You may have seen hundreds of books on personal finance, but very few can really cover the entire breadth of personal finance topics, that are useful to common investor. Here is a book by Shalini Amarnani, that attempts to do the same and which provides good coverage on all personal finance related topics. (You can buy this book at flipkart or amazon)
In this book, Amarnani, starts with providing a new perspective to investing by encouraging the reader to explore their boundaries. This, I felt, is really an important but often ignored aspect of a personal finance book. The book is not going to make you rich quickly, but provides a definitive guide for financial success. Amarnani takes you through various financial instruments like equities, MFs, ULIPs, F&Os and provides a guiding line for making winning choices.
There is an entire chapter devoted to tax planning. It definitely is a good read for young people joining their first company. It also has many nuggets for experienced folks. For example, here is a paragraph from the book
If you are planning to invest in property, it makes better sense to invest in a commercial property rather than a residential one. Not only does a commercial property earn better returns but also, you do not end up paying any wealth tax on it. Ownership of a commercial property enjoys the same eligibilities in tax deduction as that of residential properties.
Wealth tax typically targets unproductive, non-essential and idle assets, hence commercial property does not comes under its ambit. A very useful tip for the property hungry Indians.
Amarnani, has also covered the equity investment space very nicely, explaining the basic concepts involved in fundamental and technical analysis. This is a good introduction for a common investor. A small chapter on Futures & Options, in an easy to understand language, gives a quick introduction to these difficult investment instrument.
The author has also covered all the debt instruments like FD, Bonds or PF in a simplistic manner including useful tables for a comparative study. Did you knew that there are four kinds of provident funds? Amarnani provides a really nice table on the tax implications of various PF schemes.
The section “consolidating” provides a quick summary of all financial instruments related to loan and insurance, which is extremely useful for an average investor. The concluding chapter is also crisp and pragmatic, with a very interesting table called “life stage analysis”. It provides a quick investment strategy, across various life stages, that you go through.
One of the key learning come from the last page of the book,
Everyone lives his/her life differently and hence investment decisions are highly personal and unique. Four basic rules that apply to everyone
How true these wise words are!!
My Personal take on the book
While I enjoyed the book and it is really an excellent read for anyone trying to de-mystify the personal finance world, but be aware that this is not a book that will give you tips on where to invest. It just shows you the various instruments available and their pros/cons, but what really will help you depends on your own personal situation. One key financial instrument, that I found missing is the NPS pension scheme. NPS is a low-cost equity based pension scheme existing today. I recommend that you keep a copy of this book as a ready-reference whenever you are scouting for a financial instruments be it equity or debt based. Overall a very good book for young folks!!
About the Author
Shalini Amarnani is contributor to various financial websites and blogs like http://investmentsbook.wordpress.com/ and a highly sought-after speaker.
Knowing how to manage money is one of the most beneficial life skills for people at every age. She is committed to simplifying money matters and increasing financial literacy both for the present and the future. Utilizing a clear and straight-forward approach, she provides advice for integrated, holistic financial life planning and investment management.
Shalini holds a masters degree in Financial Management and has several years of experience starting from 1994. She lives in the financial heart of India, Mumbai with her husband and a son.
Shalini can be reached on shaliniamarnani @ gmail . com