Learn about the Investment Portfolio

Tip: For easier reading, click    (above).

The Investment Portfolio shows a summary of your current investment holdings and their values. You enter buys and sells, view performance, check investment allocations, watch the performance of investments you don't own, and more.

You can also update the market prices of your investments manually or electronically. The Money 99 Financial Suite provides a link to Microsoft Investor, where you can take investment tracking and research even further.

To use Money's Investment Portfolio successfully, you should understand the difference between investments and investment accounts in Money:

• Investments are particular stocks (Shares of ownership in a corporationÆs earnings, assets, and liabilities. Stockholders may receive dividends and can generally sell their shares at any time.), bonds (An agreement to borrow money, pay interest, and later repay money. Bonds are issued by the government and many businesses.), mutual funds (A collection of stocks, bonds, and other securities managed by investment professionals but owned by the mutual fundÆs shareholders. When you buy shares in a mutual fund, your money is combined with other investorsÆ money.), CDs (A certificate of deposit (CD) is a time-based deposit at a bank or savings and loan institution. When you buy a CD, you agree to leave your money in the bank for a specific period of time, ranging from 30 days to several years. In exchange, the bank guarantees you a specific interest rate which is higher than that paid on a passbook savings account.), or employee stock option grants (An options contract given by a corporation to employees as part of a compensation package. The option grant allows the employee to purchase a certain number of shares of the corporation's capital stock at a strike price at or below the market price of the shares on the date of the option grant.). Investments are added to investment accounts. You can have multiple investments in one investment account, just as you might hold a variety of investments through a single broker.

  Note that investments arenÆt the same as tangible assets, which are tracked in an Asset Account. Assets include real estate, valuable collections, and personal property that doesn't fluctuate based on securities markets.

• Investment accounts are collections of individual investments. Start by setting up an investment account in Money for each brokerage statement you receive.

Use investment accounts to track:

• Stocks (Shares of ownership in a corporationÆs earnings, assets, and liabilities. Stockholders may receive dividends and can generally sell their shares at any time.)
• Discounted Bonds (A bond sold for less than its par (or face) value. If you buy a ô$50 savings bond,ö the face value is $50. However, because savings bonds are sold at a discount, you will pay less than $50 for it. All savings bonds and T-Bills are sold at a discount, as these investments do not make interest payments to investors. Investors are compensated by the increased value of the bonds over time. When redeemed or sold, the profit is treated as interest income.)
• Treasury bonds (T-Bonds) (Money the U.S. government borrows for more than ten years. Bonds pay interest on a semi-annual basis.)
• Treasury notes (T-Notes) (Money the U.S. government borrows for two to ten years. Treasury notes pay interest on a semi-annual basis.)
• Treasury bills (T-Bills) (Money the U.S. government borrows and pays back within one year. T-Bills sell at a discount because they do not make interest payments.)
• Bonds (An agreement to borrow money, pay interest, and later repay money. Bonds are issued by the government and many businesses.)
• Money market funds (A type of mutual fund that invests in short-term securities, such as T-bills, and earns interest. The fundÆs share value is usually $1.)
• CDs (A certificate of deposit is a time-based deposit at a bank or savings and loan institution. When you buy a CD, you agree to leave your money in the bank for a specific period of time, ranging from 30 days to several years. In exchange, the bank guarantees you a specific interest rate which is higher than that paid on a passbook savings account.)
• Mutual funds (A collection of stocks, bonds, and other securities managed by investment professionals but owned by the mutual fundÆs shareholders. When you buy shares in a mutual fund, your money is combined with other investorsÆ money.)
• Employee stock options (An options contract given by a corporation to employees as part of a compensation package. The option grant allows the employee to purchase a certain number of shares of the corporation's capital stock at a strike price at or below the market price of the shares on the date of the option grant.)

Once youÆve entered investment transactions in Money, you can study price histories, analyze the market value of your holdings, and track gains and losses for tax purposes.

Retirement plans such as Keoghs, (A retirement plan for the self-employed. Money invested in a Keogh is tax deductible and earnings from the plan are tax-deferred. Withdrawals from the plan are taxed.) IRAs, (A tax-deferred retirement plan for anyone with employment income. IRAs offer great investment flexibility. Maximum contribution is $2,000 per year. If you have no income but receive alimony, you still qualify for an IRA contribution.) Roth IRAs, (A special type of retirement account that allows the enrollee to contribute after-tax dollars to an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) and later withdraw funds tax-free during retirement. Contributions are not tax-deductible, but earnings grow tax-deferred.) 401(k)s (A retirement plan into which contributions are made by employees and, sometimes, employers. Employee contributions and earnings from a 401(k) arenÆt taxed, but early withdrawals are.), 403(b)s, (A retirement plan in which contributions are made by nonprofit and public service employees and, sometimes, employers. Employee contributions and earnings from a 403(b) arenÆt taxed, but withdrawals are.) RRSPs(A Canadian retirement plan that allows you to save on a tax-deferred basis. Amounts contributed to an RRSP are tax-deductible, and income earned is tax-exempt as long as the funds remain in place. Capital and income from the plan are fully taxable once funds are withdrawn from the plan), SIMPLEs (A simplified retirement plan for employers who employ 100 or fewer employees who earn $5,000 of compensation or more during the year. The plan can be established either as an IRA or as a 401(k), and contributions to the plan are tax-deductible. Earnings from the plan are tax-deferred.), and SEPs(A pension plan for owners of small businesses and the self-employed. Money invested in an SEP is tax deductible and earnings from the plan are tax-deferred.) can be tracked in Money using retirement accounts.

  Play the Creating new investment accounts video.

  Play the Enter investment transactions video.

How do I create an investment account?

Which investment accounts should I set up?

How do I enter my current investment holdings?

How do I enter an investment purchase or sale?

How do I create a retirement account?

How do I create an asset account?