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Why "Follow-Through"

2010-01-05T16:44:00.000-08:00

Is Imperative For Your Market Position

Endurance is counted as a high merit in great accomplishments, especially in forex market. Great men frequently advise to be consistent in big changes of market tendencies and "Follow Through" in breakthroughs.

If you have made a price change one day and you get success out of it then you should continue your endeavors in the same route in coming days and this trading movement is called the "Follow Through".

But this kind of breakthrough is not that much simple. Market does not accept big changes frequently. It goes back over those trends present previously in the trade and at the end of the day when all is going to end, forex prices repeat the same trend seen some days before.

Nobody is a faultless and ideal merchant. All the brokers and traders constantly discover a lot about the trading and aim not to repeat their past mistakes and blunders. I can give you many instances about my learning and it all happens when you don't show patience and consistency. When you don't wait and take a great step thinking it would be a huge success, but it is not all what we think.

I was planning about the corn market and had a keen eye on it for a long time. I was waiting and hanging around for the market to show a big change in a persistent downside trend of the prices and counteract it. One day there appeared a little upside move in the corn price but was not near to counteract it. I was out of my workplace for coming days and was unable to meet my broker or the info about the rates. I made a call to my dealer and ordered corn for a buy-stop at a price which was much higher than the downside trend. It did so because I thought if it worked, it would be a very tough change in the price to counteract the constant downside trend and it will indicate an uphill breakthrough in the every day price bar map. That day I had some jinx and blip in my mind which was disapproving my decision and asking me to take time and "follow through" the price tendency to make the price break sure. Next morning the corn's price inclination was high enough to strike my end and made me "in" the market. But it was not for a long time. Corn rates again overturned and threw my corn prices out soon.

The perception after observation is always true. But this mistake taught me the significance of patience and consistency to give the market enough time to indicate follow through movement to make a prospective trading arrangement sure. But a dealer also has some risk of absence and getting advantage of a big price change if he keeps on waiting. But it is more sensible to be cautious and wait for the market to verify the follow through movements in the coming days.

Sometimes market shows a relaxing session in the price movement and then verifies the great changes in the coming days. But mostly the follow through movement is going to come in the next session if expected.

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Forex Signals an Options

2010-01-05T16:42:00.000-08:00

Forex Signals an Options

Aside from signals, you can aid an extra equally helpful instrument in forex trading. Options can mean a world of difference as used wisely.

What is an option? In effect, an option is an agreement or contract so as to gives power to trade currency at a pre-determined exact price. It is called such since this power is optional- the holder of the contract is not forced to use it.

In the forex market, there exist two kinds of options:

1. Call Options Call options gives the power to buy currency at a given price. It increases in significance when the underlying stock goes up. In a nutshell, what you need to do is to purchase call options on a stock when you predict its value is about to go up.

2. Set Options Set options, on the other hand, is the power to sell the currency to someone else at a pre-determined price. You buy Set options if in your prediction, the stock of that currency is almost to go down.

Here is the point: you buy or sell the stock to turn into a profit by buying the options and then selling them in turn those options to someone else for a profit.

By the outcome of the contract, the price of those options will be what is indicated in that contract. Other than that, anytime the value of that option is the value in the current market, where the holder has deemed that he would be making a profit. He has foreseen that his call options would move up and/or his put options will move down.

It could seem complicated at first, but it will all make sense once you get the principle. Remember that call options move up and put options move down.

Currently add the theory of leveraging to the perception of options and the possibilities of profit would be staggering. Leveraging is the opportunity to borrow your broker's assets to trade for currency. So in effect, if you can buy put options at the right time, and sell them at the exact time, your profits would greater.

Companies furthermore use options to decrease the risk in forex trades. Think of it, you can buy without being bound by the rules of the current fluctuation in the market. It just adds a new dimension to forex trading. Whether the underlying stock moves up or down, there is possibility for profit. Add to that the power of leveraging, and then we can make added profit. This only works if we can accurately call the activities of the currency stocks in mind.

And this is simply the tip of the iceberg. The thought gets more complicated as we figure the intrinsic standards of the stocks and how companies aid options to shield themselves from risks. However, the basic principle remains the same: by trading options instead of stock, superior returns are achievable. On the other side, leveraging can also put you in a big hazard.

This is why you have to have a sound forex trading strategy first, and you are sure enough to call the movement of the stock values. When you are ready, then the possibilities of enormous profits will all open for you. Learn more about options and the flow of forex trading; they will be your prime weapons to attain market triumph.

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7 Top Tips

2010-01-05T16:38:00.000-08:00

To Avoid Forex Swindles

Remember the old saying - "You can't cheat an honest man"? When you want to avoid Forex scams, this is very good advice. The Forex market is much like an ocean filled with whirlpools, undertows, sharks and other hazards. These things don't have to be a danger to you, however, if you learn some simple safety measures. And one guiding principle is that it's hard to scam you if you're not trying to get something for nothing - in other words, staying realistic and honest.

Yes, it can seem like everyone is out to make as much money from you as possible, with as little effort as possible, and there certainly are those individuals around. But with the following 7 tips, you'll be prepared to keep yourself and your money safe. Here's how to avoid Forex scams.

1. Be informed and stay aware
Since it's your money, it's your responsibility to know the ins and outs of Forex trading, including the most common scams now going the rounds. You wouldn't blindly hand over your money to someone who walks up to you in the street and says he's going to make you rich... would you? No, you'd instantly have all sorts of alarm bells going off in your brain. You'd at the very least ask for ID, references and qualifications. So keep your antenna out and your awareness up.

2. Remember what Grandma told you
Didn't she say: â€œIf it seems too good to be true, then it probably is. This has always been a good first rule of thumb for gauging "offers" that come seeking you out. And it will be a good rule for many years to come, so use it. Don't let some sweet talker con you into handing over your hard-earned money. Sometimes a broker may try to convince you he's going to help you turn your money into an enormous bundle almost overnight by using their services. A good question to ask is "Really? Why? And why me?"

3. Listen to your gut feelings
If you get a sneaking hunch that someone may be trying to take advantage of you, then don't hand over your money. Period. Always run checks on anyone you're thinking of dealing with. Simply contact the consumer affairs authorities in your country or get in touch with the registry for brokers and dealers in your own currency exchange market. Be sure you know which company the person works for and contact them to double check what you've been told.

It's your money, and it's your responsibility to keep it safe, no matter what a nice guy that salesman seems.

4. Don't allow yourself to be pressured
There's no rush. Never, never forget that the "deal of a lifetime" comes along about once every two weeks, so never let yourself be hurried into leaping now. The faster a broker wants to part you from your money, the more risk there is that he's got an ulterior motive - your money. Don't listen to stories about â€˜the next big thing in Forex trading. If he starts telling you that this is an opportunity to make huge profits but that you've absolutely got to act now or you'll lose it forever, just slow down. Another good deal will come along in a couple of weeks - count on it. Refuse to go along with any time frame that would throw you in over your head. You'll soon see if the broker is applying unnecessary pressure or if he is willing to wait for you to be comfortable.

5. Companies that guarantee no risk ARE a risk
It's a fact: You'll run into risk in any kind of investments, whether stocks or bonds or real estate, and this includes Forex trading. Keep a healthy distance from any company that claims:

* We promise to restore any losses for you.
* You can't lose; your investment is always secure.
* Even with a $5,000 deposit, you won't ever lose more than $200 per day.

No company can guarantee such things. Never, ever deal with one that waves unrealistic promises around. Such claims mark them as either fools or con artists. Either way, it's a good idea to keep your distance.

6. Stay away from anybody that guarantees big profits
Don't be tempted by anyone who claims they'll guarantee you huge profits. You'll find them making statements such as:

* Make $5,000 per week or more, every week.
* Our company always offers the most successful Forex trading on the market.
* You will receive a guaranteed minimum 30% return within your first two months.

Now just stop and think about it for a second. Are these statements likely to be true? More likely they're opportunities to sharpen your judgment and avoid Forex scams; otherwise, you could easily lose your shirt - and your money - extra fast.

7. Seek out your own broker
Brokers and companies who come looking for your business are often promoting something "hot". However, The safest way to find a safe and reputable broker is to contact the regulatory or licensing authorities and request a list for your area. Never answer emails nor click on links promising huge, unrealistic returns on small investments. You can also safely ignore them if they want you to sign up right now for soon-to-expire offers for free accounts or free trading courses. Reputable Forex brokers will still be around when you're ready, and they won't attach all kinds of hidden strings.

If you truly want to avoid Forex scams, you must accept that nothing is free. One way or another there is always a price for everything. Don't ever forget that it's necessary to invest both your time and your money before you can gain a firm mastery of Forex trading. Always be patient and willing to do your due diligence before you ever invest in any offer or opportunity.

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Investing in Gold...Part 1 of 2

2010-01-05T16:33:00.000-08:00

Investing in you Future Part 1 of 2

Gold is the most admired precious metal in which people invest. It is a safe-haven against any financial, political, social or currency-based crises, such as: investment market declines, currency failure, inflation, war and social disorder.

Influence on gold price:
The day price of gold is driven by supply and demand. Since most of the gold ever mined still exists and is potentially able to come on to the marketplace for the right price, unlike most other commodities, the signpost and disposal plays a much bigger role in upsetting the price. At the end of 2006, it was estimated that all the gold ever mined totaled 158,000 tons.

Known the gigantic quantity of stored gold, compared to the annual production, the price of gold is primarily affected by changes in sentiment, rather than changes in annual production.

In times of public crisis, people fear that their assets may be seized and that the currency could become worthless. They see gold as a solid asset which will always buy food or transportation. Hence in times of great uncertainty, particularly when war is feared, the demand pro gold rises.

As dollars were fully convertible into gold, both were regarded as money. However, generally people preferred to carry around paper banknotes rather than the somewhat heavier and less dividable gold coins. If people feared their bank would fail, a bank run might have been the answer. This is what happened in the USA during the Great Depression of the 1930s, leading President Roosevelt to impose a national emergency and to proscribe the ownership of gold by US citizens.

If the return on bonds, equities and real estate is not adequately compensating for venture and inflation then the demand for gold and other alternative savings such as commodities increases. An example of this is the period of Stagflation that occurred during the 1970s and which led to an economic bubble forming in precious metals.

The system held up until 1971 Nixon Shock, As the US stopped the complete convertibility of the United States dollar to gold. Since 1968 the usual benchmark for the price of gold is known as the London Gold Fixing, a twice-daily (telephone) engagement of representatives from five bullion-trading firms. Furthermore, there is keen gold trading based on the intra-day spot price derived from gold-trading markets around the world as they open and close during the day.

All through history gold has often been used as money and, instead of quoting the gold price , all other commodities were measured in gold. After World War II a gold standard was established following the 1946 Bretton Woods talks, fixing the gold price at $35 per troy ounce.

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Investing in Gold...Part 2 of 2

2010-01-05T16:30:00.000-08:00

Investing in your Future

About the Author

The Gold Fixing, or the London Gold Fixing or Gold Fix, is the procedure by which the price of gold price of gold is set on the London market by the five members of the London Gold Pool. It is designed to fix a price for settling contracts among members of the London bullion market, but, informally, the Gold Fixing provides a familiar rate that is used as a benchmark for pricing the majority of gold products all over the world's markets.

The gold price fix takes place twice daily at 10.30am and 3pm, London time.

The original fixing took place on September 12, 1919 amongst the five principal gold bullion traders and refiners of the day. The price of gold at that time was four pounds 18 shillings and ninepence per troy ounce.

Due to government controls and war emergencies, the London Gold Fixing was poised between 1939 and 1954.
price of gold are fixed in United States dollars (USD), Pound sterling (GBP) and European Euros (EUR).

Historically, the Fixing took place twice daily at the City offices of N M Rothschild & Sons in St Swithin's Lane, but since May 5 2004 it takes place by telephone. In April 2004, N M Rothschild & Sons announced so as to it intended to withdraw from gold trading and from the London Gold Fixing. Barclays Bank took its place from 7 June 2004, and the chairmanship of the encounter, formerly held permanently by Rothschilds, currently rotates annually.

On January 21 1980 the Gold Fixing reached the price of $850, a figure which was not overtaken until January 3 2008. This is when a new record of $865.35 per troy ounce was set in the morning Fixing. However, with inflation, the 1980 high would be equal to a price of $2398.21 in 2007 dollars. So, the 1980 record still holds in real conditions.

While gold is traded in markets all over the world, the market is essentially homogeneous since the gold price is always in dollars and the gold traded is "loco London" (gold deliverable in London and meeting London trading standards). The London PM fix is normally considered the main reference price for the day and is the price most often used in contracts. The price of gold is quoted in USD per troy ounce.
Since May 2004 it has been conducted by telephone. The chairman begins with a 'trying' price. The five fixing members' representatives relay the price to their dealing quarters. And these are in contact with other dealers. The market members then announce how much gold they are prepared to buy or sell at that price. The dealers, who are in contact with their clients, could change their order or add to it or cancel it at any time; the view declared by the dealers is the net position outstanding among all their clients. (If one is buying two tonnes and another is selling one tonne, then he declares himself a buyer of one tonne.) If more gold is required than is offered, then the price will be adjusted upwards (and vice versa) until equilibrium is reached. At this point the gold price is fixed. On very rare occasions the price will be fixed when there is disequilibrium, at the discretion of the chairman of the fix.
A tradition of the London Gold Fixing was that participants might raise a small Union Flag on their desk to pause proceedings. Under the telephone fixing system, participants can register a pause by saying the word "flag", and the chair ends the meeting with the phrase "There are no flags, and we're fixed".

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Trading with Strategy Part 2

2010-01-05T16:23:00.000-08:00

Forex Currency Exchange Market

Trading successfully is by no means a plain matter. It requires time, market expertise and market understanding and a generous amount of self restraint. FD does not manage accounts, nor does it give market advice, that is the job of money managers and introducing brokers.

This will also determine what chart period you're looking at. If you trade many times a day, there's no point basing your technical analysis on a daily graph, you'll probably famine to analyse 30 minute or hour graphs. Additionally it is valuable to know the atypical time periods as various financial centers enter and exit the market as this creates more or less volatility and liquidity and can influence market engagements.

Time your trade:
You can be appropriate about a potential market movement but be too early or too late when you enter the trade. Timing considerations are twofold, a predictable market stature like CPI, retail sales or a federal reserve decision can consolidate a movement that's already underway. Timing your move means knowing what's estimated and taking into account all considerations previous to trading. Technical analysis can help you identify when and at what price a move could occur. We will look at technical analysis in more detail later.

If in doubt, stay out:
If you're unsure about a trade and find you're hesitating, stay on the sidelines.

Trade rational transaction sizes:
Margin trading allows the fx trader a very large amount of leverage, trading at full margin faculty can make for some very large profits or losses on an account. Scaling your trades so that you may re-enter the market or make transactions on other currencies is commonly wiser. In short, don't trade amounts that can potentially wipe you out and don't put all your eggs in one basket. ACM offers the same rates regardless of transaction sizes so a customer has nothing to lose by opening small.

Gauge market sentiment:
Market sentiment is what the majority of the market is perceived to be feeling about the market and therefore what it is doing or will do. This is basically about trend. You may have heard the term 'the trend is your friend', this basically means that if you're in the right direction with a great trend you will make thriving trades. This of course is very simplistic, a trend is competent of setback at any time. Technical and fundamental data can indicate however if the trend has begun long ago and if it is strong or weak.

Market expectation:
Market expectation relates to what most people are expecting as far as imminent news is concerned. If people are expecting an interest rate to rise and it does, then there usually will not be much of a movement as the information will already have been 'discounted' by the market, then again if the adverse happens, markets will mostly react violently.

Aid what other traders use:
In a textbook world, every trader would be looking at a 14 day RSI and making trading decisions based on that. If that was the case, when RSI would go under the 30 level, all would buy and by consequence the price would rise. Needless to say, the world is not exact and not all market participants stay on the same technical indicators, draw the same trend lines and identify the same support & resistance levels. The splendid diversity of opinions and techniques used translates frankly into price diversity. Traders however have a tendency to use a limited variety of technical tools. The most common are 9 and 14 day RSI, obvious trend lines and support levels, fibonnacci retracement, MACD and 9, 20 & 40 day exponential moving averages. The closer you dig up to what most traders are looking at, the more precise your estimations will be. The logic for this is simple arithmetic, larger numbers of buyers than sellers at a particular price will move the market up from that price and vice-versa.

Information, charts or examples contained in this lesson are for illustration and educational purposes only. It should not be considered as advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security or financial instrument. We do not and cannot offer investment advice.

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Trading with Strategy Part I

2010-01-05T16:20:00.000-08:00

Forex Currency Exchange Market

Trading successfully is by no means a plain matter. It requires time, market expertise and market understanding and a generous amount of self restraint. FD does not manage accounts, nor does it give market advice, that is the job of money managers and introducing brokers.

As market professionals, we can however point the novice in the exact direction and indicate what are correct trading tactics and considerations and what is total nonsense.

Anybody who says you can consistently make money in foreign exchange markets is being misleading.

Foreign exchange by nature, is a unstable market. The practice of trading it by way of margin increases that volatility exponentially. We are therefore chatting about a very 'fast market' which is genuinely inconsistent. Following that instruction, it is logical to say that in order to make a thriving trade, a trader has to take into account technical and fundamental data and make an informed decision based on his perception of market sentiment and market expectation. Timing a trade accurately is probably the most important alterable in trading successfully but habitually there will be times where a traders' timing will be off. Don't expect to generate returns on every trade.

Let's enumerate what a trader needs to do in order to put the best odds for profitable trades on his side:

Trade with money you can afford to lose:
Trading forex markets is speculative and can result in loss, it is also exciting, exhilarating and can be addictive. The further you are 'involved with your money' the harder it is to make a clear-headed decision. Money you have earned is precious, but money you need to stay alive should never be traded.

Identify the state of the market:
What is the market doing? Is it trending upwards, downwards, is it in a trading range. Is the trend fervent or weak, did it begin long ago or does it look like a new trend that's forming. Getting a clear picture of the market circumstances is laying the foundation for a thriving trade.

Determine what time frame you're trading on:
Many traders get in the market devoid of thinking when they would like to get out, after all the goal is to make money. This is true but when trading, one must extrapolate in his mind's eye the movement that one expects to take place. Inside this extrapolation, resides a price evolution during a clear period of time. Attached to this is the idea of exit price. The meaning of this is to mentally put your trade in perspective and although it is undoubtedly impossible to know exactly when you will exit the market, it is valuable to define from the outset if you'll be 'scalping' (trying to get a few points off the market) trading intra-day, or going longer period.

Information, charts or examples contained in this lesson are for illustration and educational purposes only. It should not be considered as advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security or financial instrument. We do not and cannot offer investment advice.

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Knowing the Ins...

2010-01-05T16:06:00.000-08:00

Knowing the Ins and Outs of Chandelier Exit

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Have you ever heard of a stop placement strategy that trails stop based on previous 'high' points? It is called Chandelier exit as it hangs down from the high point or the ceiling of our trade, just as a chandelier hangs from a room ceiling. The distance, which is usually calculated from the high point to the trailing stop; could also be calculated in dollars or in contract based points. However, the value of this trailing stop moves upward very promptly as higher highs is reached.

The Chandelier Exit, which has a trailing stop from either the highest high of the trade or the highest close of the trade, is best measured in units of Average True Range (ATR). One of the many factors leading to use ATR for measuring the distance from the high to our stop is that, it is pertinent across markets and is adaptive to changes in unpredictability.

The essence of this calculative measure is that, even on expansion and contraction of trading ranges, our stop will automatically adjust and move to the apt level, thereby, constantly staying in tune with changing market conditions. Chandelier Exit is one of the most tried exit methodology used across a varied portfolio of futures markets to generate profitable test results.

It is imperative that the changes in unpredictability can curtail or stretch the distance to the actual stop, since the highs used to hang the Chandelier move only upward. However, in order to witness less fluctuation in the stop distance, you can use a longer moving average to calculate Average True Range. In other ways, shorter moving average is required, in case you want the stop placement to be more adaptive to fluctuating market conditions.

When short averages for the ATR is used; brief periods of small ranges can bring the stops too close, abnormally resulting in premature exit. To avoid this, you can have a short and highly adaptive ATR while calculating a short average and a longer average and using the average that produces the widest stop.

Although Chandelier Exit differs from Channel Exit (which trails a stop based on previous 'low' points), the combination of both, where the trade is initialized by the trailing Channel Exit and then adding the Chandelier Exit, after the price has moved away from the entrance point, will help in making the open trade lucrative. Here the Channel Exit is fastened at a low point and does not move up as new profits are accomplished. At the same time, it is necessary to have the Chandelier Exit at the right position so that the exits are never too far away from the high point of the trade.

The fundamentals behind combining the exit techniques, Channel and Chandelier exit is that, while Channel Exit as a suitable stop that very steadily rises at the commencement of the trade, switching over to Chandelier Exit is necessary to ensure better exit that protects more of our profit. This feature makes Chandelier Exit one of the most sought after rational exits from the profitable trades.

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Technical Analysis and Day Trading

2009-12-30T07:04:00.000-08:00

Traditional Methods of Technical Analysis and Day Trading

Since traditional technical analysis has been so popular for so many years, many futures traders are very familiar with the application of such principles as chart formations, Trend Line penetrations, price patterns, and the many different methods of interpretation associated with these formations. Many of these patterns have been used with great success by traders over the years; however, there has been a steadily growing belief in recent years that these chart patterns are not necessarily reliable and that they are, in many cases, subject to considerable interpretation. Traders who claim to be objective and scientific reject any method or trading technique which cannot be fully tested.

Clearly, the primary cause of the growing tide of counter-chart-analysis sentiment is that many of the chart formations and patterns cannot be fully or thoroughly tested by computer. Nor can hypothetical results be sufficiently quantified to instill the degree of confidence which so many contemporary traders demand. My personal opinion on this matter, as you may well have gathered from my comments throughout this text, is that computer testing is considerably overrated and that, in the final analysis, it does not necessarily guarantee profitable results.

I have deemphasized the value of computer testing and reemphasized the value of individual traders skill as a critical variable in the formula for profitable day trading. In fact, it is certainly not an unacceptable extrapolation to extend these comments to all types of trading. With this in mind, I cannot include myself among the many who denigrate the value of traditional technical indicators. I believe that there are many short-term and day-trading tools which are derived from traditional chart analysis. This book is not intended to serve as a compendium of traditional tools applied to day trading. So many excellent books have been written on the subject that anything I could add might be redundant. I will spend just a little time, however, illustrating some of the methods to you so that you may make your own decisions and/or be prompted to do your own research, whatever form that may take.

The most supportive aspect of traditional chart analysis for day trading rests in the face that many day traders on the exchange floor use traditional chart indicators in their trading. Experience and keen observation have taught me to be a traditionalist with respect to market analysis and trading.

Although this may seem, to many of you, to be incompatible with the tasks and objectives of the day trader, my work suggests that there may be many profitable opportunities to apply traditional charting principles in the day trading. As long as you are the type of individual who is willing to accept visual evidence as opposed to hard scientific validation, then this chapter may be very helpful to you. If, however, hard science and definitive answers are what you seek, then I suggest you skip this chapter and move onto something else.

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Trend Line Applications

2009-12-30T07:01:00.000-08:00

Trend Line Applications-Chart Formations

As Ive indicated above, I feel that the use of Trend Lines, although seen by many as too simple, can, in fact, be a very effective day-trading method. Many very large intraday price moves have given Trend Line signals. I recommend the use of Trend Line analysis as both an effective as well as time-tested method. While there is clearly some art to the science of Trend Line analysis, it is a technique which few traders use during these days of high-tech trading.

Flags and Pennants. A flag or pennant chart formation is exactly what its name implies. Figure 12-4 shows a few flags on intraday charts. As you can see, the narrowing portion of a flag usually develops into a breakout up or down. The trader using such formations will be alert to the possibility of a breakout as the flag narrows, and he or she will trade with the direction of the breakout.

Rounding Tops, Rounding Bottoms. Yet another classical chart formation is the rounding top or bottom. Figures 12-5 and 12-6 show such patterns on intraday charts. Day traders will want to sell short or exit long positions when the lowest portion of the rounding top has been penetrated. Day traders will want to buy when the highest portion of the rounding bottom has been penetrated. In practice such formations are rather rare on intraday charts. Study intraday charts and see how many of these formations you can spot.

Breakaway Gaps. Typically such a pattern is a good one; however, the majority of research on such gaps has been on daily price charts. In practice, breakaway gaps rarely occur on intraday charts. Figure 12-7 shows such a formation. Chartists feel that such gaps, if in the up direction, are very bullish and, if in the down direction, are very bearish.

Key Reversals. A key reversal up occurs when a market trades below the low of its last price bar, above the high of its last price bar, and closes above the close of its last price bar. My research has shown such patterns not to be too effective on daily bar charts, but they appear to be much more significant on intraday charts. Figure 12-8 shows such a formation and its consequence.

A key reversal down occurs when the market trades above its last price bar, below its last price bar, and then closes below the close of its last price bar. Figure 12-9 shows such a formation.

Reversals tend to be good signals for day trading, apparently much better than they are for short-term or position trading.

Congestion and Breakouts. These are very important patterns on intraday charts. Congestion occurs when prices trade within a very well defined range either after a rally or a decline or within an existing period of strength or weakness. Figure 12-10 shows a few examples of price congestion. They also show what occurs after a breakout from congestion. As you can see, breakouts following periods of congestion can be very profitable within the day time frame. I recommend you follow them. While this is not a totally mechanical methodology, it is not difficult to use and can yield large rewards. It does take some training and experience, however.

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Moving Average Channels

2009-12-30T06:59:00.000-08:00

Moving Average Channels

One of the methods described earlier in this book, the MAC (Moving Average channel) lends itself readily to use by scalpers. My recommended parameters for the MAC are 10 units of the high and 8 units of the low. For scalpers these parameters are likely to be somewhat long. I recommend instead using 5 units of the high and 4 units of the low.

This illustrates how the MAC will look in relation to 5-minute price bars in T-bond futures. Figures 14-2 and 14-3 illustrate the same methodology in Swiss francs and S&P futures.

These illustrations are included here merely as examples, but they are fairly typical in terms of structure and clearly show that Scalping the market by buying the low of the channel and exiting at the high of the channel in an up trend is a good procedure. Conversely, in a down trend, you may scalp the market by selling the high of the channel and buying the low of the channel.

Alternatively, in sideways trending markets, the procedure is to buy the low of the channel, reversing position and selling the high of the channel, and then reversing position again by covering shorts at the low of the channel and going long.

Ideally, this technique will work in any market which has established some specific channel relationships. It is your job to identify markets which are suitable for Scalping. I have included several more examples which will help you identify the types of markets you want to trade for Scalping purposes. Remember that as a scalper it is your job to exit profitable and losing positions quickly in order to capitalize on the many price swings each day. It is especially important to exit your losing positions promptly so that your small profits will not be erased by one large loss. Unfortunately, this happens all too often. Sadly, some traders will scalp the markets very effectively all day long, only to allow one large losing trade to eliminate their entire profit for the day or worse. Therefore, the scalper should be particularly attuned to exiting positions which are not working, quickly, without hesitation, and, of course, decisively.

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Capital Repatriating

2009-12-30T06:49:00.000-08:00

South African Currency Up on Risk, Capital Repatriating

The South African rand was one of the best performing currencies today in

foreign-exchange markets as appeal for higher-yielding commodity exporter currencies was high, providing support for the rand to beat even an attractive dollar in today’s session.

Speculations that South African exporters are repatriating capital to the nation before the end of the year also forced the rand further up in a session that virtually all events provided support for the rand to gain against most currencies, specially safe refuges like the yen and the Swiss franc.

USD/ZAR traded at 7.4125 as of 17:35 GMT from an opening rate of 7.5093.

If you want to comment on the South African rand’s recent action or have any questions regarding this currency, please, feel free to reply below.

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Back Links 101

2009-12-22T12:54:00.000-08:00

Back Links 101 - Make Them Work for You
by: Michelle Dale

Essentially, back links are inbound links to a web page or site. This means that another website contains a hyperlink directed towards your site. In terms of SEO, the more back links you have pointing toward your website the better, particularly if the back links are coming from a site which deals with the same field as your chosen speciality.
As the number one goal of a website is to achieve traffic, i.e. people actually looking at the site, it follows that you must make the website visible. Generally speaking, to make your website visible, people must be able to find it when they search for keywords directly related to your product, niche, service or whatever else your website represents. Individuals tend to be seeking such information via the big search engines, whose operators have rather complicated algorithms to help them decide whether a certain website is applicable to the searcher's request, or not.

Although they will not divulge exactly how they go about composing these algorithms, the search engine operators do assure us that relevancy, as viewed by others, is most important. If they see that you have a back link or a number of back links from other websites that have some relevancy to yours, this is a plus. In addition, if the site linking to you has a fairly high "page rank", this helps as well. Page rank is Google's proprietary method of allocating a number (zero being lowest and moving up to ten) indicating how important a site is within its particular niche of operations.

There are a number of ways to achieve back links for your site.

ARTICLE MARKETING.

As Bill Gates once said, "content is king". Article marketing is known as one of the most solid Internet marketing methods. By writing highly relevant and informative articles and submitting them to high profile article directories you do several things, not the least important of which is to help establish you or your site as an expert in your niche. Within your article, published in the article directory, is a resource box which contains your details - who you are and what you do, and a link back to your site, the all important Back Link.

SOCIAL BOOKMARKING.

There are many hundreds of social bookmarking sites, and their primary motive is basically to provide a way of informing people about the existence of content related to any niche or interest in a very manageable format. You can sign up and initiate a process of notifying social bookmarking sites about fresh content, including back links in many cases. You should note at this stage that some webmasters apply a "no follow" tag which can void the effect of a back link, as the tag instructs the search engine spider not to give you points, or what's called "link love".

SOCIAL MEDIA - TWITTER.

Whilst Twitter and other similar sites are becoming increasingly more powerful in marketing terms, you should know that to include links within your "tweets" or in your URL profile box is not a powerful back linking strategy, as these are all allocated the dreaded no follow tag. However, you may find that it is possible to link within a bio box and get some link love this way. Also, if you syndicate, your Twitter feeds are updated via the RSS aggregators, earning you back links.

BLOG COMMENTING.

First of all, you will have to locate blogs or forums that are relevant to your area of expertise. This is fairly simple to accomplish as a straightforward and pertinent search will locate hosts. Once you find these blogs you can sign up and create a profile. Often you will be allowed to create what is called a "signature", and within that signature you incorporate your links. Note, you should check to see if there are any no follow tags, as these will appear occasionally.
Enter into the spirit of the place by interacting with other members and making entries and posting comments that are relevant, useful and educational. As well as a back link being displayed each time you post a comment, you'll also create a potentially profitable bond with other members - and this has the potential to lead to all kinds of new possiblities.

Back link building remains one of the most important SEO strategies to adopt.

Bulk Emailer Tools

2009-12-22T12:48:00.000-08:00

Why Marketers Choose Bulk Emailer Tools
by: Khurram Zaveri

Today, information is very important for business. People exchange information quickly and in a secure manner. Email is the primary source of one to one online communication which is growing rapidly. Organizations manage email messages using various tools and mechanism although it is very challenging for IT departments to manage these systems. Therefore organizations use bulk emailer tools to send emails in large quantities. It provides for a variety of functions and control over your email list. Here are some reasons due to which such tools are preferred.

• Bulk emailers provide a package of various useful tools such as calendaring, synchronization, contact management and scheduling. You can work according to your comfort level as you have access to a complete tool to perform functions effectively. You can sort and filter your contacts according to different criteria.

• A large number of organizations operate with ineffective and outdated email tools which are a burden on their IT departments. Therefore it is beneficial to use effective email management tools to allow IT department to focus on more important issues.

• You should select bulk emailer tools which fulfill your requirements according to your business demands and needs. You may also develop custom applications to meet your specific requirements. There are many companies which offer professional email marketing services through useful email marketing tools. It is recommended to not waste your time and put your efforts towards other activities and assign email marketing tasks to professional marketing companies as it will save you a lot of money, time and energy.

• You can reduce your total cost of marketing by using effective email marketing tools. This way you don't need to arrange special hardware and software resources. Companies providing email management services charge monthly fee which is usually quite reasonable.

• The use of bulk emailer provides more control and visibility to your email management functions. You should spend your time devising ways to make more effective email marketing campaigns.

These kinds of technologies are necessary for innovation and growth of business. These tools are being used in all over the world due to their benefits and useful features. It is quite imperative to communicate with our customers, stock holders and other stake holders. It is impossible to manage email marketing campaigns manually since you may have to deal with a variety of functions and large email lists hence email management tools are quite useful.

The Secrets of Internet Marketing

2009-12-22T12:47:00.000-08:00

The Secrets of Internet Marketing Advertising Exposed!
by: Richard Legg

A number of people now come up with their own internet marketing advertising. Those who are lured to do this are underpaid employees, housewives looking for a source of income, retirees to need an additional source of income other than their pension or students who want to earn while going to school. People do it for various reasons but one thing is for sure, they do internet marketing advertising to earn.

But not everybody can handle the difficult process of internet marketing advertising. Thorough research should be done to come up with a very efficient advertising campaign that will assure you of profits and avoid losses.

Your internet marketing advertising will depend a lot on the things that you put in your website. Certainly you do have several options for promotion. You may also try reciprocal links, forum signature linking, utilize pop up ads or pay per click ads. But these basically lead to one main site that you have that contains all there is about your selected niche.

Your Internet Marketing Advertising website must be:

1. Nifty and comprehendable
2. Easy on the eyes, not dull and boring.
3. Opt-in page ready

There are three basic rules that you need to follow when doing internet marketing advertising.

To make your site have an edge over your competitors and have very good content, you may hire SEO writers. You have the choice to outsource this or do it yourself, by learning Search Engine Optimization (SEO) thru ebooks. It is better to learn the skill for you may want to come up with additional sites in the future and your learnings on SEO thru those ebooks may come in handy. Updated written content is very important, thus outsourcing all your articles may require you to continuously hire a writer to do it.

For it to become easy on the eyes, you can learn simple HTML to make your site more pleasing to look at or you can buy cheap templates on the web for less than $10 per set.

And lastly, to make an effective opt in page for Internet Marketing Advertising, which is also known as the squeeze page, you need to know 2 things:

1. All of us want to protect our emails from SPAM so be sure to offer something irresistible to gain their trust and get their email addresses.

2. Your opt in page must be plain and simple and utilized only to get the email address of your subscribers. Putting unnecessary links for another site will cause them to hesitate giving away that email.

Now that you know all that you need to know, the decision is up to you if you must continue doing internet marketing advertising or not. This thing is not as easy as you may think it to be but with determination and the right skills, you will rake in a lot of money in no time!

Search Engine Marketing

2009-12-22T12:21:00.000-08:00

Search Engine Marketing Software and Your Business
By Karl White Platinum Quality Author

Two years ago search engine marketing software programs were half as numerous as they are now. Growth continues exponentially. It is important to mention the important factors that keep searching engine marketing functional in the first place: keyword optimization, advertising, traffic, quality informative content and web page ranking. These factors correspond to the different tasks that a person can perform with any average search software. You may be asking what a program like this can do for your business.

People have to find you if you want to be successful online and this is only possible through the use of keywords. It is important that you choose keywords and phrases that best describe your product or service. The process of identifying the right keywords for a business can be very complex and challenging. Search engine marketing software can help you choose the best keywords to use.

Search engine marketing software can make your business a lot more productive. This software can help your business by refining your choices and make the most profitable keyword selections possible. All advertisers insist on keywords selection because it is the central working principle of pay per click advertising models. Traffic depends on keywords and therefore profit.

It is critical that keywords are used properly. If they are not used properly, searching engines will not find your website. It is important to use the correct keywords and the correct density of keywords. This software helps to ensure that keywords are used properly.

Every search for keywords would be a huge mess without search engine marketing software. It would also be nearly impossible conduct profitable advertising without this software. This software is also incredibly useful because it provides statistical charts that show keyword success. This optimizes profit for your business.

3 Essentials Of...

2009-12-22T12:19:00.000-08:00

3 Essentials Of Marketing With Posters
by: Lynne Saarte

What poster marketing is good at is it helps you reach out to a much larger audience in one of the most inexpensive ways, as well as in the shortest amount of time. Depending on the elements you integrate in your poster printing, your marketing campaign can very well be the most effective one for your business. As each element in your design in your posters, even if it is cheap poster printing, is significant, every one of them needs to have a part in ensuring that you get results the way you expect.

To further help you create a better poster marketing campaign; here are some of the tried-and-tested marketing strategies for your poster printing:

Do your research.

Never allow yourself to be caught unprepared and unqualified to share information not only about your product but more importantly, your target audience. This means knowing full well how to develop your cheap poster printing to focus on who your target clients are. What do they want? How do they feel about the products available in the market? Where do they go when they need solutions to their problems? What issues have not been met yet in the present market? What motivates them? What can you offer your target audience in the way of benefits? Where can you contact them? How can you reach out to them? You need to do your research in order for you to have the right answers to these questions. A well-planned and well-thought of poster design can have more positive impact to its audience.

Know what you want.

You have to be certain of what you expect from your target audience when you send your message their way. Tell them how they can get your benefits. What should they do to be able to get advantage of your offer? A marketing poster concentrated on the business aspect should always be able to convince and encourage its audience to make a purchase by its call-to-action: give you a call, visit a website, contact your sales representative, or visit your shop.

Consider a personal impact that strives for individuality.

As you think about your target clients, also consider that each of your prospect view your poster ad in a certain way. Bear in mind that the impact of your message also depends on the perspective of the person looking at it. Although there may be a group of people viewing it at one time, each individual in that group will have a personal opinion on what you have for your message.

There are still many more approaches you can apply to your own poster printing. But one thing is for sure; great poster marketing will always yield for you a strong return to your investments.

www.articlecity.com

How to Become the Best

2009-12-22T12:16:00.000-08:00

How to Become the Best Blog Site in Your Niche
by: TJ Philpott

Being the best blog site in your niche carries many advantages especially if you blog to make money. Operating a blog that has a strong following is a reflection of the dedication and commitment invested into the ongoing process of the blog development itself. Any blog owner/operator knows what it takes to attract and retain the average blog reader and this is not something that happens overnight.

Now if you blog to make money you can see how a strong reader base could benefit you financially. In addition your authority within the niche will make it all the easier for you to attract additional readers since other blogs will have the tendency to link to your site.

What we're going to focus on here today is the importance of paying attention to the comments left by subscribers at your site. Within these comments you can find valuable nuggets of information that can be used to improve not only the blog but even your marketing strategy.

Here are 3 ways to use these blog reader comments that can help you become a more effective blogger and marketer.

Market Research Information

Putting out questions to your subscribers asking their opinions on certain products or trends could yield useful market research information as to current consumer preferences. Another approach could be polling your readers on what are some of their more pressing problems to which they wish they had a solution: what bugs them!

In both these scenarios the response of your subscribers could uncover a previously hidden niche or trend you could capitalize on. Market research information like this can easily cost a significant sum for a large corporation but you can collect this information right from your blog and use it to your advantage.

Blog Performance Feedback

Asking for opinions on the subjects of your post or perhaps the content itself can give you feedback as to whether you may need to make a change. Even simple inquiries about the layout of your blog, the graphics that are used, or the format of your posts could lead to dramatic improvements for the site.

Remember your blog is really for your readers so you should strive to give them what they want.

Encourages Interaction

Involving subscribers in these polling processes or even merely responding to their comments helps complete the 'cycle' of interactivity. This creates a sense of community for subscribers and increases their satisfaction. People like to know that their words or opinions are being heard and better yet acted upon.

Being the best blog site within your niche comes with many advantages and benefits but it also translates into a certain amount of commitment. When you blog to make money the stakes go even higher. Learning to tap into any available resource that can enhance your blog development and marketing effectiveness is a valuable skill. Using comments left by blog readers as we discussed above will allow you to put more distance between yourself and your competition. It is simply up to you to recognize and act upon any useful information a blog reader may have already left on the site for you even if it hasn't been solicited.

www.articlecity.com

3 Reasons Online

2009-12-22T12:13:00.000-08:00

3 Reasons Online Entrepreneurs Love Affiliate Marketing
by: TJ Philpott

The affiliate marketing business models is a favorite amongst online entrepreneurs for many different reasons. As the age of the internet continues to mature more people are working online from home. Many are starting a small business in the field of affiliate marketing due to the affordable startup costs. In fact the online affiliate marketing business offers several outstanding advantages.

Here are 3 compelling reasons why the affiliate business is such a popular choice for many today.

Low Startup Costs

An affiliate business involves selling products produced by others. These products are warehoused and shipped if necessary, at the expense of the manufacturer. Even customer support is a function handled by the product creator.

The only expenses left to the affiliate are any advertising cost or other expenses that may be related to the hosting and/or maintenance of a website or blog. Interestingly enough an affiliate marketer does not even need to have their own website and there are numerous and cost free ways to advertise on the internet that can be used.

Technical Skills Not Required

In the earlier stages of internet marketing the technical aspects of working online created a barrier for many. Now navigating the online world has been reduced pretty much to a point and click approach. As a result virtually anybody who now desires to 'operate' anything online is no longer challenged by these technical barriers.

Ability to Profit Quickly

The products you are promoting as an affiliate are proven and already in demand. Furthermore they are supported by websites with professional sales copy and graphics. This leaves only traffic generation up to the typical marketer. The results are that most experience profits pretty quickly and this type positive reinforcement strengthens their resolve to continue and grow their business.

Online entrepreneurs today are fortunate to be able to take advantage of the global reach of the internet. Many have flocked in particular to the online affiliate marketing business due mainly as we've mentioned to the very low startup costs of this particular business model. The built-in flexibility of affiliate marketing now has many starting a small business in just about any field of their choosing. Given the opportunity to pursue the dream of working online from home has re ignited the spirit of the entrepreneur in people worldwide. At the core of this resurgence is the affiliate business model and with some of the advantages it offers as we reviewed above, it is easy to see why.

Importance of Car Accident Insurance

2009-10-18T21:06:00.001-07:00

Car Accident Insurance companies as with any other insurance companies may deserve some of the bad reputation they are getting because they do look out for their own benefits like any other private companies in any industry.

However, they do fulfill an important role especially for people who own a car. Car accident insurance protects you financially from future liabilities.

They act as a safety blanket for your finances in case you get involved in a car accident.

Car accident insurance is a contract between you and the insurance company; you pay the insurance company now, they pay for your car expenses in the future.

Car Accident Insurance coverage

There are various types of car accident insurance ranging from required to optional plans. But before you choose any type of car accident insurance, the first thing you should do is check the type of coverage the plan offers.

Here are the basic types of car accident insurance coverage:

• Liability Coverage – This is required to all car owners in most states. This provides compensation for injuries and property damage caused to others. This includes medical expenses, loss of wages and pain and suffering.

Remember, this covers the expenses of the other people involved and not yours. In addition, you have to be the one at fault for the insurance company to pay.

• Personal Injury Protection – This is optional. It does not matter who is at fault, this covers the medical expenses of both you and your passenger for injuries you sustained after a car accident.

• Collision – Also optional, it covers the repairs needed for your car after a car accident.

Car Accident Insurance Rate Factors

Car Accident insurance rates vary from each case. There are different factors that affect the rates for each person.

Here is a list of some of the general factors that are used to determine car accident insurance rates:

• Age – According to statistics, drivers that are below 30 years old are more likely to be involved in a car accident than other age brackets. Therefore, car accident insurance rates for younger drivers are higher.

• Gender – Similar to age, statistics also show that men are more likely to be involved in a car accident than women. Therefore, men have higher car accident insurance rates than women.

• Type of Car – The more expensive the car is the higher the car accident insurance rate will be. Expensive car repairs are more expensive and it has the higher risk of being stolen.

• Location – Car accident insurance companies also consider your location as well. That is because the risk of car accidents increase in heavily populated areas.

• Driving Pattern – The more a car is driven, the higher the car accident insurance rate is.

What to do after a car accident?

Here is a guide of what you should do after a car accident:

• Call your insurance company as soon as possible. There may be a time limit on when you can inform the insurance company. Better be safe.

• Review the coverage given by your car accident insurance so that you know what to expect.

• Report the accident and get a copy of the police report.

• See a doctor and get yourself treated. Get a copy of your medical documents pertaining to your injuries.

• Do not release statements to insurance companies without a lawyer.

• Consult a personal injury lawyer to help you get the best out of car accident insurance companies.

by: Mark Dacanay

Removing Acne Scars And Medical Insurance

2009-10-18T21:04:00.000-07:00

The actions required in removing acne scars can be expensive. Depending on the severity and amount of scarring, multiple treatments may be needed in order to effectively minimize the lasting effects of acne. The problem that many sufferers face is finding a way to pay for removing acne scars if their medical insurance does not cover the cost of treatment.

Because removing acne scars may be considered, by some insurance providers, as a cosmetic procedure, it may be difficult to get an approval. If you are considering a procedure that will aid in removing acne scars, the best way to learn if your medical insurance covers this type of treatment is to review your policy. Whether your insurance is provided through your employer or you obtained it directly from an insurance provider, you should have a detailed overview of your coverage. Many providers do not cover the cost of cosmetic treatments and/or surgeries, which are often deemed as cosmetic or plastic surgery. If you still have questions after reviewing your policy, call your insurance agent to inquire about coverage.

If coverage is in question, it may help to have your physician provide a written recommendation to your insurance company. This letter should include the physician’s name, contact information and his/her determination and recommendation regarding treatment to help in removing acne scars. Once this letter is submitted to your insurance company, a response should be given within 30 days. This can either be to the physician directly or to you, but the insurance company will reply with an acceptance or denial.

In the event that you request for medical insurance coverage relating to removing acne scars is denied, there may still be other options. For instance, if your condition warrants laser surgery for removing acne scars, the hospital may offer a payment plan to help cover the cost of the procedure. Many hospitals provide this type of financing to help their patient’s afford treatment that would otherwise be unavailable to them due to lack of medical insurance. In order to be granted a payment plan, you would have to first determine whether or not one is available. This can be found at the hospital’s billing office. If payment plans are available, your physician would have to determine a total cost for removing acne scars and provide it to the billing office. Following the procedure, the hospital would issue a bill and, if you are signed up on a payment plan, would give you the opportunity to make low monthly payments.

The information in this article is intended for informational purposes only. It should not be used in place of, or in conjunction with, professional medical advice. Prior to beginning any attempt at removing acne scars, individuals should consult their dermatologist for proper diagnosis and/or treatment.

by: Jeyanth Watson

Saudi Arabian Health Insurance Set to Quadruple by 2013

2009-10-18T21:02:00.000-07:00

RNCOS, in its latest market research report “Saudi Arabia Insurance Market to 2012", states that the health insurance market, which represented close to half of the Saudi insurance market in 2008, is predicted to grow at a CAGR of about 30-32% during 2009-2013. Due to its compulsory nature, there has hardly been any impact of global financial crisis on this market; in fact, the YOY growth in 2008 was much higher than 2007.

With the significantly increasing role of private insurance companies to develop the scope for insurance cover, the health insurance market in the kingdom is expanding at a rapid pace. At present, the kingdom's approx 7 Million expatriate workers, including domestic workers are obliged to show proof of health insurance cover to renew their residence or work permits. And, with recent introduction of compulsory health insurance for private employees irrespective of the size of the company they are working with, the health insurance market in the country is set to record further growth.

Moreover, the government is also planning to make the health insurance cover compulsory for the 9 Million religious pilgrims who visit the country every year. Currently, the government subsidizes healthcare for the hundreds of thousands of pilgrims who fall ill in Saudi Arabia each year. This leaves ample room for the market to expand and the new health insurance companies to build up their operations.

“Saudi Arabia Insurance Market to 2012" is a comprehensive research report that comprises quality research and in-depth analysis on the insurance market in Saudi Arabia. It studies the emerging market trends, recent developments and their impact on the market. The report will help clients to analyze the leading-edge opportunities, prospective customer base, key players and all the other factors that are critical to the success of a new entrant in the insurance industry of Saudi Arabia. Most importantly, the report also gives future outlook on each of the important insurance segments, which will assist clients in making prudent investment decisions.

by: Shushmul Maheshwari

What Homeowners Need to Know About National Flood Insurance!

2009-10-18T20:57:00.000-07:00

How Homeowners Can Navigate Choppy Waters With Ease!

The purpose of flood insurance is to protect property owners and renters against losses from floods—losses that a typical homeowner's policy does not cover. Whether you have a condo or a house, whether you're a builder or a renter, here's information to help you know who is eligible for this insurance, where to obtain it, and how the program works.

Flood insurance is available only in communities that participate in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), a program of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Homeowners, builders, and communities want to preserve and protect their property. What measures exist to help them?

Why Have Flood Insurance?

You may not think you live near enough to water to be at risk, but dams and levees do break, drainage systems can become overloaded and back up, and hurricanes can veer off path.

Protecting your home and belongings with flood insurance is far less costly than cleaning up after the fact. Nor can you depend upon Presidential Disaster Declaration aid. Even if such a declaration is made for your area, it can be a long time before the money arrives.

The National Flood Insurance Program

Over time, the US government realized that the measures in place to discourage unwise land development or to decrease losses from floods simply didn't work. Therefore, in 1968, Congress established the National Flood Insurance Program to protect property owners against the possibility of loss.

How Does It Work?

A community must agree to adopt and enforce a floodplain management ordinance that is designed to reduce future flood risks in Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHAs). When a community follows or agrees to follow these laws, the federal government will make flood insurance available to every property owner in that community.

Each property owner must then follow all of FEMA's and NFIP's requirements whether or not he or she purchases flood insurance. One of the requirements is properly installed flood vents.

How Do You Define Community?

A community is any State, area, or political subdivision; any Indian tribe, authorized tribal organization, or Alaska native village; or authorized native organization with the authority to adopt and enforce floodplain management ordinance for the area under its jurisdiction.

Community participation in the NFIP is voluntary, although some states require participation as part of their floodplain management program. Each community in an identified flood-prone area must assess its flood hazard and determine whether flood insurance and floodplain management would benefit its residents and economy.

How are Flood Hazard Areas Determined?

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) produces maps that identify various flood hazard areas, such as the Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA), a high-risk area that stands a 1% chance of occurring in any year. The government believes that this high-risk standard is a reasonable compromise between the need for floodplain development and the need for building restrictions aimed at minimizing loss of life and property.

Development can take place in the SFHA as long as it complies with local floodplain management ordinances that meet the minimum federal requirements. Flood insurance is required for insurable structures within high-risk areas.

What Kind of Requirements Are There?

When a community participates in the National Flood Insurance Program, every property owner in that community has to follow all of FEMA's code requirements as set out in its floodplain management ordinance. That's true whether or not the property owner buys flood insurance. These code requirements include but aren't limited to foundation openings (also called "flood vents") and first flood elevation height requirements.

What Types of Structures Can Be Insured?

If you are in a community that participates in the NFIP, nearly every type of walled and roofed building that is mostly above-ground and not entirely over water can be insured. This includes mobiles homes and traveler trailers without wheels that are anchored to permanent foundations. Separate coverage is available for the contents of these buildings.

What isn't insurable under the NFIP?

Buildings entirely over water or principally below ground, gas and liquid storage tanks, animals, birds, fish, aircraft, wharves, piers, bulkheads, growing crops, shrubbery, land, livestock, roads, machinery, motor vehicles, equipment in the open. Most contents and finishing materials located in a basement or in enclosures below the lowest elevated floor of an elevated building are not covered.

How To Find Out If You Can Buy Flood Insurance

Property owners and renters can see if their community participates in the NFIP by contacting a community official or insurance agent or by visiting http://www.fema.gov/fema/csb.

How to Obtain A Flood Insurance Policy

If your local insurance agent does not sell flood insurance, call the NFIP at 1-888-379-9531 or visit www.floodsmart.gov.

How Much Flood Insurance Coverage Is Available?

The NFIP Flood Insurance Manual provides coverage limits under the Residential Condominium Building Association Policy. Under its regular program, property owners can buy up to $250,000 per single-family dwelling or other residential building and up to $500,000 for a non-residential building. Coverage is available up to $100,000 for residential building contents and up to $500,000 for non-residential contents.

When To Buy Flood Insurance?

There is typically a 30-day waiting period for flood insurance to go into effect. Remember that hurricane season is flood season, so obtain your insurance well ahead of time.

Tips to Remember

1 - Everyone lives in a flood zone.

2 - Most homeowners' policies don't cover flood damage.

3 - No matter what your flood risk is, you can buy flood insurance if your community participates in the NFIP.

4 - Don't wait for federal disaster assistance to help you.

5 - Keep your home compliant with federal regulations.

6 - There's usually a 30-day waiting period before your policy takes effect.

7 - Buy a separate policy to protect your contents.

This article is not intended to be a substitute for FEMA's comprehensive guidelines. For more information, visit FEMA.gov.

by: William Sykes

Car Accident Insurance Policy Requirement in California

2009-10-18T20:53:00.000-07:00

Under the Vehicle Financial Responsibility Law, all vehicles that are driven on California roads should have liability insurance that provides financial responsibility for any injury or damage that is brought about by a traffic accident regardless of who is at fault.

This passage of the law is also a means for the California government to remove uninsured vehicles from its highways.

California vehicle owners can choose from four types of financial responsibility options which are:

• Car accident insurance policy with liability coverage

• A cash deposit of $35,000 to the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)

• A DMV issued self-insurance certificate

• A surety bond for $35,000 from a company licensed to do business in California.

All vehicles on California roads must obtain and maintain any of the above forms of financial responsibility whether the car is parked or operated.

An evidence of financial responsibility should always be in the vehicle at all times.

Acceptable proofs of financial responsibility are:

• A document or identification card from the car accident insurance company

• A DMV authorization letter, if the motorist is self-insured or a cash depositor

• A California Proof of Insurance Certificate

Most motorists choose to obtain car accident insurance policies to fulfill the financial responsibility requirements.

The minimum liability insurance coverage for private passenger vehicles in California is:

• $15,000 for injury or death to one person

• $30,000 for injury or death to more than one person

• $5,000 for property damage

An optional choice is the uninsured motorist coverage, where the policy holder can be compensated by their own insurance company if the liable party has no car accident insurance.

If the motorist chooses to avail of uninsured motorist coverage, he/she is required to purchase an amount equal to at least the minimum liability coverage for bodily injuries.

In addition, if a motorist avails of uninsured motorist coverage, he/she is required to purchase underinsured motorist coverage as well and it should also be at least equal to the minimum liability coverage for bodily injuries.

Driving without car accident insurance or any other forms of financial responsibility can be penalized by the DMV.

Vehicle registrations could be suspended if:

• The DMV is not notified that a car accident insurance policy has been cancelled and a replacement policy has not been submitted after 45 days.

• The car accident insurance information has not been submitted to the DMV within the issuance of a registration card.

• The DMV discovered that the vehicle registration was obtained by giving a false evidence of insurance.

Aside from suspension of registration, a motorist failing to provide proof of financial responsibility may cause a motorist to be punished through:

• Citation with fines that could reach $1,000 or more

• Impounding of vehicle plus fines

• Personal liability for damages if the motorist caused the accident which could lead to a seizure of some personal assets

Uninsured motorists are considered hazards on the road and that is why the government is working hard on cracking down on these irresponsible drivers.

If you were injured in a road accident where the liable party has insufficient or no insurance, consult immediately with a car accident attorney to help with your options.

by: Mark Dacanay

Auto Insurance Brokers - Can They Really Save You Money on Car Insurance?

2009-10-18T20:52:00.000-07:00

Auto insurance brokers are the people that can actually write insurance policies. They are the ones that are licensed to operate an insurance agency and they are also the ones that hire and train the auto insurance agents that staff most agencies. They are typically licensed by the state and have more experience than the agents working under them, but can they save you money?

The answer is yes they can save you money, but not as much money as you could save yourself if you were to shop for your car insurance online. Some auto insurance brokers specialize in finding low quotes for their customers and for many years this was the only way to find a great deal on car insurance.

Now consumers have another option; they can shop online for their car insurance and cut out the middle man. Shopping for an auto insurance policy online is the surest way to find the best deal on car insurance.

The reason for this is that when you shop online for vehicle insurance you are able to view quotes from multiple companies. Car insurance is a very competitive industry so the companies will do their best to earn your business. As always competition benefits the consumer.

The car insurance quotes you receive from the competing companies will be estimates based on how you answer certain questions so to get the most accurate quotes it is important to answer the initial questions as completely and accurately as possible.

After you review the quotes and find the one to your liking make sure that it offers you the coverage level that you need before purchasing it. If everything looks good then you will have found the least expensive car insurance for which you are qualified and you should give yourself a pat on the back.

by: David Ackland

Cut Your Auto Insurance Rates With These Discounts

It is a pretty ugly landscape out there from an economic perspective. It has reached the point where you barely want to turn on the news. With saving money being all the rage, you definitely should seek out discounts on your car insurance. Fortunately, most insurers offer multiple opportunities to slice and dice your premiums.

Before we talk about discounts, let's make sure we've covered the simplest ways to lower your premiums. The first thing to do is make sure you are only buying the coverage you need. Second, consider raising the amount of your deductible. Both of these moves can make a huge difference in what you pay. Okay, on to the discounts.

Bundling

Most insurance companies write policies in many different areas. The company writing your auto coverage probably also does home insurance and what have you. If you move all your insurance business to one company, they will almost always give you a big discount in the premiums you pay. Make sure to ask for it and be aggressive!

Bundling Cars

Some insurers just stick to auto policies. If your company is one of these, you can still generate a discount by enticing them. How so? Offer to move all your cars over the company. You'd be surprised how often they will consider the situation and cut your rates.

Safe Driving

Make sure to ask for a safe driving discount. If you haven't had any driving accidents, tickets or what have you in the last five years, you should be able to get a discount on your rates. Why? You've proven yourself. Regardless of the statistics the insurance company maintains, you've show that the company isn't risking much giving you a policy.

Security Devices

Car theft has been with us a very long time and it is safe to say that it isn't going away anytime soon. With this in mind, many insurance companies will give you a discount if you go with proactive and reactive security measures. Proactive could be having a security system. Reactive could be having a locater system like Lo Jack that helps police locate your car if it is swiped. Ask your insurer for specific discounts.

Saving money on your car insurance is hugely important. It can make a big difference even if you only save a few bucks. Why? Well, you have to pay for car insurance each and every year. You are going to drive for 40 years or so. If you can cut your insurance by $200 a year, that is $8,000 you'll save over time.

by: Thomas Ajava