Investors desperately looking for somewhere to put their funds to outstrip inflation, or looking to regain some lost ground following the turmoil in the markets in an effort to restore the prospect of a comfortable retirement, would bend over backwards to find a secure, high yielding investment. With bank accounts yielding less than inflation and with traditional stocks and share Funds and Bonds, providing a fairly erratic recovery after many years of poor performance, it is not proving easy.Yet, if potential investors saw a product that pays a fixed rate of interest of between 12% & 15% pa they would treat it with scepticism and often, the phrase “Well, that is just too good to be true” is used and the investment would be dismissed as folly. Yet, the above investment returns are genuinely available from investment products that have a long track record of success and a mountain of due diligence material to support them.So why are these type of investments dismissed without much more than a casual glance?The main reason why such returns are dismissed as being “too good to be true” is because the comparisons are being made with traditional investment routes such as savings accounts or collective funds, gilts & corporate bonds, which in recent history have generally produced far lower returns. But this is an unfair and illogical comparison. The investments such as the one I mention above, have little or no link or relation to the markets that drive normal investments and savings, so why are they used as comparisons? It really is like comparing apples with pears.But there is understandable concern and mistrust out there as we fairly regularly hear of alternative investments that have gone wrong.Often the promised returns have been exaggerated and the fundamentals of the investment have just not been in place. One such “hot investment” has been the carbon credit investments where, in the final conclusion, the returns were based on the market price of a carbon credit, which was severely hit by the industrial slowdown.There was a couple of recent examples of a forestry/agricultural products that had gone wrong. One, mainly due to the wrong choice of crop – it just did not grow well enough in the chosen location, and the other, because of disputes over land ownership.Alternative investments are regularly discounted by advisers and institutions as they are not ‘Regulated Investments’.But why? It does not make sense, and this is why.Regulation will offer some protection in the case of miss-selling or fraud, or if a bank was to go bust, but it probably will not offer any protection in the case of poor performance. A ‘buy to let’ is an unregulated investment, so is art, antiques or wine investments. In these cases, we would not dismiss them because they are not Regulated, only because they would not be offering the right fundamentals based on your own thoughts, research or (even) our personal hunches or preferences. We can accept that sometimes we just have to make our own decisions based on our values and our own understanding of risk. We would like control over our own destiny and will accept responsibility. I am asking you to consider using the same thought process when considering other unregulated investments.One of the main reasons for an early dismissal, is the reluctance of financial advisers to grasp the concept of alternative investments. There is talk by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), that Independent Financial Advisers (IFA’s) will have to have a knowledge of alternative investments if they will be able to call themselves as true Independent Advisers. But I expect it will still remain very difficult for a potential investor to be able to find an IFA who could give a knowledgeable and objective view of a non regulated investment, particularly those investments that are “based” elsewhere in the EU or further afield. IFA’s will continue to be focussed on UK Regulated Investments in the advice they give.As a former regulated adviser for 12 years, I understand how they feel when they come across and alternative to what they normally deal with and advise on. Mistrust and poor performance within the financial world over the past few years have made them even more nervous about exploring new opportunities, and with possible sanctions hanging over them for giving bad advice, it is understandable that they stick with the known, tried and trusted, even where it may not be the best on offer. They are well-meaning, but in my view, somewhat nervous about sticking their head above the parapet or may be banned from actually doing so by their employer. The result is that they may end up not giving the best (fully informed) advice.So faced with these concerns, how would an individual potential investor decide whether the published returns are balanced by acceptable risk?Well, the best way of assessing the viability of these returns is by looking at the individual investment circumstances and business plans of the investment product providers. Has the chosen crop a successful history in the area? Have steps been taken to counter disease, flood, drought, etc? Are the land assets used already owned and unencumbered by debt? How is demand likely to be affected by world and local events? Is the local government behind or opposed to foreign investment? How are the local rules and laws catered for in the business plan?Examination of these factors may reveal sound business plans with and a track record of success. Furthermore, they may also provide protection by means of ownership and/or first charge over a solid property asset. Any well-run alternative investment product will have a plethora of due diligence material to back it up and this should be a good starting point for your research.The product providers should be able to demonstrate that they have a successful business model, with minimal intrusion or lending by the banks and the ability to pay better returns to their investor than is available from traditional routes. If they are a top credit-rated business with a long successful track record as well, then this is a very welcome bonus. If all is positive, then surely these are the ideal attributes to look for as an investment and we should be embracing them, rather than dismissing them because the returns are so good.So, do not be hastened into writing off these businesses. Keep an open mind. In a world where a High Street coffee shop can easily charge £2.75 for a cup of coffee against material cost of a few pence, where a top lawyer can charge £5,000 an hour and where an internet search engine can develop into a business worth around £200,000,000,000 in only a few years, why should we sneer at, or be skeptical of, successful businesses that have found a lucrative niche?We should be careful about lumping all ‘non-regulated’ investments into the same pile as they can be built on entirely different principles and be completely unrelated. The term “alternative investments” includes such collective investments such as hedge funds, derivatives, commodity funds. For the experienced investor these may well be appealing and may well be lucrative, but they will often depend on a “manager” of sorts, who will be making decisions of the “buy/sell” variety on a daily basis and his success will have a direct bearing on your investment and the returns may fluctuate in a similar way to a stocks and shares fund within the traditional market. In other words, the investor loses control to those daily decisions and market movements.Of course, there are many successful collective investments and hedge funds, but it would be my assertion that only experienced investors should place their faith in them, as it is very difficult to ascertain which of them will do well. For example, Hedge Fund Managers are understandably extremely secretive of their fund management philosophy, so how can a “layman” investor do his/her research and due diligence.Compare this with the simple asset backed alternative investments that I mentioned earlier whereby the investments are based on a business model or asset that have the fundamentals already in place and thereafter the Management seek only to ensure that they continually make that business model work to the benefit of everyone concerned. Remember, I am not suggesting that potential investors put all their eggs, or even nearly all their eggs, in the same basket. But who is to say, that as part of your diversified portfolio, you shouldn’t consider something that depends on business fundamentals and dedicated management instead of the usual financial markets – for just a proportion of your funds.It just does not make sense to dismiss such opportunities.Take control of your own financial destiny. Keep an open mind, research and investigate – and you could find that life changing investment.

What could be worse? You’re ready to travel out of the country and you suddenly find that your passport is missing or stolen. Is the trip ruined? Will you have to reschedule your business plans or tell the family that the trip they’ve been looking forward to for months will now have to be rescheduled?The resounding answer is “No!” Not if you use an expedited passport processing center. Go online, complete the simple application, follow the instructions, and get U.S. passport fast – in as little as 24 hours!Can it be that simple? Just a few years ago, there was no way that this could have been accomplished so easily. People were required to appear in person at a Passport Agency or the Post Office. But now, with the Internet, and a specialized third party passport processor, it is like a dream come true. Without a third party processor, you’ll have to rely on the U.S. Government. It could take three to six months! And during that time, you’ll have to worry if it is being done correctly, or will everything just simply become lost.Get U.S. passport fast by using the powerful and convenient Internet from your home or your office. It couldn’t be easier. Let the experts of an expedited third party passport agency do all the legwork and deal with all the headaches instead of you. By using this method, you can get that U.S. passport back in your hands in as little as 24 hours. Then, you can be confidently off on your trip with your new credentials.Save yourself the time and worry of waiting at home for your documents to arrive – worrying if the trust you place in the U.S. Government was warranted. Don’t depend on the government to do the job right in the first place. Don’t lose sleep over this. Even if you use the US. Government’s own expedited service, expect it to take two to three weeks. Instead, use the experts from a third party passport processor to make certain the job is done right in the first place. They’re the professionals that you can count on. They’ve seen the problems that can cause this process to go awry and they know how to avoid them.Get US Passport fast, in as little as a day. Don’t wait. Start this easy process today with a third party passport center.

Prevention, treatment and management of illness is known as health care, and is provided my trained professionals. It also means maintaining mental balance and caring for physical fitness. For those of us recovering from injury or sickness, this can be done with the help of the services offered by the medical and nursing professionals. To avoid the need to rely on the administering of health care maintaining our health through fitness should be an important aspect in everyone’s life.Unfortunately, far too many people ignore the risks and let their body and mind deteriorate through lethargy and lack of physical activity and exercise. Thus, the majority of the population will have to rely on the services of the commercial medical industry at some point in their lives. Sadly, for to many people, health care is unavailable too them, either due to cost, lack of insurance or lack of access, when they need it most. In developed and developing countries health services are rendered to each and every one irrespective of their capacity to pay. Also some of the government organizations provide the facility of medical care with a nominal fee.Professionals of the medical industry include people who provide services which are related to the preservation or improvement of the health of individuals. Their services also include the treatment of wounded, ill, disabled or feeble individuals. Health care forms a big part of a country’s economy.If you want to save money and have independence in your deciding in when and where to get medical care try home health programs when they are available. This type program helps an individual to be free from the confines of a hospital or any other medical centers. This program can be utilized by those people who need not be confined in a hospital.Home health care programs offer an array of services. These services are done in the console of the patients own home. Home health plans are normally monitored by a doctor. But nurses and auxiliaries carry out the legal period of care in such plans.Health is wealth is a good saying in the present world. So the big question is how we are to provide health care services to every one. We should think of a way to provide medical benefits to one and all. This is the problem which is facing far too many countries in the world.Providing health coverage is a problem of major concern for all countries. If we try to cut one segment of the health care industry in an attempt to save money then every artery of the industry will start to bleed. The most pragmatic way to determine a solution to this trouble is to inquire of the medical professionals themselves who work with the system. They will be able to tell us what, where and how something is wrong.Distributed Health Care Centers, doubtless have become popular because they extend low cost care that is not uncommitted elsewhere. A health center is fundamentally, any agency where health care is distributed, including education on health.Long Term Health Care:An individual who is not fit to take care of himself/herself and also not able to perform his daily duties like eating, having his bath or even dressing on his own may have to rely on long term care. Even certain diseases also make long term care necessary. Long term care need not be received in the hospital it can be received at home also. In general long term care is required by individuals who are 85 years or more. Long term health care is a bit costly and can be undertaken only by those who can afford it.Steps can be taken to make health coverage affordable to one and all.
- The information with regard to health care cost and the medical procedures should be made easily available to consumers so that they are educated on that topic. This will help them to make better health care choices.
- Results and the outcomes of alternative medical plans have to be made available to the consumers. This will help them to take more informative decisions.
- Consumers themselves have to be more responsible towards maintaining their health and knowing when to seek treatment.
- Dizzy lawsuits and the threat of suits make the doctors to practice defensive medicine
- Consumers should allow their physicians to guide them on the most suitable treatment for their sickness or otherwise.