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Our panel of experts answers your questions. To submit a question to our panel, write to us.

Q&A Experts:

Frank Armstrong

Frank ArmstrongFrank Armstrong, CFP, is the author of Investment Strategies for the 21st Century as well as the forthcoming investment guide The Informed Investor (available on Amazon).  He is the President of Investor Solutions, Inc. a fee-only Registered Investment Advisor, and Chief Investment Strategist of DirectAdvice.com.

Rick Ferri

Rick FerriRichard A. Ferri, CFA is the President of Portfolio Solutions, LLC in Troy, MI. His firm specializes in low cost, tax efficient investment strategies for high net worth individuals, family estates, trusts, and business concerns.  Mr. Ferri’s new book Serious Money, Straight Talk about Investing for Retirement is available at Amazon.com.

Cathy Pareto

Catherina ParetoCathy Pareto is a Financial Advisor at Singer Xenos Wealth Management, a fee-based investment advisory firm with over $350 million assets under management.  Located in Coral Gables, Florida, she specializes in wealth management, investment planning, asset protection planning for physicians, retirement and estate planning. Cathy has a BBA in Finance from Florida International University and is in the final stages of completing the College for Financial Planning curriculum in preparation for the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) Certification Examination. She can be reached via email at Cathy@SingerXenos.com or via the www.SingerXenos.com website.

Lou Stanasolovich

Lou StanaslovichLouis P. Stanasolovich, CFP™ is Founder, CEO, and President of Legend Financial Advisors, Inc. (Legend), a fee-only financial advisory firm with its headquarters located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  Legend provides Wealth Advisory Services, including Comprehensive Financial Planning and Investment Management, to affluent and wealthy individuals as well as business entities.  Mr. Stanasolovich has been selected by Worth Magazine as one of “The 250 Best Financial Advisors in America” six successive times, by Medical Economics as one of “The 150 Best Financial Advisors in America for Doctors” four consecutive times,” and for the second year in a row by Mutual Funds magazine as one of “The 100 Great Financial Planners in America.”  His investment process has been profiled in Bloomberg Wealth Manager, Barron’s, Business Week, Investment Advisor, Investment News, Money Magazine, Morningstar Investor, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, Worth, and on the Internet publications CBS Marketwatch.com and TheStreet.com.  He has also appeared on “CBS This Morning”, CNBC’s “Your Portfolio”, “Wake Up Call”, and “Power Lunch” as well as on various Bloomberg, CNNfn and CNBC television programs.  He can be reached via e-mail at legend@legend-financial.com, via the website - www.legend-financial.com, or at (888) 236-5960.

Paul Pignone

Paul PignonePaul R. Pignone, CFP, CLU, ChFC, a Financial Advisor and Principal at Boston Retirement Advisors, Inc., in Salem, New Hampshire, has been involved in the financial industry since 1978. Paul specializes in retirement and estate planning, investment management, and business and tax consulting. He has taught financial planning and investments at high schools and colleges and has conducted seminars in Retirement and Investment Planning at Digital, Honeywell, GTE, and many other organizations. Visit Paul's website here.

 Paul Merriman

Paul MerrimanPaul Merriman, one of America's top financial advisors and asset managers, manages over $300 million using buy-and-hold and market timing strategies and is one of the nation's top experts on mutual fund investing. Paul Merriman is president of the Merriman Capital Management, Inc., a Registered Investment Advisory firm, and co-portfolio manager of the Merriman Family of Mutual Funds.  He is also the Publisher and Editor of FundAdvice.com, a newsletter and hotline service dedicated to investing in no-load mutual funds.

Rob Creegan

Rob CreeganRob Creegan, CFP, is a principal of Creegan & Nassoura Financial Group, LLC, a comprehensive financial planning firm with offices in Westford, Mass., and Stratham, N.H. Since the early 1980s, he has managed investments and avidly followed the financial markets, and has served as chief financial officer and treasurer of several national corporations. He holds the Certified Financial Planner license, as well as a bachelor's degree in business administration, with a major in accounting, from the University of Lowell. He can be reached at rcreeganjr@aol.com.

Greg Hilton

Greg HiltonGregory Hilton, J.D., LLM (tax), CPA, CFP is a Fee-Only® financial planner in Chicago. Although his services are comprehensive he concentrates on the tax and investment issues of retirement and estate planning. He is registered as an investment advisor and maintains membership in NAPFA, ICFP, and several legal, tax and accounting associations. Greg is a national instructor on tax and financial issues for the National Association of Tax Practitioners and is authoring a book on financial planning for the highly compensated to be published by Commerce Clearing House. Greg can be reached at (312) 222-9647 or by e-mailing gh-jdcpa@usa.net.

Norm Fosback

Norman G. Fosback is the most widely read independent provider of mutual fund advice in America. He recently founded Fosback Investment Management, which publishes a new investment advisory letter, Fosback's Fund Forecaster. From 1971 through 1998, Mr. Fosback was president and research director of The Institute for Econometric Research, where he created, edited, and managed ten investment publications, including Mutual Fund Forecaster, Market Logic, The Insiders, Investor's Digest, Income Fund Outlook, Fidelity Forecaster, Income Fund Outlook, and Mutual Funds Magazine, with a combined paid circulation of more than one million. Mr. Fosback is also author of the acclaimed best-selling book Stock Market Logic. Mr. Fosback also provides portfolio management services to individual investors. Mr. Fosback can be reached at nfosback@fosback.com

Steve Merkel

Steve MerkelSteve Merkel is a Chartered Financial Consultant and is the Operations and Compliance Officer for Investor Solutions, Inc. He earned his Bachelors in Finance at the Shippensburg State University of Pennsylvania and has ten years of experience in the Financial Services & Corporate Finance industry. Before joining Investor Solutions, Steve was a Financial Services Advisor with MetLife Financial Services and registered representative with the NASD. Steve held Series 7, 6, and 63 Licenses with the NASD and licenses with the Florida Department of Insurance to transact Life, Health, and Fixed & Variable Annuities. Steve served as a U.S. Army Officer in the Air Defense Artillery Corps with 11 years of distinguished service. You can contact Steve at steve@investorsolutions.com.

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Please note: The opinions expressed in these responses are those of the writer, and not necessarily those of MFI or BES, Inc. Please read the disclaimer at the foot of this page.  Missed an earlier Q&A?  Previous answers can be found in the Q&A archives where you'll find over 140 volumes of past Q&A sessions. That's over 400 of your questions answered!

Important Disclaimer

Investing in equities involves a serious principal risk, and no assurance can be given that the techniques described here will be successful. Returns vary and you may have a gain or loss when you sell your shares. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Index returns shown are historical and include the change in share price, reinvestment of dividends, and capital gains. Indexes are unmanaged and do not reflect the impact of transaction costs. Transaction costs would have reduced the total returns.

International investments, especially those in emerging markets, entail greater risks (as well as greater potential rewards) than U.S. investing. These risks include political and economic uncertainties of foreign countries, as well as the risk of currency fluctuations. These risks are magnified in countries with emerging markets, since these countries may have relatively unstable governments and less-established markets and economies.

Lastly, the questions and responses set forth here are for general informational purposes only and are not intended to substitute for performing your own independent research or contacting your financial or legal professional before making any investment decisions. We make no guarantees as to the performance of any investment strategy you choose and are not responsible for any losses you might incur.