchases.
10. See the big picture.

Those tips are great and maybe you can reveal some top tips of your very own.

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Yahoo published a very informative article on the Tax Rebate of 2008 frequently asked question and answers.

Tax rebate FAQs

• Will I get a check?
• How much will I get?
• Will I get more for my child?
• Who won’t get a rebate?
• What do I need to do?
• When can I expect my money?
• Will a refund affect my rebate?
• Rebate boosting tax moves

Should answer almost about all the question that you have on the 2008 tax rebate.

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Now this is a hard question that will rely 100% on your point of view and preference. Do you want to own the real estate property and/or house in a shorter period and pay less interest or in a longer and instead invest extra money into the stock market to gain compounded 7%-12% gains or more. Lets test some theories.

Fixed-Rate Mortgage Term Viewpoints

• Shorter Term is Key - You will have higher monthly payments but equity will grow faster. You will actually own the home faster and would have had paid much less in interest.
• Longer Term for Well Rounded Benefits - With a longer term you pay way more accumulated interest and equity builds slowly. You also have cheaper monthly payments money left over for other things.Prepaying a mortgage versus investing money in the stock market. You can invest the additional money that you save per month into the stock market by investing in Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs). You will gain around 7%-12% compounded annually and this will dwarf the 5%-7% interest rate that you are willing to knock down. In 10 years you would have accumulated far more money in return on investment (ROI).Another factor is that paying interest is a huge tax reducer that many individuals use. Even though you can pay off in full for your house, don’t, you will give up this huge tax reducer if you do.
• Flexibility - As long as you don’t have any prepayment penalties, you can pay off you mortgage loan in much less time. If you get a 30 year, pay 10% of your monthly mortgage payment in principal and reduce your mortgage significantly. You can knock down a 30 year or 40 year down to 20 years or 15 years without problems.My Money Blog has a great post about choosing a fixed rate mortgage term. They even show the difference that extra payments towards principal will make.

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Netflix is a major online rental mega player in the industry and thus had to support HD DVD and Blu-ray DVD to appease all potential clients. That all changed now that Netflix has decided to support the Blu-ray format only.

This is yet another kick in the head over at Toshiba because HD DVD was developed by Toshiba. The major film studios still supporting HD DVD are Paramount and Universal. You can also find HD DVD players on the Microsoft XBox game system.

So what does this mean for you and me? This means that we are not control here, instead the film industry has decided the new format in which we should abide with.

Is HD DVD Dead??

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That’s right, if you still rely heavily on snail mail you will be paying another price boost this coming May. They are now allowed raise the price easily now because there no longer is a lengthy approval process to raise postage stamp prices if the increase is below the inflation rate. This could mean a price hike of 1 cent to 2 cents every May.

Starting this May 2008, the mail rate for standard letter postage will increase from $0.41 to $0.42. The “forever stamps” however will remain valid for use at $0.41.

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A reverse mortgage is a loan only available to seniors aged 62 and over. What this type of mortgage does is release the home equity from the property into a lump some or into multiple payments . The home owner then lives their life in bliss without worries of repayment because the obligation to pay only factors in when the home owner dies, the property is sold or the the home owner leaves to go to a senior citizens home.

Requirements

The borrower must be at least 62 years old. There are no minimum income or credit requirements for this type of loan as like with other types. There must be no existing loan ore mortgage against the property at the time but if there is you can simply apply the new reverse mortgage money to payoff the existing mortgage loan amount. Lower valued property types such as mobile homes do not qualify and if there is a pending bankruptcy, the process may take a longer time. One final necessity is that the home owner must attend free financial counseling by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

Reverse Mortgage Money Factors

There are five primary factors that must factored in to determine the amount that will be paid to the home owner.

1. The appraised value minus any repairs that must be paid and whether there are any existing liens on the real estate property.
2. The interest rate that is listed by the U.S. Treasury 10 year T-Bill or the LIBOR index.
3. The age of the home owner also determines the amount of return.
4. Line of credit does play a role because it will maximize the amount collected.
5. Location is another factor and whether the maximum loan amount is subject to the maximum loan limits.

Once the home owner cashes out then the funds can be sent to a type of escrow account. However if you do not take the option of a escrow account, then you must pay all taxes and/or insurance. If there is lapse of some sort, then you can be subject to default on the reverse mortgage.

Costs and Interest Rates

Cost vary but are typically like an insurance premium of 2% of the loan and a 2% origination fee in addition to the normal closing costs. These are usually several thousand dollars and other costs such as third-party costs like appraisal fees, title searches and so on do apply. So typically out of a $100,000 loan there would be $4,000 in costs besides the normal closing costs amount.

You can include all of these fees within the loan itself so that no costs are made immediately out of pocket in cash. This means that the initial loan principal will be more and the fees will accrue interest.

The interest rates on a reverse mortgage are similar to those of Adjustable Mortgage Rates (ARMs). They can be set on a annual, semi-annually or monthly basis.There are fixed interest rates now but they still are rare. While no payments are made during the home owners lifetime, the interest accrued is added to the principal of the loan.

Tax Related Info

According to the American Bar Association

• The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) does not consider the payments from a reverse mortgage as income.
• Annuity advances may be taxed partially.
• You cannot deduct interest until the end of the loan.

End of the Reverse Mortgage

So this means that the home owner has died, sold the property or moved out of the property for 12 months. The loan will be paid off from the sale of the house or after the heirs refinance. After the loan is paid of, the heirs may receive any excess funds or if there is no hier then the bank will take the difference.

This type of mortgage does have some major benefits but be warned, never miss the tax or insurance payments.

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The tax benefits of Exchange Traded Funds (ETF)s are clear once you know. They are an improvement on traditional index funds because they delay capital gains taxes because when the ETF stocks are traded they are not bought and sold over and over. They are instead held in waiting until someone else buys them. So you are not really taxed until the day you actually sell your stocks.

Tax Efficient ETF Investing Benefits

Delayed capital gains taxes - they allow an investor to pay most of his capital gains upon final sale of the ETF, delaying it until the very end.
In this respect your wealth accumulates a lot quicker then constantly being knocked by capital gains taxes from the start to the end.

Simple Balanced ETF Portfolio for high gains that actually can beat the market can make up your entire investment portfolio. ETFs outperform traditional mutual funds by as much as 33% more in realized wealth gains towards your retirement.

Personally I try to invest about 90% in ETFs and I even invest in ETF Bond Funds such as iShares Lehman Aggregate Bond (AGG). They are well diversified, management costs are dirt cheap and they are capital gains optimized. What more can you ask for in headache free investments?

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Don’t you sometimes which that you had the big wigs at Harvard and Yale to manage your stock portfolio so that you can yield above average returns. Well keep reading and you will finally know how easy it is to yet a monster stock market portfolio like the gurus.

Rich Guys Modified Harvard and Yale Stock Portfolio

45% Domestic equity

• Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF (VTI)
• DJ Wilshire Total Market ETF (TMW)

25% Foreign equity

• iShares MSCI EAFE (EFA)

10% Fixed income

• iShares Lehman US Aggregate Bond Fund (AGG)

20% Private equity

• PowerShares Private Equity ETF (PSP)

This of course is my modified alternative to their portfolio that is a little simpler and takes the most advantage of Exchange Traded Portfolios (ETFs).

You can refine and add as you like but this seems to be the best of the mix without needing a substantial amount of money to start up an nice investment.

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