Buying abiding affliction for ancestors associates with disabilities

Krystal Morris reports: Paying for life-long care for a family member with disabilities can be financially overwhelming. "Not knowing how your child will be cared for after you're gone is a heavy burden that weighs on most parents of children with special needs," said David MacLaren of Fortville, Ind., parent of four children, three of whom have special needs.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31AnES_KJWE&hl=en

Buying Silver As a Hedge Against Inflation

Why Would I buy Silver?

With money printing going on like never before in US history, and the annual deficits out of control, it is only a matter of time before we experience hyperinflation in America. The laws of economic cause and effect will not spare any country who ignores them. Soon China will further reduce its purchases of US debt and the budget crises of the many American state governments will hit critical mass. When this bubble bursts, the dollar will become worth less and less very quickly. Just consult history.

If our wealth is measured in paper dollars, which are being devalued by printing presses churning out more and more of them, then we will lose our wealth. The alternatives are stocks, real estate and precious metals.

Given the uncertainty in Congress over new tax hikes and the continued worsening of the economy, it will be very difficult to know which stocks to choose.

Real estate is always a good way to preserve wealth, but the prices are dropping like a rock and knowing when the bottom hits is anyone's guess. Not to mention that real estate taxes are rising, and will have to rise a lot more to fund local governments which are being driven to financial collapse. Finally, income generating real estate will not be as attractive soon, as rents will not be able to rise fast enough to cover rising real estate taxes and the dropping dollar.

That leaves us with precious metals. Great advice, learning lessons from history and with plenty of facts to back it up, comes from Mike Maloney, author of "Rich Dad's Advisors: Guide to Investing In Gold and Silver: Protect Your Financial Future." He and Robert Kiyosaki believe firmly that the only winning strategy will be to invest in Gold and Silver as the bubble inflates and, when it is looking like that bubble is nice and ripe for bursting, bail out and buy real estate. The reason: real estate will bottom out as precious metals top out

Why Would I buy Silver Instead of Gold?

That is an important personal decision, but the rationale is very rational! As of this writing, an ounce of gold is over $1150, which is not too affordable for the average American. However, silver is under $19, which means that anyone can afford to buy silver. More reasons:

Unlike Gold, silver is used up in industrial applications and the supply is less than it has ever been.
Silver is at a historical low versus gold. The ratio has been about 16:1, meaning that it has taken 16 ounces of silver to purchase 1 ounce of gold throughout history. The ratio is now over 60:1. While everyone does not agree that the ratio should be 16:1 these days, due to a lot of different factors that have not existed in the past, just about every expert agrees that silver has a lot more of an upside potential than gold. However, these economists are unanimous that both metals are poised for great gains in the near future.

What Do I Need to Know to Buy Silver?

First off, silver (as well as gold) is sold by the Troy ounce. This is a bit different than a normal ounce, as there are only 12 Troy ounces to a pound instead of 16.

Second, silver can be purchased in basically two forms: physical silver, which is in either coins or bars, and "paper" silver, which is in the form of mutual funds or ETFs. (Some also regard stocks in silver mining companies as a legitimate investment, but a couple dishonest executives in any company can ruin everything: think Enron. Stocks in an individual company are very risky). Paper silver is as good as your faith in the Wall Street bankers that issue it. Enough said. Physical silver can be stored for you by a company in their vault (which means you have to trust them...) or you can take delivery and hold the silver yourself. This is by far the best option.

Third, silver is priced by the market. Today it may be $18.20 per ounce and tomorrow it could be $75 higher or lower. For that reason, you buy it at whatever the "Spot" price is when you make the transaction. However, if the Spot price is $18.00 an ounce, you will NOT be paying only $18.00. There is a premium over Spot that accounts for the melting and minting of the silver, as well as the commission of the dealer. Beware (and read to the end of this report), because the premiums you pay can vary a great deal. Don't trust anyone who is going to sell it to you.

When buying silver, you can choose between bars from 1 to 100 ounces, or rounds ("coins" issued by a company that does not have minting authority of a government), or coins. Buying a single ounce coin that is supposedly worth $5000 because it is so rare is a risky prospect: who knows if someone will want to pay that much when you want to sell it. The best bet is to stay with a bar, round or coin whose value is the intrinsic value of the metal itself.

The most easily identifiable and 'coin of choice' is the 1 ounce silver American Eagle. Everyone knows these and you will never have any difficulty selling them. The only downside is that they come at a premium. The premium on Eagles can be as high as $2 per ounce.

Bars and rounds are available from a multitude of different companies. How do you choose which one to buy from? The best way is to consult with a few local coin dealers and ask them. They are the local experts and will be best able to tell you what is commonly accepted without hesitation. APMEX, Silvertowne, Johnson Matthey, Sunshine and Englehard are commonly accepted, but there are many more. Do your own research.

The one thing you MUST do before paying for silver is ensure that there it says.999 Fine (this is investment grade silver) and that it clearly states how many Troy ounces it is.

Where Should I Store My Silver?

Paying 'vault charges' to let some company store your silver for you is not a good idea (remember, you have to trust these bankers...), so obviously you want to store your silver yourself. Many people immediately think of a bank safety deposit box, but others are skittish. If there is an economic meltdown, history shows us that a bank holiday would be declared and you can't retrieve your silver from a bank that is closed. Furthermore, when banks fail, there have been cases where it was not immediately reopened under the ownership of another, FDIC selected bank. In such a case, it may take a long time to get any possessions from a safety deposit box.

Home storage of your silver is not without its problems. First off, you must worry about robbery. If some bad people get ahold of records and find out that you have bought silver, or if you or someone in your family mention it to anyone, you could be paid a visit by some gun wielding thugs. This happens all the time in countries that have experienced economic collapse. A fireproof wall safe will do you no good if a man holds a gun to a loved one's head demanding that you produce the silver... Many insurance companies will NOT cover more than a couple hundred dollars worth of cash or precious metals, whether the loss is from theft or fire. Do your homework.

A lot of people have taken to the old fashioned "bury it in the backyard" approach. This is made easy with a simple length of PVC pipe and two end caps from the Home Depot, which makes a great burial capsule. However, a bad guy with a metal detector will find it in no time if you have loose lips!

Where Should I Buy My Silver?

As of this writing, there is no reporting or record keeping requirements for purchases of precious metals of under $10,000. Even then, it is only cash purchases of over $10,000 that require any record keeping, due to the Patriot Act. For this reason, it is best to keep each transaction under $10,000. For security purposes, some prefer a local dealer (since there is no need for your to give your name and address), and some prefer a national dealer (which means that nobody in your locale knows that you bought silver).

Most local coin dealers are not in the business of dealing with a lot of silver. Think about it: there is a huge risk in maintaining an inventory, as the price fluctuates every single hour. Because of this, most local coin dealers charge a high premium over Spot price.

There are many online dealers, including those with radio advertising campaigns featured on the nationally syndicated talk shows. Shop around. The premium you will pay over spot will vary widely, and will also depend on the quantity you buy. It is important to find out what the shipping charges are, as this can add substantially to your effective per-ounce purchase price.

There is always risk in any investment. While it seems that silver presents the best hedge against the coming Depression, each person should consult their own financial advisor and nothing herein should be construed to be legal or investment advice. It is everyone's responsibility to do their own research into the financial and legal ramifications of investing their own money.

Buying Insurance - Does it Make Sense?

Buying insurance for everything from automobiles to mortgages has become so commonplace that it is natural to assume insurance is a necessity of modern life. But is it really? Is there a better way to guard against life's unexpected occurrences - and save a lot of money as well? There is if you're willing to practice a bit of planning and self discipline.

To begin with, you have to understand the real purpose of insurance. Many people think it is a way to get some company to pay for unpredictable expenses. In reality, it is primarily a way for you to pay over time. In other words, you pay for that car wreck with ten years of insurance premiums before the damage actually happens, or you pay for ten years afterwards if it happens as soon as you buy the policy.

It is bit different with policies which cover the largest expenses in life, like health costs and homes burning down. Insurance companies really do "spread" the risk among many people in these cases. The cost of your homeowners insurance, for example, will probably never add up to the cost of a destroyed home, and since most homes never are destroyed, you essentially share the risk with all other owners insured by the company - just in case yours is the one to burn (of course the insurance company makes a nice profit for arranging all this).

On the other hand, suppose you buy collision coverage on all the used cars you own in your life. The thousands spent will be far more than any claims made in the life of most people. This makes collision insurance essentially a losing bet.

More than that though, you have to look at the real loss you would suffer versus the payouts on insurance claims - they're not the same. Why? Because we do not act the same when we have someone else paying the bills as when we pay for them ourselves. If you ding your car door on an uninsured used car, you might very well live with it for the life of the car. Cost: 0$ If, however, you have collision coverage, you will have it fixed for $500. In either case, the quality of your life won't change much unless you are really uptight about the appearance of your car.

Buying Insurance - An Alternative

Here's an alternative: Stop buying insurance policies which don't cover life-altering events, and instead put the money you would have spent on premiums in a special account. In this way you'll have some protection of your own, but more than that. If you do not have many expenses that you have to pay for out of your special account, the money left over later in life is yours to keep.

For example, suppose you're paying an extra $500 each year for collision coverage and you have a used car that is only worth $4,000. Put that money into your "emergency account" and unless you have a total wreck every eight years you'll be further ahead. Many accidents are minor in any case, and you can probably afford the occasional $1,000 repair without insurance. Let's put it this way: If you can pay $500 extra for that policy and can't afford a $1,000 surprise, you need budgeting skills more than you need insurance.

You can do the same with renters insurance if the furniture and personal items you would replace in the event of a fire are only worth a few thousand dollars. You can also skip buying any "insurance" policies on electronic devices. Put all the premiums you would have paid for any of these non-essential policies into your emergency fund.

Now, you may need to have insurance on the home you own, and health insurance is a good idea as well, but there are options with these. See how much you can save by raising the deductibles. Again, if you can't afford the first $500 on a health policy, you need budgeting skills more than you need a lower deductible. Put the money saved into that fund as well.

With the money that would have gone to several different policies going instead into your special account, you'll quickly build a little "insurance fund" of your own. Then, instead of buying insurance you don't need and paying more than you ever collect, you'll get whatever is left over when it is time for retirement. A lifetime of saved premiums can add up to a lot even after a few withdrawals for accidents, theft or health issues.