Free guides
Guides for people who want to understand their own money.
Plain-English, step-by-step guides from Alpesh B Patel OBE for people in the UK and around the world who already have a pension, ISA, 401(k), super or adviser and want to check it is working, understand what they are paying, and learn a process rather than chase predictions.
Guide · 22 min
What works in investing: the research behind my approach
Value, CROCI, profitable growth, momentum, correlation, Sortino, drawdowns and behaviour: the evidence behind a process, from Tweedy, Browne to Nobel prize winners.
Read the guide →Guide · 9 min
Is my pension actually performing?
Work out your real return, add up every charge and see what you actually own, in about ten minutes.
Read the guide →Guide · 8 min
What does your portfolio really cost?
Find every layer of charges, add them up in pounds, and see what they cost over 20 years.
Read the guide →Guide · 9 min
Do you need a financial adviser?
When advice is essential, what you may be paying for without needing it, and the questions to ask.
Read the guide →Guide · 9 min
DIY investing: what does it really take?
The accounts, protections and four skills you need, and an honest test of whether DIY suits you.
Read the guide →Guide · 8 min
Investing isn’t stock picking
Why stories cost investors money, what really drives results, and the six questions a process answers.
Read the guide →Coming soon
What to do in a stock market crash
A calm, rules-based plan for the next big fall, written before it happens.
Tell me when it’s live →Coming soon
How to build a portfolio: a rules-based framework
Asset mix, position sizes, rebalancing bands and review rhythm, step by step.
Tell me when it’s live →Coming soon
When to sell: rules versus gut feel
How to decide in advance when to cut a loser, trim a winner or hold.
Tell me when it’s live →Coming soon
Pension drawdown and sequence-of-returns risk
Why the order of returns matters so much once you start taking income.
Tell me when it’s live →Coming soon
Consolidating pensions: when it makes sense
The benefits, and exactly what to check in writing before you move anything.
Tell me when it’s live →Coming soon
Investing £500k+: a framework for a large portfolio or lump sum
All at once or in stages, and how to structure a large sum sensibly.
Tell me when it’s live →Coming soon
Trackers, active funds or your own process?
What each really costs and delivers, and when each makes sense.
Tell me when it’s live →Education and information only, not financial advice. Investing involves risk, including loss of capital.
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