Yesterday a coworker asked me for help on their first investment. This person is a young, novice investor with very little money to get started. Here are a couple of mutual fund options I recommended. These funds are for investors seeking maximum long-term growth of capital and with a long-term investment horizon of at least five years.

1. Young investors who are willing to take more risk should take a look at the Vanguard LifeStrategy Growth Fund. The fund invests in other Vanguard mutual funds with an allocation of approximately 80% in stocks and 20% in bonds. The minimum to start an account is $3,000 with additional investments of $100. Expense ratio is .27%

2. Don't have $3,000, Take a look at the Vanguard Star Fund which has a minimum of $1,000. The STAR Fund invests in a diversified group of other Vanguard mutual funds and follows a balanced investment approach by placing 60% to 70% of its assets in common stocks through eight stock funds; 20% to 30% of its assets in bonds through two bond funds; and 10% to 20% of its assets in short-term investments through a short-term bond fund. Expense ratio is .35%

3. Can't come up with $1,000, can you find $25? The AARP Mutual Funds allow you to open an account with an investment of $25 if you sign up for a monthly contribution of $25 or you can set up an account with a single investment of $100. Additional investments to the account can be made at any time with a minimum of $25. The AARP Aggressive Fund as it has a nice balanced portfolio including some international exposure. The funds are managed by State Street Global Advisors and has an allocation of approximately 75% in stocks and 25% in bonds. Expense ratio is .91% but is currently capped at .50%.

I am not saying these investments are right for everyone but for someone just starting out and looking to invest, these funds are a good place to start. They can be used for a taxable account or for a Roth IRA.

Forbes has an interesting article that talks about with portfolio managers from the Alpine Dynamic Dividend Fund who get six dividend payments a year by trading stocks in similar industries. The article also have a few dividend ideas as well as couple of special year end dividend tips. Dividend Mania

Get all the mileage you can out of that favorable 15% rate on dividends--harvest six quarterly dividends per year. The crafty souls at Alpine Woods show how.

Congress slashed the tax rate on dividends four years ago, yet the dividend yield on the S&P 500 remains a stingy 1.75%. Investors who want to wring more cash out of their portfolios have to either sell shares, buy inflation-sensitive bonds--or copy the strategy used by the Alpine Dynamic Dividend Fund.

Dynamic Dividend portfolio managers Jill K. Evans and Kevin Shacknofsky pull seven times the S&P's yield out of stocks with a simple, if labor-intensive, trick. Instead of accepting four quarterly dividends each year, they take six.

This trick involves finding pairs of stocks in the same industry with roughly the same yield. You want to find ones whose payout dates are far enough apart to allow you to swap them so you can capture their dividends. That requires deft maneuvering around the ex-dividend date, the division point that determines whether a payout goes to the previous owner of a share or the new one.

Last year one could have bought Progress Energy in January and held it until early April, just long enough to grab two dividends, with ex-dividend dates of Jan. 10 and Apr. 10. Then one could have swapped into Southern Co., a similar southern public utility, for 61 days to grab another dividend (May 1), then go back to Progress for two more dividends (July 10 and Oct. 10) and return to Southern for one more (Nov. 6). Result: a 7.8% dividend yield from two stocks with stand-alone yields of around 5%.

The Div Guy does not own Progress Energy or Southern Co. at the time of this post.

Most of us are saving for retirement, but how big of a nest egg will you need at retirement? People save and invest in 401(k) plans and IRA accounts but have you calculated how much you need at retirement to live comfortably?

How do you calculate how much you will need? What factors do you include in your retirement calculations such as rate of return, retirement age and how long you expect to live in retirement. How important is retirement saving versus maintaining your current lifestyle?

Here is a link to my favorite Retirement Planning Calculator from Bloomberg. It's an easy to use tool and is great in calculating your magic number. You just need to provide a few inputs such as what percentage of your current income you would like at retirement, rate of return before and after retirement.

I like to run the calculator with an 8% investment return before and after retirement, exclude Social Security and select 100% of income at retirement. Click on “View Report” to see a nice chart showing your expected retirement balances.

I have calculated how much we will need at retirement and come up with around $2M as the amount of our nest egg to retire comfortably. Depending on how much we save currently and how well our investments perform I should be able to retire somewhere between 60 and 63 years old.

Right now we are well on our way to our goal of $2M and here is how I got started on my goal toward retirement.

I started a 401(k) plan at my first job out of college. I was able to contribute 10% of my salary and my employer added 15% as a profit sharing arrangement. This 25% contribution went a long way towards getting my nest egg build up during my nine years of work at that company.

I currently work for a non profit that offers a 401(k) with no matching and variable annuities as the investment options. I do not contribute to this plan but I put the maximum allowed in a Roth IRA which I invest in the Vanguard LifeStrategy Growth Fund.

I also contribute money to about 25 dividend stocks. I plan on growing the dividend stocks to produce anywhere from a third to half of what I will need in retirement. Currently I am earning more than $6,500 in yearly dividends from my stock portfolio.

So make sure you calculate how much you will need in retirement and come up with a plan that works for you. Spend some time now on planning your retirement so you will be in good shape twenty to thirty years down the road.

Investors are worried large multinationals may be the next to drop after financial service companies have been talking a beating. Financial Times has an article on US Multinational prospects. Investors cool to US multinationals

Investors are losing their appetite for US multinationals amid mounting worries that the weak dollar and growth in the rest of the world will fail to offset a slowing domestic economy.

The market’s lack of enthusiasm for companies that had underpinned recent rallies highlights growing pessimism over the prospect that exports and global trade would help large US companies weather a slowdown in their home market.

With US-focused sectors such as financial services and consumer products reeling from the housing downturn and credit squeeze, the new concerns over multinationals are forcing analysts to further downgrade their earnings forecasts.

In the first six months of the year, corporate America’s foreign profits rose at an annual rate of 15 per cent, outpacing domestic earnings growth and prompting investors to buy into multinationals as a hedge against a US slowdown.

But over the past month shares of international companies such as General Electric, 3M, UPS, Exxon Mobil and Intel have suffered some of the biggest losses among large-cap companies.

“Large-cap US multinationals, the darlings of the investment world for most of this year, have been roughed up over the past few weeks. More trouble lies ahead,” wrote Joseph Quinlan, chief investment strategist at Bank of America, in a note to clients this week. “US corporate earnings, supported earlier by strong global growth and a weak US dollar, succumbed to . . . deteriorating economic conditions at home”.

Investors blame disappointing earnings and forecasts from large companies such as the heavy equipment maker Caterpillar, the logistics giant FedEx, and the technology group Cisco, for the change in sentiment.

The results dashed hopes that overseas earnings might help companies compensate for falling consumer confidence and business spending in the US – a key reason for investor flight to multinationals earlier this year.

Wall Street expects earnings of S&P 500 companies to have risen just 3.1 per cent in the last three months of 2007, according to Bespoke Investment Group.

At the start of October, analysts were expecting fourth quarter earnings to increase more than 11 per cent, according to Thomson Financial.

Some economists argue that the prospects of an export-led recovery in the US were always remote given the domestic economy’s reliance on consumer spending.

Barron's has a recent article on Barclays by Arindam Nag. The article talks about the reasons Barclays looks like an attractive buy at current prices. Barclays Heads for Recovery

IT'S TOO EARLY TO PRONOUNCE Barclays' stock cheap, but at roughly seven times forward earnings, it looks attractive. Shares of the British bank (ticker: BCS) have fallen more than 30% since August, when the subprime-debt crisis gained momentum. That, despite it being widely known that Barclays wasn't going to overpay for the Dutch bank ABN Amro.

The bearish mood could be justified a few weeks ago. After all, Barclays Capital went on a hiring binge a few years ago, scooping up credit bankers until it became the sixth-largest credit player in the world. Credit products accounted for more than 1 billion British pounds in revenue (about $2.07 billion) in the first half of 2007.

In a disclosure Wednesday, Barclays Capital announced a write-down of £1.7 billion and a fair-value gain of £400 million on its debt, making for a net write-down of £1.3 billion. Its peers have suffered more. "BarCap" also reported profit before taxes of £1.9 billion for 2007's first 10 months, which is ahead of last year. But remember, it had a record £1.66 billion profit in the first six months. If you strip out the fair-value profits on its debt, it had a loss in the four months through October.

In October, Barclays wrote down to zero all collateralized debt obligations, or CDOs, related to residential-mortgage-backed securities. It wrote down the related subprime mortgages by 50%. It has also written down some mezzanine transactions in advance of 2008, even though BarCap's share of mezzanine has been lower than, say, UBS's.

THERE ARE A FEW AREAS that could still see hits. One is the bank's £10 billion exposure to the commercial-mortgage-backed-securities market, about 40% of which is in the U.S.

In the leveraged-finance arena, Barclays has £7.3 billion of unsold underwriting positions. Unlike its U.S. peers, BarCap doesn't mark to market these loans but uses its own analysis. It has written down £190 million so far.

One worry will be the slowdown in revenue from credit products, which were responsible for nearly £1.2 billion in the first six months of this year.

The bank is due to come out with its detailed trading statement later this year. As long as its capital-adequacy ratios remain intact, Barclays may be up for a re-rating.

The Div Guy owns shares of BCS at the time of this post.

I have been working as a volunteer race director for a local marathon and have not had time to write until today.

I made some additional dividend stock purchases just before the close of the market on Monday. The purchases were made in my Zecco account for free.

I purchased shares of Colonial Properties Trust (CLP) . Colonial Properties is a multifamily-focused real estate investment trust (REIT) that creates additional value for its shareholders by managing commercial assets through joint venture partnerships.

Also purchased shares of Barclays (BCS). Barclays is a global financial services provider engaged in retail and commercial banking, credit cards, investment banking, wealth management and investment management services.

And purchased shares of Aircastle Limited (AYR). Aircastle is a global company that acquires and leases commercial jet aircraft to passenger and cargo airlines throughout the world. The company’s aircraft portfolio consisted of 69 aircraft that were leased to 32 lessees located in 23 countries and managed through its offices in the United States, Ireland and Singapore.

The Div Guy owns shares of CLP, BCS and AYR at the time of this post.

MarketWatch has an article about shorting Chinese and other foreign markets. There has been much talk about a Chinese Stock Market bubble and now there is an ETF that shorts the Chinese market. There are also a few other new ETF's that short other markets as well. ProShares funds short booming Chinese stocks, other emerging markets

Investors who believe that China's soaring stock market is due for crash now have a new tool to put their money where their mouth is.

Exchange-traded fund manager ProShares last week launched the first ETFs geared to short international-stock indexes, including a fund that seeks to deliver twice the inverse, or opposite, daily return of Chinese stocks.

UltraShort FTSE/Xinhua China 25 ProShare (FXP) , which shorts Chinese stocks, is generating plenty of buzz.

"With the FTSE/Xinhua China 25 Index appreciating by nearly 600% in the last five years, there is a great deal of talk of a potential for a 'China bubble,'" said ProShares Chief Executive Michael Sapir.

The new ETF "can be used by investors to protect a portfolio with China exposure from losses or to pursue gains from a falling Chinese market," he added.

Investors who sell stocks short are betting on a market decline since they stand to profit from lower prices, or they want to hedge an existing investment.

In the case of declines across developed international markets, the firm offers Short MSCI EAFE ProShare (EFZ) , which is set up to provide daily returns equal to the inverse of the daily performance of the MSCI EAFE Index, a common yardstick for international developed market stocks, minus fees.

Meanwhile, a leveraged version, UltraShort MSCI EAFE ProShare (EFU) , has an objective of delivering two times, or twice, the opposite return of the index. For example, if the MSCI EAFE lost 1% during the trading day, the ETF aims to produce a positive 2% return. If the index gains ground, the ETF should post a comparable loss.

ProShares also listed a pair of ETFs for shorting emerging markets stocks: Short MSCI Emerging Markets ProShare (EUM) and the leveraged UltraShort MSCI Emerging Markets ProShare (EEV) .

In addition, the firm introduced a leveraged ETF specifically for shorting Japan's market: UltraShort MSCI Japan ProShare (EWV) .

The Div Guy does not own any of the about ETF's at the time of this post.

David Callaway from Market Watch has a good article on what to make of all the panic in the market currently. As panic spreads, opportunity beckons

As panic spreads, opportunity beckons
Commentary: Subprime scare not over, but perhaps overdone

Oil near $100 a barrel, the dollar in free fall, banks facing solvency speculation, chaos in Pakistan, and a continuing housing crisis that threatens a recession early next year.

Happy holidays.

While the news cycle, for some reason, does traditionally turn bleaker during the holidays -- perhaps just in contrast with all that good cheer -- this year's parade of woe seems to be even scarier then usual, at least as far as Wall Street is concerned.

The subprime crisis has blossomed into the first full-scale banking crisis in a generation, and it likely has a long way to run. But the panic in financial stocks this week, now spreading to the rest of the U.S. stock market, could be well overextended in relation to the punishment that these banks and mortgage lenders actually face.

Shares of financial stocks are down almost 20% so far this year on the whole, with shares of big investment banks like Merrill Lynch & Co. (MER), Lehman Brothers (LEH), Morgan Stanley (MS) , and Bear Stearns Cos. (BSC) taking a particularly brutal beating. And that's not to mention the big mortgage lenders like Washington Mutual Inc. (WM) and Countrywide Financial Corp. (CFC) both have been cut in half in the last six months. The list goes on.

So far the larger market has pretty much ignored the debacle, fooling itself each week into thinking it's seen the worst. For every down day of 300 or so points on the Dow Jones Industrial Average, there are one or two up days of 100 points or more. The result is that the Dow is still only a short distance from its all-time high above 14,000, while the S&P 500 Index and the Nasdaq Composite also both maintain solid year-to-date gains.

There are signs that this resilience is starting to crack, and that could lead to a few more days, or even weeks, of the type of panic selling we saw at the start of trading Wednesday. But smart investors know that swings in the stock markets are almost always exaggerated. So when we finally do hit the bottom for financial stocks -- whenever and wherever that might be -- the subsequent snapback will present one of 2008's best money-making opportunities.

By the way, don't feel particularly sad for those poor souls on Wall Street who might see their bonuses cut this year. Estimates are that bonuses could be cut by 15% to 20%. So, say you're in line for a $1 million bonus; you get just $800,000. Ouch, that hurts!

What these stories only touch on, though, is that a lot of these bonuses will be paid in stock, or stock options. That will save the investment banks cash. With their stocks depressed, however, the recipients of the options and shares stand to benefit greatly when the market comes back, as it always does on Wall Street.

It was a mere four or five months ago that the financial firms were toasting one of their best years ever, as private-equity deals lit up the streets from London to Shanghai to New York. Now it's the end of the world.

The Div Guy does not own shares MER, LEH, BSC, MS, WM or CFC at the time of this post

Roger Nusbaum has a write up on a new ETF that holds dividend paying small cap emerging market stocks. The ETF is called The WisdomTree Emerging Markets SmallCap Dividend Index (DGS) and it is a weighted index that measures the performance of primarily small cap stocks selected from the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Dividend Index. Companies included in the Index are in the bottom 10% of total market capitalization of the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Dividend Index as of the annual index measurement date. Companies are weighted in the Index based on annual cash dividends paid.

This is a fund that will give your portfolio some addition diversification within the emerging markets segment. I am cautious of the emerging markets at this time but I will keep this fund in mind. A New Way to Get In On Small Foreign Stocks

Diversifying across many different asset classes, regardless of whether you use individual stocks or funds, offers several benefits including two, for me, very big ones. The first benefit is obvious: You are spreading risk, which, if done properly, can reduce the impact of a meltdown.

The other benefit, and this one gets a little less attention, is that you do not have to be as correct in your analysis and portfolio construction. With proper diversification you will own the part of the market that is the best performing, even if you are wrong about what you expect the top performer to be.

The exchange-traded fund industry has opened a lot of doors in this regard, offering do-it-yourselfers who might not be comfortable picking stocks access to some of the more remote asset classes. WisdomTree opened another door this week with its WisdomTree Emerging Market Small-Cap Dividend Fund, the first emerging-market small-cap ETF.

The fund, country-wise, is heaviest in Taiwan at 22.97%, South Africa at 14.00%, South Korea at 12.52%, Thailand at 11.16% and Malaysia at 10.89%. You probably notice the tilt to Asia. In fact almost 64% is in Asia, 23.24% is in Africa and the Middle East, 7.88% in Latin America and 4.92% in Eastern Europe.

Sector-wise the fund allocates 26.06% to industrials, 17.55% to consumer discretionary, 13.83% to financials, 12.12% to materials and then the allocations get smaller from there.

The Div Guy does not own shares of DGS at the time of this post.

Here is an article by Thomas Anderson from Kiplinger.com with stock recommendations for a declining dollar. His picks are solid dividend stocks that could be core stocks in a dividend portfolio. Three Stocks for a Declining Dollar

Here are three stocks of companies with hefty foreign sales that should continue to do well as the dollar declines.

IBM does a majority of its business outside the U.S. The red-hot economies of Brazil, Russia, India and China make up about 5% of IBM's total revenue of $96.2 billion, says American Technology Research analyst Shaw Wu, but sales in those countries are growing by 25% a year. "IBM will continue to benefit from hyper-growth" in so-called BRIC countries, he says.

Wu expects Big Blue to generate growing sales and profits as customers from across the globe upgrade their servers to buy IBM's new processors. The stock (symbol IBM) fell 23 cents, to $113.17, on November 6. The shares trade at 14 times the $7.98 per share that analysts expect IBM to earn in 2008, according to Thomson Financial. Wu rates the stock a "buy" and thinks it is worth $150.

Favorable exchange rates also have contributed mightily to sales growth at Johnson & Johnson. In the third quarter, J&J posted year-over-year sales growth of 13%, with 3 percentage points of that growth coming just from foreign currency benefits, says Morningstar analyst Heather Brilliant.

International sales account for 47% of the $58.8 billion in total revenue over past 12 months. About 70% of J&J's products are first or second in their respective markets worldwide, Brilliant says.

In addition to a strong overseas presence, the company has increased its dividend every year for the past 44 years. At the November 6 closing price of $64.66, the stock (JNJ) yields 2.6%.

It trades at 15 times the $4.42 per share that analysts expect the company to earn in 2008. That means that J&J's price-earnings ratio is roughly the same as the overall market's, a rare occurrence for a company of such high quality. Brilliant gives J&J stock a five-star rating and the thinks shares are worth $80.

DuPont is also buoyed by its foreign operations. "Healthy international sales have more than offset weakness in the domestic housing and automotive markets," says Value Line analyst Michael Napoli. Even as sales dropped 1% in the U.S. over the past year, sales in Europe gained 11% and sales in the Asia Pacific region rose 7%. Meanwhile, sales in Canada and Latin American soared 22%.

George Putnam, editor of The Turnaround Letter, a newsletter with a superb record of stock picking since 1986, notes that many DuPont products are used in agricultural, alternative energy and food-packaging industries. "DuPont has a stodgy image as a large chemical company, but in fact it has a very diversified product base," he says.

DuPont stock (DD) scores high marks for safety and has a worthwhile total return potential for the coming years, Napoli says. At the November 6 closing price of $48.38, the stock yields 3.4%. It trades at 14 times the $3.43 per share that analysts expect the company to earn in 2008.

The Div Guy owns shares of JNJ at the time of this post.

Is it wrong to want the market to go down? I made a small purchase of Colonial Properties (CLP) on Friday in my Zecco account and was hoping to add to it this week on the next market drop. Today I purchased shares of CLP, HRPT Properties Trust (HRP), Deutsche Bank AG (DB) and Barclays PLC (BCS).

I am moving more cash to Zecco so I can be ready again. I do make four regular stock purchases every month but I have been making additional purchases on some financial and REIT's that have dropped to low levels.

The Div Guy owns shares CLP, HRP, DB and BCS at the time of this post.

Someone else besides me is looking at bank stocks as a buying opportunity. Jennifer Openshaw of MarketWatch has an article about four regional bank stocks that may be a bargain. I have looked at some regional banks in the past but have not made an investment. I took a look at Regions Financial a few months back but have not made any purchases yet. I have been sticking with large money center banks. Bargains in the financial district

So I think this sell-off may be a bit overdone, and would start watching banks for an entry point. Not every bank, mind you, and certainly not every financial-services firm. Big money center or investment banks such as Bear Stearns or Citigroup are a little deeper in the weeds than others, with mortgage securitizations and big loans to private-equity firms and hedge funds. See what value-fund managers think.

Regional approach But I like regional banks. Regional banks serve the needs of smaller businesses and households and do straightforward stuff like credit cards and safe deposit boxes. Interest rates are steady and they're boosting revenue from fees and services while reducing costs by merging, co-locating and reducing unnecessary infrastructure. Here are a four to consider:

Huntington Bancshares. OK, this regional bank (HBAN) is headquartered in Ohio and does business in Rust Belt states where loan defaults have been unusually high. But I'm guessing lending practices are less out of control than in some coastal areas, and that they understand their markets. A 6.2% dividend and a forward P/E under 10 look attractive. The stock closed at $16.45 Monday. Cincinnati's Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) also fits the category but has more exposure to Florida real estate.

Umpqua Holdings. If you aren't sold on the Rust Belt, how about the relatively prosperous Pacific Northwest? This diverse Portland-based bank (UMPQ) closed Monday at $15.16, just above its annual low, and pays 4.5% with a P/E under 12 and has a large market share in the communities it serves.

Wachovia. A bit more of a "money center" bank (WB) , but still like its attractive product mix, brand, and mostly regional focus. And I like its 5.7% dividend, P/E under 10, and price nearly 30% off the 2007 high.

Regions Financial. Doing a diverse business in 16 mostly Southern states, RF (RF) has a 5.7% dividend, a forward P/E under 10, and is 30% off the annual high. Recent acquisitions will improve cost structure, and it is already one of the most profitable banks in the industry.

So I know that for some, blood on the streets means "stay away." But I'm not sure the "blood" is from these regional banks; my guess is they'll come out just fine.

And remember, most companies consider cutting a dividend as a last resort and a bad move. That, a 15% federal tax cap on qualified dividends, and potential price appreciation make these names attractive.

The Div Guy does not own any of the stocks in this post at the time of the post.

I started purchasing Colonial Properties on Friday and I hope to add to my position if the markets go down some more this week. This is a stock I purchased in February 2005 at prices between $36 and $37 a share. I sold the stock in September 2006 at prices between $47 and $49 a share for some nice gains. I think the REIT market has taken some big hits this year and now is a good time to revisit Colonial Properties (CLP).


Company Profile Colonial Properties Trust is a multifamily-focused real estate investment trust (REIT) that creates additional value for its shareholders by managing commercial assets through joint venture partnerships and aggressively pursuing development opportunities. As of September 30, 2007, the company owned or managed 38,030 apartment units, 16.3 million square feet of office space and 7.6 million square feet of retail shopping space located in key Sunbelt states from Virginia to California. Headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., Colonial Properties is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol CLP and is included in the S&P SmallCap 600 Index. Colonial Properties Website


Management Objectives and Prospects Management is now shifting it's focus from retail and commercial development to the multifamily sector. During the third quarter of 2007, CLP sold investments in retail properties, largely completing its transition to a multi-family REIT. Strong demographic trends in its Sunbelt markets should help support expansion of CLP's $405 million residential development pipeline. Residential rental properties should post solid results in 2008, expanding operating income about 4% following a 5% gain in 2007. The recent sale of retail and office assets has improved the capital structure of CLP.

Conclusion I believe CLP is a BUY and start to rebound as real estate markets will start to bottom out in 2008 and slowly start to improve in 2009. I plan to purchase more shares of CLP over the next few months and collect dividend payments of around 7%. This is not a recommendation to purchase the stock and I am not a financial adviser. Risks to my view include economic weakness in CLP's southern markets as well as a general recession. Also the company may have to lower the dividend again if they have to write off more costs associated with their ongoing disposition program.

The Div Guy owns shares of CLP

I have been using Zecco for eight months now and I can't figure out why people would not want to trade for free. Here is an updated review of Zecco. If you are interested in learning more about Zecco after you read my review click on the referral ad to the right. I only recommend Zecco because it is a product I use and why not save money on your stock trades.

About Zecco is an online broker started on July 4, 2006 that offers free stock trades and low cost option trading. Zecco says it will make money from interest income and margin spreads, as well as by charging a low fee for options trades. Zecco also hopes to attract advertisers to its financial portal site. I have been using Zecco Trading for eight months and here is a review of my experience with Zecco.com.

Cost I have made 64 stock trades since I have opened my account with Zecco and I have paid zero in commission. I have made 62 buys and 2 sells. I did pay $.06 in fees associated with the sell orders. Comparing the Zecco account with my Scottrade account, I have saved $448! There are no account fees for regular accounts but there is an annual charge of $30 for IRA accounts. You get 10 free trades a month with a minimum net account account equity of $2,500 and after that you are charged $4.50 per trade. There is no minimum amount required to set up a cash account and $2,000 is required to set up a margin account. Online options trades cost $4.50 plus $.50 per contract with no minimums and online mutual fund trades are $10. Here is a link to all Zecco fees.

Flexibility I love the ability to make small purchases to help create a well diversified portfolio with a limited amount of assets. I can use dividends from a couple of my large stocks to make purchases into new holdings, again allowing me to diversify my portfolio at no cost.

Ease of use You can now open an account online through a very streamlined process compared to the paper process I went through. Once you are logged into the Trading Center there is a simple to use Stock Order Entry. You enter the stock symbol, buy or sell and the number of shares. It also allows limit orders on this same entry form. Trades are processed very quickly and I have not noticed any difference in execution versus Scottrade.

Trading Tools There are limited trading tools to help with additional financial analysis of stocks. Zecco does offer Motley Fools stock rating “CAPS”.

Customer Service The customer service I have received has been very good. You can contact customer service via email or phone. I had a question on my account when I first opened the account which I submitted via email that was answered the next day. I also transferred stocks from Scottrade via ACAT and the process was very smooth and took about two weeks. I also enjoy the ability to process online ACH bank transfers to and from my Zecco account. Scottrade does not offer ACH transfers out of your account. I recently had a problem with my cash balance not updating but I called Zecco and it was updated the next day.

Community Zecco offers a program called Share which is in beta testing. Zecco Share is a secure area where Zecco account holders can share trade history, make blog posts and write comments to other users. If you are a Zecco member, you can follow my trades under my user name ZEEMAN.

Overall I have to say I have been very pleased with my Zecco account and would recommend Zecco to anyone who wants to save money on stock trades. If you are skeptical, open an account and purchase as little as one share to see how it works. Give Zecco a try if you're a novice investor or a seasoned investor. You can't beat free stock trades!

I know I sound like a broken record but I bought more bank stocks today. Analysts downgraded Citigroup and there are fears they may have to cut their dividend. This sent bank stocks down across the world. I enjoy purchasing financial stocks while the market is in panic mode. We may see some more drops in the future, so look for more buying opportunities ahead.

I purchased additional shares of Barclay's (BCS) and Deutsche Bank (DB). Both stocks have dividend yields over 4.5%. I am also looking at adding to Bank of America (BAC) and US Bancorp (USB).

The Div Guy owns shares of BCS, DB, BAC and USB at the time of this post.

As of the end of October our Net Worth increased from $809,974 to $827,436. The breakout is as follows:

Retirement Accounts $423,287
Taxable Accounts $109,543
Cash $70,106
Home $205,000
Cars $16,000
Personal Property $3,500

I again made a few purchases when the stock market was down. We paid for our new Dell computer this month. The markets increased for the month, resulting in a gain in net worth for the month. I am also going to use some of the cash to fully fund our Roth IRA's for 2008 and 2009. I decreased the value of our cars. Again, we have no debt at this time.

The Dividend Income increased from $6,437 to $6,570. The increase was from additional purchases as well as a dividend increase from some of my stocks. The dividends are reinvested but I am keeping track of the amount of income I could receive.

Sorry for the infrequent posts the past month but this is the busy time of year at work and I am a race director for a local marathon that will take place on 11/18/07.