TVL (Total Value Locked): What is it? TVL (Total Value Locked) represents the dollar value of cryptocurrency that is being staked (i.e. pledged) to a specific smart contract (or blockchain based protocol).  This is similar to deposits at a bank or AUM (assets under management) at a fund.  With smart contracts automating aspects of financial services, this measure shows how much that financial service is being used. How do you use TVL? TVL can be used to compare similar financial protocols.  For example, the Maker (MKR) protocol (the largest lending protocol) has just under $15 Billion USD locked.  This means that $15 Billion USD worth of cryptocurrency has been pledged to the protocol.  To make a relevant comparison, the Compound (COMP) protocol (another lending protocol) has just under $6 Billion USD locked.  By looking at TVL, it is clear that MKR has more than double the pledged assets COMP (so in the bank analogy, MKR lends more than double the amount C...

What and Why invest in REITs: So REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts) are a way to buy real estate like stocks (can buy at a brokerage like you do with stocks).  So the advantage is that you can buy a share of the real estate for as low as the REIT trades (example VNQ - Vanguard Real Estate ETF is just over $100 a share) and not have to save tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars (or even millions of dollars) to invest in this asset class.  Also, because you can buy and sell them like stocks, you have much better liquidity. Some negative aspects are because they are liquid, you might get to overwhelmed following the prices change tick by tick, whereas houses and other real estate the prices don't change that often.  Another negative aspect is that it isn't common to take leverage buying REITs whereas most home buyers get leverage from a bank by taking out a mortgage. I believe there are 2 major aspects of understand real estate valuation.  1st is how much inco...

The Roth IRA is a special registered retirement account that can grow tax-free and have tax-free withdrawals. There are a few minor restrictions, but all in all it is one of the best retirement accounts: The account has to be at least 5 years old The IRS determines the maximum amount that someone can contribute per year (for 2022 it is $6k, if older than 50 can contribute $7k) The deadline for contribution is typically April 15, when taxes are due (for example before April 15, 2022 you can still contribute for 2021) Withdrawals are tax-free after age 59 and 1/2 and having the account for more than 5 years (there isn't a penalty on withdrawing contributions early, but gains are taxed at 10%) Even though there is an income limit for contributions, there is currently a work around available for everybody to take advantage:    One known caveat to be cautious of:  When you do the Conversion from a Tradition to Roth if you income is above the limit to contribute directly, you ...