Investment Income (Definition, Types) | Examples of Investment Income

What is Investment Income?

Investment Income is the income that is generated through dividends, payment of interest and capital gains through the sale of any asset or security and profits made by any kind of investment vehicles like bonds, mutual funds, etc. Generally, people earn a large quantity of their total income every year from their salary income but, properly planned savings and the investments in the financial markets can actually convert nominal savings into big portfolios of investment which will surely yield that investor a good investment income over the time.

Top 3 Types of Investment Income

There are several types of investment incomes out of which major ones are explained below:

#1 – Interest

A person will earn income as an interest in investments that generate interest in the deposition of funds into bonds, certificates of deposits, money market instruments, etc. earlier, the investors who are in need of some cash can withdraw money from their interest income without even disturbing the principal amount invested. But nowadays, the interest rates are very low hence; it’s really difficult to expect the same return from dividend and interest on a consistent basis.

If a person utilizes the interest income either from cash, taxable bonds or certificate of deposits, the same is taxed at the regular income tax rate. Additionally, if the investment is long term then that person is required to show the interest income earned in the income tax return even if you do not withdraw cash from that investment.

#2 – Dividends

Dividends are paid by the companies on the basis of their earnings to the shareholders or investors on a per-share basis of the stock. If the investment is in mutual funds that have funds into dividend stocks then the investor earns a share of that company through dividends on a yearly or quarterly basis.

The taxes are to be paid on dividends as well and regular tax rate applies to these Ordinary dividends whereas there are some dividends labeled as “qualified” are taxed at capital gains rate that is generally lower.

#3 – Capital Gains

A rise in the asset’s value like in an investment on real estate or stock which is more than its purchase price then, that increased value is the capital gain but the same is realized only when the underlying asset is sold. The investor has to pay taxes on the capital gains according to the period of the gain whether it is short term or long term capital gain. The long term holing of any investment is better than the short term as the tax rates are lower on long term capital gains.

Investment Income Examples

The following are the different examples of investment income:

#1 – Dividend

If an investor holds 100 shares in a corporate and that entity pays 50% of its earnings as dividends and says the earnings are Rs. 10 per share, therefore, the dividend amount is Rs. 5 per share, the investor earns Rs. 500 per year i.e. 100 shares multiplied by Dividend Per Share Rs. 5.

#2 – Capital Gain

An investor “A” invests an amount of Rs. 1000 to buy 20 shares of a company selling at par i.e. Rs. 50. Next year the price of that share rises to Rs. 70 per share and “A” decides to sell 10 shares from his stock then his capital gain will be Rs. 200 [ 10 shares @ Rs. 70/ share = 700 less original price 10 shares @ Rs. 50/ share = Rs. 500 ].

Advantages

The various advantages related to the investment income are as follows:

It helps in Building up Wealth – An investor will earn income over regular intervals which he can further invest or reinvest in other or the same stock, property or land.
Investment Income has Retirement Benefits – If a person has invested in any mutual funds, stocks, FDs, etc. they earn interest and dividend over it which a person can use or further invest. By further they earn an interest rate on a compounding basis, which will help them to have a great life post-retirement.
It helps in Achieving other Financial Goals – Last but not the least, the investment income can be utilized in completing other financial goals like saving this income for your child’s education, or nowadays there are EMI services for everything, therefore, the person can pay its installments through these extra incomes instead of their salary.

Disadvantages

The various disadvantages related to the investment income are as follows:

Market Risk – The market is very fluctuating and so the investor has no idea how much will he earn this year. Sometimes he can earn a good amount of income and at times there can be a very low generation of income. It all depends on the market and the investments are chosen by the investor so he needs to think and then invest.
Choice of Investment – An investor has to choose amongst the variety of investments to make sure that he earns a nice amount of income. If he chooses some investment that has fixed income generation then he will never get a high return if the market is high and vice versa so the choice of investment is very important.
Application of Tax Rates – There are different tax rates on investment incomes. There are only a few investment incomes that are exempted from tax otherwise all incomes attract tax. Some attract tax when they cross the amount limit of the income and some differ in rates like in short term and long term capital gain.

Important Points

The various important points related to investment income are as follows:

There are several types of investment incomes out of which major ones include interest income, capital gain, and dividend income, etc.
Investment incomes help in saving taxes as there are much tax-free or tax saving investment schemes that attract investors to invest as they save a lot of tax for people.
The investor will be able to face inflation. If a person has invested his funds in fixed income generation investment then his income is fixed from his investments and during the inflation when rates are so high then also he will be earning the same income and can spend it appropriately.

Conclusion

This is an income that generates from interest, dividend and capital gains. It is a good practice to keep investing in stocks, bonds or mutual funds, etc. people have at least a generation of income from these investments which helps them in keeping up with their monetary needs or wants. Some investments help in tax saving also which is an advantage to the common man. The chosen investments should be a wise choice that generates a wealthy return.