Boat Insurance | Protection On and Off the Water

If the authorities pull you over on the water, they may ask to see your identification or your fishing license. They may want to count your complement of life jackets.

But they probably won’t ask about your boat insurance.

Very few states — only Hawaii, Arkansas, and Utah — require residents to insure boats the way they mandate auto coverage.

Still, you should consider boat coverage because insurance doesn’t exist to satisfy the water patrol. It exists to protect your investment.

Whether your boat’s in the marina, in tow, or beneath the shed behind your cabin, unexpected things can happen. If they do, your boat could lose value or you could lose the ability to use it, or both.

Boat Insurance Guide

1. What’s Covered
2. What Isn’t Covered
3. What Hull Coverage Pays
4. Which Boats Need Insurance
5. Other Options
6. Ways to Save
7. How to Buy Boat Insurance
8. Top Insurance Carriers

What Boat Insurance Covers

A boat insurance policy, also known as hull insurance, works a lot like auto coverage. It packages several kinds of coverage into one premium.

How much of each coverage you buy will help determine your policy’s cost:

• Collision coverage: Can pay to replace or repair your boat after a collision on the water. Most policies require you to pay a deductible to access your coverage.
• Comprehensive coverage: Covers damage to your boat not caused in a collision — damage from theft, vandalism, or hail, for example. A deductible usually applies here, too.
• Liability: Pays a third party on your behalf to compensate for damages you caused while using your boat. This coverage should pay the third party’s medical bills (bodily injury) and any property damage, assuming accident investigators determine the collision was your fault. This coverage should not require a deductible.
• Medical Payments (MedPay): Can pay your medical bills resulting from an accident you caused. If you have good health insurance you may not need much coverage in this category.
• Uninsured/Underinsured boater: If someone without boat insurance causes damage to your property, this coverage can compensate you for the damage.
• Personal belongings: This coverage can help you replace lost or stolen items that are not attached to your boat. Things like fishing equipment, small appliances, or electronics.

As you shop for a policy, decide how much of these primary coverages you need. Collision and comprehensive coverages protect your investment. Liability protects your overall financial picture if you cause damage to someone else. So I wouldn’t skimp there.

However, you may not need personal belongings protection if you don’t keep very many removable valuables on board. Only you can know your exact needs here.

We’ll go into some other optional coverages below. First, let’s be clear about what a policy will not cover.

What Boat Insurance Does Not Cover

Boat enthusiasts like to keep their watercraft shipshape, and when you’re paying an insurance premium you may expect your policy to cover any problem that threatens your investment.

Insurance will not cover all problems that arise, though. Insurance protects your boat’s financial value after a wreck, a crime, or a fire — something external that happens to your boat.

But it does not cover damage from normal wear and tear, so boat insurance won’t help when:

• Mold or mildew: build up in or beneath your boat.
• Insects or other creatures: harm electronics or upholstery.
• Defective equipment or leaks: damage other systems in your boat.
• The sun: fades your paint or cracks the dashboard.

A manufacturer’s warranty could address some of these issues.

Before buying an insurance policy, find out where your insurance company draws the line between external damage and normal wear and tear, especially if you’re getting personal belongings coverage.

Most policies will cover an outboard motor if it gets destroyed by an accidental fire at the marina but not if it wears out from normal use.

How Much Would Hull Coverage Pay?

Policyholders usually hope they’ll never have to file a claim. Best case scenario, you’d pay your premiums and feel safer knowing you have a plan in place if something goes wrong.

Unfortunately, not everyone can stay claims free. If you knew you’d never file a claim, you wouldn’t buy insurance in the first place.

When you file a claim because of property loss or extensive property damage, your insurance company could reimburse you according to your type of coverage:

• Actual Cash Value: This kind of coverage would replace the value of your boat at the time of the property loss. If you have a 10-year-old boat, your claim would cover the value of a 10-year-old boat and not the amount you paid to purchase the boat when it was new 10 years ago.  
• Agreed Value: With this kind of coverage you can claim an amount you determined when buying the coverage. So if you wanted be insured for the price of a new boat, you could buy a policy to cover such an amount.

Unless you specifically seek a policy with agreed value, your policy will most likely cover actual cash value.

A policy with agreed value can lead to higher premiums since the amount of coverage you have directly impacts the cost of your coverage.

Agreed value coverage works especially well for someone with a restored or vintage boat whose value includes the amount of time and hard work you invested in the project.

Liability-Only Coverage

Some companies also allow you to buy only liability coverage. This would help protect you from financial responsibility if you caused a wreck on the water, either by colliding with another boat, a swimmer, or property along the shore.

If such a tragedy happened and you were sued for damages, the court could seize your assets to settle the lawsuit. Liability insurance is a must whenever there’s a chance you could cause someone harm.

Liability-only coverage protects you from liability, but it would not protect your own investment. Only comprehensive and collision coverages, along with personal belongings and other add-ons, can protect your boat.

Which Boats Need Insurance

Why do so few states regulate boat insurance? One reason is the wide variety of boats. The word boat can describe a 75-foot yacht you keep at the marina or the kayak you keep in the garage.

When to Boat Without Coverage

Buying a dedicated insurance policy for a boat you could easily replace yourself doesn’t make a lot of sense. If you paddle your boat or haul it in the back of a pickup truck, insurance may not be the best investment.

This distinction may sound like common sense for a lot of people, but it’s still important to point out. You probably don’t need boat insurance for…

• A canoe or kayak: any boat you paddle or carry onto the water probably isn’t big enough to insure.
• A small boat with a motor: If your boat wouldn’t exceed 25 mph, you probably can get by without coverage, though this is more of a judgment call.

When to Protect Yourself and Your Boat

You will need insurance to protect yourself and your investment in your boat if you have…

• A faster boat with a motor: A motor capable exceeding 25 mph means you’re putting yourself and others at more risk. You’ll need the protection of an insurance policy.
• A personal watercraft: WaveRunners and other personal watercraft move quickly, and they’re expensive to replace. You’ll need insurance.
• Any larger boat: Naturally, a yacht, a pontoon, a large sailboat, a jet boat — anything you’ve invested significant money in — deserves to be protected by insurance.

Are There Other Ways to Insure Your Boat?

New boat owners who already have homeowners insurance, auto insurance, health and dental coverage, life insurance, and pet insurance understandably don’t want to add yet another premium to the monthly budget.

I get it. In this case it’s a natural tendency to look for alternative ways to protect your investment. But these ideas usually don’t pan out.

Homeowners Coverage

I’ve had this discussion with clients about RVs and small vacation cabins, too: “Doesn’t my homeowners policy already cover all my property,” they’ll say, “including my new boat?”

They’re referring, of course, to the personal property coverage within their homeowners policy. This coverage can reimburse you for lost, damaged, or stolen belongings even if they’re away from home — out on the lake, for example — when the damage happens.

Technically, this idea could work, but only if you have a boat with a value small enough to fit within your homeowners personal belongings coverage.

Homeowners policies calculate personal belongings coverage as a percentage of your actual home’s value, and they tend to cap annual payouts at levels beneath the value of a boat.

Even if you could somehow make this work, you wouldn’t be addressing liability or medical issues at all. And, when you filed a claim asking your homeowners insurance agent for help with your boat, the agent may increase your homeowners premiums.

Auto Coverage

Other people sometimes assume their auto policy will cover their boat. They think this because their auto agent does want to know they’re towing a boat.

This is important for your auto policy because it helps insure your car and your boat while they’re on the highway. But this coverage will not protect you from liability, nor will it protect your boat when it’s not attached to your insured automobile.

In most cases, a boat insurance policy offers the best protection for your boat and the best shield against liability on the water.

How to Save Money on Boat Coverage

Just because you need boat insurance doesn’t mean you need to pay too much for your coverage. By shopping around and knowing exactly what you need, you can save money on your premiums.

1. Get The Right Amount of Coverage

A lot of new boat owners buy more coverage than they’ll ever use. More coverage means higher premiums. Defining your coverage needs in advance can help you avoid paying too much.

• Comprehensive/collision: These coverages protect your investment. Actual cash value coverage can save on your premiums.  
• Liability: This is an important component. But by getting an umbrella policy, which can offer liability coverage across several different kinds of insurance policies, you may be able to save some on your boat-specific liability insurance.
• MedPay: If you’re confident about your health insurance situation, you can save money by lowering or eliminating this coverage; however, it’s best to keep this coverage if you have a high medical insurance deductible or a catastrophic medical plan.
• Uninsured/underinsured: This coverage protects you when someone without insurance (or with very little insurance) causes you property damage. It’s nice to have this coverage when you need it, and it’s relatively affordable. 
• Personal property: This one’s a judgment call depending on your boat and its valuables. You can spend thousands of dollars on navigation guides, fish finding gear, and other electronics. Protecting these investments makes sense. If you keep things simple on your boat, though, you may be able to save by lowering this coverage amount.

2. Make Sure a ‘Package’ Actually Fits

Many companies offer boat insurance coverage packages. These packages adjust the components of your policy in ways to serve the specific needs of fishing boats, house boats, personal watercraft, and so on.

While these packages may mesh nicely with your coverage needs, your situation may not always fit a package precisely.

For example, if you use your boat for fishing but don’t use a lot of expensive gear, the fishing package may have more personal belongings coverage than you need.

These packages do make shopping easier, but take a close look at how they’re built to make sure you can’t save more by custom building your own package.

3. Pay Attention to Your Deductibles

Deductibles directly impact premiums in most cases. Your deductible will determine the amount you’ll need to pay out of pocket before your insurance company starts paying.

With a low-deductible policy you’ll pay less out of pocket but more in premiums. A higher-deductible policy saves on your monthly premiums but requires more out of your pocket before you can file a claim.

I’m all for saving on premiums, but avoid deductibles so high you’d never be able to afford them. If you can’t pay the deductible, your insurance won’t be very helpful after an accident or theft.

4. Take a Boating Safety Course

Like just about any kind of insurance, boat insurance underwriters consider risk as a component of your premiums. Lowering the risk you present as a policyholder can lower your premiums.

Completing a boating safety course can help prove you’re a lower risk applicant.

To be sure your course will help you lower premiums, check with your agent or your insurance company’s customer service reps.

5. Ask About Premium Discounts

Many insurance companies give policyholders discounts, which helps keep you an active customer. Not all companies offer the same discounts, but here are some common discounts to ask about:

• Bundled policies: Your auto or home insurance company may offer boat insurance. If so, there’s a good chance you can save an all three policies through a bundled policies discount. Make sure all three policies meet your needs, though. If not, you’re better off breaking up the bundle and getting better coverage elsewhere.
• Diminishing deductibles: When you go years without filing a claim, you’re obviously saving your insurance company money. Many companies will lower your premiums in response. In some cases your premium may be lower each year you go without a claim.
• Layup periods: Just like with a motorcycle or an RV, you may not use your boat year-round. If not, ask about layup insurance. With these plans you can pay a lower premium to reflect the months in which you’re never on the water. Make sure you abide by the schedule, though. You’d be unprotected out there during a layup period.

6. Limit Insured Drivers

Just like with a car, the number of people who will drive your boat impacts premiums. If you have a teenage son, for example, you’ll save on premiums by keeping him off your policy.

Your driving record on the highway can also impact your insurance rates. Insurers assume your behavior on the road will mirror your tendencies on the water.

Generally speaking, someone with a good driving record who is older than 25 will get better boat insurance rates. You may not fit this description, and you’ll just have to live with that. But you can save money by keeping other drivers who present a higher risk from getting behind the wheel.

7. Raise Your Credit Score

People with lower credit scores also tend to pay higher insurance premiums because researchers have noticed a correlation: people with higher credit scores are less likely to file a claim.

Fair or not, this is a reality of 21st century underwriting, and it offers a way to help yourself by keeping a higher credit score.

8. Buy a Safer Boat

If you already have a boat this may not help, but if you’re currently shopping for a boat keep in mind boats with lower horsepower motors can usually qualify for lower premiums.

If you can do without that extra burst of power, you may save month to month on insurance.

The same goes for on-board safety equipment like fire extinguishers and Coast Guard-approved radio equipment to help you call for help. You can buy this aftermarket if you’ve already invested in a boat. Better equipment can lower your premiums.

When you upgrade equipment, tell your insurance agent or customer service reps.

9. Consider Extras Carefully

Along with the primary coverages we’ve been discussing, you can add all sorts of extra features to your boat insurance policy.

You can sign up for on-the-water assistance when you have a mechanical breakdown. You can also get towing packages if your craft is beyond repair.

Several boat insurers offer AAA-like memberships with discounts on equipment and extra layers of customer service.

These are great ideas and potentially very helpful, but they’ll also add to your premiums. Before buying memberships of adding special features, consider how often you’ll use them and how much they’ll add to your premiums.

How to Buy Boat Insurance

Most major national insurers offer boat coverage. The easiest approach may be to start with your auto or homeowners insurance company.

Ask an Independent Agent

If you really want to control the process, though, look for an independent agent in your area or online. Independent insurance agents have all sorts of knowledge about insurance products.

Independent agents can help you compare policies from dozens of carriers rather than just one or two carriers. This makes it easier to save money by finding just the right policy.

Check Ratings and Reviews

Whether you’re considering a regional or a national carrier, be sure to check the company’s rating with A.M. Best or Standard & Poor’s. These ratings agencies can tell you a lot about an insurance company’s overall financial health.

You can also read reviews on TrustPilot, Facebook, and the Better Business Bureau. Keep in mind customers tend to share their thoughts most often if they’re unhappy. A satisfied customer isn’t as likely to post a review.

Still, if you see the same issues popping up over and over, chances are you should pay attention.

Best Boat Insurance Providers

I won’t go into a full analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of boat insurance companies here, but I will share the five companies I’d be in touch with first about boat insurance:

• Progressive: This national carrier with name recognition offers some flexible options for personal watercraft and huge houseboats with values up to $350,000. They also give discounts for boating safety courses and the ability to customize your own coverage, as we discussed above.
• BoatUS: This specialty, membership-based carrier processes claims around the clock and offers some helpful add-ons like towing (with membership), diminishing deductibles, and angler-only policies for serious fishers. You can also get liability-only coverage.
• U.S. Power Squadrons: Another membership-based insurance program for serious boaters, U.S. Power Squadrons also processes claims 24/7 and offers a customer service experience designed specifically for boaters.
• Chubb: Yacht owners can find specialty policies with Chubb, which offers up to 120 percent replacement coverage in the case of a total loss. Chubb specializes in agreed-value coverage for boaters with specific coverage needs.
• Travelers: While not boat-specific, Travelers has a solid program for boats and yachts. The company’s liability coverage appeals to boaters who are on the water as a lifestyle. Travelers offers up to $10 million in liability with its umbrella policy, which can spread across several kinds of insurance.

Boat Insurance: Protection On and Off the Water

No, your state probably won’t require you to buy it, but boat insurance can save you a lot of trouble, and a lot of money, when something unexpected happens.

Vandalism, fires, theft, collisions — these things happen, sometimes when you least expect it, and sometimes when you’re miles away and busy doing something unrelated.

That’s why many marinas require boats to be insured before they’ll enter a storage agreement.

So shop around, get quotes, and customize your coverage to protect your boat while you’re in it and while it’s sitting empty waiting for your next outing.  

The post Boat Insurance | Protection On and Off the Water appeared first on Good Financial Cents®.

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Here’s How to Choose a Bank Based on Your Needs

10 smart ways to cut your energy bills and save hundreds of pounds

Tempted to turn up the thermostat in biting cold weather? Then think again… there are other ways to keep warm that could slash your heating bills and save you hundreds of pounds

Many of us started the year off with a big freeze, as plunging temperature left most of the UK covered in snow and ice.

At the same time, energy bills have soared, and all of the Big Six energy firms, along with a number of smaller providers, have raised prices leading to higher energy bills for households across the country.

The average dual-fuel bill for a household with a Big Six energy provider now costs £1,137 – a rise of 7.95% even since the start of December, according to energy comparison site uSwitch.

Switching energy companies is the number one way to save money on your bills. If you have not done it for a while, it can cut yours by £287 a year on average.

However, it is not the only way to reduce your bills. Here are other money-saving tips.

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1 Fit foil behind your radiator

(Saving: £40 a year)

The theory is if you put tin foil on the wall behind your radiator, heat is reflected back into your room instead of being lost through the walls. This way, you keep more of the heat in your home and you are not wasting money on lost energy.

Unfortunately, you can’t use bog-standard tin foil for this one: you’ll need to buy specially designed thickened sheets.

One company offering them is Radflek (Radflek.com). It says, on average, its sheets (with packs starting from £21.99 for between three and six radiators) can reduce the energy lost through walls by 45%, or £40 a year from your annual bill. So you will soon recoup your initial outlay.

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2 Banish ‘energy vampires’

(Saving: £30 a year)

Energy vampires are devices that burn through energy even when they are not in use and in standby mode. Turning off these devices could knock around £30 off your annual energy bill, according to the Energy Saving Trust. For example, rechargeable devices, such as smartphones, continue to use power even after a phone is fully charged.

Desktop computers are one of the biggest suckers as they use the same amount of energy when they are in screensaver or sleep mode and can waste £62 a year, according to energy provider, Eon.

To avoid burning energy on these devices, switch them off at the plug when not in use.

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“My energy bill was slashed by £104 a year when I ditched my old boiler”

Philip Dyte, 30, who lives in a one-bedroom flat in London, says his bills went down by £100 when he upgraded to an energy-efficient boiler.

“I had upgraded as part of general refurbishment and I thought there might be an improvement in cost, but I wasn’t expecting it to be quite so pronounced,” he said.

Although he’s not sure, he thinks the older boiler was decades old, and the replacement cost him £1,000 including installation.

“My mum always taught me to switch off lights and electronics I wasn’t using,” he adds.

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3 Grab an extra jumper and socks

(Saving: £75 a year)

Warming yourself with extra jumpers or a pair of thick socks, plus adding extra blankets, a hot water bottle and a winter duvet at night, will mean you won’t have to turn the heating on as high to stay warm.

While putting on an extra layer to stay warm probably isn't much of a revelation, how much you could save by doing so might be. 

Of course you will want to make sure your home is warm, even turning your thermostat down by one degree can cut your annual energy bills by £75 on average, according to the Energy Saving Trust.

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4 Try a self- heating rug

(Saving: £75 to £150 a year)

Instead of taking apart your floor and installing underfloor heating, you could buy a self-heating rug.

RugBuddy (Bewarmer.co.uk), for example, fits under a household rug and acts rather like an electric blanket.

It plugs into a socket and costs between 1p to 5p an hour to run, depending on the size. Be Warmer has a range of sizes and wattages, starting from £97 for an 80-watt 50cm x 100cm rug). It says customers report turning down their thermostat by one or two degrees when they have it on.

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5 Turn lights off when not in use

(Saving: £15 to £50 a year)

Leaving a light on doesn’t add much to bill, but over a year it can start to mount up. Switching off lights when you don’t need them will knock £15 off your annual energy bill, while switching to energy-efficient bulbs can reduce bills by an extra £35, according to the Energy Saving Trust.

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“To save energy, I use an app to control my heating and lighting”

Matthew Hill, 26, from Kent, can control the temperature of his heating and schedule when it goes on and off when he’s on the go.

“Using a lot of electricity can cause bills to rocket but by scheduling the lights, I can make sure even if I’ve forgotten to turn off a light, I know by 11pm it will go off automatically,” he says.

Matthew says his first priority is always finding a great green energy supplier, not just money-saving, as he has two electric cars at home. He is an Ovo customer, as it has an electrical vehicle tariff which lets him charge both cars for free using nationwide charging points. Since switching, he has seen his bills go down by £10 a month.

“I have made it a priority to make my home smart, both for saving energy and because I’m lazy, with Hive thermostats, smart plugs and energy-efficient light bulbs,” he adds.

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6 Wash your clothes on a cooler setting

(Saving: £13 a year)

When you wash your clothes, around 90% of the energy used by your washing machine comes from heating the water, according to Ben Gallizzi, energy expert at comparison and switching site uSwitch.

By turning down the temperature from 40 to 30 degrees. you could cut £13 off your annual bills and you will still get your clothes clean. Most washing detergents work at a lower temperature, and you’ll only need a hotter wash if your clothes are very dirty.

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7 Swap one bath a week for a shower

(Saving: £45 a year)

Households in the UK use an average of 330 litres of water every day and 15% of an average home’s heating bill comes from heating the water needed for showers, baths and hot taps.

If a family of four replaces one bath a week with a five-minute shower, it could reduce an annual gas bill by £20 and a water bill, if there is a water meter, by £25, according to the Energy Saving Trust.

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8 Change the way you cook

(Saving: £36 a year)

A few simple changes in the kitchen can cut an average of £36 off your annual bills, according to the Energy Saving Trust.

These include only boiling the kettle with the water you need, heating water in a kettle before transferring it to a pot if you are heating water on your hob, and always covering pots and pans with lids.

Turning off the oven for the last few minutes while your food is cooking can also save money. If you keep the door closed, it will continue to cook but will save on costs.

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“Using a smart meter has cut our electricity bill by £20 a month”

Elspeth Kerr (pictured above), 46, from Glasgow, used to struggle accessing and topping up her pre-payment energy meter, so she decided to have a free smart meter installed.

“Before, I would have to get down on my hands and knees to read or to top up the meter – this was particularly difficult as I suffer from a frozen shoulder, and our electricity meter is buried in a cupboard under mountains of things,” she says.

“Now I can easily see how much energy we’re using in pounds and pence. I can also top up the credit online, so we never have to access the actual meters anymore,” she adds.

The smart meter alerts Elspeth when the meter is close to running out of credit, and she says it has saved her household £20 a month by being more aware of the electricity they are using.

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9 Cut water and heating bills with a washing-up bowl

(Saving: £55 a year)

Using a washing-up bowl to wash plates or cutlery twice a day rather than having the hot tap running could save around £25 a year on your gas bill and about £30 on your water bill (if you have a water meter).

If you need to rinse utensils or wash vegetables, use cold water and don’t leave the tap running.

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10 Keep warm with a DIY draught excluder

(Saving: £20 a year)

If cold air can get in around doors and windows, then warm air, which you’re paying for, can also escape. By draught-proofing your home, you can save around £20 a year and it is easy to make your own excluder.

Measure the width of the door and cut out two pieces of fabric that are a little larger. These can be sewed together and then filled with foam or filler. Alternatively, you could recycle some old clothes and use the leg of a pair of trousers or even a pair of tights.

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Strategies for Translating Long Term Financial Goals into Immediate Actions and Habits

Last week, I discussed how important it was to establish long term financial goals and then translate them into immediate actions and habits as a way of avoiding lifestyle inflation. In truth, having good long term goals that connect to immediate actions and habits is just a good all-around financial strategy, and it also happens to work well for almost any significant life change you want to make.

Today, I want to delve into how I do this very thing, using financial goals as a clear example. This is more or less what I did during our financial turnaround, but I’ve done it since with other life goals (starting a small business, fixing relationships, etc.) and refined the process a little.

Clearly Establishing the “Big Goal”

The first step in the process is to clearly figure out where you want to go. What is it in your life that you most want to change permanently?

For me, personally, my first major “big financial goal” was simply to get free from debt. I had reached a financial low point and I knew that something had to change. We were simply drowning in consumer debt to the point where it was difficult to keep all of the bills paid – rent, child care, car payments, student loan payments, credit card payments, utilities… it went on and on and on, and it was suffocating us. I needed to get rid of some of those bills and I recognized that the best path forward was debt freedom, ideally including owning our own home. That goal took roughly five and a half years to achieve.

Our current big financial goal is financial independence. By that, I mean that I want to reach a point where Sarah and I no longer have to work for an income in order to make ends meet and cover our living expenses for the rest of our life, allowing us both to effectively “retire.” For us, “retirement” means just taking on some different challenges without the need to worry about earning an income. We established this goal several years ago and we’re somewhere in the middle of that path; honestly, we’d probably be close to it if it weren’t for the fact that we have three children.

Let me be clear: I think that a very specifically stated long term goal is a bad idea. You do want to get specific for short term goals, but with long term goals, a broad initiative is actually better because it is very likely that your life will change between now and any sort of true goal completion.

So, your first step is just to figure out your big financial goal. Where do you want to be financially in ten or twenty years if things go well and you put some real effort into it? Do you want to be free from debt? Do you want to have a great job near the pinnacle of your profession? Do you want to be financially independent and not have to work for a living?

Whatever resonates with you, choose that as your long term goal.

When you have that long term goal set, think about it every day. Seriously. Sketch out in detail what kind of impact it will have on your life. You’ll have less stress. You won’t have bills breathing down your neck. You’ll have a ton of opportunities. You’ll have more free time. You’ll have more control over your future. Emergencies won’t derail everything. Imagine that future in detail and how good it will feel. Visualize a day in your life when all of that is true.

Do this every day. Do this type of visualization at least once a day, if not more often. Keep reminding yourself of what it is you’re working for, and make it as personal as you can.

Break Down that Big Vision

You have this big goal for yourself. At some point in the future, you want to be debt free. You want to be financially independent. It’s something you truly want for yourself.

At this point, it’s all about breaking down that vision into more manageable and more specific goals.

What I do at this point is start asking myself a series of questions.

First, what can I do this year to make that big vision a little closer to reality?

Maybe I could pay off that big credit card bill this year. If I did that, I’d not only get a giant monthly bill off my back, I’d also have more breathing room for emergencies and more resources to start plowing through other debts.

Or, maybe, I could try to save 25% of my income for retirement – or 30% or 40%. Pick a big somewhat frightening number, one that leaves you doubtful as to whether you could pull it off. If you did that, you’d be well on the road to financial independence. Someone who is saving 30% of their income per year can reach financial independence in 15-20 years because not only are they saving a lot, they’re also learning how to live on 70% of their income, meaning that the total amount they need to save isn’t as big as they think.

It’s at this level that a SMART goal starts to become important. It’s not really that important beyond the full year level because, as I noted above, life changes so much over the course of multiple years that it’s hard to map out a highly detailed goal).

As I’ve mentioned before, a SMART goal is one that is specific, measurable, actionable, realistic, and time-bound. By looking at a year long goal, you already have the “time bound,” so let’s make sure the other parts are covered.

Specific means that it’s very clear what it is that you need to do for success. What is it your doing? Why is it important? Who does it affect?

Measurable means that it is very clear whether you’ve achieved success or not. Usually, this means that it’s related to either achieving a specific number or it’s a yes/no thing where you either pulled it off or you didn’t.

Actionable means that it clearly relates to actions you can take every day. This is extremely important, and we’ll come back to it.

Realistic means that you can pull it off without having to rely on others – success and failure are really up to you and they’re within the realm of human possibility.

Your year-long goal should nail all of those elements. So, for example, “Over the next twelve months, I’ll pay off my Citibank credit card,” is a pretty good goal. It’s specific – very clear what you’re going to do – and measurable – it’s obvious what success is – and actionable – it’s pretty obvious what kind of actions you need to take – and realistic – you can likely pull this off on your own – and time-bound – you’re doing it this year.

In a given year, I usually have three to five year long goals that are much like the one above, but it’s really fine to just have one goal that’s the center of your focus.

The Small Bits

Once you have this year-long goal in place, you need to break it down into progressively smaller pieces until those pieces amount to one of two things: they’re either a specific action you can do today or a specific habit you’re trying to establish in your life right now.

This requires a lot of thinking and consideration. The single best tool I’ve found for this process of taking a year-long SMART goal and breaking it down into today’s specific actions and new habits is the Momentum Planner. It is really, really, really good at handling this kind of breakdown. I’ve been using it for the past two years, not as my main planner, but as a tool each morning to reflect on what I need to do today to keep moving forward on my big goals.

I’m going to talk about how I move through this process of breaking down a year-long goal, but the Momentum Planner really helps guide this process, step by step, for me. I sit down with it each morning when I’m doing this.

Basically, what I try to do is break my annual goal down into quarterly goals, then those into monthly goals, then those into weekly goals, then those into daily goals. Some of those daily “goals” are actually just reminders to stick to a new habit, while other ones are specific actions.

Let’s walk through this using paying off a big Citibank card as an example. Let’s say the current balance on that card is $10,000 and you want to pay it off this year.

So, what do you need to do to pay it off? You’ll want to start off doing a bit of homework, of course, but the usual strategy is to avoid adding to the balance while making the biggest possible payments you can toward the card. Given that the balance is about $10,000, if you can make $1,000 in payments each month for the year, you should pay it off assuming that you don’t add to the balance.

What can you do this quarter to make that happen? First, you need to establish a strong habit of not putting any additional charges on that card. Second, you need to change your spending habits such that you can come up with the $1,000 you need each month for that card. The first quarter is going to really be about discovering those techniques, whereas the other quarters are going to be about sticking with the process.

What can you do during the first month of the quarter to make that happen? Simple. Don’t use your Citibank card – or any credit card, for that matter. This is going to likely involve some changes to your non-essential spending. You’re also going to need to figure out how to come up with $1,000 by the end of the month, either by cutting spending or by selling off items to help.

What can you do during the first week of that month to make this happen? I find that weeklong periods are good for picking out a handful of tasks to complete. Obviously, you’re avoiding using that Citibank card, but you’re also going to want to try out a bunch of frugal strategies. Perhaps this week you can try not eating out at all and maybe you can cut the cable cord and find a new cell phone provider.

What can you do today to make those first week initiatives happen? Keep up with that habit and pick one of those tasks to either complete or partially complete. Maybe today you’ll call up the cable company and cancel your cable package – that’s a very good task, since you’ll be on the phone for a while.

Figuring Out Today’s Actions

For me, this is where a Momentum Planner comes in handy. At the start of each day, I sit down with that Momentum Planner and figure out exactly what I want to achieve today with each of my ongoing big life goals.

Most days, I’m simply looking at my week-long goals and thinking about which ones I can tackle today and which habits I need to stick with. For example, my big ongoing financial goal is to achieve financial independence and I decided that, for this quarter, I’m not spending any money on a few of my hobbies that I felt like I spent too much on last year. So, for today, one habit I’m focusing on is not spending any money regarding that habit. I simply remind myself of that habit, and that’s enough. I also have a task for today – I want to follow up with my energy company about some potential credits for our bill for some energy improvements that I think we qualify for. This is an “important but not urgent” financial task which I usually think of as being under the larger umbrella of my big “financial independence” life goal.

At the end of the day, I use an idea that I got from Marshall Goldsmith’s wonderful book Triggers and I simply ask myself “Did I do my best today to not spend money on those hobbies or even tempt myself into doing so?” I actually score myself on this, with a score between 0 and 10, and I keep track of it in another notebook. I usually have several habits I’m scoring at the same time and I do them as a bundle.

At the end of any larger period – basically, once a week – I spend some time reviewing the past week and seeing how I did on completing those actions and maintaining those habits, and then I figure out what my tasks are for the next week. I usually come up with a handful and I dole them out slowly throughout the week.

If the coming week includes the end of a month or a quarter, I spend some extra time reviewing my monthly goals and/or my quarterly goals and establish new ones for the coming month and quarter, as described earlier. I go back to the level above that period and see what my goals are, then think about what I can do to keep that momentum moving forward.

One thing I find very useful for me is to have “minimum action tasks” (at least that’s what I call them). For example, let’s say I want to get in better shape. Rather than writing in something like a huge workout, something I might not be able to find time for or motivate myself to do, I’ll write down something like “stretch for one minute and then do one of each bodyweight exercise.” This is often a daily goal for me. I have a series of eight bodyweight exercises (think calisthenics, like push-ups and planks) that I try to do each day, but rather than setting a big threshold for success, I consider success being just doing each one once and stretching for just one minute. That means to keep my momentum going, I really don’t have to do much at all, but I find that when I start doing it, I inherently want to do more than that. I’ll sit down to stretch for a minute and find that I want to stretch for five or ten minutes. I’ll go down to do a pushup and I’ll then decide that I want to do more than that and I do several. I’ll do a squat and decide that I want to do more than that and I do a whole bunch.

You might have a “minimum action task” that involves something like “read one page in a book” or “review one bill” or “sell one item on eBay,” but once you do that one thing, you’ll often feel compelled to do more than that.

One thing I’ve found that is really helpful for me is that I write those daily goals and habits on a whiteboard, along with the big goal I want to achieve. I’ve started doing this on a whiteboard next to my desk so that I see it all the time. It might say something like:

I want to be financially independent, so today I will:
– not spend any hobby money (H)
– call the energy company about credits
I want to be in better physical shape, so today I will:
– eat a small breakfast and a small lunch (H)
– stretch for one minute and do one of each bodyweight exercise (H)
I want to be well read, so today I will:
– read one page of the Montaigne book (H)
– read one article in Pocket

Those are literally copied off of my whiteboard today, and those things were copied out of my Momentum Planner earlier this morning. The process of writing them down makes them feel much more real and important and front-of-mind and having them visually present all the time is a great reminder. (The (H) signifier means it’s a habit and I try to score myself on each habit, as noted above.)

“Doesn’t This Take a Lot of Time?”

First of all, it doesn’t. On a typical day, my morning review takes a few minutes and my evening review takes maybe two more. I find that by simply having a few clear-cut goals during the day that are tied to what I want out of life, I tend to work more efficiently, so that time is usually just time where I would have watched a television program or looked at my phone.

I tend to do a weekly review on Sunday morning when everyone else is asleep. It takes a little longer, especially when I’m considering monthly or quarterly goals, but, again, it’s usually just time that I would have spent on something relatively unimportant.

On the other hand, having specific things to do each day that are clearly tied to the long term things I want out of life is incredibly empowering. I love being able to look at my to-do list or that whiteboard and know that some of the things I have to do today are all about moving my life toward the big things I want out of life. It makes every day feel like a genuine step in a journey toward where I want to be in life. It contributes a strong sense of meaning to my to-do list that isn’t there with the ordinary tasks of the day.

The thing is, you can do all of this with pretty much any financial goal – or any goal of any kind – you can imagine. It just takes some time and thought about how to tweak that goal into something meaningful, break it down into smaller bits, and turn it into something that’s actionable today (or at least ties into a habit you can practice today).

I’m not guaranteeing that this system will work for you, but I am saying that this system works well for me.

Good luck!

The post Strategies for Translating Long Term Financial Goals into Immediate Actions and Habits appeared first on The Simple Dollar.

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WIN £12,500 of prizes for schools with our Personal Finance Teacher of the Year Awards 2019

We are launching this year’s Personal Finance Teacher of the Year Awards – could it be you or your kids’ teacher?

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At Moneywise, we believe it is never too soon for young people to learn about their finances. By mastering money basics early on in life, they can grow up to be the most financially savvy generation yet.

We have teamed up with our parent company interactive investor to offer schools with the best personal finance teachers a share of £12,500 to spend on equipment. Teachers at both primary and secondary level in UK schools are eligible for the competition.

We will make separate awards to teachers at primary and secondary school level, splitting the £12,500 between the winners and runners-up in several categories.

Are you a parent, pupil, school governor or teacher? Do you know someone who is teaching personal finance at school? Would you like to nominate someone for this award? We want to know how they make the teaching of personal finance fun, interactive and relevant to the children they teach.

To put forward your nominations, please email editor@moneywise.co.uk with the name of the teacher(s) and the name and address of the school(s), plus why you are nominating them.

Personal finance teachers can also enter the awards directly. For an entry form, please email editor@moneywise.co.uk.

Moneywise will then contact teachers who have entered the competition, inviting them to submit their entry, including three favourite personal finance lessons.

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• Work & family
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Protection …or Overkill? Five Insurance Policies You May Not Need

Before you purchase an insurance policy, ask yourself if the coverage you’re seeking is something you truly need.

The purpose of insurance is to protect you or your loved ones against unforeseen misfortunes. Insurance agents seldom argue against the need for insurance protection, but there are some policies that just don’t make sense for a lot of consumers.

The need for some types of coverage is obvious. People with dependents who rely on their income recognize the need for life insurance. The prohibitive cost of medicine makes health insurance a must. However, there are other policies whose benefits are questionable.

What follows are several types of insurance that you may be better off without.

Mortgage Protection Life Insurance

Mortgage protection life insurance is designed to pay off your home loan if you die while there’s still a balance owed on your mortgage. Because the liability of a borrower decreases over time, the policy’s face value also decreases, even though your premiums may remain the same. Because policies vary, you should review the terms of your insurance contract carefully.

If you sell your house, the mortgage protection policy terminates, notes Lingke Wang, co-founder of Ethos Life Insurance. Consumers should be aware that if they die, the insurer likely will send their benefit to their mortgage lender. The insured’s family won’t see the money, though they will be freed from the burden of making further mortgage payments.

Wang recommends buying term life insurance coverage instead of mortgage protection life insurance. Under a term policy, your named beneficiaries can choose how to use the insurance money, if you die.

Comprehensive and Collision Auto Insurance

Many motorists buy optional collision and comprehensive policies for added protection of their vehicles, and auto lenders will often require borrowers to carry such insurance on a newer car. But such coverage often doesn’t pencil out for the drivers of older cars.

Collision protection will pay to repair or replace your vehicle, no matter who is at fault in an accident. Comprehensive coverage pays for damages not caused by collisions, up to your policy limits. Such losses may include fire, theft, vandalism, damage from weather-related events, glass damage, and damage caused by striking an animal with the vehicle.

But Tony Steuer, a financial preparedness advocate who specializes in insurance, warns that buying collision and comprehensive coverage for a car that’s more than 10 years old may not be cost effective. You need to weigh the cost of your extra premiums against what you’re likely to receive from your insurer if you file a damage claim. Insurance companies won’t pay more than the market value of your vehicle.

If repair costs approach the value of an older vehicle, it likely will be declared to be a total loss. In that case, you’ll receive a check for your car’s market value. “Sometimes repairs can cost more than the value of a car,” says Steuer.

• Read more: Best Car Insurance Companies

Life Insurance for Children

While insurance companies do insure the lives of children, some critics say such policies are a waste of money for most consumers.

Steuer says the main purpose of life insurance is to lost replace income and support dependents after the insured person dies. Because children typically have no income, it makes much more sense to insure the lives of the parents to make sure that children are cared for, he adds.

When insurance is sold to cover the lives of children, it’s often in the form of a permanent or “whole life” policy. More expensive than fixed-term policies, permanent life insurance gradually builds up cash value. According to Life Happens, a nonprofit organization that educates people about insurance issues, policies for children generally are owned by a parent or grandparent until the child is grown, at which time the child can assume ownership.

A common reason for buying permanent life insurance for a child is that it will protect the child’s future insurability, since it can be maintained in adulthood, even if the child develops a serious illness, Steuer notes. He holds that it’s not possible to predict which children will develop diseases that could make it difficult to purchase life insurance as adults.

• Read more: Four Reasons I Would Never Buy Whole Life Insurance

Rental Car Insurance

Many people who purchase rental car insurance already are covered by their personal auto insurance policies. Joel Ohman, a certified financial planner and the founder of CarInsuranceComparison.com, says buying rental car insurance is rarely a good choice and may result in having duplicate coverage.

The Insurance Information Institute says before you make a purchase you should contact your insurer to determine the rental car coverage you already have. Typically, whatever coverage you have on your personal car will apply to rental vehicles, if you’re using them for recreation purposes.

Be aware that credit card companies also may provide some rental car insurance coverage, although it’s likely to be limited. Contact your credit card company to determine the level of protection that’s available.

Because most people have some form of rental car coverage already, whether through a credit card, their auto policy, or some form of club membership, Ohman says, “It is usually a good idea for most people to decline the coverage from the rental car agency.”

Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance

Buying accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) coverage may seem like a good idea, but the odds of your collecting on such a policy are slim, says Steuer. You’re insuring yourself against circumstances that are unlikely to happen, which is why AD&D policies are relatively inexpensive.

AD&D is designed to pay out sums for death and various forms of dismemberment. Coverage may include the loss of body parts or functions, such as speech, hearing or eyesight. However, there are exclusions for AD&D claims that should be reviewed carefully before making a purchase. For example, an AD&D insurance policy may not pay a benefit if the insured dies during surgery or as the result of a drug overdose. The policies typically exclude death or dismemberment claims that are the result of warfare.

AD&D often is sold as a supplemental policy for life and disability insurance. It should not be used as a substitute for life and disability policies, which offer broader coverage, says Steuer.

More by Emmet Pierce:

• Five Things Your Life Insurance Agent Won’t Tell You
• What Is Umbrella Insurance – and Do You Need It?
• How to Graduate from a Big-Name College for a Fraction of the Cost

The post Protection …or Overkill? Five Insurance Policies You May Not Need appeared first on The Simple Dollar.

Source The Simple Dollar http://bit.ly/2RFNzs1

Flexible and Work-At-Home Jobs for People with a Green Thumb

I was curious if there were work-at-home jobs for people with a green thumb. If you like gardening, plants, outside yard work, flowers, and more, wouldn’t it be great if you could work-at-home doing what you love? Or why not make your love of gardening and horticulture into a home-based business? So, I did a little […]

The post Flexible and Work-At-Home Jobs for People with a Green Thumb appeared first on The Work at Home Woman.

Source The Work at Home Woman http://bit.ly/2TvH6ld

Trading in Options: A Guide for Beginning Investors

Investing has a way of teaching a great life lesson: Our changing world can be unpredictable.

Even “safe” investments — companies or assets with long histories of solid earnings — can change quickly in the volatile global market.

As financial advisors we encourage clients to prepare for these waves by diversifying portfolios. But there’s another tool savvy investors use to navigate choppy waters. I’m talking, of course, about options.

How to Trade in Options

1. What Is an Option?
2. Types of Options
3. Options Vocabulary
4. Why Trade in Options?
5. Where to Trade in Options?
6. How to Get Started

What Is an Option?

When you hold an option, you hold the right to buy or sell a security at a certain price by a certain date. Typically a single option includes 100 shares of the security in question.

The option does not obligate you to buy or sell the security. You can let the option expire without exercising your right to buy or sell.

And that’s why an option can be so powerful: If economic conditions change — or even if your personal situation changes — and you no longer wish to buy or sell the security, you’re off the hook.

This difference between buying and selling defines the two types of options, so let’s go there next.

The Two Types of Options

At their simplest, you can divide options into two categories: call options and put options:

• Call Option: A call option means you have the right to buy 100 shares of the security at a specified price by a certain date.
• Put Option: A put option gives you the right to sell 100 shares of the security at a specified price by a certain date.

This seems simple enough, right? Yet in my experience, options remain one of the more nuanced and complicated concepts for beginning investors to master.

Why is that? I think options can be tough to master precisely because they are so simple. You can do a lot with these two choices.

You can leverage, protect, or add value to your portfolio. It’s all about how, when, and why you buy and exercise options.

And therein lies the fun lies for experienced investors. We’ll get to that soon enough.

First, though, let’s get a little more familiar with the vocabulary of options. Options have their own glossary of terms like “strike price,” “intrinsic value,” and “assignment.”

I won’t give you a quiz, but knowing these terms will help you understand how to unlock the power of options to make your investing more flexible and controlled. (This knowledge could also help impress your broker!)

The Language of Options

Any kind of special trade language has a way of making outsiders feel, well, outside. So to keep that from happening, let’s get up to speed with some key options terms.

Strike Price

Remember when we said an option gives you the right to buy or sell securities at a stated price before a specific date? The “strike price” is the price stated in the option.

Some traders use the term “exercise price” instead.

Exercising

If you own an option and take advantage of it — to buy the shares (with a call option) or to sell them (with a put option) — you have exercised the option.

Exercising your option requires the issuing party to either buy (with a put option) or sell (with a call option) the shares.  

Expiration Date

You guessed it. The expiration date refers to the date after which your option is no longer valid.

After the expiration date, your option no longer has any value. An expiration date can be months or even years into the future.

At, In, or Out of the Money

The strike price of your option remains the same until the option expires or you exercise it. However, the price of the security continues to fluctuate on the open market.

The following terms refer to the relationship between your strike price and the current market price:

• At the money: When the strike price and the current market price are the same, your option is at the money (ATM).
• In the money: When your strike price gives you an advantage over the market, you’re in the money (ITM). For a call option, this happens when the strike price is below the market; for a put option, it’s when the strike price is above the market price.
• Out of the money: The opposite of in the money, of course. When you’re out of the money (OTM) the current market price is either above the strike price for your call option, or the current market price is below the strike price for a put option.

Kinds of Value

An option can have different values at different times depending on the expiration date and current market conditions:

• Intrinsic Value: If an option is in the money, the option’s intrinsic value refers to the difference between the strike price and the market price. An out-of-the-money option has no intrinsic value.
• Time Value: An option is less valuable if it is about to expire. If the option has a longer life, it has a bigger time value. Since an out-of-the-money option has no intrinsic value, it has only time value.
• Premium: The price paid for the option itself. The premium is comprised of intrinsic value + time value. The amount of the premium is also the most money you could lose if you buy the option.

Writers and Assignments

This has nothing to do with English class. Instead, it refers to the way options originate, and it has implications when you exercise an option.

• Writer: The initial seller of a new option is the “writer” of the option. Before they can be traded, options must be written into existence.  
• Assignment: By writing the option, the seller makes an assignment. The assignee is obligated to sell (call) or buy (put) the shares if the owner exercises the option.

Long vs. Short

When you own an option, you are “long” in the security; the option gives you a right to buy or sell.

You can also be “short” if you have the assignment; that is, if you are the party obligated to buy or sell shares if the owner exercises the option.

Equity vs. Index Options

An option can give you the right to buy or sell 100 shares of a specific stock or exchange-traded fund (ETF) or 100 shares from a specific index:

• Equity Option: With an equity option, also known as a stock option, you’ll have the right to buy or sell shares of a specific stock or ETF.
• Index Option: An entire stock index such as the S&P 500 underlies an index option. These can be a little harder to comprehend since they do not represent one specific stock.

Stock Options Quote

A stock options quote shows you all the pertinent information in one place, usually along one line of text:

• the stock abbreviation (AAPL, AMZN, GOOGL, etc.)
• the strike price
• the expiration date
• call vs. put
• the premium price

Volatility and Deviation

Options are hypothetical in nature. When you start thinking about volatility, you’re hypothesizing about the hypothetical to a certain degree. If this is too much too soon, just skim on down to the next header.

Brokers measure two kinds of volatility:

• Historical Volatility: This measures the actual changes in a particular stock over a specific period of time.
• Implied Volatility: This indicator anticipates future volatility of a security based on measurable variables. An option whose underlying shares have a higher implied volatility tends to have a higher premium.

Along those same lines, brokers and investors will also discuss standard deviation. This also refers to the potential movement of a stock and can impact an option’s premium.

Why Trade In Options?

Experienced investors like options because they limit losses without necessarily limiting the potential for gain.

An example may be helpful here: Let’s say you are thinking about buying $10,000 worth of stock in Hypothetical Industries (HIDY) because you think the stock could be worth $12,000 in three months.

Rather than spending the $10,000 to buy the stock, you could buy a call option for $200, for example, and still control the $10,000 worth of stock. If the stock performs well, like you thought it would, you could exercise the option or trade on its intrinsic value.

If not, rather than losing your significant investment, you’d lose only the $200 premium you paid for the option.

This may be the simplest example for how to use options, and it’s also a common approach we call speculation. You’re using your hunch or, hopefully, your market research to anticipate changes in the market then buying an option to take advantage if you’re right.

Investors use options to speculate because it can create leverage, especially if you buy an out-of-the-money option and it goes in-the-money. Options have even more elaborate and elegant applications:

For Hedging

Options originally evolved to address this need. In this case, options work like an insurance policy. Hopefully you’ll never have to file a claim on your homeowners insurance, but you’re still wise to pay the premiums just in case.

Likewise, investors who use put options for hedging may never exercise their options unless their securities perform more bearishly than they’d expected. If that happens, though, they have the option to sell at a price that limits losses. 

As Spreads

Here’s where it gets really complicated. Savvy investors often create spreads when they buy multiple options at two or more strike prices.

A well-designed spread can profit no matter how the market performs.

In Combination

Similarly, investors can combine put and call options on the same security to control an asset. Some investors call this a “synthetic” position since you’re synthesizing ownership of a stock without actually buying it.

More Advanced Options Strategies

With some knowledge and experience, you can create your own win-win scenarios using options. Combining short (selling an option) and long (buying an option) positions can even limit the premium you pay to buy the options to begin with. Your short position can help defray the cost of your long position.

Someone new to options should seek the guidance of a professional financial advisor. 

Where to Trade Options

While you have a wide variety of options, pun intended, when it comes to trading, we have a few favorite platforms for online options trading.

Ally Invest: Ally Invest is one of the best online brokerages, with no minimum account balance and low trading fees.                                             

Check out Ally Invest today>>

E*Trade: If you’re a pro looking for an affordable active trading option, E*Trade is a solid choice.

Try investing with E*Trade here>>

TD Ameritrade: TD Ameritrade offers affordable trading and expert advice for new and seasoned investors.

Get started with TD Ameritrade today>>

While these brokerages are excellent places to start investing in options, you should read on for a little bit more insight into what traditional brokerages entail.

How to Get Started

You’ll need to open an account with a brokerage, either in person or online, before you can start trading in options. Take your time when looking for a brokerage house to make sure it fits your style and your budget.

Brokers usually charge per trade or charge by a percentage. Find out exactly what services you’re getting in return for your fees.

For example, if you want to use a sleek app to make trades, you may be willing to pay a higher commission to a broker who offers quality mobile services. Also, if you expect your broker to guide you more actively, you should be willing to pay a little more.

Some brokers allow only one position at a time on an option. This will be fine if you’d like to simply invest in some put or call options. But once you’ve gained some experience and you’re ready to start using spreads or combinations, you’d need a different broker.

Bottom Line

Many brokerage houses require clients to go through a screening process to assess their knowledge before allowing them into more complex options schemes.

Options can be among the safest and smartest investments you’ll ever make, but they can also cost you if your strategies don’t match the reality of your financial situation or if you’re not quite sure what’s going on.

To unlock the power of options, be patient and keep learning. Get your feet wet before diving into the deep end. Before long you’ll be doing the backstroke while waving at the lifeguard.

The post Trading in Options: A Guide for Beginning Investors appeared first on Good Financial Cents®.

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Best WordPress Gallery Plugin – (Review Updated For Winter of 2019)

If you search for “gallery” on the WordPress plugins page, you’ll see nearly 3,000 results to choose from.

To say that number is overwhelming is an understatement.

Who has time to go through all of those plugins to determine which one is the best? Fortunately, you don’t have to. I’ve narrowed down the list to the 7 best WordPress gallery plugins for 2019.

Why You Need a Gallery Plugin

Without a gallery plugin, you’ll be forced to use the basic image gallery that’s built into the core feature set of WordPress. Does this work? Yes. But it’s extremely limiting, and you’ll never be able to take your web design to the next level with this gallery.

To add visual elements to your website that will stun your visitors and provide them with a user-friendly viewing experience, you need to install a gallery plugin.

Depending on your needs, you can find free gallery plugins, as well as paid gallery plugins. I’ve done my best to identify the best ones for different purposes, so there’s something for everyone on my list of the top seven gallery plugins that I recommend for WordPress sites.

How to Choose a WordPress Gallery Plugin

Before we dive in and look at the list, there are certain things that you should keep in mind during your search for a gallery plugin.

• Speed — Adding lots of images to your website can impact your website loading time. You want a lightweight plugin that won’t slow your site down, even as you upload more photos.
• Features — Are you just looking for grids, or do you want slideshow options? Do you want to upload only photos, or do you need video and audio galleries as well? Will you need ecommerce integration? These are just a few of the feature sets you should think about when you choose a plugin.
• Usability — Sure, having a plugin that’s packed with features is great, but not at the cost of its ease of use. Some plugins are designed for developers and people who are a bit more tech-savvy, while others have drag-and-drop features that are really easy to use, regardless of your technical abilities.
• Price — The majority of gallery plugins have a freemium version. In most cases, though, you’ll probably have to upgrade to a pro version to access the top features. You’ll want to check the feature sets for each pricing level.

The 7 Top Gallery Plugins for WordPress

Now that you know how to pick the best WordPress gallery plugin for you, we’ll take a look at some of my favorites.

1. NextGEN Gallery

With more than 900,000 active installations, NextGEN Gallery is one of the most popular WordPress gallery plugins on the market.

It’s so popular because it offers a lot of gallery options. Unlike other plugins, there isn’t one typical or standard NextGEN gallery.

You’ll first choose between the two main styles: slideshow or thumbnail. From there, you’ll decide if you want a compact or extended album style. Then, you’ll have nearly limitless choices for size, transitions, effects, timing, and things of that nature.

As you can see from this example thumbnail gallery, this plugin is perfect for photographers and artists to showcase their latest work. You can add watermarks and hotlink protection as well, which is a great feature. The lightbox galleries have deep linking options too.

But NextGEN Gallery offers much more than that. They also have ecommerce functionality, so you can sell images on your website.

You can install this plugin for free, but to get advanced features like watermarks, you’ll need to pay for the premium version.

2. Modula Image Gallery

Modula Image Gallery is one of the lightest and most responsive image gallery plugins available on WordPress. I like it because you can create galleries that are unique and fully customizable.

In addition to images, Modula lets you share video galleries as well.

This plugin has a custom grid feature — you can manually change the size of each image within the gallery. Just navigate to the custom grid option and control dimensions like height, width, and aspect ratio by simply dragging the corners of an image.

Modula Image Gallery is great for beginners, as well as more advanced WordPress users. That’s because you can apply CSS to separate galleries.

The free plugin will be suitable for most WordPress users, but if you’re looking for things like hover effects, lightbox styles, and unlimited photos, you’ll need to upgrade to one of their plans, which start at $29.

Modula Image Gallery is just for grids. To create slideshows, you’ll need to get a different plugin.

3. FooGallery

FooGallery is another highly responsive plugin. These retina-ready galleries will enhance the user experience as they navigate and explore the pictures on your website.

It’s available for free but has a pro version with additional features and benefits. But unlike other gallery plugins, the free version still comes with plenty of variety in the templates. You’ll have plenty of template options to choose from with this plugin.

Here’s how the dashboard looks in WordPress.

As you can see, it’s very easy to add photos and change the settings of the responsive gallery.

You can customize things like:

• Hover effects
• Paging
• Captions
• Filtering
• Loading icons
• Border sizes
• Themes
• Shadows
• Loading effects

FooGallery also has custom CSS for developers. Another cool feature of this plugin is the infinite scroll, which is a nice option for those of you who don’t want to have photos on multiple pages within a gallery. You can also manage video galleries on your WordPress site with the FooGallery plugin. And it has tools for generating boilerplate extensions.

4. Envira Gallery

The interface of Envira Gallery is extremely user-friendly. You’ll be able to add photos with its drag and drop functionality. Similar to Modula, you can adjust the sizes of your visual elements as well.

You’ll start with one of its pre-built templates, then customize it to your liking. In addition to photos, Envira Gallery has options for video galleries.

I also like this plugin is because it’s easy to stay organized. After you add photos to an album, you can select cover photos and choose custom tags for sorting.

All of your galleries will be mobile-responsive, so site visitors won’t have any problems accessing, viewing, or navigating through content if they are browsing from a tablet or smartphone.

Envira Gallery has social media integration and is compatible with WooCommerce, making it easy to share your images on other platforms and get your social media users to purchase content from your ecommerce store.

If you’re a photographer, you can add password protection and watermarks to galleries as well. Slideshows and lightbox mode can be viewed on a full screen so that visitors can look at images in your gallery with a closer view. These features make Envira Gallery a popular choice for artists and photographers.

5. Flagallery Photo Portfolio

Flagallery Photo Portfolio has a feature that we haven’t seen so far on this list. In addition to photo and video galleries, this plugin lets you create music and audio playlists as well.

Another benefit of this plugin is the batch upload feature. It’s great for sites that want to upload a ton of content at once, while still staying organized.

It’s easy to manage all your visual content with one centralized dashboard via WordPress. From here, it’s a simple process to create collections that are fully customizable.

The plugin is optimized for SEO and compatible with all major Internet browsers.

6. Gmedia Photo Gallery

Just like Flagallery, the Gmedia Photo Gallery plugin lets you play music on your website, as well as displays photo and video albums. Gmedia Photo Gallery lets you enable comments on your albums, so website visitors can tell you what they think about your content and you can assign categories and add tags to your galleries to help you stay organized. It even includes editing features. While all of these features may not be important to you, I know some websites are definitely looking for an all-in-one plugin like this.

The drag and drop functionality is extremely user-friendly and the results are mobile responsive.

My favorite part though is the Gmedia iOS mobile app. With the app you can upload files to WordPress without having to transfer it to another device. If you’re using your smartphone to take business photos, which you probably are, this feature will save you a step in the process. You can take a photo from your phone and directly upload it. Super simple.

7. Photo Gallery by 10Web – Responsive Image Gallery

Photo Gallery by 10Web is a top choice to consider because it offers so many different options for showcasing images.

• Slideshow
• Thumbnails
• Image browser
• Masonry
• Mosaic

With slideshows, you have the option to add a filmstrip above the images, so users can jump ahead instead of being forced to view one photo at a time in order. You can completely customize the dimensions of each slideshow as well.

Whenever you click an image in the thumbnail view, a lightbox will be opened. Alternatively, you can redirect each image to a specific URL, but I like the lightbox version better.

Masonry view lets you display thumbnails with different dimensions, depending on the ratio of those images. This is ideal if you have lots of photos of varying dimensions.

But the mosaic view option is probably my favorite.

The mosaic view uses the concept of masonry view, but the thumbnails are resized, so the entire content area is filled. I love the effect that this creates on the screen, and I think it’s a great way for your website to stand out from the crowd.

It’s worth noting that you’ll need to pay for the premium version to access all of these view options.

Photo Gallery by 10Web offers social sharing, watermark protection, and ecommerce integration as well. Overall, it’s definitely a top choice to consider.

Conclusion

If you want to take your visual content strategy to the next level, I highly recommend installing a gallery plugin. Don’t limit yourself with the basic image gallery that comes standard with WordPress.

There are thousands of plugins available, but instead of going through each of those one by one, use this list as a reference and framework to help you narrow down your choices:

• What features do you want?
• Do you need the gallery to handle just photos, or do you use other types of media? Videos? Audio files?
• How much are you willing to pay?
• How important is mobile uploading to you?

Some of these plugins have more features than others; it all depends on what you’re looking for. No matter which option you choose, any plugin on this list will improve your site from the perspective of your visitors.

Source Quick Sprout http://bit.ly/2RFUkdz