ProShares UltraShort ETFs as portfolio hedges

ProShares first came out with UltraShort ETFs a little over a year ago. They're different from your normal 'short' ETF because they're geared to give you 2x the leverage. So if the index they're tracking is down 1%, the ETF will increase 2%. There are 2 in particular that track the financial sector, one, SKF, tracks the inverse of the Dow Jones U.S. Financials index, while SRS tracks the inverse of the Dow Jones U.S. Real Estate index.

They're ideal for hedging against other 'long' financial positions in your portfolio, or for removing the financial component from an index fund holding, for example.

They can be very volatile, though, so be sure you understand their behavior before making a commitment. Last year we used these to hedge holding of Berkshire Hathaway and Leucadia National, and effectively build our own long/short fund.

Closed end bond funds........

TCW has been adding mortgage backed securities to their funds the last few weeks and one attractive way to take advantage for the retail investor is by purchasing closed end bond funds. One possibility is TCW Strategic Income Fund, Inc. (TSI). Closing price 4/18 was 3.7, current yield over 8%, but best yet it's trading at a 13% discount.