i use margin to the limit all the time, but on a short term basis.
but don't do it if you can't keep a close eye on your positions permanently and don't have discipline keeping stops.
a blown stop using margin could kill you.
also, don't use too much margin for medium term positions if you don't have extra funds to cover the margin loan eventually if things turn nasty.
sometimes, as in the period october/november/december 98 and january 99, where the stock market seemed almost riskless, i even used my huge UNrealized gains from AMZN, CMGI and EGRP as collateral for more margin loans to buy other stocks.
as AMZN, CMGI and EGRP kept rising and rising as rockets, even not realizing those gains, my margin buying power kept increasing day by day, and i used it to buy other things that also kept rising and rising and rising.
boy, what a period!
it was like "starway to heaven"... a castle built on air, but i was very lucky, and things went incredibly well.
i got quite a bit scared thogh when Brazil devalued its currency on january 12.
it was VERY scary with the kind of leverage i had, my portfolio was a Long Term Capital Management in smaller scale
:-) |
