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3 Habits which can make you rich

3 Habits which can make you rich

Written by R. A. Stewart

“You don’t have to be rich to invest but you have to invest to be rich.”-Unknown

Forget the lottery, here are three habits that can make you rich beyond your wildest dreams. It does not matter how old you are, how much money you currently have in the bank, or whether you have any experience at investing. If you can look beyond your own personal circumstances and develop these three habits then you are well on your way to financial success. 

So you may be wondering what is the magic formula for financial success?”

Number one habit to develop is:

The Habit of Saving.

Simple, isn’t it. You simply spend less than you make and whatever is leftover is your excess.

All of us have an ordinary savings account where our payment from whatever source goes into. This really should be named a spending account because we spend money from this account using our bank card. It is a good idea to transfer money into another account which is used for saving up for whatever it is we are saving for and this account should not be linked to internet banking where scammers are able to access it.

Saving money gives you financial security and enables you to cover the unforeseen emergencies which crop up from time to time. Medical and dental emergencies, car and household appliance repairs can be expensive so having savings behind you cushions you against these kinds of shocks.

Saving also enables you to reach your financial goals and helps you to become wealthy.

The Habit of Investing

Most people are able to save something from their pay packet but comparatively few people invest that money. For those people their savings becomes spending money. In the end these people have nothing to show for their years of toil and their options are limited due to their lack of finances. 

Investors on the other hand have more options available to them later in life because finances are not a problem. 

The habit of investing also increases your financial literacy which in turn helps you to make better choices when deciding on where to invest your money. 

This reduces financial stress, increases your independence, and prepares you for retirement.

The Habit of Reading

Reading books increases your knowledge. The habit of reading books of a financial nature will increase your financial literacy. It is a fact that most people are not financially literate. They may know how to negotiate loans and how to get a credit card but people who are intelligent do not purchase stuff on credit because they know that it only means paying more for whatever they are buying.

You do not have to spend too much money buying books when your local library has good books available. You might also pick up some good books at your local charity store.

On the internet you can find lots of useful information on personal finance. Ask chatgpt to provide some answers to any questions you have or go to quora.com which is a question and answer site. You need a gmail address to register with quora.

About the article

The information in this article is of the opinion and experience of the writer and may not be applicable to your personal circumstances, therefore discretion is advised. You may use this as content for your website or ebook.

Read my other articles on www.robertastewart.com

Investing with Sharesies is an accessible and straightforward way to invest in the stock market. By following these steps, you can get started on your investment journey and start building your wealth. However, before making any investment decisions, it is essential to do your research and seek professional advice if necessary.

 Join Sharesies here

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Book Review: Think and Grow Rich 

Written by R. A. Stewart

Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill is one of the world’s best selling self help books and has been for over 70 years.

Napoleon Hill had spent twenty years compiling information for the book and during that time he interviewed the most successful men in history to learn how they acquired their fortunes. 

He reveals the one sure way to overcome all obstacles, achieve any ambition, and bring success to any life.

It is all a matter of knowing what you want and having the desire to make your goals come true.

The book is not one that advises you where to invest your money but rather develops the kind of traits which have made others successful.

The subjects covered in this book are:

Thoughts are Things: Using the power of your mind to get whatever you desire.

Desire: Transforming your desire into concrete action

Faith: How you can rise to limitless heights if only you had faith.

Auto Suggestion: Train your mind to get amazing results with the use of auto suggestion

Specialized knowledge: Your education is what you make it, and you can find the knowledge that takes you from where you are to where you want to go. 

Imagination: This is what is required to turn your dreams into reality.

Organized Planning: How to use your master mind for success.

Decision: The ability to make decisions quickly will help you to achieve more.

Persistence: The ability to persevere is important.

Power of the Master Mind: This secret involves choosing mentors who are where you want to be.

Sex Transmutation: How women help men become successful, and how to take advantage of the ancient truth.

The Subconscious Mind: How your subconscious mind waits like a sleeping giant to back up every plan and purpose.

The Brain: How to use your brain more effectively.

The Sixth Sense:  How wisdom opens the door to the road to wealth.

 The Six Ghosts of Fear: Take inventory of yourself, and see if any remnants of fear stand in your way.

Weaknesses

While the book has its merits it also has its weaknesses, and one of these is that it does not take into account the economic landscape of today and the barriers which many people face in their day to day lives.

Conclusion

Think and Grow Rich is a classic for a reason and while it is no magic formula for success the steps to success explained in the book are a starting point for those wanting to learn the mental aspects of success.

Enjoyed reading this article?

Visit my site www.robertastewart.com for more articles.

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The Art of Diversification

The Meaning of Diversification

Written by R. A. Stewart

Diversification is a word that you will hear in investment circles, particularly when investing in the share market, but what exactly does it mean?

To put it in plain language, Diversification is when you divide all of your money between different asset classes and companies. Your total portfolio may be x amount of dollars; an astute investor will invest a certain amount in power companies, a certain amount in banks, a certain amount in insurance companies, and so on.

We often hear of horror stories whenever a company folds and the one that crops up is that investors lost their entire savings in the one company. Big mistake!

That is leaving all of your eggs in the one basket because you do not know what kind of misfortune will hit any particular company.

Government regulations and the economic cycle are out of the control of the company. 

Then there are trends which will have some influence over the bottom line.

There is no guarantee that whatever occurred in the past will repeat itself in the future.

Investment platforms such as Sharesies, Hatch, and Kernel Wealth in New Zealand and Robin Hood in the US enable the ordinary man and woman in the street to invest with a minimum amount of money. This provides an excellent education tool for people who are willing to increase their financial literacy by taking part in the share market.

There is another method of diversification and that is by investing in managed funds or as they are described in the US, Mutual Funds. This is where your money is combined with that of other investors. It is a case of safety in numbers.

Managed Funds provide investors with three options, Growth Funds, Balanced Funds, and Conservative Funds.

Growth Funds are higher risk, higher growth stocks aimed at long term investors. That is investors who are investing for 10 years or more. The reason why they are more suitable for long term investors is because they have more time to recover from a market meltdown, which is more liable to happen with growth funds. The young ones are more suited to Growth Funds because they have more time to recover from a share market crash.

Conservative Funds are safer with investors unlikely to see the kind of falls occurring in the growth funds but the flip side is that an investment in conservative funds will not grow as fast.

Financial advisors in New Zealand have often stated that young people should invest their retirement savings in growth funds to maximise returns. 

Balanced Funds are a combination of Growth and Conservative Funds. They basically give you the best of both worlds.

Diversification does not mean that you should choose an online investment platform such as Sharesies or Robinhood and invest your whole life savings there. The reason is because there have been instances in the US when these types of online platforms have folded.

Some readers may say, “I know/read about an investor who put all of their money in one company and made a killing.”

My answer to that is, “Greed gets the better of people such as this in the end,”

What is likely to happen is that they will try the same thing again and again and give all of their previous gains back plus a whole lot more.

When you hear stories of so and so making a killing, what you do not hear about are those who tried the same thing and lost all of their money.

Be sensible with your money and you will reap a harvest in the end.

About this article

The contents of this article is of the writer’s own experience and opinion and may not be applicable to your personal circumstances, therefore, discretion is advised. You may use this article as content for your blog/website or ebook.

Read my other articles on www.robertastewart.com

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10 Oldest Public Listed Companies in the World

Written by R. A. Stewart

I have seen the list of the world’s oldest publicly listed companies on the stock exchange, and it makes interesting reading and there may be some kind of lesson and conclusions which we can draw from the list. 

Here are the top ten on that list.

1 GSK Plc

GSK is a British multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company with global headquarters in London. It was established in 2000 as the result of a merger of two other companies, Glaxo Wellcome and Beecham PLC. They were also the result of a merger of a number of pharmaceutical companies.

2 NatWest Group Pl

NatWest Holdings is based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Services provided are personal, business, and investment banking, insurance, corporate finance, and more. Subsidiaries include the Royal Bank of Scotland and the Ulster Bank.

3 Birkenstock Holding Plc

Birkenstock is a footwear manufacturer. They invented the footbed. The company was founded in 1774 and has its headquarters in the United Kingdom.

4 Inter-Continental Hotels Group

Inter-Continental Hotels Group is a British Multinational hospitality company with its headquarters in Windsor. It is listed on both the London and New York Stock exchange. Inter-Continental’s subsidiaries include Holiday Inn, Hotel Indigo, and Kimpton Hotels and Restaurants.

5 Takeda Pharmaceutical Company

Takeda is a Japanese Multinational Pharmaceutical company. It is among the top 20 Pharmaceutical companies in the world. It was founded in Osaka in 1781 and has its headquarters in Tokyo.

6 Bank of America Corporation

Bank of America is a multinational investment bank and financial services holding company which is based in Charlotte, North Carolina. It also has headquarters in Manhattan. The company was formed in 1998 as the result of Nation Bank’s acquisition of Bank of America. Its roots date back to 1904 when the Bank of Italy opened in San Francisco and eventually became the Bank of America.

7 The Bank of New York Mellon

BNY is an investment management and services company. They help individuals and institutions invest in America and worldwide. Bank of New York was originally founded in 1704.

8 Cushman and Wakefield PLC

Cushman and Wakefield PLC is a real estate services firm. It is among the world’s leading real estate firms. It is based in Chicago, Illinois. The company was founded in 1917.

9 Cigna Corporation

The Cigna Group is a multinational managed healthcare and insurance company based in Bloomfield, Connecticut, USA. It was founded by the Insurance company of North America in 1982.

 

10 State Street Corporation

State Street Corporation is a global financial services company with headquarters in Boston, USA. It was previously called the Union Bank which originated in 1792 making it the second oldest continually operating bank in America.

Banking/finance companies feature four times on this list. It is an industry which is considered recession proof. Pharmaceutical companies feature twice on this list while shoe manufacturing and a hotel chain have also made it on the list. It is important to realize that industries which rely on discretionary spending money for their revenue are always going to be vulnerable during downturns in the economy. This all provides some food for thought with these companies having stood the test of time.

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Book Review: Rich Enough by Mary Holm

Written by R. A. Stewart

Mary Holm is a New Zealand financial adviser who has written books on the subject of a personal finance nature for years and her book “Rich Enough? Is certainly a very good book with lots of down to earth information written in simple easy to understand terms.

There are several important points which she highlights and the first one is the importance of starting early. In fact the earlier you start the more money you will accumulate in the long term.

Starting early develops good savings habits which will in turn serve you well during your lifetime. 

The second point is to get rid of any debt you have as soon as possible and staying out of debt. If you are paying 10% interest on your debt then paying off that debt is just like being paid 10% interest on your money. It makes no sense to have money invested at 5% interest when you are paying 10% interest on your own debt. That money is better off in your pocket.

Falling into the Christmas trap can be costly as Mary points out. 15% of New Zealanders have more than 11 people on their Christmas shopping list to shop for and about 27% of them are women who plan to spend over $200 per person on presents. About 17% of people expect to spend over $1,000 on Christmas. Some suggestions on how to reduce your Christmas spending are given by Mary.

A section on New Zealand’s retirement scheme Kiwisaver tells of the excuses people provide for not joining and one of those excuses is “I have not got around to it.” 

This is stupidity according to the author, Mary Holm.

Another reason given is, “My grandma lost it all during the Global Financial Crisis.”

As Mary points out, these finance companies which went under during the GFC lent money to people who the banks considered too risky to lend to so they borrowed off the finance companies and paid higher interest rates. As a result, investors who lent money to these companies received high interest rates.

As the saying goes, higher return often means higher risk.

The importance of diversification is discussed as are the value of different types of investments. 

My rating: I rate this book a 10 out of 10 based on the fact that the information presented is applicable to everyone irrespective of their means. 

To find a copy, go online. Trademe, Ebay, and Amazon may have a copy for sale.

www.robertastewart.com

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6 Benefits of Saving Money

The value of saving money

Written by R. A. Stewart

If there is one habit which will make your life easier it is the habit of saving money from each payday. As a responsible adult this is the mature thing to do. People who just spend all of their money leaving them broke before the next pay day arrives are irresponsible. 

Saving money without an end goal may seem pointless to some people and that is why it is important to have goals so that your money has a purpose. This gives you motivation to save otherwise you will become just like most people and just fritter your money away and when that rainy day comes there will be nothing to fall back on.

Here are reasons why you must save:

  1. Saving helps you to avoid borrowing

People who have no savings often borrow for stuff they need, such as some appliance breaking down or a medical emergency. Borrowing adds to the cost of whatever it is a debtor is paying for. This cost is called interest. Another word for interest is dead money because it gives you nothing tangible for your money. If you have debt then getting rid of it must be your first priority.

  1. Saving helps you to avoid future inconvenience

Imagine having no savings and the car, washing machine, or internet modem, or something else needs fixing and you have no savings. These are items which we take for granted but having no money to repair or replace something which needs replacing will cause you a great deal of inconvenience. Having a rainy day account for emergencies is a good idea.

Having

  1. Saving enables you to build your wealth

Saving money will help you to build your wealth portfolio and you do not need to have a fortune to begin investing but you do need to invest in order to create a fortune. Share market platforms such as Sharesies and Hatch enables anyone to invest on a shoestring. Investing with these platforms helps build your financial literacy.

  1. Saving provides more opportunities 

Saving money creates more future opportunities. It provides opportunities to study, to travel, and to move locations for work. Your future you will thank you for what you have saved today. Will anyone reach the age of 65 and regret having made consistent contributions to kiwisaver? I think not.

  1. Saving provides more peace of mind.

Saving provides a certain amount of peace of mind. When you have something up your sleeve to pay for emergencies when you need it life becomes much less stressful. That is something which should be part of your financial plan.

  1. Saving helps prepare for retirement

Having money behind you helps make your retirement years more comfortable. Whichever country you belong to it is important to join your country’s retirement scheme and take advantage of any tax incentives if any.

About this article: The contents are of the opinion of the writer and may not be applicable to your own personal circumstances. You are advised to seek professional budget advice if necessary. Feel free to print this off for easier reading. You may use this as content for your blog, website, or ebook.

Www.robertastewart.com

 

Disclaimer: I may receive a small commission if you sign up with sharesies. (see below)

 Investing with Sharesies is an accessible and straightforward way to invest in the stock market. By following these steps, you can get started on your investment journey and start building your wealth. However, before making any investment decisions, it is essential to do your research and seek professional advice if necessary.

 Join Sharesies here

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3 Mistakes Investors Make

Avoid these three Financial Mistakes

Written by R. A. Stewart

Building an investment portfolio is similar to building a relationship. It takes time and patience but over caution can be just as costly. A lot of tolerance is required because in finance and in life in general you do not always get your own way. Life has its own ups and it is during the downs that we show our true character. It is when our true colours come to the surface.

Human nature or emotion as it is can interfere with one’s better judgment. This applies to relationships and finance.

Here are the biggest mistakes made by investors.

Mistake number one-Greed

“If something is too good to be true then it almost certainly is,” but many people have fallen into this trap by investing in something which was offering above average returns. In doing so they completely ignored another rule in finance and that is to diversify. During the 2008 Global Financial Crisis many investors lost their entire life savings when various finance companies went under. Several people have their entire life savings invested in one company. Whatever has been reported about these companies it is up to investors to do their own due diligence and invest sensibly. Placing all of your eggs in one basket is certainly not investing sensibly. The key word for sensible investors is “diversify.” This minimizes risk. Two things to bear in mind is that when there is an opportunity for a capital gain as there is with shares, there is also the chance for a capital loss. The other thing to remember is that when you hear stories of someone who made a killing on the share market by placing all of their eggs in one basket, you seldom hear of individuals who tried the same thing and lost their money. Greed will eventually get the better of investors who thought they were smart enough to beat the market.

Mistake number two-Timidity

Playing it safe is risky. Being overcautious will mean that you miss out on opportunities which risk takers take advantage of. There is no suggestion that you should be reckless and ignore common sense precautions but in relationships you need to risk getting hurt in order to discover what you are looking for. As far as financial matters are concerned, you have to accept some level of risk but this is manageable by diversifying your portfolio. Managed Funds or Mutual Funds as they are also called is an excellent way for ordinary investors to get involved in the share market. In New Zealand, Kiwisaver, Sharesies, Kernel Wealth, Hatch, and Investnow are excellent platforms for ordinary investors to get involved in shares. If you are from the US you may want to look at Robinhood which operates in much the same way as Sharesies.

Mistake number three-Impatience

“It is time and not timing which is important in the share market,” is a cliche which is worth keeping in mind. Patience is a virtue and this is applicable to relationships and finances. Some people lack patience that they invest their money in abc shares then when their portfolio is stagnant they sell those and invest in something else and sod’s law, the shares they sold at a lower price suddenly rises meaning they have missed out on any gains which would have recovered their losses. The share market is a long term gain. If you require the money in the short term then investing in shares may not be the right option. Bank deposit probably is but you have got to do your homework. 

It is all about understanding the risks and whether you have the mindset to handle the ups and downs of the money markets.

It really is up to your own risk profile.

About this article

You may use this article as content for your blog/website and as content for your ebook. Feel free to share this article with others.

The information here is of the opinion of the writer and may not be applicable to your personal circumstances.

Invest in sharesies here:

Sharesies makes it possible for anyone to get into buying and selling shares. It is an online share market platform where you have the option of purchasing shares in individual companies or in various funds (managed/mutual funds). You can even start with $5. This is a no brainer because it gives investors young and not so young the chance to improve their financial literacy. There is certainly no substitute for experience when it comes to learning and this is applicable to everything else, not just investing.

Join sharesies here: https://sharesies.nz/r/377DFM

Disclaimer: I may receive a small sign up bonus if you join sharesies.

www.robertastewart.com

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People you should not take Money advice from

Written by R A Stewart

Have you heard of the donkey story where an old man and his grandson were walking the donkey along the street?

If not here is the story:

An old man and his grandson were leading a donkey as they were walking along the road. A bystander said to them, “Why don’t you both get on the donkey and ride it?”

So they both rode the donkey but further down the road the second bystander said, “Hey look at that poor donkey having to carry two people; that is cruelty.”

So the boy got off the donkey and led it along the road while the old man rode it but further down the road, a third bystander said, “look at that poor boy having to walk while that old man is riding the donkey.”

So the old man got off the donkey and his grandson got on, however further down the road, a fourth bystander said, “Look at that poor old man, walking along the road while the lad is riding the donkey.”

So the boy got off the donkey and they both continued their journey as they both led the donkey on foot.

What is the moral of this story?

The short answer is that people can take away your power to think for yourself if you allow them to.

If you have a bit of money to spare there will always be people who think they know what you should do with it and a lot of these people have little or no savings of their own.

Here is an example:

I know someone who years ago made a fortune on sports betting. He turned a few hundred dollars into over thirty grand. In the early stages when he had about six grand his colleagues at work were giving him advice and one was to use the six grand for a deposit on a car. I told him that not only would he be back to square one but he would also have a debt to pay. 

He was sensible enough to ignore stupid advice like that. I did however, tell him that he should at least invest enough into his Kiwisaver account to get the government incentives.

Financial illiteracy is common which means it is vitally important to read books on personal finance and pick the brains of the authors rather than allowing random individuals to infect your mindset.

A bad attitude towards money can be a hindrance of wealth. I once said to a lady that her daughter should attend financial seminars when she is older in order to meet successful men. (She was 9 or 10 at the time). She said, “Men like that are selfish and stingy.”

I suppose if you are a gold digger you would think like that. I mean “who needs financial advice when you can just get a man”

It is worth remembering that some of the best financial writers are women, such as Frances Cook and Mary Holm. They strongly encourage women to take responsibility for their finances rather than just have a man as their financial plan.

The young people may not be your best source of financial advice either because they do not have the experience of investing like the older generation. 

One of the things which the financially illiterate say to reinforce their opinions is “You can’t take it all with you.”

That may be true, however, during one’s lifetime, there are life changing events which require savings. Here is a list:

Flatting 

Buying a car

Going on your Big OE

Further education

Saving for a house

Marriage

Children

Retirement 

Responsible people will get into the habit of saving from a very young age in order to be able to finance whatever crops up during their lifetime when they have the ability to do so. Stupid people will fritter away their discretionary spending money so that when a rainy day comes they have money squirrelled away for something to fall back on.

About this article

You may use this article as content for your ebook, website, or blog. The opinions in the article are of the writer’s own opinion and may not be applicable to your own personal circumstances therefore discretion is advised,

www.robertastewart.com

https://www.robertastewart.com

Your friends can be hindering your financial dreams

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Liabilities: what they are

Liabilities: what they are

Written by R. A. Stewart

A liability is when you have a debt to pay. You are responsible for that debt until it is paid. The opposite of a liability is an asset. It is something which provides some kind of value to you.

An example of a liability is when you have borrowed money from a finance company to purchase a car. You pay a certain amount to the finance company each week or fortnightly. It is a liability because it takes money out of your pocket and reduces your wealth.

An example of an asset is an investment with a finance company which lends out money to car buyers. This is an asset because it puts money into your pocket and increases your wealth.

Borrowing money is not the only type of liability which can reduce your wealth.

Others can be, keeping pets, smoking, drug taking, drinking, hobbies, and so forth.

Have you ever heard of dog owners spending thousands of dollars on vet bills when for just $50 they could have had their pet pooch put down. I know of some people who have spent $1,000 on a vet bill for their cat. If that is not financial stupidity I don’t know what is.

Emotional spending is very costly in the long term.

Borrowing for something which does not give you anything in return is a drain on your future financial welfare. Paying for a holiday is a perfect example. This is something you can do without. If you don’t have the money you don’t go on holiday. It’s as simple as that.

Hobbies can be expensive; have you ever seen those news items on television where some collectors have spent thousands of dollars on their items. Whether it is a doll collector, model train collector, or whatever, these people spare no expense in getting their hands on the next item to add to their list.

Becoming an investor rather than a consumer will help you to be better off financially in the long run. By minimizing your consumer purchases and investing that money instead you will build up an investment portfolio, whether that be in the share market, property, and the like. Stuff doesn’t last long and it loses its value over time.

Investing in yourself will pay dividends in the long run if you apply what you have learned. It is just a matter of applying whatever is applicable to your own life. There is a lot of investment advice on the internet and in books but not everything you read will be applicable to your personal circumstances. Having the ability to discern which advice to follow takes experience.

What you spend your money on today will have an effect on your future lifestyle. It is all about making the right choices in life. Politicians talk a lot about achieving different outcomes for certain groups of people. Personally, I think that it is choices which people need to take responsibility for because the only reason why there are so many different outcomes is because people make different choices.

About this article

This article is of the opinion of the writer and may not be applicable to your own personal circumstances therefore, discretion is advised. You may use this article for content for your website, blog, or ebook.

Www.robertastewart.com

 

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Prioritizing your spending

Prioritizing your spending

Written by R. A. Stewart

Life is all about making priorities and it is not all about money and how you prioritize your spending but about what you do with your time. We have different financial commitments and different levels of income but when it comes to time, we all have an allotted 24 hours in the day, no more and no less but our income and how we earn our income will have an effect on how much time we have to devote to the important things in our life.

Many people sacrifice their time for money by spending all of their time working leaving little time for anything else. They are out of balance.

If you have a specific goal in mind such as saving for a house deposit then the sacrifices may be worth it in the long term. Maybe because only you will know whether the long days were truly worth it. It all depends on what your priorities are.

What factors should you consider when setting priorities?

Here are several to consider:

Your commitments

Your debt levels

Your age

Your family circumstances

Your health

Your career

Your pets

It is important that you base your priorities on what is important to you and that you do not try to copy someone else’s figures. There is no one size that fits everyone; it is your own needs and wants which determine how you are going to prioritise your spending.

Everyone has different levels of commitments; these have to be managed as best as you can. Commitments can be financial such as a mortgage or other debt or something more personal such as a relationship. 

Your age is another factor; you are not going to take out a 30 year mortgage when you are 60. If you are in your twenties you will have different priorities. As a young investor you can take more risks with your investing strategy because you have more time to recover from a financial meltdown.

That does not mean being reckless with your investing but rather; taking calculated risks.

Your family circumstances are another factor to weigh up. If you have kids then you will have less disposable cash to play around with than if you are single. The flip side is that if you are in a relationship then you have the advantage of having two incomes which will make it easier to save for major life events such as having kids. It is a good idea to put aside money for this purpose.

Then there is your health to think about. If you are fit and healthy then that is great but as we all know, Father Time catches up on us sooner or later. If you have health issues which lessens your chances of reaching the retirement age then your priorities need to be different from those who are healthy.

Then your career or job is a priority. It has to be your top priority because it pays the bills. It is where you spend so much of your time so a carefully chosen career will help make your life more meaningful. Adding different strings to your bow will give you more options. Learning does not end once you leave school is a lifelong project.

Your pets can bring enjoyment to your life but they can also become a burden to your finances as a lot of people have found during the cost of living crisis. The SPCA were swamped with cats and dogs because people could not afford to keep them. When deciding whether to get a dog or a cat it is important to work out how much this is going to cost you. It is also important to consider the fact that keeping pets fits the discretionary spending category and that money spent on them will be better off going towards the mortgage if you have one or towards your retirement fund. 

As far as pets are concerned, many people let their hearts rule their heads; I mean honestly, why else would one spend a grand on a vet bill for a cat or even more than that on a dog when it would be cheaper just to have the animal put down?

 

This article is of the opinion of the writer and may not be applicable to your personal circumstances, therefore, discretion is advised. You may use this article as content for your ebook, website, or blog. Feel free to share this article.

 

www.robertastewart.com