Deception is now so great in our world of finance that people can not discern the difference between what is ‘real’ and what is ‘fake’ money.

Before you blindly accept any money advice you receive, be sure to do some additional research to find out if the advice is outdated. Here are nine examples of financial tips that may no longer apply.

I'm a take-responsibility-for-your-actions kind of guy, which is why I don't have a problem telling you that most of your financial problems are self-inflicted. If you're constantly lamenting you never have enough money or can't get ahead, well — you're probably sabotaging your own financial progress in one of these 5 ways.

The ratio of total stock market capitalization to GDP, a favored indicator of the “Oracle of Omaha”, has historically proven to be a very useful and reliable harbinger of longer-term future returns in equities in the U.S. - and it suggests annualized total returns of -1.27% on the S&P over the next 10 years. Lower equity returns over a 10-year period have been clearly consistent with higher returns for gold. In fact, every 1% drop in annualized total returns on the S&P 500 implies a 1.5% increase in returns on gold. That would be consistent with returns for gold of around 20.6% on average per year.

Does the money really make life any more enjoyable? As Bill Gates once said, "A hamburger is still a hamburger, millions in your pocket or not." Read on for our roundup of reasons why you should feel perfectly content to live on Main Street.

The market crash of 2008 did not just hurt the S&P, it hurt real estate and gold equities. The sell off was brutal. Was 2008 an isolated incident or does a crash in general equities always spell doom for gold and gold stocks? This article examines 5 previous bear markets starting in 1973 in the S&P and looks at the performance of gold and gold stocks.

Balloon mortgages have some tempting qualities. They come with lower interest rates and, because of this, smaller monthly payments. This can help borrowers get into a pricier home that they might not have been able to afford otherwise but balloon mortgages come with one huge risk: At the end of a set period, borrowers must pay off the remaining balance on these loans in full (the "balloon") and these balances can be quite large. So, how exactly do these mortgages work, and who do they work best for? Let's break it down.

Good decision making is a precursor to excellence. Great investors have this skill and we can see it in the many books about Warren Buffett but it’s not only investors that investors can learn from.

Central bankers are managing paper currencies for the benefit of the people, not the financial and political elite. Consequently consumer prices are stable and there is no reason to own gold as protection from currency devaluations.

The goal is to have the right asset mix when your target-date fund hits its target but this leads to the big question: What do you do when your target-date fund finally does reach this endpoint?