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Equity Linked Savings Scheme still comes under Sec 80C as on date. Investments made now do not have any impact due to DTC. So you can go ahead and invest in tax saving mutual funds. HDFC Tax Saver & Fidelity Tax Advantage Fund are two good candidates to consider.

I want to know that should I buy life insurance at the age of 22 years and which policy should I go for ULIP,Endowment or Term?

— Sumit Awasthi,New Delhi

If there are no dependants,life insurance at this stage is not required. You could instead take a medical insurance ( if adequate cover is not available through your employer )of about Rs 4 Lakhs. Term insurance scores over other options from a pure life insurance perspective

I have an investment portfolio of over 15 lacs. I get many calls from wealth management firms and my bank relationship

manager who ask for a hefty fee for managing my portfolio. Is it worth taking these services and if yes how to choose the best?

— Ankur Nangia,Kolkata

It is not a bad idea to allow wealth management firms to manage your portfolio. While choosing the firm,please take care to find out what are the upfront charges and ongoing charges. Also,clearly understand the scope of services,including if the portfolio management services are discretionary or non-discretionary. Find out the track record of the PMS under consideration and other schemes they have managed in the past. Finally find out about their reporting and client servicing. Ask for references from others.

I am 55 year old and have taken VRS from government job. I had invested my hard earned in money in several stocks. I have the share certificates in paper form. I want to sell my stocks as I need money urgently? Is it mandatory to open a Demat account?

— Sanjay Singh,Lucknow

These days it is mandatory to demat your shares if you want to trade. You can approach your depository and demat the shares. Then you can sell your stocks.

I have invested some money in ULIP 2 years back and now I want to get out of it. Is it prudent to come out of it next year or wait for some more years?

— Madhabi Kapoor,Chandigarh

ULIPs are a long term investment vehicle. You can sell it after completing the erstwhile mandatory,3 years lock-in period. Since you bought your ULIP in 2008 chances are that it will take fairly long time to give you good returns. If you are not covered adequately then it may make sense to buy a Term policy and invest in mutual funds once you exit your ULIP.

I bought a house in early 2009 but I am still to get the possession. The builder says it will take another year to give the possession. I am paying rent as well as home loan EMI. What should I do now?

—Ranjan Verma,Pune

You may send a legal notice to the builder and then file a case in a consumer court. Sadly many builders promise moon while selling property and it turns out otherwise later on. Before buying any property it is better to check the pedigree of the builder and find out about his past projects.

— Suresh Sadagopan

Ladder7 Financial Planners

Send us your queries/feedback at expressmoney@expressindia.com