A practical guide to passive investing Time and again, individual investors discover, all too late, that actively picking stocks is a loser's game. The alternative lies with index funds. This passive form of investing allows you to participate in the markets relatively cheaply while prospering all the more because the money saved on investment expenses stays in your pocket.
In his latest book, investment expert Richard Ferri shows you how easy and accessible index investing is. Along the way, he highlights how successful you can be by using this passive approach to allocate funds to stocks, bonds, and other prudent asset classes.
Addresses the advantages of index funds over portfolios that are actively managed Offers insights on index-based funds that provide exposure to designated broad markets and don't make bets on individual securities Ferri is also author of the Wiley The ETF Book and co-author of The Bogleheads' Guide to Retirement Planning If you're looking for a productive investment approach that won't take all of your time to implement, then The Power of Passive Investing is the book you need to read.
I've read many financial and investing books by Richard Ferri and the Power of Passive Investing may be his best yet.
The book examines the active versus passive (or index investing) debate of investing, the behavior behind those chasing alpha, and the case for indexing.
What makes this book unique versus the host of other financial literature on the same topic, is that that the Power of Passive Investing looks at the results of indexing an entire investment portfolio instead of the typically narrow framework of individual index funds, say the Vanguard S&P 500 Index Fund. And the empirical evidence shows that indexing an entire portfolio, as Ferri suggests, is the superior method for most investors.
The Power of Passive Investing is broken down into 14 chapters, with three sections. I've interviewed the author multipe times on my weekly radio show and he's also the CEO of an investment advisory firm called Portfolio Solutions.
1- Vanguard 500 index fund beats 85% of actively managed funds 2- Of the narrow 15% of funds that beat the V-500 index, the winner only won by .96% while the losers lost by 1.69%. The excess return for picking a winner (active fund) is not worth the risk of being stuck with a loser. 3- Index funds have no sales load (buy-in or buy-out). Actively managed funds charge you to get in and get out. (More of your invested money into the pockets of manager). 4- Taxes. Index funds are tax efficient because of low turnover.
Stop trying to beat the market. Your odds of winning are too slim, and odds of losing badly are high.
Warren Buffet said it best: "I would rather be certain of a good return than hopeful of a great one."
4 stars. This book is dated but the concepts have not changed.
Good justification and detail for passive investing over active; however, this book could have been much shorter. It's repetitive - it feels like I've been beaten over the head with the same information. I guess if someone's on the sidelines, this book does a pretty good job of advocating the passive strategy.
A well written book, it provided good evidence for staying away from active investing unless you have the skills and time for pursuing such a path. For the layman, it appears that long-term investing is best practiced by investing in options that require little management in order to reduce fees, and avoid thinking that the market can be beaten by a great amount.
At times the book can get a little repetitive in explaining the sources of evidence for passive over active investing. It does provide other books to read to get into the nitty gritty, it would have been helpful to have that list compiled at the end of the book.
I have read a number of book on passive investing. This book struck a cord because it is written by a former investment adviser who came around to the realization that his advice was not worth paying for. He was living a sham. I was a passive investor before I read this book. It helped to reinforce my ideas and also provided me some new insights about asset allocation.
A lot of regurgitation--but some true nuggets of resources, even for the professional. There is a great back story included on index investing and lots of quotable quotes.
Solid formulaic work, quick read. A nice addition to any investor's library.
Great exploration of passive versus active investment that makes a strong, concerted case for passive investing. I have minimal experience with the subject matter and found the book accessible and well-structured.
This book is all about the history of passive index funds and how passive investing beats active in every shape and form possible. towards the end the book becomes too boring as it repeats the same message and gets into the bylaws of being a trustee or a fiduciary.
Read this with Ferri's All About Index Funds. Really appreciate Ferri's straight talk and supportive evidence. Will be following his blog at Performance Solutions and Forbes from now on.
What really shines in this book is not Ferri's usual approach to passive index investing but the sheer volumes of research and data that he cites to back up his recommendations.