Karthik Jerome

Employers are using credit history to assess candidates for roles involving clients' money, credit decisions, and sensitive financial data

Holding gold and global assets can help Indian investors hedge against rupee depreciation, manage inflation risks, and meet dollar-denominated goals such as overseas education and travel

Diversify internationally, continue SIPs in equity funds, and move towards medium and shorter-duration debt funds

The entire retirement corpus will not be needed on day one, so it should be split into growth and income-generation buckets to manage inflation and longevity risks

Stay invested only if you have strong conviction, understand the sector, and can time your entry and exit

Last-minute choices made without considering needs could exact a high financial price

Arbitrage funds aim to capture the price difference between the spot price of a stock or index and its futures price when futures trade at a premium

Sebi's new rule allows AMCs to offer both value and contra funds with limited portfolio overlap. Here's how the two strategies differ and which investors they suit

Wait for greater clarity on how these funds will be taxed at maturity

If you are underweight, continue with systematic purchases

New investors should consider them for risk reduction, stability and disciplined allocation, not return-chasing

In the tax return forms, more data will come pre-filled, but it should be verified against your own records to avoid mismatches

For the title to be clean, there should be an unbroken chain of registered documents, with the latest in the seller's name

Bear in mind that substantial changes in a revised return can invite closer examination by tax authorities

If going from a 2-BHK to a 3-BHK pushes the EMI beyond comfort, the bigger house becomes a risk rather than a solution

When building a portfolio, diversify by market cap, style, and geography to minimise chances of overlap

Poor sector and stock selection calls can, however, lead to underperformance

Investing systematically can help investors benefit from volatility rather than be overwhelmed by it

Be warned that incomplete, outdated and inconsistent documents can delay loan approval and disbursal

Do not chase past returns, as the interest-rate environment that produced them no longer exists and gains from falling rates are largely behind investors