Falcon Academy

Archive for November, 2009

The most important part of how to make money using the no stop, hedged, Forex trading strategy will now be covered. In the preceding articles in this series we reviewed trading without stops, not being concerned about which way the price moves and places to cash in on profitable transactions. We are now going to show how you would make money buying and selling simultaneously using the grid strategy.

The no stop, hedged currency trading grid system uses the rule that one should be able to close a transaction at a gain no matter which way the market moves. The only way this is logically possible is that one would have a buy and a sell transaction active simultaneously. Most traders will say that doing this is not recommended but let’s look at this in more detail.

Assuming a grid with grid gaps of 100 pips. We are going to use the simplest formation to show the principles involved. This formation is the 100% retractment formation where the price goes up to a grid level and then returns back to the starting grid level. Regrettably things become quite mathematical from here. We are also ignoring broker spreads to keep things simple.

Let us say that a trader enters the market with a buy (buy 1) and sell (sell 1) deal active when a currency is at a level of say 1.0100. The price then goes to level 1.0200. The buy will then be positive by 100 pips. The sell will be negative by 100 pips. Now we would cash in our positive deal and bank our 100 pips. The sell is now however is carrying a loss of -100 pips. The grid system requires one to ensure that the trader can cash in on any movement in the Forex market. To do this one would again enter into a buy (buy 2) and a sell (sell 2) deal at this level (level 1.0200).

Now, for convenience let us say that the price moves back to level 1.0100 (the starting point).

The second sell (sell 2) has now gone positive by 100 pips and the second buy (buy 2) is making a loss of -100 pips. According to the grid trading rules you would cash the sell (sell 2) in and another 100 pips will be added to your account. That brings the grand total cashed in at this point to 200 pips (buy 1 and sell 2). At this stage the first sell that is active has moved from level 1.0200 where it was -100 to level 1.0100 where it is now breaking even.

The 4 transactions added together now incredibly show a gain:- 1st buy (buy 1) cashed in +100, 2nd sell (sell 2) cashed in +100, 1st sell (sell 1) now breaking even and the 2nd buy (buy 2) is -100. This gives an overall a gain of 100 pips in total. We can liquidate all the deals and have some champagne as we have made a profit of 100 pips.

Please make sure you understand the mathematics behind the activities discussed above. You may have to reread and draw the movements on a piece of paper to make sure you understand the concept.

This formation is the 100% retracement formation where the price goes up to a grid level and then returns back to the starting grid level and results in a nice profit for the forex trader. There are many other market movements that turn this strange Buy and Sell at the same time activity into profits. The next article will cover the 50% retractment formation which produces the same amount of profit.

There will be much more on the no stop, hedged grid trading system in future articles in this directory. Do not miss them, whatever you do.

Are you still renting a home or apartment for yourself or your family?

If so, you’re losing money. Think about these three ways you lose money by renting:

1. You’re paying for someone else’s mortgage payment. You’re missing out on the appreciation that the property gives to the landlord. Appreciation is a term used in accounting relating to the increase in value of an asset, which means in real estate terms, added value to the property. Over the past five years, houses appreciated significantly, making many new real estate investor multimillionaires.

2. Tenants don’t get to freeze their monthly housing expenses like home buyers can. Of course, many home buyers get mortgage payments with adjustable interest rates and their payments go up over time. However, these payments will not go up over the long term like rising rents. Just think about how much an apartment costs today compared to ten years ago. A two bedroom apartment in Lake Elsinore, California leases for $1,000 today. The exact same apartment rented for $325 in 1996, when it was brand new. Home buyers who had low monthly payments in 1996, who did not refinance their mortgage, enjoy low payments and don’t have to worry about rising rents.

3. Renters don’t benefit from tax advantages. Home owners get income tax deductions. Tax deductions for interest costs, for instance, save tax payers thousands of dollars.

Emotional Satisfaction of Home Ownership

Besides losing out on making money with real estate, renters don’t get the same satisfaction of home enjoyment that benefits home buyers. Many landlords won’t allow you to paint your walls in colors that you desire. Also, you won’t feel like fixing up the property with custom window coverings and you get little say in flooring materials. Because you can’t make your personal statement, you won’t feel like you’re HOME as much as home owners who feel emotionally connected to their property.

How to Buy Your First Home

The biggest barrier to home ownership is often accumulating funds for a down payment. People think they have to have thousands of dollars for a down payment. However, if you have good credit and a decent job, you can get a mortgage for a home with zero down. And you can finance some of your closing costs as well as ask the seller to help you pay a good portion of your purchase costs. With today’s mortgage finance plans, you may be surprised to find out how much of a home you can afford with payments similar to what you currently pay in rent.

You may have to go out of the major metropolitan areas to buy a home. That’s why so many people commute in Southern California. Affordable housing costs much less in outlying areas. But so do the rents. If you’re renting an apartment for $2,300 in Los Angeles, you could buy a $500,000 home in Wildomar. Our daughter just purchased a home in December 2005 and her mortgage payment, for a 3,000 square foot new home, costs less than $2,300. With her tax savings, she will pay even less than renting a small apartment closer to downtown L A.

If these amounts sound high to you, check your local area. Perhaps your monthly rent is only $1,000 and houses cost less than $200,000. Talk to a mortgage loan officer and see how much of a home you can afford.

If you’re renting, make one of your priorities to buy your own home.