The Only Guide to Alternative Investments You'll Ever Need - (Bloomberg) by Larry E Swedroe & Jared Kizer (Hardcover)

About the Book

In the third book in the popular The Only Guide You'll Ever Need series, the authors detail 20 alternative investments, explaining which to consider seriously during times of uncertainty--and which to avoid entirely.

Book Synopsis

The rewards of carefully chosen alternative investments can be great. But many investors don't know enough about unfamiliar investments to make wise choices. For that reason, financial advisers Larry Swedroe and Jared Kizer designed this book to bring investors up to speed on the twenty most popular alternative investments:

Real estate, Inflation-protected securities, Commodities, International equities, Fixed annuities, Stable-value funds, High-yield (junk) bonds, Private equity (venture capital), Covered calls, Socially responsible mutual funds, Precious metals equities, Preferred stocks, Convertible bonds, Emerging market bonds, Hedge funds, Leveraged buyouts, Variable annuities, Equity-indexed annuities, Structured investment products, Leveraged funds

The authors describe how the investments work, the pros and cons of each, which to consider, which to avoid, and how to get started. Swedroe and Kizer evaluate each investment in terms of:

• Expected returns
• Volatility
• Distribution of returns
• Diversification potential
• Fees
• Trading and operating expenses
• Liquidity
• Tax efficiency
• Account location
• Role in an asset-allocation program

Any investor who is considering or just curious about investment opportunities outside the traditional world of stocks, bonds, and bank certificates of deposit would be well-advised to read this book.

From the Back Cover

Expand Your Investment Horizons

The Only Guide to Alternative Investments You'll Ever Need

There is a whole world of investments beyond traditional stocks, bonds, and bank certificates of deposit.

Financial advisers Larry Swedroe and Jared Kizer have chosen twenty popular alternative investments and provided a comprehensive description of each. They explain the nature of the investment and assess whether or not it combines well with the other assets in your portfolio. Swedroe and Kizer evaluate each type of investment in terms of:

• Expected returnsp>
• Volatility
• Distribution of returns
• Diversification potential
• Fees
• Trading and operating expenses

This book is a valuable resource for investors who are ready to consider expanding their portfolio beyond traditional investments.

"What a great service this book is to the investing community! As investors reach out for higher returns, many will venture into the higher-risk category known as alternative investments. For those who are so tempted, this book provides an invaluable guide."
--EDWARD R. WOLFE, PHD, Professor of Finance and Director of the Financial Planning Program Western Kentucky University

Formerly an investment adviser for Buckingham Asset Management, LLC, Jared Kizer, CFA, works for an institutional money-management firm. His articles on investing have appeared in the Journal of Portfolio Management, Journal of Indexes, and on indexuniverse.com. He received his master's in finance from Washington University. He lives in St. Louis.

Review Quotes

"A timely and valuable book. These are good-sense judgments that every investor should pay attention to."

"A major success of [this book] is its demonstration of how to obtain the purported benefits of nontraditional asset classes more cost-effectively through adjustments to the reliable old stock-bond- cash allocation." -- Martin Fridson "The Investment Professional"

"There is plenty of good information in this book for sophisticated investors to consider. The authors make this information accessible to novices as well by explaining everything in plain language, including a long glossary that demystifies the terms used in the book, annotating their text with the sources of their research and offering a reading list for serious investors' (even though they believe there should be no other kind')." -- Hazel Becker "www.nuwireinvestor.com"

About the Author

Larry E. Swedroe is a principal and the director of research for Buckingham Asset Management, LLC (www.bamservices.com). He is the author of several books, including Wise Investing Made Simple and The Only Guide to a Winning Investment Strategy You'll Ever Need, and coauthor of The Only Guide to a Winning Bond Strategy You'll Ever Need. Swedroe received his MBA in finance from New York University. He lives in St. Louis.