Posts Tagged ‘pitt meadows’

Q & A All about Critical Illness Insurance

Posted: May 7, 2013 in articles, blogging, maple ridge, mapleridge
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What is critical illness insurance?

Answer: Critical illness insurance is a form of health insurance that provides a lump-sum payment should you become seriously ill.

What are the types of illnesses covered by critical illness insurance?

Answer: Although they differ from company to company, typical illnesses and diseases covered by critical illness insurance may include:

  1. cancer
  2. heart attack
  3. stroke
  4. blindness
  5. Alzheimer’s
  6. multiple sclerosis
  7. organ transplants
  8. kidney failure
  9. paralysis

Coverage can also vary according to the degree of severity of, or conditions associated with, an illness or disease. For example, if you are diagnosed with a type of cancer that is treatable and that results in minimal “down time”, you may not be eligible to make a claim. Coverage cannot be purchased for a pre-existing condition or illness. It is important to ask your insurance representative to provide you with a complete explanation of your coverage.

Do I need critical illness insurance?

Answer: Almost certainly, Yes! The risk of suffering a critical illness or disability is unbelievably high.  Calculate your risk here.  You should also consider your personal circumstances and the added financial strain that could be brought about by dealing with a serious illness or disease. Public and private health insurance plans typically do not provide coverage for day-to-day living expenses such as travel to and from treatments, home care and child care.

How much does it cost?

Answer: Generally, the younger and healthier you are, the lower the premium (cost). However, the cost varies depending on your age, medical condition, the amount of coverage, the number of illnesses covered by the policy, and the insurance company. When shopping for a critical illness plan, you should consider your income, financial obligations, dependants  and health care needs.

How can I make a claim?

Answer:You can make a claim if a physician, licensed to practice medicine in Canada and specializing in your particular illness, diagnoses you with a critical illness or disease covered by your policy. Generally, a lump-sum benefit payment will be made to you 30 days after the claim has been approved. There are no restrictions on how you use the money. Once your claim is paid, your critical illness insurance policy ceases.

What if I never make a claim?

Answer: If you die for a reason not covered by the critical illness policy, the premiums you paid may be refunded to your named beneficiary. Some plans will return the premium or a portion of the premiums paid during the life of the policy if the policy matures and no claim has been paid.

Is long-term care insurance the same as critical illness insurance?

Answer: No. Long-term care insurance provides for personal care on a long-term basis if you need supervision or assistance with daily living activities due to a chronic illness, disabling condition or cognitive impairment. Long-term care policies generally reimburse, up to a specified limit, the expenses incurred for various types of care, such as nursing home or home health care; or they pay a pre-determined benefit amount on a daily or monthly basis.

Is disability insurance the same as critical illness insurance?

Answer: No. Disability insurance, also known as “income replacement” insurance, provides a monthly income replacement benefit if you become disabled and can no longer perform the normal duties of your work. Generally, the benefit is limited to a percentage of your regular income and ceases once you earn an income or you no longer meet the definition of disability in the contract.  Unlike critical illness insurance which provides the full policy benefit in a lump sum payment on diagnosis of a critical illness, long-term disability policies may have a waiting period from the onset of disability. Unlike critical illness benefits, long-term disability benefits may be affected by other income you receive or by your full recovery from the illness.

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7 COMMON HOME SECURITY MISTAKES

Posted: May 1, 2013 in articles
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7 COMMON HOME SECURITY MISTAKES

If you and the guy who wants to steal your television sat down to shoot the breeze, what would you ask him?

The chance to pick a burglar’s brain could certainly give you some ideas for home security upgrades, but it’s not a very common opportunity. So, we created some fictional burglar monologues (based on real research). Listen up, because over two million burglaries occur each year in the United States (one every 15 seconds)! Here are a few things your neighborhood thief doesn’t want you to know.

If you’re already convinced that your home could use some extra security, here are seven effective ways to protect your house:

1. Ladders are awesome.

Every time I see a ladder hiding behind a shed or leaning against a house, my heart does a little jig. Do you know how easy it is to crawl through a second-story window with a ladder? Plus, you probably aren’t stressed about locking your second-story window when your front door is dead-bolted.

Takeaway: Keep all of your windows and doors locked tight when you’re out of the house, and hide the ladder in your garage or in a shed when it’s not in use!

2. Your trash reads like a catalog.

Where did your brand-new flat screen’s box go? That’s right – it went in the trash. So I can dig through your trash and find out exactly what’s in your house. It’s easy as pie to know which homes to hit up – especially around the holidays!

Takeaway: Never leave boxes of expensive items on the curb. If possible, take them directly to a trash center.

3. Newspaper piles are a dead giveaway.

Who lets newspapers pile up and their mailbox overflow? People on vacay, that’s who. A house that’s obviously empty is a house I’m going to think pretty seriously about robbing.

Takeaway: Before you leave for vacation, call the post office and ask to them to hold your mail during the dates that you’re away. You’ll be able to pick it up when you’re back in town. If you enjoy cracking open a newspaper in the morning and have The Times delivered every day, call the paper and have it halted while you’re gone.

4. Untrimmed bushes and dark areas are perfect hiding spots.

The more overgrown your bushes are, the more likely I’ll want to hide in them – especially if they’re near windows! No motion detectors to set off exterior lights? Even better! That way, I can case your home and you won’t notice me.

Takeaway: Make sure your bushes and trees are neatly trimmed so they don’t double as hiding spots! It may also be worth installing outdoor motion activated lightnear exterior doors and windows for some added security.

5. Nothing beats an alarm system with a view.

Whether it’s through a window or from a reflection, I really love being able to see your alarm system. That way, I can tell if it’s armed and know exactly what I’m getting myself into. You’d be surprised how many mirrors have helped me out!

Takeaway: If your alarm system is visible through a window, make sure you use blinds or shades to cover it up when you leave or go to sleep. If it’s noticeable in a mirror’s reflection, move that mirror!

6. Burglars use Facebook, too.

When you brag about your awesome trip to Cancun on Facebook, I may not like your status, but I definitely like the fact that I know your house is empty!

Takeaway: It’s tempting to post images of your amazing trip in real time, or update your status about how much fun you’re having in a foreign country, but it’s safer to wait until after you’ve returned home.

7. Dark houses attract bad people.

If a house’s lights are off for several days in a row, it’s a dead giveaway that people aren’t home. I like to give it a few days just in case, but if no lights come on, I get ready to roll!

Takeaway: To make your house seem lived in, install a timer in some rooms that will turn lights on and off during different times of the day. Burglars know that it’s common to leave lights on, so they will be more cautious if they see changing lights. If you need to buy a timer, we like this 7-day random vacation timer by GE (it’s less than $20).

TOP 10 Tax Myths

Posted: March 27, 2013 in articles, personal finance, tax
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H&R Block has offered their top 10 tax myths:

Maternity leave income is not taxable. “You are required to report your EI benefits as income. In most cases, Service Canada withholds less than the lowest tax rate so you may have tax obligations at the end of the year.

RRSP contributions do not have to be reported if I do not use the deduction. “Even if you are not claiming a deduction for the contributions you made in the year, you are still required to record the fact that you made them. So all your contributions from March 2, 2012 until March 1, 2013 should be recorded on your 2012 tax return.”

Tips are not considered income. “Servers and others working in the hospitality industry are required to record and report their tips on their tax return. For servers, tips may be as much as 200-400 per cent of their income.”

Students get refunds on their tuition. “In order to receive a tax refund, you need to have overpaid your income tax during the year. If a student does not have taxable income, they cannot use their tuition and education credits on their return. They have the option to transfer up to $5,000 to a parent, grandparent or spouse or they can carry forward credits to use in future year.”

Mothers are required to claim the children first. “The lower income spouse is required to claim childcare expenses whether it is the mother or father. Either parent can claim the child tax credit.”

I earned less than $10,000 so I do not have to file a tax return. “Even if you did not earn more than the $10,822 personal amount, filing a tax return may trigger benefits like the quarterly GST/HST payment. And if you had tax withheld, you should receive a refund.”

I can claim a flat rate amount for my business mileage. “Self-employed Canadians are required to keep a logbook to calculate the auto expenses for their business.”

Child support is a tax deduction. “Unless your agreement is dated before May 1, 1997, child support payments are reported on your tax return but they are not a deduction or included in income.”

If I work outside of the country, I do not need to file a tax return. “The Canadian tax system is based on residency. If you are emigrating, you should indicate your date of exit on your last tax return. If you are working outside of the country but have substantial residential ties to Canada still, you will be required to file a Canadian tax return.”

Mortgage interest is a tax deduction. “Only self-employed Canadians who work from home are allowed to claim a percentage of their mortgage insurance as a business expense. The tax benefit of owning a home comes when you sell. Every Canadian receives a capital gains exemption on the sales of their principal residence.”

http://www.hrblock.ca/documents/TS13%20Media%20Advisory%20Tax%20Myths.pdf

 

Protect your Lifestyle, Independence, and Finances

Posted: February 27, 2013 in articles, insurance
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Everyday on the news we are reminded that the Canadian health care system is in a state of crisis.  Those who have family or friends on long-term care waiting lists or in a facility already,know that the situation is becoming desperate.  The shortage of long-term care beds is so severe hospital beds, already in short supply, are occupied by those awaiting transfers to long term care facilities. Often that wait can last years.  Even 20 years ago when my great grandfather waited for placement in suitable facility given he had Alzheimer’s, the wait was over a year.  That was 30 years ago, today the situation is far far worst!

With growing pressure from an ageing population, the system simply cannot handle the increasing burden. Consider this:

  • In 1900, 7% of all adults were over age 65
  • Currently, 17% are over age 65
  • By 2020, over 23% will be over 65
  • The number of Canadians aged 80 and over will double in the next 20 years – and triple in the next 40 years
  • The number of seniors in Canada has increased by one million in the last decade
  • By the year 2036, it is expected that there will be between 4.6 million and 5.1 million seniors with disabilities
  • By 2020, there will be as many seniors as children!

Currently we are spending $4.1 billion each year on Alzheimer’s and dementia. In 20 years, the number of seniors afflicted with some form of dementia will more than double, to 750,000.  With an ageing population comes the increasing costs.

Our medical system is already unable to deal with this. Even in general, the system is overburdened.  Have you had wait in an Emergency Room lately?  How about wait for an appointment with a specialist?  Or how about the dreaded surgical wait list?  Do to the increased demand and pressures there has been a shift towards “less costly” community-based care and a dramatically increase in the demand for home care.  At the same time the average number of home care hours you might have received a few years ago has dropped from over 20 hours per week to just 2-4 hours per week!

Again, those of us who have elderly parents and friends might be forgiven for feeling somewhat cynical about the current debate surrounding two-tier medical services. When it comes to long- term care for our loved ones, it is readily apparent that a two-tier system is already well entrenched. In short, the services are available, if you can write the cheque.

So…what are the chances that you will need long term care? It’s true, we are living longer – in fact, in 1996, life expectancy at age 65 was 18.4 years, 5 more than in 1941. But the other side of the coin is that of those 18 years, on average, 9 are relatively healthy, and the other years include 3 years each of slight, moderate, and severe disability. In fact, it is estimated that at least 40% of all people over 65 will need some form of long-term health care services.

Traditionally, we have counted on the government to provide for our medical needs, but when it comes to long-term care, you can expect the following from our medical system:

  • Long waits, up to three or four years just to get into a facility,
  • Outdated and overcrowded facilities,
  • An annual financial assessment, to determine the level of subsidy received,
  • No choice of location, both in terms of which facility and which community! (You could end up in a town awy from friends and family)
  • Reduced services.

The combination of high cost for private home care or facility care and public care or financial assistants being based on an analysis of your financial means… You could find your retirement savings liquidated in a few short years.  Consider the following:

  • Current home care costs about $30 per hour, and up to $50 per hour for some services
  • Even a government facility will cost you from $750 to $1500 per month, in addition to the subsidy
  • Private facilities range from $2500 to $7000+ per month! And don’t forget, this is the cost per person, not per couple.

There is an option to help protect your choices and your finances.  Long-term care insurance covers virtually all of the expenses of long-term care, either in your own home or in a facility, for periods ranging from a few years to lifetime coverage.

Those of us involved in financial planning, long-term care insurance may be the most important financial tools available to Canadians.   Long term care insurance may be the only option to protection us from the loss of our lifestyle, our independence, and our control over our health and finances.

As I once heard it so eloquently put , “Most people want to choose where they go, instead of having to go where they are taken…”

How do you determine the amount long term care insurance you need, given the future is so unpredictable?  Simply buy as much as you can afford.  The demand for and costs of are going to increase and increase a lot!

300 million dollars out of thin air: Bitcoin turns four and approaches $30 value

Posted: February 20, 2013 in articles, cybersecurity, personal finance, popCulture, socialmedia
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300 million dollars out of thin air: Bitcoin turns four and approaches $30 value.

Money is a delusion – but a delusion that works as long as it’s shared. The value of a U.S. dollar was once tied to a government guarantee that you could, at any time, exchange it for a quantity of precious metal – but since America officially abandoned the gold standard in 1971, its value is now more or less rooted in its ubiquity. If large swathes of people decided they would no longer accept it, it would suddenly be worth a lot less.

The Bitcoin - global anarchist financial revolution, giant scam, great investment or some ...

Government currencies like the American dollar are also a bit odd, in that a government can decide to print more money at any time to serve its own purposes. This is very handy for the government, but through inflation it causes each individual dollar to be worth a bit less each time.

It’s a problem that will persist with pretty much any currency that’s managed by one central organization. And distrust of these organizations is one of the strongest driving forces behind alternative currencies like Bitcoin. The idea is to create an entirely new currency that’s widely accepted, fairly stable, and more or less inflation-proof because the money supply can’t be increased at the whim of some central figure.

So how do you create a new currency?

The answer, more or less, seems to be that you simply build it, convince people it’s worth something, and give them an incentive to get on board.

Bitcoin was first proposed in 2008 – a fortunate time, since faith in the global banking hegemony and government control of money was crashing as the global financial crisis kicked in.

It was designed by “Satoshi Nakamoto” – a pseudonym, possibly for a group of anonymous designers who have never revealed themselves. Bitcoin’s key selling points from day one were solid, trustworthy and transparent technology, a controlled money supply and a built-in early adopter bonus that made them very cheap to produce while the currency got off the ground.

The third point is probably the most important; Bitcoins are produced by getting a computer to crunch complex algorithms. Once a certain amount of work is done, you create a brand new bitcoin. That amount of work was very quick and easy early in the piece, so early adopters were able to churn out large numbers of coins. But the algorithms are designed to become progressively more difficult over time, until a point some time around 2040 when the supply will be capped forever at around 21 million bitcoins.

Effectively, if you got in early, you could use your personal computer to churn out thousands of bitcoins – giving early adopters a heavy incentive to find things to do with them. But now, the Bitcoin mining process is already so difficult that you need a specialized rig bristling with dozens of graphics cards to make any decent progress.

This gradual restriction of supply is what Bitcoin advocates maintain makes the currency inflation-proof. There’s no such thing as “quantitative easing” in the Bitcoin world. In fact, as the money supply crawls to a stop, the currency should deflate over time, making each bitcoin increase in value.

Of course, it also makes the Bitcoin system look a lot like a pump and dump scam as well – early adopters mined huge amounts of bitcoins early on for very little effort, and stood to gain huge amounts of cold, hard, non-virtual cash if they could convince other people the bitcoin was worth something. But let’s backtrack a little before we explore that.

How bitcoins work

The most important feature of a digital unit of currency is that ownership can be authenticated, and the money can’t be spent twice. You can ensure this by keeping a central ledger somewhere of who owns exactly which bitcoins – but the genius of the Bitcoin system is that this ledger is completely decentralized and run as a peer-to-peer system like the BitTorrent network.

When you make a transaction, the Bitcoin network sends out a notice and a confirmation process takes place. In this confirmation process, the transaction history of the particular bitcoin being moved is checked against the records of a number of different nodes in the system. Only when several nodes “agree” that the bitcoin is authentic does the actual transfer occur.

A bitcoin itself is just a string of letters and numbers – the system would be vulnerable to all sorts of hacks if it wasn’t for this peer-to-peer tracking system. And although the bitcoin’s entire transaction history is sent around the network for checking, it’s only a series of bitcoin wallet addresses that are used, rather than account names – making it virtually impossible to work out exactly who owned the coin in the real world.

This also makes it virtually impossible to prove you owned a bitcoin if you misplace its alphanumeric code. If you delete your wallet file or forget your passwords, your money is gone forever.

Getting money in and out of the Bitcoin system

First off, you need a wallet. You can either download the original Bitcoin client and run it on your own computer, or you can trust a third party online service like MyWallet to take care of it for you.

From there, there’s a number of ways to buy bitcoins with regular cash. You can strike a deal directly with another bitcoin owner over at Bitcoin OTC, use a big-time currency exchange like Mt.Gox or any number of others.

If you want to keep your identity as far away from the transaction as possible, you can use a cash deposit service like bitinstant – you notify the service that you want to buy X dollars worth of bitcoins, they give you some deposit details, and you simply walk into a bank (or another deposit location like a 7-11 or Walmart store) and drop off the cash with a given account and reference number. Once the transaction is verified, the bitcoins are transferred to your ownership. The process takes less than an hour and costs you a four percent fee.

To get money out of the system, you’ve got to effectively sell your bitcoins. The easiest method is probably to register with a big exchange, sell your coins and have them transfer the money to your local bank account.

There’s other services that will pay you back through Paypal, vouchers and all sorts of other options – and if you want to keep things totally anonymous, you can always strike a deal directly with somebody who wants to buy the bitcoins, and dodge the transaction fee in the process.

What’s a bitcoin worth?

Graph showing the value of 1 Bitcoin from 2009-2013. Created at bitcoincharts.com.

As I write this, close to US$30. Here’s a live update. The currency is still pretty volatile, its value changes constantly. If you’d bought yourself a bitcoin in December last year, you’d have doubled your money in the last 50 days.

That’s nothing compared to the gains the early adopters have made, though – bitcoins were worth literally nothing back when the system went online in January 2009. They were trading for less than US$0.10 back in September 2010, and only broke the US$1 mark in February 2011. They spiked up to US$27 in May 2011, then crashed down to US$3.50 within a couple of months when Mt.Gox and MyBitcoin were hacked, resulting in a leaking of user information and some straight-up bitcoin theft.

Right now, it’s riding higher than it ever has and spiking upwards like crazy, and there’s every chance you can still make money as a speculator – as well as every chance that it’ll crash again before 2014.

Read more…300 million dollars out of thin air: Bitcoin turns four and approaches $30 value.

Volunteers needed to go bald

Posted: February 13, 2013 in articles, blogging, headshave, hospice, in maple ridge, inmapleridge, socialmedia, wordpress
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Volunteers needed to go bald

The home show head shave may be cancelled if participants don’t sign up

By Troy Landreville, The Times February 12, 2013

Read more: http://www.mrtimes.com/health/Volunteers+needed+bald/7951958/story.html#ixzz2KoJQxPg4

Allen LaRose is looking for a few or more brave volunteers willing to lose their locks at this spring’s home show in Maple Ridge.

Allen LaRose of Manion & Associates held up a picture with inspirational words from Ghandi, and a photo of himself from a past head shave for cancer.

The financial advisor/branch manager at Manion & Associates is hoping several helpers will sign up to have their heads shaved at the Ridge Meadows Home Show, held this year from May 3 to 5 at Albion Fairgrounds.

Each year at the home show, Manion & Associates hosts the Headshave for Cancer in support of the Ridge Meadows Hospital Foundation and Ridge Meadows Hospice Society.

LaRose said the fundraiser was organized by local firefighters, starting in 2001.

The volunteer group was made up mostly of emergency services personnel and RCMP members from Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows.

LaRose originally got involved as a participant nearly a decade ago and since 2008, Manion & Associates has been the chief organizer, renting booth space and recruiting volunteer barbers.

In the early 2000s, most of the participants raised pledges, and those who didn’t simply donated money. The combined dollar totals was usually “a respectable amount,” LaRose said.

But support has dwindled in recent years.

“In the years that we haven’t had a larger group committing and taking part, the amount of dollars raised has been significantly smaller,” LaRose said.

Manion & Associates absorbs the cost of the booth rental and marketing the event, which includes producing posters and brochures. This ensures 100 per cent of the money raised go to the causes.

LaRose sacrifices roughly 150 hours of his own time to promote and organize the head shave, each year.

But in tougher economic times, LaRose is contemplating cancelling this year’s fundraiser.

“It’s getting to the point where we have to make a call: is it worth the effort and cost to put it on, if we’re not going to have the commitment of participants?” Larose said. “If I’m going to cut a cheque to run a head shave, I’m wondering, well, am I better off just donating the money directly to the charities.”

The crucial element moving forward is participants. “[These are] people who are willing to have their heads

shaved and go out and raise money, raise pledges,” LaRose said. “I know from experience it doesn’t take much to raise a couple hundred dollars in pledges per person.”

To get involved, call LaRose at 604-463-6060 or email him at allen@ manion.ca.

Originally, funds raised from the head shave went to the local hospital’s oncology department.

“But the hospital foundation came to us when we first took [the head shave] on and pointed out that cancer patients get treated by many parts of the hospital and not just the one department,” LaRose explained.

And, at one time, the head shave solely benefited the hospital foundation.

Then it became apparent to LaRose, who was on the hospice society board, that more than 80 per cent per cent of the people the hospice works with are cancer patients and their families.

Whether the head shave goes ahead or not, LaRose plans on contributing to causes that have had a direct effect on his life.

In September 2002, his mom Dee was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. As her condition worsened, Dee was admitted to Surrey Memorial Hospital, due to a lack of space in the palliative care unit at Ridge Meadows Hospital.

This was not ideal for Dee, according to her son, who said the best place for her would have been the McKenney Creek Hospice Facility, which did not exist at the time.

Dee died April 8, 2003.

After her death, because of the money raised from the head shave, Ridge Meadows Hospital acquired the equipment that would have treated Dee locally, instead of in Surrey.

The local hospital now has the equipment that would have allowed Dee to receive treatment in her own home.

tlandreville@mrtimes.com

© Copyright (c) Maple Ridge Times

Read more: http://www.mrtimes.com/health/Volunteers+needed+bald/7951958/story.html#ixzz2KoJjml8e

Dollar Cost Averaging

Posted: October 17, 2012 in articles, in maple ridge, inmapleridge, insurance, maple ridge, mapleridge, personal finance
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Dollar cost averaging

Dollar cost averaging is a technique designed to reduce market risk through the systematic purchase of securities at predetermined intervals and set amounts. Many successful investors already practice without realizing it. If you participate in a regular savings plan, you are already using this tool. Many others could save themselves alot of time, effort and money by beginning such a plan.

 Dollar cost averaging can lower an investor’s cost of investment and reduce his risk of investing at the top of a market cycle.

The beauty of dollar cost averaging is that you buy more shares when prices are low and fewer shares when prices are higher. The result is an average cost that is better than trying to time the market with your investments.

What is Dollar Cost Averaging

Instead of investing all his money at one go, the investor gradually builds up a position by purchasing smaller amounts over a period of time. This spreads the average cost over the period, therefore providing a buffer against market volatility.

In order to begin a dollar cost averaging plan, you must do three things:

  1. Decide exactly how much money you can invest each month. To be effective, you should have sufficient funds to continue investing through the market cycle.
  2. Select an investment (index funds are particularly appropriate) that you want to hold for the long term, preferably five to ten years or longer.
  3. At regular intervals, weekly, monthly or quarterly, invest that money into the security chosen.

An example of a Dollar Cost Averaging Plan

Here’s how it works. The principle is simple: Invest a fixed amount of money in the market at regular intervals, such as every month, regardless of whether the market is up or down.

Let’s assume you have $12,000 and you want to invest in a stock. You have two options: you can invest the money as a lump sum now, walk away and forget about it, or you can set up a dollar cost averaging plan and ease your way into the stock.

You opt for the latter and decide to invest $1,000 each month for one year. Assume further that the stock started at $10 per unit and reaches $16 per unit a year later.

Had you invested your $12,000 at the beginning, you would have purchased 1,200 shares at $10 each. When the stock closed for the year in December at $16, your holdings would only be worth $19,200!

Had you dollar cost averaged into the stock over the year, however, you would own 1,643 shares as shown in Table 1; at the closing price, this gives your holdings a market value of $26,228.

 

Why Dollar Cost Averaging Works

The system works because it takes the emotion and temptation to time the market out of the process. You establish an amount that is comfortable for you to invest and let the market work for you. The system takes the decision-making elements of how much to invest and when to invest out of your hands. Dollar cost averaging solves this problem by eliminating the need to predict an entry point.

Chart 1 shows what happens when you invest $1,000 per month for twelve months in an investment that fluctuates in price. The average market price per unit is $8.08. Look at Table 1, your average cost per unit = $12,000/1,643 which is approximately $7.30. Thus, the example shows that you don’t have to guess when to purchase shares to get a better price.

Will dollar cost averaging guarantee you a profit? No system can do that. However, if you buy quality investments and continue dollar cost averaging over a long period, you will have a much better chance of success than trying to get in and out of the market at the right times.

Buy Low, Sell High

For long-term investors, dollar cost averaging is a powerful tool that takes much of the emotion out of investing and lets the market work for you. One of the major problems facing individual and professional investors alike is determining when to buy a particular stock or, in other words, how to find the bottom of a price swing. The problem is that no one is consistently correct in calling this point on individual stocks and certainly not on the whole market. If you miss this point and the stock begins to move up, you have lost some of the potential gain by not buying at the right point. Very few people buy at the bottom. Those who do, typically happen to have been averaging all the way down.

Market timing is a dangerous game, especially when practiced by beginners, who typically tend to over expose themselves to the market. Market timing is an attempt to predict future price movements through use of various fundamental and technical analysis tools. The real benefit of knowing what is going to happen is that your return from buying a stock before it takes off is better than if you had bought the stock on its way up.

Market timers are the ultimate “buy low and sell high” traders. Day traders, who move in and out of positions in minutes or hours, are the extreme market timers. They look for small profits by the dozens each day by capitalizing on swings in a stock’s price.Most market timers operate on a longer time-line, but may move in and out of a stock quickly if they perceive an opportunity.

There is some controversy about market timing. Many investors believe that over time you cannot successfully predict market movements. Market timing becomes more of a gamble in their opinion than a legitimate investing strategy.
Market Timers and the Next Big Thing

Some investors argue that it is possible to spot situations where the market has over or under valued a stock. They use a variety of tools to help them predict when a stock is ready to break out of a trading range. Usually, the market proves them wrong. Stock prices do not always move for the most logical or easily predictable of reasons.

An unexpected event can send a stock’s price up or down and you cannot predict those movements with charts. The Internet stock bull market of the late 1990s was a good example of what happens when investors in the excitement of the moment, consciously or not, overpay for their investments. Those who bought then are not likely to have made much money.

Everyone has a hot tip about the next “big thing” and investors are always jumping on stocks as they shoot up. Unfortunately, most of these collapse just as quickly as many investors typically hold on way too long. The disastrous result is usually the exact opposite of what they were hoping for. In the end, it is usually a case of “buying high and selling low”. For most investors, the safer path is sticking to investing in solid, well-researched companies that fit their requirements for growth, earnings, income, and so on.

In conclusion, dollar cost averaging takes the emotion out of decision-making and is a useful tool for the individual investor who wants to buy and hold a stock for the long term. Over time, it will usually result in a better entry price than timing when to buy.

If you look for undervalued stocks, you may find one that is poised for moving up sharply given the right circumstances. This is as close to market timing as most investors should get.

Dee’s Story

Posted: March 19, 2012 in articles, headshave, hospice, in maple ridge, inmapleridge, maple ridge
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Many throughout Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows will remember Darlene for her countless years involved with local Girl Guides. Others will remember her as Dee from her 16 years at Home Hardware answering home improvement questions.

In September 2002 Dee was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. This was almost one year to the day after her own mother passed away from pancreatic cancer after a 20 year long battle.

Each day Dee would travel from her home in Pitt Meadows to the Cancer Centre in Surrey for chemotherapy treatment. This was a grueling ordeal for her considering the cancer had made her highly susceptible to motion sickness and nausea, combined with the already well known effects of chemotherapy. Because of this Dee could not drive herself and had to depend on family, friends, and volunteers. On occasion she would miss treatments, due to either being unable to arrange transportion or unable to bear the discomfort of travel.

The conditions and effects of the treatments combined with the fact the doctors deemed the treatment to be having no positive effects on the cancer, ultimately lead to treatment being discontinued.

As the cancer progressed and her condition worsened, in February of 2003 Dee was admitted to Surrey Memorial Hospital. She was admitted in Surrey due to a lack of space in the palliative care unit at Ridge Meadows Hospital. In mid March 2003 Dee was transferred to Ridge Meadows. The Palliative care unit was not best place for Dee, the ideal place would have been the McKenney Creek Hospice Facility, however this facility did not exist at the time. Despite this Dee did however receive support from Hospice in the form of the wonderful Hospice volunteers who would visit and sit with her for hours.

Dee passed away due to the cancer April 8th 2003.

After her death, because of money raised by the Headshave, Ridge Meadows Hospital acquired the equipment that would have provided Dee her treatment locally instead of in Surrey. More recently, also in part because of money raised by the Headshave, Ridge Meadows Hospital now has the equipment that would have allowed Dee to have received her treatment in her own home.

My name is Allen and I am the “HEADSHAVE for CANCER” organizer and a headshave participant. Dee was my mother.

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