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When making a purchase using a credit card, consumers aren’t simply buying merchandise or paying for services from a merchant; instead, they are involving several third parties in the transaction. These third parties include the company that issued the credit card, the bank used by the merchant, and the network handling the transaction. All of
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Financial news is filled with references to the Federal Reserve, especially given the recent interest rate hike and the hundreds of articles on the effect of the Fed’s actions. But do you know what the Fed really is and how it came to be? The Federal Reserve is the federal government’s central banking system. Created
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If you ever wanted to achieve the level of wealth that allows you to hide a large amount of it within the iconic Swiss bank account, you are now officially out of luck. Feel free to target great wealth, but do not expect to be able to evade taxes by parking your assets offshore in
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As the tax filing deadline looms, many Americans continue to prepare and file their annual income taxes. For the 86 million taxpayers who own their homes and have a mortgage, there are several different tax deductions they can take advantage of, including deducting their mortgage interest and the insurance premiums of any private mortgage insurance.
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Disaster planning is a critical exercise for most businesses. The idea is to devise contingency plans for the continued ongoing operation of the company in the event of a major storm, fire, terrorist attack or other natural or man-made disaster. In the same way, individuals should do some financial disaster planning so they can be
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When they hear the term “estate planning,” many people immediately think that this doesn’t apply to them because they aren’t “rich.” But you don’t have to be wealthy to have an estate. The fact is, if you own anything — a home or other real estate, automobile(s), investments, checking and savings accounts or life insurance,
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Classically, a pension is a retirement plan where a company or governmental entity sets aside contributions for its employees’ future retirement needs. These funds are invested to increase the available money pool used to meet those future obligations. But over the past 50 years, the definition of pension has expanded to include retirement plans where
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The terms “insurance agents” and “insurance brokers” are often used interchangeably and they may be thought of as the same job, but there are differences. The main difference is in the perspective of each insurance professional. Is an agent or a broker best for you or your business? To make that decision, you first have
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Financial professionals have a greater understanding of the value of social media and are seeing dividends from increased use of social media. That is the essence of the findings from the annual Financial Professionals Social Media Adoption Study from American Century Investments. The vast majority of financial professionals have at least some experience with social
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If you find yourself disabled for a short time, your employer may offer short-term disability insurance as part of your benefits package to help you retain some income while you recover. There will be a threshold employment requirement (a certain time of service and employment status) to be eligible. Typically, the range of benefits is
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Disability insurance replaces a portion of your income if you are unable to work due to an accident or prolonged illness. It’s usually broken into short-term insurance (typically one month or less) and long-term (anywhere from a month to a lifetime). Short-term disability insurance usually covers 60-70% of your salary at the time of the
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Your car was just inundated in a flash flood, consumed in a fire, blown away by a tornado, or crushed by falling debris. After you make sure that all of your loved ones are okay and your house is intact, you turn your attention to your now-useless car. Does your policy cover natural disasters? If
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Investing in classic cars is an excellent way to make money if you know what you are doing, and it is an even better way to lose money if you do not. Recent returns on classic cars are attractive. The Historic Automobile Group Index (HAGI), a tracker of exotic cars, reported a 39% increase in
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529 plans are an excellent method to save for a college education. They are state-operated investment accounts that allow anyone to contribute after-tax dollars toward your child’s education. Earnings build up tax free, and remain so if they are used for qualified educational purposes. However, if funds are withdrawn for non-educational purposes, the earnings portion
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“Superfund” is the federal government’s program to clean up the nation’s uncontrolled hazardous waste sites. But superfunding a 529 plan isn’t about waste at all. Ironically, learning about superfunding will help your children to learn. 529 plans are very useful and flexible mechanisms for saving for college. They are state-operated investment accounts that let
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What makes a painting worth $100 million or more? It only takes one thing — a buyer who likes it enough to pay that high of a price. The fame of the artist and an alluring backstory play a role, as does an appraisal from experts in the field, but in the end it boils
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An exchange-traded fund (ETF) is a hybrid of stocks and indexed mutual funds. They are purchased through brokers and traded through exchanges just as a stock would be, but they represent a basket of holdings designed to track a particular index or price. The underlying asset could be stocks, bonds, commodity contracts, real estate, precious
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Thinking about setting up a trust for your family? Human nature being what it is, you might want to keep your options open by setting up a trust that you can change or cancel at any time. If your formerly sweet granddaughter tells you she is devoting her life to Satan worship, for example, you
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Is a will sufficient for your estate, or should you consider a trust? Before addressing this question, let’s review trusts and what they do. A trust transfers legal title to property to a trustee, who manages the assets of that trust during your lifetime (if it is a living trust) and distributes or manages the
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