Customer Reviews

The 401(k) MarketBuster: A Proven Way to Beat The Market With Your 401k Retirement Plan

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I am kind of surprised and embarassed to admit it (being an accountant) but this is something that I should have figured out for myself if I really sat down and thought about it. Basically, Kwong says that the Fed has a significant influence on the economy and if you manage your investments in such a way that you put your money into the market when the Fed is supporting economic growth and vice versa your nest egg should signficantly outperform the old buy and hold investment strategy. It looks like it helps you avoid major bear markets like what we saw in 2001. As far as I can tell, this MarketBuster strategy is better than putting away my money and forgetting about it. I know a lot of people who have done that and lost a whole lot of money in their retirement accounts because they didn't use a strategy like this.

This book teaches you the one simple strategy that you need to know to manage your 401(k). I Purchased this book for my Financial Planner, and he was simply blown away by the obvious! This book is a must read to everyone who is planning to Retire someday! The reading is very simple and the strategy can be applied very simply! KUDOS To EDDIE KWONG!!!

I am quite pleased with the quality of the research put into this manual. Kwong has really shown a definitive way to approach the way one should manage their own retirement accounts.

I am excited in implementing the strategy on my now dormant 401 K. I think I now have the means to reach "critical mass" with this system!

Highly recommended.

Written in very easy-to-understand language (a bit too simple for anyone who even reads the Business Week). But it does get the point across. It focuses on exactly one idea of "following the Fed" and boils it down to one simple market-timing rule. The book actually injects some reason behind why this should work, unlike most other market timing concepts which are a little more than astrology. I am willing to put at least some of my money on it.

I did find it upsetting that the signals traded you in and out somewhat frequently in 1998, but it did cause you to stay pat in the good parts and did keep you out of many of the bad. One reviewer complains that these signals would have brought you back in the market in 3/2001, and the market has dropped since. But the point is that the Fed's cue is still positive, and the market will eventually rise before a sell signal is generated. The Fed has already started to try to make things better as of 3/2001, - it can't help if [some major companies] cooked their books and its all coming out now (Yes, Fed is not the only factor, but the one that is likely to win eventually).

I think the book is very light on information, and should have probably cost less ... Other than the essential idea, and a pointer to the Fed website (the address is not quite right), it is basically the same words repeated again and again.

Alright, it's not a bad book, and is certainly relevant to the last twenty years, but, before you implement the strategy recommended in the book (basically, put your money in equities when the 3-month Treasury < 3-year Treasury), please be cognizant of the fact that equities were a terrible investment from the mid 1960's to the early 1980's (real estate, especially on the West Coast, was the best investment vehicle at the time). Hence, I don't think your returns would've been that good if you had followed the author's advice during the turbulent times of the late 60's and all of the 70's. Yet, since most 401(k) plans offer you only limited investment vehicles (some mutual funds/market indicies, company stock, money market, Treasuries, etc.), there's not much one can do to optimize the performance of their 401(k) given a specific market condition. In conclusion, I'm going to implement the ideas in the book, but, as a reviewer hinted at earlier, this advice should not cost someone $..., rather it should be expounded gratis on a quality investment website.

A friend of mine gave me this book to read for an opinion since I have been very involved in trading the markets for the past 3 years and I am glad he did. I have always wondered whether or not there was a simple, effective investing methodology I could give to my mom and not have to worry about taking a few days to explain it to her. Now, I do. The MarketBuster is a great investment strategy that doesn't take to long to understand and hardly any time to do. I highly recommend it to investment professionals and parents, alike.

As an investor and amateur Fed watcher for many years, I can say that this book takes the inverted yield curve concept a step further than I've seen discussed before. This looks like original research based on Fed moves.

This book is actually very simple. The author's point is to watch the Fed for signals on what to do with your 401(k). You keep your money in the market when the Fed is supporting economic growth, and pull your money out of the market when the Fed is not trying to rein in economic growth. If I had followed this strategy, I wouldn't have been holding stocks in the last bear market.

This approach has some merit, as Fed policies substantially influence the market. I guess the idea here is to be in the market when it's likely to go up, and out when it's likely to go down. Makes sense.

Kwong's advice just doesn't hold water:
1. If you had followed his strategy on the positive yield curve relationship between 3 month and 3 year rates, you would have been long the market for all of 2001 and the first half of 2002. You would have lost 30 to 40% of your portfolio value.

2. Despite his "long term" viewpoint, you would have traded in and out of the market frequently, about 20 times over the past decade, and have been eaten alive by the commissions, with none of the benefit of active selection for market outperform.

3. His business, tradingmarkets.com, is a Day Trader site! That should tell you his inclination. Go visit the site if you don't believe me. He is a confused man.

Simplistic, unsupported approach. Do Not Follow It.