10 Tips to Become a Smart Investor in 2015

1. 10 Tips to Become a Smart Investor in 2015 Ravindra Biswas

2. Introduction This New Year, strive to be a smarter investor and tremendously improve your financial status through a series of coordinated and strategic steps. Whilst the ones listed herein will give you a gentle nudge into the habit of saving and investing right, the rigour and ownership must come from you. Let’s start strategizing, with 10 simple tips that will change your financial outlook through 2015 and beyond.

3. 1. Never Buy a Policy That You Don’t Understand When it comes to investing, knowledge is king. It’s no secret that most insurance products, life, car or health insurance are inherently complicated products that need a fair bit of patience, know-how and willingness to understand in its entirety. Take the time and understand an investment option completely to drive the maximum benefit out of it, or don’t invest at all.

4. In the world of finance, savings are a possibility when your income exceeds your spending. • These steps will consequently help you save more and invest better. 2. Work On Your Income

5. In these unpredictable times, being prepared is the best insurance policy. • This is doubly right where your family’s and your own health and wellness is concerned. • With medical facilities and treatments becoming costlier by the day, subscribing to a robust health insurance policy is money very well invested. 3. Safeguard Your Health with a Solid Plan

6. 4. Direct Mutual Funds Offer the Best Output The aforementioned ‘Direct Mutual Fund’ plans are cheaper, amounting to over 50 basis points lesser in annual charges when compared to a regular plan. Quite naturally, lower inception costs translates into larger profits for the investor. Thus, these mutual funds are finding renewed favour with the investor fraternity.

7. 5. Give the Stock Market a Go! The popular perception of ‘doomsday at the stock market’ aside, investing in shares through 2015 could be a very lucrative idea. In 2014, the Indian Sensex hit an all-time high and rained profits on everyone who had the foresight to invest on a rapidly developing economy. While investing in moderation is a brilliant idea, just don’t go overboard with the plan.

8. 6. Learn a New Skill More you know, the better your career prospects. Invest yourself in the pursuit of a new skill that may or may not have a direct correlation to your current domain expertise. This will help you climb the hierarchical ladder in your current job or seek a higher paying position elsewhere. Either way, this translates into more income and more savings.

9. 7. Save Something for the Retirement Years Often, the ‘here and now’ attitude throws a massive spanner into the saving plans that directly feed into your retirement pension schemes. Don’t allow other commitments like bill payments, educational expenditures and home or car loans interfere with your retirement funds, Religiously investing in this direction is the best form of savings through 2015 and beyond.

10. 8. Switch to a Lower Home Loan Interest Rate It’s assumed that home loan interest rates as an entity are going to lower in 2015.However, this may not be the case with all lenders and it might not happen uniformly. Thus, migrating your home loan to a lender who offers a lesser interest rate structure could save a lot of money that could then be reinvested in other avenues. Kindly note that looking around for the perfect fix before committing to it makes more sense in the long run than jumping instantly to the first available option.

11. 9. File Tax Yourself and On Time Most people are stumped when it comes to filing their income tax returns. Complete the tax related formalities on time, and on your own, or with help from a professional tax consultant. This will allow you to put your finances in order and be dedicated to bigger financial commitments in the future.

12. 10. Avoid Short Term Investments in Equities Investing in stocks with tenures that are lesser than 3-4 years equates to simply parking your money for a while rather than earning any type of substantial interest off it. Whilst 2014 was good for short term equities, the same cannot be said about 2015 with absolute certainty. Instead, invest in more profitable scenarios or choose long term equities.

13. Conclusion Thus, these smart financial choices will transform you into a smarter investor. And with the arrival of this New Year, the financial lessons you learnt in 2014 be your guiding light as you cruise through 2015 and beyond.

14. Good Bye…. Happy saving and investing right!!