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General Financial Matters « Financial Matters

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Articles, Publications and Resources
About General Financial Matters

 

Articles About Financial Matters

  • 6 Things To Know About Buy-Sell Agreements
    Here are six things business owners should know about buy-sell agreements, according to Baker Tilly’s Flaskey.

  • 7 Questions to Ask When Picking a Financial Advisor (Wall Street Journal – 4/17/09)
    As investors look for guidance in these troubled markets, one question looms above all others: Whom can you trust?

  • For Older Americans, Money Advice is Just a Start (New York Times – 7/06)
    A new breed of financial planner who caters to the elderly with services that may go far beyond portfolio management and estate planning.
  • Know How to Deal With Your Bank on a Power of Attorney (Market Watch – Jan. 7, 2008)
    Be sure to understand the rights that you and your bank have when it comes to durable powers of attorney — before it's too late. A durable power of attorney is a legal document that designates someone to manage your finances if you become incapacitated.
  • Learning to Share (The New York Times – 9/10/08)
    The day will come, or may have already, when your children think of your money as theirs.
  • National Do Not Call Registry
    Gives you a choice about whether to receive telemarketing calls at home. Most telemarketers should not call your number once it has been on the registry for 31 days. If they do, you can file a complaint at this Website. You can register your home or mobile phone for free.
  • Sites that Help You Fight the Fees (Wall Street Journal – 2/12/10)
    Financial institutions reap billions in profits from fees on consumers, many of whom lack the time or information to wade through the fine print. But Web sites like Mint, BillShrink and BrightScope are already giving them fee-killing tools. Consumers can be only a click or two away from ditching a financial institution even after years of being a loyal customer (which some angry consumers are doing).
  • The Basics About Annuities (AARP – 3/3/09)
    Everyone’s heard about annuities, but your eyes may glaze over when trying to figure out what they really do. Here’s a quick explanation.
  • What Records to Keep and How Long to Keep Them (Gerilaw blog – 3/27/09)
    Digging through piles of records can be a frustrating task. It can take only one search to raise the question: “Do I really need to keep all these documents?”.
  • What's the Difference Between Money Market Accounts and Money Market Funds (The Consumerist – 1/3/09)
    Do you know the difference?

Publications About Financial Matters

Resources: Websites, Blogs About Financial Matters

  • AARP Real Relief
    With the cost of food and health care skyrocketing, families losing their homes, retirement accounts shrinking and millions of Americans without a job, AARP recently launched this online resource to help people weather these tough economic times.
  • Ask Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
    Want to know who you need to call when disputing an error on your credit report? Are you curious about what a "reverse mortgage" is? Well, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has just launched a new interactive service that fields questions like these and provides answers without all the usual fancy finance jargon.
  • Check a Broker's History – From the Bottom Line/Personal:
    Check a broker's history with the BrokerCheck feature at www.nasd.com to find out if he/she has run afoul of securities regulations. For a full history, contact your state's securities commission – go to www.nasaa.org to find yours. If your broker gives you investment advice, get his ADV form – Uniform Application for Investment Advisor Registration – which lists disciplinary actions, from the Securities and Exchange Commission or your state securities office.
    —Mary L. Schapiro, chairman and CEO, National Association of Securities Dealers, 1735 K. St. NW, Washington, DC 20006
  • Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
    Their central mission is to make markets for consumer financial products and services work for Americans—whether they are applying for a mortgage, choosing among credit cards, or using any number of other consumer financial products.
  • Debt Free U
    Financial literacy resources for students and young adults.
  • Debt.org
    Serving the public with thorough and accessible information on financial well-being. We strive to help people in all stages of life, from college, through buying or selling a home, and into retirement. Whether an individual wants to plan for the future, get out of debt or stay out of debt, we can help.
  • Forex Trading and Exchange Rate Services
    Company with a strong belief: technology should give everybody the same access to quality exchange rates.
  • Online Benefits Calculators
    Projects retirement benefits under federal retirement systems, Social Security, Thrift Savings Plan and more.
  • PovertyLaw.org (Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law)
    For over 40 years, the Shriver Center has improved lives through the development of innovative and effective programs and policies that advance justice and opportunity.
  • Securities & Exchange Commission
    There are many links here for those who want to learn more about what the Securities and Exchange Commission is doing.