freefincal https://freefincal.com/ Wed, 17 Jun 2026 04:41:10 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0 https://freefincal.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/cropped-Freefincal-favicon-32x32.jpg freefincal https://freefincal.com/ 32 32 57044001 no The Role Model Trap: Why Emulating Successful Investors Can Backfire https://freefincal.com/the-role-model-trap-why-emulating-successful-investors-can-backfire/ Wed, 17 Jun 2026 00:30:15 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=358831 Last Updated on June 17, 2026 at 10:11 am Humans are mimetic creatures. Whether it’s career paths or lifestyle choices, we subconsciously mirror the people we admire. In the world of investing, this usually means looking at the titans — the Warren Buffetts, the legendary fund managers, or the “FinTwit” star who retired at 35....

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]]> 358831 How Your Risk Profile Evolves as Your Corpus Grows https://freefincal.com/how-your-risk-profile-evolves-as-your-corpus-grows/ Tue, 16 Jun 2026 00:30:18 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=356395 In my previous article on risk profiling, I explored the shortcomings of most online risk assessment tools. That exercise unexpectedly led me somewhere deeper. About the author: Sneha Rege writes about personal finance and retirement planning based on her own journey as a salaried professional. She has cleared the NISM Series XA exam and continues to...

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]]> 356395 Index fund tracking error screener June 2026 https://freefincal.com/index-fund-tracking-error-screener-june-2026/ Mon, 15 Jun 2026 00:30:35 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=356969 This index fund screener is based on tracking error and return differences wrt benchmarks (also known as tracking differences). It will help users evaluate how efficiently an index fund has tracked its underlying benchmark. It will also help them understand how tracking a midcap index, such as the Nifty 100 or 500, differs from tracking...

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]]> 356969 A simple guide to finance your dreams https://freefincal.com/a-simple-guide-to-finance-your-dreams/ Sun, 14 Jun 2026 00:30:10 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=175022 Here are some simple steps to plan and achieve your dreams and financial goals. One should consider investment products only after the goal is defined and planned for (the process). Sadly, most investors have a product-first, plan-later approach. Some assume they do not have a financial goal and only want to create wealth. They need...

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]]> 175022 Doing Nothing with Your Investments: Superpower or Slow Trap? https://freefincal.com/doing-nothing-with-your-investments-superpower-or-slow-trap/ Sat, 13 Jun 2026 00:30:11 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=357947 Let me tell you about two neighbours. Sharma ji started a few mutual funds 15 years ago, then got busy with life and basically forgot about them. Never checked, never sold. The SIP just ran every month like a quiet tap filling a bucket. Verma ji was the active one. He read, he watched videos,...

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]]> 357947 ETF tracking error screener June 2026 https://freefincal.com/etf-tracking-error-screener-june-2026/ Fri, 12 Jun 2026 00:30:36 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=356880 This ETF screener tracks errors and differences (ETF return minus index return). It will help users evaluate how efficiently an ETF has tracked its underlying benchmark. The tracking error is the ETF’s standard deviation minus the index’s monthly return differences. The lower the tracking error, the more efficiently the ETF tracks the index. Unlike returns,...

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]]> 356880 Gifts from relatives can no longer be reported as exempt income in the ITR: Here is why https://freefincal.com/gifts-from-relatives-can-no-longer-be-reported-as-exempt-income-in-the-itr-here-is-why/ Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:30:03 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=357941 Many taxpayers have traditionally followed one of two approaches when receiving gifts from specified relatives such as parents, spouse, children, siblings, or certain lineal ascendants and descendants. One school of thought has been that such gifts need not be reported in the income-tax return at all, since they are specifically exempt from tax under the...

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]]> 357941 A Free Retirement Planning Simulation Dashboard https://freefincal.com/a-free-retirement-planning-simulation-dashboard/ Wed, 10 Jun 2026 00:30:31 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=354520 Last Updated on June 10, 2026 at 7:48 am Jijesh has designed a free, comprehensive retirement planning tool for aspiring and early retirees. He describes its key features in this article. Please note: Freefincal is not associated with this tool in any way. It is published because we strongly believe that DIY investors’ efforts to help...

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]]> 354520 F&O Trading: The Side Income Myth vs. Dopamine Addiction https://freefincal.com/fo-trading-the-side-income-myth-vs-dopamine-addiction/ Tue, 09 Jun 2026 00:30:08 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=353604 If you open YouTube/Instagram in India today, the algorithm feeds you a very specific dream. A young guy in a polo t-shirt sits in front of a laptop. He draws a few lines on a chart (Technical Analysis), presses a button, and 10 minutes later, shows a screenshot: Profit: ₹5,200. The Pitch: Why work 9-to-5...

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]]> 353604 Equity Mutual Fund Screener June 2026: Shortlist consistent performers https://freefincal.com/equity-mutual-fund-screener-june-2026-shortlist-consistent-performers/ Mon, 08 Jun 2026 00:30:13 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=356842 The latest freefincal Equity Mutual Fund Performance Screener is now available. Use it to screen for equity mutual funds that consistently perform. You can screen based on fund category & benchmark to identify mutual funds that offer higher returns than the benchmark while maintaining lower risk. Inside, you get discounted links to our robo advisory...

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]]> 356842 The Retirement Number Nobody Talks About https://freefincal.com/the-retirement-number-nobody-talks-about/ Sun, 07 Jun 2026 00:30:26 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=354844 “I don’t even care about becoming rich anymore. I just want an exit.” Over the last few months, I’ve heard versions of this sentence repeatedly from salaried professionals. Not people who hate work. People who are simply exhausted by the environment around work and the growing uncertainty of it all. About the author: Sneha Rege...

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]]> 354844 How to review a retirement portfolio https://freefincal.com/how-to-review-a-retirement-portfolio/ Sat, 06 Jun 2026 00:30:11 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=255494 Here is how you can review your retirement portfolio. 1. What is the retirement corpus worth today? If you retire today, how many years can you be financially independent? If this number equals the years you expect to be alive from today, you are financially independent! For example, suppose I can be financially independent without...

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]]> 255494 National Pension Scheme Fund Screener June 2026: Shortlist consistent performers https://freefincal.com/national-pension-scheme-fund-screener-june-2026-shortlist-consistent-performers/ Fri, 05 Jun 2026 00:30:05 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=356679 This is a National Pension Scheme Fund Screener to shortlist consistently performing NPS schemes. You can also identify NPS schemes that offer a higher return than the benchmark while maintaining lower risk. This is similar in design to the freefincal Equity Mutual Fund Performance Screener. Inside, you get discounted links to our robo advisory tool...

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]]> 356679 What return should I use while planning for retirement 20 year away? https://freefincal.com/what-return-should-i-use-while-planning-for-retirement-20-year-away/ Thu, 04 Jun 2026 00:30:10 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=253207 A reader asks, “Sir, what return should I use while planning for retirement? I wish to retire by age 55. I am currently 35”. Many people make two mistakes while planning their finances. The first common mistake is presuming that equity mutual funds provide a 12%  (or more!) return and utilising that figure to calculate...

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]]> 253207 Stocks with low volatility and momentum for June 2026 https://freefincal.com/stocks-with-low-volatility-and-momentum-for-june-2026/ Wed, 03 Jun 2026 00:30:51 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=356635 We publish a list of stocks with low volatility and momentum each month. We provide data for BSE 500 and BSE 100 stocks. Update: Starting March 2026, the screening metrics have been significantly updated (details below). There are now three different screener files available. (1) Stocks with low volatility and momentum from the BSE 100...

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]]> 356635 What withdrawal rate do you recommend for retirement planning? https://freefincal.com/what-withdrawal-rate-do-you-recommend-for-retirement-planning/ Tue, 02 Jun 2026 00:30:15 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=255181 Last Updated on June 2, 2026 at 8:11 am DIY investors often ask us, “What withdrawal rate do you recommend for retirement planning?” — a discussion. The withdrawal rate is defined as the annual expenses in (the first year of) retirement divided by the corpus. Typically, this is estimated before or at retirement and is...

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]]> 255181 Why we must not assign probabilities for stock market returns https://freefincal.com/why-we-must-not-assign-probabilities-for-stock-market-returns/ Mon, 01 Jun 2026 00:30:04 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=251942 Statements like, “Our analysis shows that, over the long term, the stock market shows poor returns for only two out of every ten periods. This means that the probability of losing money is quite small”, are wrong. You cannot, well, must not associate probabilities with stock market returns. Just because one has two numbers –...

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]]> 251942 Are you confusing your middle-class perspective with middle-class status? https://freefincal.com/are-you-confusing-your-middle-class-perspective-with-middle-class-status/ Sun, 31 May 2026 00:30:20 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=267089 A few years ago, during a long drive, I discussed money and governance with the auto-driver (it is safer to chat with strangers than relatives). He said, “For middle-class people like me ..”. I do not remember the rest of the sentence, but that phrase middle-class people like me has stayed with me. Up until that...

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]]> 267089 From Debt Burden to Fatherhood: My 2025 Financial Journey https://freefincal.com/from-debt-burden-to-fatherhood-my-2025-financial-journey/ Sat, 30 May 2026 00:30:53 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=354509 In this edition of the reader story, “Hi friends, I am Abhineeth, and this is my 4th financial audit. We welcomed our baby boy in 2025, a sweet blessing. 2025 was an eventful year for us financially. I pre-closed my personal loan by withdrawing from mutual funds in September 2025(when the Sensex was around 82000) as...

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]]> 354509 Can I use a three-bucket retirement strategy with the freefincal robo advisor tool? https://freefincal.com/can-i-use-a-three-bucket-retirement-strategy-with-the-freefincal-robo-advisor-tool/ Fri, 29 May 2026 00:30:54 +0000 https://freefincal.com/?p=253456 A reader asks, “Sir, you have shown in many articles that the freefincal robo advisor tool uses a four-bucket strategy. Can I DIY a three-bucket strategy using the tool?” Short answer: Yes, you can, but we do not recommend it. Those who wish to start with the basics head over here: What is a retirement bucket...

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