If you are an average investor and want to invest money in an alternative investment like gold, silver or real estate don't invest until you know the best investment form to invest in. Where you invest is crucial in 2011, 2012 and beyond because these alternative investments have become volatile. If the markets go against you you'll want to be able to liquidate your investment quickly and easily.
A few years ago investing money in real estate, precious metals or other commodities was out of the question for most folks. These are called alternative investments, and there were two roadblocks if the average person wanted to invest money there. First, it was complicated and risky to play the commodities markets (and still is). Second, liquidity can be a major issue if you take ownership in the physical form. Have you ever tried to sell a property or silver coins in a hurry? Simply put, it can't be done at a fair price. That's called poor liquidity.
In 2011, 2012 and beyond you can invest money in these areas with excellent liquidity and simplicity. Your best investment alternative: exchange traded funds (ETFs). Let me use silver in 2011 as an example. If you held silver coins (rounds) going into 2009 or 2010, you watched prices soar through early 2011. It was probably the best investment around until May of 2011. As silver approached $50 an ounce it got hit hard and the price fell fast. If you wanted to take profits (liquidate) on your silver coins there was no quick and easy way to do it, so you probably did nothing.
Nobody knows where to invest money at all times to earn the best returns in terms of precious metals vs. stocks and bonds vs. real estate. But there is a best way for average investors to go about investing money in all of the above. In our silver example, an exchange traded fund with stock symbol (SLV) was probably your best investment. It is a fund that tracks the price of silver and trades as a stock. If you want to buy or sell you can do it any time (at market price) the stock market is open... on the internet... for a commission of about $10. That's called liquidity, and all you need is an account with a major discount broker to play the game.
With exchange traded funds you can trade the markets, or you can invest money for the long term by putting together your own best investment portfolio that is both diversified and balanced. These funds offer average investors a broad spectrum of choices for 2011, 2012 and beyond. You are missing out on opportunity if you are only investing money in stock funds and bond funds. Put some alternative investments in your portfolio as well. The answer to where to invest in them: exchange traded funds.

Online trading from a person's home can be an enjoyable and lucrative opportunity. More and more people who used to only trade the traditional way offline are now becoming virtual traders because of some proven advantages.
Be Your Own Boss
In any economy, many people would love to be their own boss but they don't know how to go about it or what type of business to start. But by trading online at home, even a newcomer to the trading markets can set up his own office and workspace and focus all his energies and attention on trying to earn a substantial living with his trades. It's also a convenient way to earn income as well. This self-employment aspect is extremely satisfying to a large group of people. And if a person already has significant experience with trading, he can still attempt to go at it alone at home and be successful like so many before him have.
Lower Costs Per Trade
Online trades from the privacy of a person's home invariably costs less per trade than traditional trading methods. It can be a highly profitable work at home career for the intelligent investor who knows the importance of conserving all possible costs associated with each trade. Trading at home allows people to coordinate their trades with an online brokerage firm, and the commission's savings simply can't be surpassed.
Better Technology
Trading at home offers the benefits of utilizing state-of-the-art software and research tools to help traders take better advantage of current and forthcoming trends and substantial profit opportunities. This software technology is intricately designed yet truly easy and straightforward to use. There's no question it greatly benefits any online trader who's handling his trades alone from home. He will definitely feel a greater sense of security and trust when using this technology during each trading session. His online trading confidence levels will also be much improved knowing he has the best possible tools at his disposal whenever he feels the need to use them.
Why Join Trading Education?
Studying at an online trading academy is one of the wisest steps to take to expand a trader's knowledge base. In a rather short span of time, he can learn all he needs to know about Forex trading, stock and options trading, plus any other areas of trading knowledge that he may have felt deficient in before enrolling in the trading academy. Highly experienced academicians and veteran traders design and teach the courses offered at the academy. The cost of completing the training requirements is quite reasonable as well. Without the advanced knowledge base offered at an academy, an at home trader can be at a distinct disadvantage from other online traders who have passed the academic disciplines involved in the study modules.

Emerging market investments offer potential for higher returns while being highly volatile. Investors therefore include emerging markets ETFs in their ETF portfolio. A popular emerging market ETF is iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Index Fund (EEM).
Regional emerging markets ETFs like iShares MSCI Eastern Europe Index Fund (ESR) and iShares S&P Latin America 40 Index Fund (ILF) offer exposure to different geographic segments.
Now a new ETF has become available for investment specifically in Southeast Asia... the Global X FTSE ASEAN 40 ETF (ASEA). The ETF seeks to track the price and yield performance of stocks included in the FTSE ASEAN 40 Index.

ASEAN
In 1967 Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand formed an economic bloc called the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to promote economic growth through free trade amongst those countries. Since then, ASEAN has expanded and currently includes Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmarand Vietnam.

Benefits & Risks of ASEAN ETF
The Global X ASEAN ETF invests in the 40 largest companies in the five founding member nations of ASEAN. The ETF currently has the following weightings: Singapore 41%, Malaysia 33%, Indonesia 15%, Thailand 11%, and the Philippines 1%.
Southeast Asia is one of the fastest growing regions in the global economy. Singaporeis considered a developed market. The economies of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand are expanding rapidly thanks to their economic liberalization policies promoting foreign direct investments, availability of skilled labor at low wages and bilateral trade with China. A fast growing affluent middle class drives up demand for a multitude of consumer goods and services.
Over 40% of Global X ASEAN ETF's assets are invested in Singapore, posing country concentration risk. Another risk is the dependence of ASEAN countries on China. Like other emerging markets ETFs, the ASEAN ETF carries risks associated with foreign currency, higher inflation and nationalization of companies the ETF invests in.

Investment Strategy
Investors can use a core and satellite strategy to build an emerging markets ETF portfolio. They can consider using the Vanguard ETF (VWO) for the core portion of the ETF portfolio. The Vanguard ETFs as well as sector and industry group index funds are designed to track a target index. VWO tracks the Morgan Stanley Capital International's (MSCI) Emerging Markets Index.
With only 7% of its assets invested in the emerging markets of ASEAN, the Vanguard ETF offers only a limited exposure to ASEAN. Investors can use Global X ASEAN ETF as the satellite portion of their ETF portfolio.

Country Specific ETFs
Investors have the option of investing in country specific ETFs in ASEAN.They are iShares MSCI Indonesia Investable Market Index Fund (EIDO), iShares MSCI Malaysia Index Fund (EWM), iShares MSCI Philippines Investable Market Index Fund, (EPHE), iShares MSCI Singapore Index Fund (EWS), and iShares MSCI Thailand Investable Market Index Fund (THD).

St. Kitts and Nevis is one of the few places in the world to offer a government run Citizenship by Investment Program. This program ultimately grants citizenship to those who have made a significant investment in the country, namely in real estate. The Citizenship and Passport Program in St. Kitts and Nevis was established in 1984.
How does Citizenship by Investment Work?
In St. Kitts and Nevis, a significant financial investment must be made in real estate. Once this and other requirements are met, the government will grant the investor a Government Certificate of Registration as a Citizen as well as a passport. Once this process is completed, all paperwork is exactly as that of all other citizens. Investors can then choose to acquire a driver's license if they would like to drive.
The Requirements
There is first a registration fee of $35,000 for the applicant. Additional family (dependants) must be registered as well for an additional fee of $15,000 per person. A minimal real estate investment of $250,000 is required in order to gain the status of citizen. You are not required to pay the fees until your application for citizenship has been approved by the government. The real estate purchase is required to be completed once you have obtained the appropriate documents.
During the application process, you will be asked for identification. This will include a birth certificate for the applicant, and birth certificates and/or marriage certificates for the spouse and children (or in some cases grandchildren). Applicants over the age of 12 must complete an HIV exam and everyone should submit 2 passport sized photos of themselves.
Why Invest in St. Kitts and Nevis?
The landscape alone is gorgeous enough to make anyone want to stay there for as long as possible. Aside from that, the relaxing atmosphere, rich culture, and friendly natives only make it more tempting. Economically, if you wanted to live there only part time, it is a great investment.
There are real estate management companies ready and able to maintain your property in addition to leasing or renting your space when you are not using it. You can enjoy the property for yourself at your own leisure, and earn a return on your investment while you live elsewhere. There aren't any restrictions if you decide to eventually sell your property, and chances are that you will find an eager buyer quickly, just because of the neighborhood and the eye-catching views.
With the Citizenship by Investment program, you will also be able to enjoy Visa free international access to the United States, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, and more than 65 other countries around the world. There is also no personal income tax, so that is a freedom in and of it.
Nevis Real Estate is certainly a worthy investment that has many benefits. Citizenship is a great option, and you do not have to denounce your existing citizenship in order to obtain it there. It is a beautiful island and a good opportunity.

All investing is a bet on the future. The difference is how you arrive at your bet. A review of the decision making methods may help you decide which works best for you.
Options for making your investment decisions include:
• Hunches - sometimes our instincts can be rewarding, but just as often they can cost us money because a hunch is based on what we think we know and not on what is possible to know with research or analysis. Do I sound like I don't recommend this method? You bet I don't.
• Tips - a suggestion from a friend, co-worker, cousin or uncle can come from something they heard (another tip), something on TV, the internet or just about anywhere. The question again, is the tip validated with research or analysis?
• The Press - TV shows, internet articles & forums, magazines and newspapers along with newsletters with 'buy' suggestions. Usually these are backed by some type of research so the question then becomes, "What is the batting average of the source, the person making the recommendation?" Without knowing the batting average these recommendations may not have any more value than an ordinary tip.
• Fundamental Research and Analysis - you can do it yourself or read someone else's reports about the management of a stock or fund, the industry and product trends and viability along with their financial status. Decision making based on fundamentals is primarily for long term investing because a thorough analysis can take days, weeks and even months.
• Chart Analysis - Reading charts can provide you with indications or indicators of future performance based on past performance of a ticker symbol. There are more chart types than it is possible to list in a short article. There are also free internet chart services plus chart programs that cost. Some software programs offer just the most popular or most relevant charts so the choice because yours and this choice relates to time: time to learn a chart program can be many months; and time to review charts on a regular basis can involve minutes or a full day depending upon how they are used.
• Technical Analysis - evaluating the data of a particular ticker symbol or group of symbols can produce either or both charts, spreadsheet results or reports based on the analysis. Chart analysis is a type of technical analysis but a true technical analysis program can go further by allowing you to evaluate the symbol or group data in additional ways and provide reports "in plain English" that make decision making easier. Depending upon your objectives and time frame these software programs can involve as little as 30 minutes a week and provide reliable investing recommendations.
In other words, investing need not be a bet. You have choices based on your preference for doing things and how much time you want to spend at it to make sound investment decisions.
Personally I like to use technical analysis that gives me an easy to read report coupled with key charts that can confirm recommendations. Key charts like moving average and full stochastic can be especially helpful when the markets are volatile and jumping up and down from day to day or week to week.

For the past few years, the US government has increased its deficit spending by more than a trillion dollars a year. This amount of spending is unprecedented. For the current year, our elected officials are talking about a budget which includes approximately 1 ½ trillion in deficit spending. Pumping dollars into the economy at this level is similar to adding a gallon of water to a can of orange juice. As more and more dollars are poured into the economy, the dollar's value is diluted. This dilution increases inflationary pressures which in turn have an impact on your investments.
In an inflationary environment, people who live on a fixed income are typically hurt the worst. As prices increase, they are not able to buy as much as they did before. Creditors with contracts which include fixed interest rates are also negatively impacted. Suppose you were a creditor and you made a loan. The loan has a fixed annual interest rate of eight percent. Inflation was five percent when you made the loan. This means your real rate of return was three percent. If inflation increases to 10 percent next year, your real rate of return would be negative two percent. On the other hand, if you're not the creditor but the borrower, inflation allows you to pay your fixed debt payments with cheaper dollars. You'll be able to pay off your debt faster with diluted dollars.
Investing in stocks may not be as bad as you might think. If a company is run by competent managers who increase prices as costs increase, the company's revenues and earnings should increase as inflation increases. Be sure to invest in stocks that have returns higher than the inflation rate. You can also purchase inflation protected investments like inflation indexed bonds and Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS). These investments are impervious to inflation risk because their rates move with inflation. An investment portfolio with fixed income securities that are not protected against inflation will see a deterioration of value. If your portfolio has fixed income securities that aren't inflation protected and you expect higher inflation in the future, I recommend moving your money out of these fixed income securities.
In a high inflationary environment, investors look more for investments with a short-term maturity horizon. Investors tend to shy away from investments with long-term maturities due to the increased uncertainty. Because inflation makes it difficult to predict future expectations, investors are unwilling to enter into long-term contracts. Over time this unwillingness has a negative affect on economic growth.
Investors also utilize "stores of value" to hedge against inflation risk. Throughout history precious metals have been used as stores of value. People purchased metals like gold and silver. They have also used other stores of value like real estate, works of art, precious stones, and livestock. Eventhough the value of these commodities change over time, they have shown to retain some value in almost any situation.