First Post!

Welcome to my first blog and the very first post! I hope this blog is useful for you and others.

Purpose

What is the purpose of this blog? This blog is meant to give alternative non-stock investment ideas to the average investor. By average, I mean the average person who has gone through the last 10 years trying to invest money in the market. These are the investors (like me) who have listened to all the analysts on CNBC, read news articles, tried different stock investment strategies, bought and sold stock, and after all that ended up losing money. This year made me realize, more than what I learned in 2000, that even the analysts and experts really have no clue and the market is a gamble. This blog is for people who believe stocks are not for them. I am not recommending not investing in stocks. I want to provide the reader with alternative investments to stock and help with their investing strategy. I read a large amount of financial articles and would like to share what I learn with you. I am not an expert myself, but I want to provide my thoughts on what I believe does WORK and is currently working for me. There is a risk that you may lose some or all of your money, and that is a risk you take with ANY investment. I am not a professional money manager and I am not recommending anything, I am just sharing my viewpoints.

I will try to have a new investment idea, strategy, or viewpoint with each new post. Since new investments do not come everyday, I will not blog every day. I do not want this blog to be a discussion on financial news. I also want to post some interesting links. Also, if you have questions/comments, please feel free to post. I am not sure who will be reading the blog and what their financial expertise is, so if there is something I write about that you don't understand, please let me know.

Basics

Money used on these alternative investments should only be used with your "extra" money. This is the money that is leftover once all the basic expenses listed below have been covered.

1. Have enough money to cover 6-12 months of expenses in Money Market/CD.

2. Have an IRA and make yearly contribution

3. If you have kids, contribute to 529.

4. Maximize 401k or at least get company match.

5. Buy a house to live in if possible.

6. Cover any other obligations you may have (Credit cards, etc.)

So let's start with my first and best alternative investment...corporate bonds. See next post.