March 5, 2012 | Regardless of what a lender quotes on mortgage rates, the actual rate paid by a borrower is based on a number of variables. Lenders determine whether to loan money and at what rate based on the risk involved with the transaction. Factors that increase the risk that the loan will be repaid will proportionately increase the interest rate charged to the borrower. If the risk becomes too high, the loan will not be approved.
February 29, 2012 | While savings rates have been dropping, one thing has kept going up in America: debt. The trend began in the 1990s, when the rate of personal bankruptcy in the country rose by nearly 70 percent, and it continues today. Regardless of the cause of debt - the most common is misuse of credit - there are steps you can take to manage and overcome it. There is no quick fix; getting out of debt requires time and effort: Take control. Create a budget. Contact your creditors. Seek professional help.
February 15, 2012 | When Jon Yankee and his two partners started their Reston, VA-based firm six years ago, they wanted to do it right. Among other things, that meant putting in place a clearly-thought-out compensation plan for both advisors and staff. “We weren’t going to do this by the seat of our pants,” says Yankee, whose firm, Fox Joss and Yankee has about $312 million in assets. To help them design the best pay plan, Yankee and his partners hired a compensation consultant. They started with an underlying premise—that the pay structure would need to support the firm’s ensemble team approach. This meant choosing a model that would allocate salary and incentive compensation to all seven employees depending on the job and experience level of the individual. Bonuses were based on a variety of specific criteria, from regular attendance at firm-wide parties to, when appropriate, new business development. New advisors, they determined, would be offered plenty of mentoring and on-the-job training to help them get up to speed.
January 23, 2012 | If mood-boosting shopping sprees and racking up credit card rewards are a part of your lifestyle, you could be fueling a dangerous debt addiction. Results of Card Hub's latest credit card debt study show that Americans accumulated $18.4 billion in credit card debt in the second quarter of 2011 alone. Credit card debt continues to be a major problem for the average American consumer, yet many are still living a lifestyle that supports a costly debt habit.
January 9, 2012 | Bill Miller is one of the most closely watched money managers in the industry, so it was big news when he announced his decision to step down as portfolio manager of Legg Mason Capital Management Value Trust (LMVTX) in 2012. His departure also adds an intriguing chapter to the long running debate regarding the value of active stock selection.
December 28, 2011 | But before you pull out even your best rewards credit card, stop and think. In some cases, using your credit card could leave you vulnerable to identity theft or unauthorized use of your credit card account. In other cases, using your credit card may not be the smartest financial decision for you. Read on for situations when it's best to keep that Visa or American Express in your wallet and your account information under cover.
December 19, 2011 | I am ashamed to say that my wife told me the other day that she doesn't know what a mutual fund is. This stemmed from a brief discussion about where to invest $1,000 that we had collected from our 8-year-old son's birthday and Christmas money. My wife is a big fan of certificates of deposit. They are her safety blanket, and all she knows about investing. Of course, I was appalled. I was not only mortified at her investment choices but also at my own inability to educate her over the past ten years of marriage in the topics of my chosen profession.
More Colleges Adding Financial Planner Programs (Investment News)
April 30, 2012 | The growth in the number of colleges that offer financial planning as a major is giving financial advisers who are looking for new hires a lot to cheer about. The number of colleges that have registered with the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. to offer approved planning programs has grown to 130, up 20% from two years ago, and dozens more schools are in the process of registering, said Charles Chaffin, manager of academic programs at the CFP Board.