Safe as Houses? (Portfolio Buy)

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A perennial problem for a DIY Income Investor is where to reinvest cash - be it straight income or the proceeds of a sale.

The search for a good home for your investment cash can take a while - and can cover the globe (if you're into the more exotic Exchange Traded Funds). But sometimes ideas for reinvestment come from closer to home: from the portfolio itself.

The Art of Waiting, Volcanoes and Scotland

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September has been a disappointing month so far, with a modestly downward trend in the DIY Income Investor portfolio. Consequently, there is little to do, other than to wait for something to happen.

While sitting and waiting, it is always tempting to speculate about what drives the markets but I suspect this is akin to trying to forecast when an Icelandic volcano is likely to erupt.

Whim versus Reason? (Portfolio Sale)

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When is it right to follow a 'whim' - a 'spur of the moment' decision - and when should you exercise self-restraint?

I don't think there is an easy answer as our minds are quite mysterious in operation. Subconsciously we make decisions based on a whole range of built-in biases that pop into our conscious minds seemingly fully formed. On the other hand, the subterranean depths of our brains is constantly churning away at problems and sometimes a useful solution pops out.

So it is a dilemma: the decision that pops into your mind might be a poorly-thought-out psychological knee-jerk reaction or, then again, it may be a spark of a good idea.

Speculator or Investor? (Portfolio Buy)

It all depends how you look at it...
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If you call yourself an 'investor', this implies that you have a long-term perspective. By contrast, short-term dabbling in the stock market is usually labelled 'speculation'.

For whatever reason, the term 'speculation' usually comes with fairly negative connotations - and conjures up (at least for me) images of wide boys in suits with red braces. However, the objective is - one assumes - the same: to increase your overall net worth over time. It's just that the time-frame differs.

But, although I like to think of myself as an 'investor' - I have to face up to the fact that my investment style does incorporate an element of 'speculation': the bulk of the DIY Income Investor portfolio was bought in 2013 and 2014 - a speculator's time-frame.