When diving in doesn't pay dividends - Mary Holm

per cent by the end of last month. In other words, inflation has been about 10 per cent and the shares' value is down by 45 per cent.

That's not a great start, and it gets more depressing when you realise that if international shares return 7 per cent a year from here on - an optimistic assumption - the investment will take a further 14 years to catch up to inflation at 2 per cent a year.

What I'd like to know, Mary, is do they get out now or wait a further 14 years and hope to cut even? They have no more money to invest, just a nice house by the beach.

Nobody needs shares but everybody needs a home.

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