A working spouse always gets the spotlight mainly due to the promising career and the respect that is earned due to hard work. However, a non-working spouse should never be overshadowed. The non-working spouse rarely gets any credit for meeting the household responsibilities. It is essential to understand that a non-working spouse complements her better half by undertaking the duties towards the household that too, on a 24*7 basis.

Roles of a non-working spouse

Let us understand the various roles of a non-working spouse in the family.

• Managing the house

While one spouse is working, the other has to manage the entire house and this is not an easy task. Right from keeping the house clean to washing clothes and utensils, there are endless chores. It is physically demanding and one has to put in a certain number of hours daily.

• Cooking

A cook in a decent neighborhood located in top metro cities like Mumbai will not charge anything less than Rs. 5,000 per month. The non-working spouse cooks daily that too free of cost.

• Looking after the children

The non-working spouse also spends a lot of time with children and ensures that they receive proper nourishment. This is an exhaustive and laborious task.

• Teaching children

The job of a non-working spouse does not end at looking after the children; it goes much beyond that. A non-working spouse will ensure that the children perform their best in school and hence she takes a deep interest in their studies.

• Taking children around

Every day a child in India will spend about two to three hours pursuing extracurricular activities. This includes football coaching, tuition, and other classes. The non-working spouse ensures dropping the child off and fetching the child from the school and from these activity centers.

Benefits of buying term insurance for a non-working spouse

A non-working spouse has the responsibility of an entire household. From being a cook to a teacher, driver, caretaker, and a mother, she manages it all. It is a full-time job, which does not offer any salary, promotions, bonus, or perquisites. In reality, a non-working spouse works much more as compared to an employed spouse. Most importantly, there are no holidays, weekends, or day offs in the life of a non-working spouse. Most of the times, the non-working spouse is a woman.

When it comes to buying insurance in her name, it is often overlooked and many do not understand the importance of a term plan for non-working spouse. When a term plan is purchased in the name of a non-working spouse, it will ensure the financial protection of the working spouse.

One can never account for the emotional damage or the financial implications of the job she performs on an everyday basis. One of the biggest term insurance benefits is to help tide over the financial damages that occur in her absence. Even if you set aside a specific amount for her services annually, it will not suffice.

Certain services cannot be measured in monetary terms. Instead, you can get a term insurance cover for her life at a low insurance premium. This will be beneficial to take care of the financial obligations such a paying a cook and looking after the expenses of your children’s caretaker when the non-working spouse is not around.

Buy online term insurance for the ‘always working’ spouse so that you are financially covered in her absence.

Equity Linked Saving Scheme [ELSS] is one of the top tax saving investments available to investors. Apart from providing tax exemption under Section 80C, ELSS also provides healthy long term returns by investing equities. ELSS are diversified mutual funds with minimum 80% of the investment in equity and equity related securities with a lock-in period of 3 years.

Once you have decided to invest in ELSS. There are a few tips to select the best ELSS schemes as per your need.

Consistent Performers – While selecting an ELSS Mutual Fund to invest in, don’t just blindly invest in the scheme providing the highest returns. Instead, look for schemes which have consistently performed well over the past 5~7 years. It is always better to opt for a scheme that has been among the top performers over the last 5~7 years rather than for one which is the most recent ‘winner’. Such consistent performers have successfully weathered different cycles in the market and have a higher probability of providing decent returns in the future as well.

Fund Manager – Before investing, read about the fund manager associated with the fund. Study the performance of the fund manager over the past few years in all the funds that he/she has managed. Analyze the investment style of the fund manager and whether it is in sync with your investment goals. The period of association of the fund manager with the scheme is also an important factor. i.e. if the fund is being managed by the same fund manager since inception or the fund manager has changed recently.

Portfolio of ELSS Scheme – ELSS schemes of different AMCs can be very different in terms of asset allocation. One scheme could be heavily investing in large-cap stocks while the other may have a multi-cap approach. One needs to identify the scheme suitable to his/her risk profile and investment goals. For example, a high risk-taking investor might choose to opt for a scheme where the investment is concentrated in small and mid-cap stocks. Similarly, an investor with a lesser risk appetite may opt for a scheme allocating its funds across market capitalization from large cap to small cap stocks. It all depends on the investment goal and risk profile of the investor.

Mode of investment – Like any other mutual fund scheme, this tax saver mutual fund scheme is also available in both Lump sum and SIP. When investors invest one single amount in the mutual fund it is called lump sum.

SIP [Systematic Investment Plan] – SIP is a method to invest a fixed amount in a mutual fund on a regular periodic basis. Investments can be done on a daily, monthly or quarterly basis on a fixed date. The investor has the flexibility to choose the mode of investment.  If the investor is investing towards the end of the fiscal year, for example in January, then it might be better to opt for a lump sum investment to take benefit of the total exemption limit. If the investor is able to schedule his/her investments at the start of the fiscal year, then it may be better to opt for an SIP.

Intraday trading is one of the popular trading strategies that helps traders earn handsome returns. However, it requires proper knowledge, skills and discipline to earn from an intraday trade.

To be a successful trader, it is essential for you to know how the stock selection is done for intraday trading. Since there are numerous companies listed on the BSE and NSE, it becomes very difficult to select stocks for intraday trading. To ease your task of stock selection, we will walk you through the golden rules that you must follow while picking stocks for intraday trading.

Tips for Picking Stocks for Intraday Trading

Follow the Trend

Intraday traders must follow the trend of the market and never trade against it. Like for example, if the market is going up then trade should be taken in stocks that have the potential to rise. Similarly, when the market is falling down then trade should be taken in stocks that can fall further from the current levels.

Trade In Liquid Stocks

Since intraday trading involves squaring off the positions on the same day, you must trade in liquid stocks. Liquid stocks are those stocks which have higher volumes. The traders can easily find buyers and sellers for the respective quantities in liquid stocks and close the trade by the end of the day.

Technical Analysis

It is advisable to take an intraday trade position after conducting technical analysis of the stock. Technical analysis involves reading and understanding the charts of the stock and accordingly taking a position in it. Technical analysis helps an intraday trader in predicting the future price movement.

Trade On News

You can pick an intraday stock on the basis of news flow. The stocks that are in news show big price movement. Furthermore, on the basis of news, it is easy to predict the direction of price movement. Like for example, if the news is positive for the stock, the stock price will go up. Similarly, if the news is negative for the stock, the price will come down.

Resistance Level

You can select a stock for intraday trade when it breaks its resistance levels. The resistance level of a stock is that level where the stock resists to move further. But, once the resistance level of any stock is broken, the stock price moves very quickly. Thus, monitoring the stocks near the resistance levels helps in picking the right stock for intraday trade.

Weekly Movement

You can pick a stock for intraday trade after tracking its weekly price movement. Weekly price movement signifies the trend of the stock and suggests which side the movement of the stock is highly probable. This approach must be put into intraday trade after a good study.

Trade on Sectoral Movements

There are days in the market when stocks of only a particular sector show good momentum. On days like these, picking the stock from such sectors to trade can prove to be a fruitful strategy. When there is a sectoral rise in the stock price, the price movement is fast and good profits can be made.

The above mentioned are few of the tips for picking the right stocks for intraday trading. You can even take the help of your broker or financial advisor for intraday trading. Kotak Securities is one of the leading brokers in India who is known for providing the most accurate intraday trading stock picks. All you need to do is get in touch and open a demat account with Kotak Securities.

Owning a credit card is the norm nowadays. These cards make your life easier while shopping or paying bills. You do not have to carry cash anymore, thereby making these card an undoubtedly safe choice. However, the normal credit cards are becoming outdated. The reward credit cards are the smarter choice now.

 What is a reward credit card?

The reward credit card works just like any regular card but it has the added benefits of reward points and cashbacks. Every time you use your reward card, you will get points for spending money. You can make as much as millions of points every year and then redeem the points for some more shopping. These cards also offer you cashback on specific purchases, which practically works as discounts on what you are buying.

Different kinds of rewards credit cards

The reward credit cards can be divided into three categories. These include the following

• Accelerated rewards

There are reward cards that you can use for specific purposes only and they offer you reward points for every purchase. For example, if you are using a co-branded fuel credit card then you will get the benefit when you buy fuel. You can later use the points for the same purpose.

• Milestone rewards

These credit cards work just like how they sound. You get rewards for reaching certain milestones. The best part of it is not only the fact that you get huge reward points on reaching an expense milestone, but you also get to enjoy the fun of reaching the milestones by being a part of an elite league.

• Everyday rewards

This rewards credit card is perfect for the people who shop on a regular basis. The card offers you reward points every time you swipe the card. This means, whether you are buying groceries or paying for stuff online, you will get points as rewards.

Eligibility

Getting rewards credit cards is easy. You can apply for them online. All you have to do is check if you meet the expected eligibility criteria. They can actually vary from bank to bank. However, every card has some basic conditions.

• You will have to submit your bank statement that contains your credit information. It is to make sure that the bank knows you have a regular source of income.
• You need to be an adult to get a rewards credit card. The minimum age requirement is 18 years.

• A good Credit Score can always be helpful. You can check your current score online and if it is more than 750 then it becomes easier to get a rewards credit card.

Once you have your credit card delivered to you, start using it at the earliest to enjoy all the benefits.

The Indian share market has the great potential to generate handsome returns. Many people park their savings in the stock market with the hope of capital appreciation. With wise decision making, the stock market can make fortunes for you. There is no denying that sometimes the stock market can be risky, but the amount of returns that can be made here is unmatched. And as right said, ‘no risk, no returns’, same is the case with stock market.

In this article, we will list down few of the ways through which you can earn money by trading and investing in the share market.

Capital Appreciation

When you invest in the share market by purchasing stocks, there is a good probability of capital appreciation. Capital appreciation or capital gains means the price of stock purchased going high and above your purchase price. The stocks have the potential to give manifold returns and in many instances, the returns are as high as 100 percent or more. However, there are equal chances of the stock falling down from your purchase price. Therefore, always purchase stocks after doing good research.

Dividends

When the company decides to share its profits with the shareholders it is done in the form of dividends. You can earn good money by investing in profit-making companies and earn dividends out of it. The declaration of divided is done on per share basis. In the long term, dividends act as a consistent source of income from the share market.

Invest in IPO

IPO means Initial Public Offer i.e. a company deciding to list itself on the stock exchange by issuing shares to the public. You can apply for shares in the primary market through IPOs and earn good returns. In the recent years, IPOs have given handsome listing gains and long term profits to the shareholders. However, it is always advisable to study the company profile, prospectus and issue price before investing in the IPO.

Diversified Portfolio

Since stock market is perceived as a risky investment avenue, you can reduce the risk by diversifying your portfolio. A diversified portfolio is one that has stocks belonging to many sectors. By purchasing stocks of various sectors you protect your portfolio from the loss in one sector with profit in another sector. Long term investors can make good money in the stock market by making a well-diversified portfolio.

Intraday Trade

Intraday trading is one of the most popular ways of making money through the stock market. Intraday trading is purchasing and selling the stocks on the same day. The aim of the intraday trading is to earn profits and close the position in the same trading session.

Follow the Market Trend

You can make money in the share market by following the market trend. During the bull phase of the market, you can purchase the stock for the long term and book profits at the right levels. While during the bear phase of the market you can short sell the stocks in the future market and timely book short term gains.

Technical Analysis

Technical analysis involves reading the long term and short term charts of the stocks. For long term investors, technical analysis helps in determining the long term price of the stock. While for the short term investors like intraday traders, technical charts of the stock predict the short term price movement. Therefore, with the help of technical analysis, you can make money in the stock market.

With the help of the above points, you can make handsome profits in the stock market. If you are a beginner in the share market and need assistance with trading, you may open a demat account with Kotak Securities and grow your money.

Being a worthy investment option, Unit Linked Insurance Plan [ULIP] has gained mass popularity after the Long Term Capital Gains [LTCG] tax reforms. Due to LTCG reforms, ULIPs have not only become affordable but also allow tax benefits which, in turn, helps the investors to save more money. Ever since then, a majority of investors are scurrying around to invest in a ULIP Plan.

Whether you’ve already purchased a ULIP or you’re going to purchase one soon, understanding ‘what is ULIP plan?’ and its important facts are equally important. Policies. Take a look at these few things mentioned below before the purchase of a policy:

List of things to keep in mind about ULIP Plans:

Learn the working process

The working of the ULIPs typically depends on the functioning of the premiums. When you initially purchase a ULIP plan, a major chunk of the premium is spent towards the expenses of the policies. Once it is deducted from all the required expenses, the premium is further distributed into the sum assured and the investment. Later, the units are allocated for the invested amount into funds based on your choice.

Consider your risk appetite

Investment in ULIPs means keeping your risk appetite in mind. For instance, if you’re an aggressive investor and can bear high risks, invest in equity funds. While investors above 30 years can invest in balanced funds, those above 50 years can invest in debt funds due to low-risk involvement. Therefore, understand your risk appetite and make an investment in ULIPs accordingly. Besides, an investor can also switch the funds in case you’re not satisfied with the returns received on the investment.

Understand ULIP charges

Investment in ULIPs involves multiple expenses in order to suit the needs of policyholders. Hence, understand the ULIP charges thoroughly before making an investment in a ULIP. Take a look at the charges mentioned below which are applicable on ULIPs

• Fund management charges
• Mortality charges
• Premium allocation charges
• Policy administration charges

Opt for a long term investment

Since the equity markets are volatile in nature, it is important to stay invested for a longer run in order to gain higher returns after the market bounces back. Keeping the volatility of the market in mind, ULIPs are particularly crafted for a longer duration. Therefore, look for a 10 years investment goal and stay invested in the plan until the maturity period. Moreover, you can gain maximum benefits if you stay locked for an extended period.

Choose the right coverage

Since ULIPs offer dual benefits of protection and growth, it is easier to choose an adequate amount of coverage suitable for you and your family. This coverage is, however, decided based on the payments of the premium. The coverage or the sum assured that you decide will be provided to the nominee, at the time of your death. Therefore, it is advisable to wisely select the coverage as it safeguards your family in your absence.

Know the tax benefits

An allowance on tax benefits has attracted a vast number of investors. Under a ULIP plan, the premiums paid towards the policy are eligible for a tax deduction of Rs. 1.5 Lakh on the taxable income according to the Section 80C of Income Tax Act, 1961. Additionally, the maturity amount received by the nominee on the death of the policyholder is absolutely tax-free.

Now that you all the vital information about investment in a ULIP policy, trust us, your investment in a ULIP will be worth all your hard earned money. Since a ULIP is a dual product for investment and insurance, it safeguards the interests of your families as well as your interests in the equity markets. With its higher returns and tax benefits, you can achieve your financial goals with ease.

When choosing mutual funds, you may be faced with a big decision. Among the more baffling choices, you may have to make another miniscule choice. Whether you chose a mutual fund that offers a dividend option or one that provides a growth option. Both types have their set of advantages and disadvantages. Hence depending on your individual needs, your financial objectives and circumstances you can decide either option as the right fit.

If you have a demat account with a brokerage company such as Kotak Securities, you can take help of the research reports and expert guidance to simplify this and other choices as per your investment portfolio.

Dividend option – If you chose a dividend option, the dividends received from the equities by the mutual funds do not get reinvested into the funds. Rather, they are distributed equally among the investors.

Fund managers of a mutual fund scheme declare dividends as and when the scheme gets them. The dividend pay-out affect your NAVs as well. For instance, you invested Rs. 10 in an equity fund and the NAV of the mutual fund rises to Rs. 15 with unpaid the dividend amounts of Rs. 2. Then, after the dividend pay-out of Rs. 2, your NAV could reduce to Rs. 13.

Growth option – The growth option of a mutual fund works like a cumulative option. If the mutual fund scheme earns dividends, it does not pay them to you. Rather, these profits are accumulated and become part of the mutual fund scheme through reinvestment. Hence, when the mutual fund scheme earns dividends, its NAV begins to rise.

To receive any pay-out from the growth option of a mutual fund scheme, you need to sell its units. For instance, you purchased 100 units of an equity fund through the growth option. The NAV of the fund was at Rs. 40 at the time of purchase. Over one year, the scheme’s NAV rose to Rs. 50 of which the dividends amounted for Rs. 3. However, this dividend doesn’t get credited into your account; it rather goes into your mutual funds as reinvestment. If you want to redeem the dividend amount of Rs. 300 (100 units into Rs. 3 dividend), you would have to sell 6 units.

Deciding on a suitable option

You can go for either option depending on your investment needs. Historically, a dividend option is seen to perform best when markets are riding high. With a consistent rise of a mutual fund’s NAV, the prospects of the fund declaring dividends are higher.

However, if you are banking on your investments for a steady income, you may want to opt for the dividend option. It is essential to note here that you could lose out on the power of compounding as dividends are not reinvested back into the funds. Hence, as compared to the growth option of a mutual fund scheme, wealth accumulation could slow down with a dividend pay-out option.

If you have a long-term investment horizon, you can consider the growth option. It is useful in meeting long-term financial goals such as building wealth towards retirement. If you do not need dividends or a steady income, a growth option can be your best choice.

Inflation is on the rise in India and hence our savings are depleting slowly. The need of the hour is an investment instrument that not only survives inflation but also reap impressive returns.  One such investment option is Tax saver Mutual Fund i.e. ELSS, which not only saves your tax but also is a prudent investment option for wealth creation.

Every mutual fund scheme has category and objectives that are pre-defined. Tax saver mutual fund invests in equity markets and has a lock in period of 3 years before which they cannot be redeemed [principal is blocked; dividend payout option available] The term is commonly referred as lock-in period.

Mutual fund returns are dependent on the risk the scheme composition is willing to take. High risk fund offer high returns, medium risk offer medium returns while the low risk fund aims to keep your principal safe.

How tax saver mutual funds help save tax

Tax saver mutual fund offer tax benefits of upto Rs 150,000 under Sec 80C of the Income Tax Act, 1961. This implies that for investors falling under the highest tax bracket can save upto Rs 46,800 in taxes. You can invest more than the prescribed amount, however, the excess amount does not qualify for tax benefits.

As per the latest tax revisions, Capital gains and Dividend payout from ELSS are subject to 10% tax if the gains exceed Rs 1 Lakh. Despite these changes, Tax Saver mutual fund still remains the most popular investment option under Sec 80C.

Choosing tax saving mutual funds to invest in

You can choose a Tax Saver Mutual Fund basis various factors like past fund performance, fund manager managing the fund and most important after consulting your Financial Advisor.

You can invest through Lumpsum or Systematic Investment Plan [SIP] which allows you to invest small amounts every month instead of lump sum payment.