Asset location is the type of account an asset is placed in

Location is the most important factor for profitability in real estate investing

“Location, location, location” is a saying for a reason. From the neighborhood’s status to its proximity to its tax implications, location is among the most important factors for real estate investors to consider in transactions.

Alternative investments carry unique tax implications

The specifics depend on the type of alternative asset, as well as how long you hold it for, and your income.

Capital assets include investments from stocks to fine jewelry

Capital assets can be classified as property owned and used for personal or investment reasons. If a capital asset grows in value and the holder decides to sell it, their “capital gains” would be roughly the difference between the original purchase price and the amount of money they sold the asset for.

Study up on capital gains basics

Common capital gains tax tips include making sure you have money set aside for your capital gains tax burden and considering making estimated payments throughout the year.

ETFs and mutual funds are both taxed on capital gains and on dividends

Many experts consider ETFs to be more tax-efficient—ETFs are less likely to trigger capital gains taxes that must be passed on to the fund holder.

A 'position' in financial markets refers to the amount of a security or asset that an investor owns or sells short

A "long" position gains from an increase in a security's price, whereas a "short" position profits from a price drop. This article includes a detailed explanation of the term "position" as it relates to investing and financial markets.

An individual retirement account is a type of tax-advantaged investment account

An IRA lets individuals at most income levels invest either pre- or post-tax money for retirement. IRAs are often good solutions for people who don’t have the option to invest in a 401(k) plan—or for those who want to put even more money aside for retirement.

Look inside a retail investor's portfolio

Online investing platform eToro conducted a survey of retail investors in June 2024. It explored what assets they held and what types of stocks they liked to purchase. The most commonly held asset was cash, with 76% of retail investors holding cash in their portfolios. The next most popular asset was domestic stocks, with 49% of investors.

Active investors try to 'beat' the stock market's performance

There are two primary types of investment strategies that professional investors use: active investing and passive investing. While active investors try to "beat" the stock market's performance, passive investors have a bit more faith in the system.

Investors need a 'margin account' to short sell stock

Margin accounts are leveraged accounts through brokerage firms that allow investors to make trades without the full amount of capital on hand. Similar to a secured loan, margin accounts often require some form of collateral and typically have a cap on how much investors can borrow. However, trading with a margin account is much riskier than a traditional investment account. Fees and charged interest are due on margin accounts, regardless of trade performance, meaning it's possible for investors to lose more money than just their initial investment.

Accredited investors are people or other entities allowed to participate in investments that aren’t registered with the SEC

The accreditation is meant to protect retail investors from potential losses. Financial professionals with Series 7, 65, or 82 licenses qualify, but so do individuals with over $1M in net worth.

Trusts offer ways to reduce the taxes beneficiaries pay on assets in one’s estate

People of different socioeconomic classes often decide to establish a trust to avoid certain taxes. When someone dies and leaves assets to beneficiaries in a will, those beneficiaries must pay specific taxes a trust's beneficiaries avoid. It all depends on the type of trust.

The Yale model of investment allocation, explained

College endowment managers long held to the traditional allocation of 60% domestic stocks and 40% bonds. But Yale’s David Swensen developed a new approach: deprioritizing low-risk fixed income and liquid assets in favor of alternative investments to leverage endowments' long-term investment horizons and capture the “liquidity premium.”

The 'commodities' investment category includes livestock, oil, wheat, and more

Commodities traders look at all of these things as assets, placing short-, medium-, and long-term wagers on how much each is really worth. Commodities are valuable in part due to how essential they are in creating most of the world's marketable goods.

Financial rules that many FIRE followers live by include guidelines around tax efficiency and more

Many FIRE proponents follow specific financial rules, like the 4% rule, in order to achieve FIRE. They also take steps to create an efficient tax strategy and take advantage of compound interest.

Real estate investment trusts help give portfolios more exposure to real estate

Also known as a REIT, a real estate investment trust is a type of company that invests in a portfolio of real estate, such as apartment buildings or malls. Investors can buy shares of the REIT to participate in its portfolio’s gains and losses.

Private credit and private equity are both alternative assets

Like private equity fund managers, private credit managers typically raise funds directly from investors, lending to corporations. The borrowers can benefit from the lack of middlemen and resulting efficiency, and the lenders often yield comparatively higher returns.

Addressing psychological barriers to building wealth

Almost half of adults in the US report owning no investable assets. For many, the barrier to entry is the belief that investing is too complex for them to get involved. Consulting with a financial psychologist, this article addresses the cognitive bias that causes so many people to miss out on financial opportunities, and offers tips on how to get past the anxieties and just begin.

Investors can buy three main types of bonds: government, corporate, and municipal

Each type has variations of its bond offerings with different interest rates, loan lengths, maturity dates, and terms. Each type also carries its own risks and rewards.

Companies often use different share classes, like Class A or Class B, to structure ownership

Share classes refer to specific types of company stock that are distinguished by the rights they grant, such as voting power and dividend access.

Owning a home can help build wealth via tax benefits and more

In addition to tax benefits and the potential to build equity in your home, houses are also typically considered an appreciating asset. That means their value is likely to increase over time.

Since the 1990s, banks have sold some of the credit risk of their accounts to external investors, known as SRTs, or synthetic risk transfers

This means if the account defaults, the outside investors assume most of the risk in return for some regular payments, freeing up the bank's ledger. It is a form of insurance used by banks to allow them to free up capital. In 2024, nearly $100B worth of SRT notes were sold.

How to balance paying down debt vs. investing

When someone has extra money in their pocket, they're quickly faced with a decision: Is it a better idea to use that money to pay down debt, or invest it? While the answer depends on each individual's financial situation, this video explains which solution works best depending on the circumstances. Watch it here.

The price of a mutual fund is based on its net asset value (or NAV)

The NAV is determined by the fund’s overall value minus its debts. A mutual fund’s debt is defined as any of its outstanding (or unsold) shares.

Investments into an annuity are typically locked up during the accumulation period

For one year, most annuitants won’t be able to withdraw any funds. After that, most contracts allow them to take out up to 10% of their accumulated total annually before fees—called surrender charges—are applied to their withdrawals.

Hedge funds, the private investment firms that trade a wide swath of financial assets, make money by imposing steep fees on investors and from the fund's investment performance.

While the first exchange-traded fund (a 'basket' of different assets that can be bought and sold on a stock exchange) in the US only launched in 1993, the global ETF market has grown to more than $10T in the short time since.

An initial public offering or 'IPO' is the process of a private company becoming public by putting shares of the company on the stock market for purchase.

Warren Buffett's former professor Benjamin Graham is known as the 'father of value investing,' a strategy in which investors seek to buy stocks trading below their intrinsic worth.

Art theft is the third-largest source of criminal revenues worldwide, thanks in part to the subjective nature of valuing a work of art.

Calculate how much of your tax dollars go to each federal program based on your income, filing status, and number of children

The Nasdaq's 'Magnificent 7' companies are responsible for roughly 40% of the Nasdaq 100 index's gains, while the remaining 93 companies account for the other 60%.

Watch this video that uses Lego bricks to explain how venture capital works.

US housing costs have risen by roughly 175% between 1991 and 2026—but a growing number of Gen Zers are becoming homeowners anyway. In 2025, 4% of homebuyers were Gen Z, up from 3% the year before.

The first steps to rebuilding your credit score include getting to know exactly what's on your credit report and figuring out how far you are from the '700 club,' or 'good score' range.

Netflix profits when you're not watching, and its movies are designed that way—read a detail-rich critical essay exposing lesser-known Netflix takes

Explore the known asteroids, comets, and spacecraft involved in asteroid studies within our solar system with 'Eyes on Asteroids,' a 3D visualization from NASA.

Power lines are dotted with large, brightly colored balls to improve the visibility of these thin wires to helicopters and small planes and help prevent potential crashes.

In recent years a child anxiety expert has created and tested a novel phobia and anxiety treatment approach for children, focused on changing how parents respond to the fears.

This poison ivy knowledge quiz—accompanied by photos of the plant's varied forms—may help you identify this common rash-inducing growth.

Some coin denominations have ridges etched on their sides, partly to prevent counterfeiting, in a practice called 'reeding.'

Louisiana's 'Cancer Alley' is infamous for having some of the highest industrial pollution, toxic air emissions, and cancer risks in the US.

One of the most famous portraits ever taken is 'Afghan Girl' (1984) by Steve McCurry, yet the subject Sharbat Gula went much of her life without being identified or benefitting from the image's success.

Studies suggest when you sleep is as important as how much you get, and syncing with your circadian rhythms may lead to less fatigue and improved long-term health outcomes

While El Niño moves warm Pacific Ocean waters east along the equator, La Niña moves them west, shifting where rainfall will become more common for months.

The 1987 Nintendo video game 'Stadium Events' isn't known for being particularly fun, but its scarcity has made it a highly sought-after item that has sold for up to $35K at auction.

A 2019 Facebook event called on attendees to "Storm Area 51, They Can't Stop All of Us," resulting in countless memes, the creation of a music festival, and eventually the arrests of those who did try to approach the area.

The American cockroach is actually from Africa, an apparent hitchhiker aboard ships carrying enslaved people, with evidence suggesting the bug may have arrived in the New World as early as the 1600s.

Corals are themselves not coral reefs—the term refers to the tiny marine invertebrates that build the rigid reef.

Against his wishes, Albert Einstein's brain was removed before his cremation, and the pathologist responsible stored it for decades in mason jars within a beer cooler.