Investment Definitions

First off, let me tell you what a vested balance is not. It isn't coordinating an outfit so that a vest and shoulder pads are balanced and symmetrical. It also isn't a phase of my life during middle school in which vests made up a large balance of my wardrobe (come on, it was the late '80s!). In fact, as disappointing as it might sound, a vested balance really has nothing to do at all with any kind of a vest that you wear (insert disappointed sigh here).

Simply Put: Vesting Defined

There's a lot of talk in the financial sector about the notion of a bond bubble, but there's no real concrete, simple, or exact definition about this phenomenon. If you like reading things that go along with the "The sky is falling!" mentality, there is an abundant amount of material out there to sift through. Looking for a simple explanation? You've come to the right place!

First Things First: A Bond

When I first began researching finance and investments, the many finance websites I encountered beckoned me to "Buy Stocks Now!" through flashy advertisements. These banner, flash media and pop up advertisements sure were pretty, but they didn't explain what I was getting into. I needed a crash course in investments, not a pretty banner ad. So I took the time to figure it out on my own, and I would like to share what I found.

The Five Main Investment Options

As we discussed in our Mutual Funds post, when you invest in a standard mutual fund, the stocks are diversified in a nice, safe manner. Hopefully, you can ride them out and gain lots of money along the way. Retirement will be sunny and warm, and your heartbeat won’t flutter out the window every time the market shifts.