Financial Check-Up: Tuition Bills Begin

As high-school seniors’ college search kicks into high gear, many parents are fretting about how to pay.
While an ideal college savings plan would have started years ago, it’s not too late to catch up. Here are some moves families can make during the next few months to boost savings in the right accounts and ease [...]

Difference between a 403(b) plan and 457 plan

As seen in Wikipedia
403(b) Plans
A 403(b) plan, also known as a tax-sheltered annuity plan, is a retirement plan for employees of specific tax-exempt organizations such as health care organizations and colleges and universities. While the relief provisions from the IRS give 403(b) a full year to adopt a written plan document, the plans still must [...]

Personal Finance : Lost your job? Don’t cash out your 401 (k)

Millions of workers take a huge chance with their retirement savings every year by cashing out their 401(k) accounts when they lose their jobs or move to new employers.
When people cash out, a chunk of their money just disappears.
Employers and financial advisers have warned workers about the possibility of retiring poor, something that’s more likely [...]

Do your homework on reverse mortgages

Information from 3 top experts:
Pamela Christensen, Certified financial planner
I expect to retire in about four years and will have a small Sacramento County retirement. We also have about $150,000 in CDs to live on. My parents got a reverse mortgage a couple years ago for the extra cash to live on and to have no [...]

Credit Cards From Largest Banks Would Break New Law

None of the credit cards offered online by the 12 largest U.S. banks would meet requirements of new federal curbs on the industry’s rates and fees, a report from the Pew Charitable Trusts said.
All of the cards surveyed used practices considered “unfair or deceptive” by the Federal Reserve, according to the report released today by [...]

Your overdraft rate may go up

Think your overdraft charges are high? How does paying 36,500% a year sound?
No, this isn’t the charge from some back-street sub-prime lender. It is in fact the rate that some Halifax customers could end up paying on their overdrafts when the bank introduces a “simplified” overdraft charging system later this year.
The new system means that [...]

Are debt elimination companies for real?

These credit card debt elimination companies will tell you some things that are not entire true. For instance, many of them will claim that your credit card debt is the responsibility of your bank. They will tell you that when your credit was established and the limit on the card set, that the supporting bank [...]

The 12 biggest 401(k) Mistakes

Here are the 12 biggest mistakes that financial pros say you can make with your 401(k) — or 403(b) — along with our advice on how to avoid them.
1. Missing the Match
First things first: Enroll. It goes without saying that unless you are independently wealthy and you go to the office just for kicks, you [...]

Investment : Looks like Oil is going to rise again.

With the dollar declining and equities getting stronger, consider investing in oil firms and refiners.
Cold weather’s rolling in, and it’s time to start cranking up the heaters. But don’t use them too liberally–oil prices are poised to shoot upward as the temperature continues to drop.
Last week commenced with crude oil prices teetering at $80 per [...]

New SEC site : Teaches about investing and avoiding scams

The Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday launched its first investor-education Web site, investor.gov, offering tips on investing wisely, planning for the future and avoiding getting scammed.
The site includes advice on monitoring your financial health, figuring out a mortgage’s fine print, and managing debt problems, among other items. It also has a money game, investor [...]

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