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Can “RoboTrader” take the emotion out of picking individual stocks?

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Robot hand, ordering on a laptop keyboard, an exchange trade. Robot trading system is a computer trading program that automatically submits trades to an exchange without any human interventions. Depth of field with focus on finger.My latest Financial Post blog looks at a new term, RoboTrader. You can find it by clicking on the highlighted text: VectorVest-Questrade partnership brings unemotional ‘robo’ to retail investing.

As I point out in the piece, the better-known term robo-advisor is well entrenched as a shorthand description of automated online investment services, and generally refers to semi-automated portfolio management systems built on low-cost exchange-traded funds or ETFs.

The idea is to build low-cost well-diversified portfolios and benefit by gradual dollar-cost-averaging of the underlying ETFs, as well as regular rebalancing. This takes a lot of the emotion out of building and monitoring an ETF portfolio.

By contrast, RoboTrader attempts to do a similar thing in the realm of individual stock-picking. RoboTrader revolves around 23,000 individual stocks rated every day by  VectorVest Inc. of Charlotte, N.C., which provides investors with both tools to help them with both technical and fundamental analysis of stocks, as well as ETFs. VectorVest has announced RoboTrader as part of a partnership with Questrade Inc., the Toronto-based discount brokerage service.

VectorVest describes RoboTrader as a “powerful new trading tool that solves the biggest problem for many traders: executing a trading plan without letting emotions cloud judgement.” RoboTrader lets clients implement a trading plan that requires only client confirmation for fast, accurate execution, with results monitored in real time.

VectorVest says RoboTrader leverages the intelligence of its fundamental and technical analysis, making it easier to manage portfolios. RoboTrader sends instant alerts to investors’ VectorVest accounts, phone and email, “letting traders know exactly which trades to make, when to make them and in what order quantity.”

Similar deals with US-based TradeKing and TradeStation

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How to use a credit card strategically for emergency expenses

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Emergency FundBy Alyssa Furtado, RateHub.ca

Special to the Financial Independence Hub

You can’t plan for something you don’t know is coming.

Accidents and emergencies are inevitable and a financial cost is often attached to these surprise incidents. So what do you do when you find yourself with an unexpected emergency expense? One option is to use balance transfer credit cards.

Balance transfer credit cards are great tools to help you pay off your debts sooner. They offer a low interest rate (sometimes 0%) for any debts you transfer to the card for a limited period of time. By minimizing interest costs, the money you put towards your debt will directly pay off the amount owing and not go towards fees. While there can be costs associated to balance transfers — like a fee of 1% to 5% for transferring a balance or an annual fee — the interest savings can outweigh the cost of the fees.

So how can you strategically use a balance transfer credit card for emergency expenses? Charge whatever emergency expense you make to a card you already have, immediately apply for a balance transfer card, and quickly transfer over the balance to the new credit card.

There are considerations you need to know before applying for a balance transfer credit card, such as: Continue Reading…

Why you should forget about buying Canadian marijuana stocks

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Canadian marijuana stocks offer some speculative appeal — but here’s why we think you should avoid them

AMSTERDAM - AUGUST 26: Candy and cookies with marijuana for sale in the coffeeshop on August 26, 2014 in Amsterdam.

As you probably know, several U.S. states have decriminalized or legalized marijuana use and have begun authorizing legal production and sale of the plant. In Canada, marijuana has been legal for medical use for some time, and we are occasionally asked about Canadian marijuana stocks.

This change in the law is bound to lead to a shift in current and future marijuana production, from the underground economy to the legal economy, where it can be regulated, taxed and invested in. Tax revenues are already starting to roll in, but we haven’t found any Canadian marijuana stocks worthy of investment. So far, most of what we’ve seen are stock promotions.

We advise staying out of stock promotions of Canadian marijuana stocks businesses or anything else. They attract the wrong kind of people. Stock promotion is a take-the-money-and-run type of business. Most successful entrepreneurs value their reputations, and want to build a profitable, sustainable business that can pay off for investors. So they generally go into some other line of work, and stay out of stock promotion.

These days, it’s faster and easier than ever to launch a stock promotion, thanks to the Internet. One recent “penny pot” stock scam almost seems like an MBA-style case study on how to launch one of these frauds online.

We won’t name the penny stock company that is the subject of the promotion campaign, since it claims it’s not involved in the fraud. Let’s just refer to it as “Pot o’ Gold,” or POG for short.

The POG spam emails we’ve seen use the following techniques:

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Stop believing real estate has magical investment powers

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Beautiful view of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Expensive Vancouver, BC

By Steve Lowrie, Lowrie Financial

Special to the Financial Independence Hub

If you found yourself on the high seas, and the captain and crew were battening down the hatches, what would you do? Depending on how fast they were scrambling, you might at least make sure your life preserver was within reach.

If the Canadian real estate market were an ocean liner, recent government words and deeds have sent some pretty solid warning shots across the bow – especially for properties in the Greater Toronto and Vancouver regions. Real estate investors who may have forgotten the essential rules of self-preservation would be wise to consider the following:

In a June announcement, Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz warned: “The pace of house price increases in Toronto, and especially Vancouver, is unlikely to be sustained, given the underlying fundamentals.”

Several provincial governments have been looking for ways to manage their real estate markets. For example, this July Globe and Mail article noted that British Columbia was trying to “cool the Vancouver market” by adding a 15 per cent transfer tax on property purchases made by international buyers. Continue Reading…

Is RV Traveling a sound Retirement Strategy?

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rv-925610_640
Living the RV dream. Photo courtesy Pixabay.com

By Barney Whistance

Special to the Financial Independence Hub

At some point we’ve all daydreamed about what our retirement might look like. For some, a cabin in the woods might be their dream life. Others may want a condo near the beach or high-rise apartment in the city. Many daydreams also include travel, both in and outside the U.S.

Ample Hollywood movies about the joys and headaches of the retirement life have given nods to the recreational vehicle (RV) retirement lifestyle as well. From ex-CIA man Jack Byrnes’ sleek black Fleetwood RV in Meet the Fockers, to David and Linda Howard’s homier Winnebago in the movie Lost in America, RV living may represent a luxury life of leisure for many Americans.

One former co-worker of mine, shortly after his retirement, sold his home to buy a fancy new RV. While I was able to meet him at his retirement party and do a short quiz on his reasoning, the decision never quite added up for me. I decided to do some additional research to determine if RV-living was a sound and viable financial decision for my own retirement.

Full-time RVers, also known as full-timers, are people who live, work, and play in their RVs. Often they plan their lives and moves well in advance, but they’re also known to pick up and go on a whim, or to follow the weather on a seasonal basis.

However, there are a few considerations when contemplating the full-time RV life. Here’s a breakdown of points to ponder while deciding whether it’s the best lifestyle for your needs.

Finances

RVs can be purchased in a wide price range – anywhere from $3,000 to $3 million – which makes them perfect for any budget. Continue Reading…