These resources are brought to you by the Cooperative Extension System and your Local Institution

Personal Finance Home

Have a question? Try asking one of our Experts

Risk

Last Updated: February 19, 2007

View as web page


All investments involve some risk because the future value of an investment is never certain. Risk, simply stated, is the possibility that the actual return on an investment will vary from the expected return or that the initial principal will decline in value. Risk implies the possibility of loss on your investment.

Factors which affect the risk level of an investment include:

  • Inflation
  • Business failure
  • Changes in the economy
  • Interest rate changes.

Browse related Articles by tag: personal finance, glossary, financial security: saving and investing


Have a specific question? Try asking one of our Experts

Unlike most other resources on the web, we have experts from Universities around the country ready to answer your questions.