Hi lex and thanks For the advice.
A few things
1. I've actually made a lot of money using margin loans
2. I normally keep a very healthy buffer and at that stage I was 20% in the green.
3. When I buy stock like ahz, it's usually done by liquidating other non margin stocks in the portfolio or transferring cash into the portfolio.
4. Using a margin loan is similar to a CFD. If used sensibly, generally no issues.
5. My fail was not realising a sizeable portion of ahz was on margin on legacy.
6. I have enough balance in other stocks to cover big falls
7. I finished the day with my normal healthy margin in tact thanks to Commsec.
8. The interest i pay is tax deductible.
I normally calculate my margin when buying a stock by asking myself what is the worst price this can go to, then subtract a bit more, and a bit more again.
Generally I'm careful with it. Yesterday showed that I hadn't read the fine print.
Anyone happy to share the experience.
Just shows even a great green day can cause you headaches.
AHZ Price at posting:
29.0¢ Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
A personalised tool to help users track selected stocks. Delivering real-time notifications on price updates, announcements, and performance stats on each to help make informed investment decisions.
(20min delay)