Filing For Bankruptcy? Don’t make these common mistakes

Common Bankruptcy Mistakes #1. Liquidation of your Retirement Account
In most bankruptcy cases, the petitioner’s retirement account is protected. However, despite this fact, many people choose to liquidate their retirement accounts and other assets in order to satisfy or pay down their debt prior to filing for bankruptcy. In most instances, this is not recommended, and [...]

How Much Will I Pay For Health Insurance In Retirement

An average couple in the U.S. will need to save up over $300,000 to have in reserve to be assured they could cover their health care costs when the retire. This figure is based on research by the “Employee Benefit Research Institute” and does not cover such possibilities as long-term care, acute care or prescription [...]

Tax Credit for Student Loans – Filing the 1098-E

What most college students don’t realize is when paying off their loans, they can write off the interest. Usually students pay the bulk of the interest first. The majority of the principal is paid off later down the line. Also, with the new option of Income-Based Repayment ( IBR ), the borrower only pays off [...]

Saving money ideas – Taking it to the next level

If you’d like to save more money and improve you personal finances, but find yourself unable to set anything aside after you pay your bills — here are some suggestions:
Money Saving Ideas #1) Round Up. When you subtract a check from your account, round up the amount to the next dollar. That way, you’ll always [...]

Invest in your future. Save money on your wedding

On average, each couple spends over $3,000.00 on an engagement ring and over $2,000.00 on wedding bands according to the “2008 Wedding Report”. The average wedding tab runs around $20,000.00 or more. And, an industry statistic concludes that it takes around 250 hours to plan a wedding. Granted, the wedding day should be special, but [...]

High-Yield Bonds – Effect on Portfolios

You should never look at an asset class or investment in isolation when considering it for your portfolio.
Looking only at returns ( while not considering risk ), the Vanguard High Yield Corporate Fund looks like a good investment compared to its benchmarks. ( Please note that the Vanguard fund’s annualized return is measured from its [...]

Banks gathering personal info from social media sites

Internet users are becoming increasingly aware that companies are secretly collecting and selling the information they post on social sites like Facebook and Twitter. Now banks may also be judging them based on their social network profile.
For the first time, banks can look pretty deeply into your private life by looking at your Facebook or [...]

How to Dispute a Credit Card Charge

If you need to dispute a credit card charge, here’s what you should do:
#1 Understand the law. Consumers are protected by the “Fair Credit Billing Act” and we have the right to dispute a credit card purchase or withhold payment for a purchase if it satisfies certain conditions. It pays to know these rules even [...]

Different Financial Goals, Based on Age

It is tempting to categorize all “Baby Boomers” as facing similar challenges. Given that Boomers were born across 3 decades spanning 18 years, each group faces unique challenges that must be addressed.
Financial Goals for Age 40-50: The Issues
This group is challenged by the specter of simply not having enough money for retirement. Cautiously balancing the [...]

A banner year for hedge funds in 2009

It looks like risk is back. The hedge fund industry had a phenomenal 2009, with a return of 18.6 percent, for its greatest rebound in 15 years, says a report from industry research firm Credit Suisse Tremont.
Even though net asset flows for the year were negative, investors poured in $13.8 billion in new money in [...]

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