Investing should be easy – just buy low and sell high – but most of us have trouble following that simple advice. There are principles and strategies that may enable you to put together an investment portfolio that reflects your risk tolerance, time horizon, and goals. Understanding these principles and strategies can help you avoid some of the pitfalls that snare some investors.

Featured Video

The Real Cost of a Vacation Home

What if instead of buying that vacation home, you invested the money?

Featured Presentation

5 Smart Investing Strategies

Getting what you want out of your money may require the right game plan.

Where Is the Market Headed?

We all know the stock market can be unpredictable. We all want to know, “What’s next for the financial markets?”

You Would Rather Be...

Are you a thrill seeker, or content to relax in the backyard? Use this flowchart to find out more about your risk tolerance.

Bursting the Bubble

Tulips were the first, but they won’t be the last. What forms a “bubble” and what causes them to burst?

• Articles

  The ABCs of Zero Coupon Bonds

  Understanding some basic concepts may help you assess whether zero-coupon bonds have a place in your portfolio.

  Pullbacks, Corrections, and Bear Markets

  Clearing up confusion from the economic downturn following COVID-19 and how it might affect your financial strategy.

  Value vs. Growth Investing

  Among stock-market investors there’s long been a debate between those who favor value and those who favor growth.

  The Ivory Tower Changes Wall Street

  Thanks to the work of three economists, we have a better understanding of what determines an asset’s price.

  Don’t Be Your Own Worst Enemy

  Emotional biases can adversely impact financial decision making. Here’s a few to be mindful of.

  Investing with Your Heart

  For some, the social impact of investing is just as important as the return, perhaps more important.

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• Calculators

  Saving for College

  This calculator can help you estimate how much you should be saving for college.

  Contributing to an IRA?

  Determine if you are eligible to contribute to a traditional or Roth IRA.

  Impact of Taxes and Inflation

  Estimate the potential impact taxes and inflation can have on the purchasing power of an investment.

  What Is the Dividend Yield?

  This calculator helps determine your pre-tax and after-tax dividend yield on a particular stock.

  What Is My Risk Tolerance?

  This questionnaire will help determine your tolerance for investment risk.

  Taxable vs. Tax-Deferred Savings

  Use this calculator to compare the future value of investments with different tax consequences.

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• Presentations

  5 Smart Investing Strategies

  There are some smart strategies that may help you pursue your investment objectives

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• Videos

  Jane Bond: Decoding Diversification

  Agent Jane Bond is on the case, discovering how bonds diversify a portfolio.

  The Business Cycle

  How will you weather the ups and downs of the business cycle?

  The Fed and How It Got That Way

  Here is a quick history of the Federal Reserve and an overview of what it does.

  The Cycle of Investing

  Understanding the cycle of investing may help you avoid easy pitfalls.

  Jane Bond: Infiltrating the Market

  Agent Jane Bond is on the case, cracking the code on bonds.

  Bursting the Bubble

  Tulips were the first, but they won’t be the last. What forms a “bubble” and what causes them to burst?

  View all videos