Financial Planning Articles

Finance » Financial Planning | By Caterina Christakos @ Tuesday, 1st April 2008 @ 5:55 AM

Unlike what it sounds, a managed future is not about a college choice or a personal growth plan. On the world of investment and finance, a managed future is a type of investment choice. Unfortunately, many individuals without a finance background may not understand exactly what this is, so let us take a look at what this choice could mean to you. Q: What is a Future? A: A future is basically an agreement between the investor (or buyer) to buy something at a set price sometime i... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Caterina Christakos @ Tuesday, 1st April 2008 @ 5:51 AM

You have signed up for your employer's 401K plan and are very proud of yourself because you are not only getting tax benefits, but your employer matches a portion of your investment (can you say free money?). Congratulations to you. You have taken the first step to becoming an investor and building your portfolio for a wealthier life. But - if you are like the majority of Americans, you take a look at the selection of investment choices and all of a sudden, you are lost! Here are... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Caterina Christakos @ Tuesday, 1st April 2008 @ 5:44 AM

For most Americans, the goal of any investment strategy is to fund retirement. We expect to work until retirement age and then we expect to be financially comfortable. One way to achieve this goal is to invest in a managed IRA. To help you understand this choice a little better, some common questions are listed below. Q: I just left my old job. Can I roll over my pension and 401K plan into an IRA without tax consequences? A: Yes, absolutely. Make sure that you create an IRA ac... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Eddie Lamb @ Saturday, 29th March 2008 @ 9:52 PM

Your cash flow is the lifeblood of your business. You can be billing thousands of dollars each month but if it takes your clients 30-90 days to pay, your cash flow can be non-existent - particularly if you have expenses to pay while you're waiting for clients to pay you. Your cash flow, and your cash flow analysis, is your number one tool to keeping your business solvent and thriving. Fortunately, the basic elements of your cash flow are really straightforward. The equation is: more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Sen Ze @ Saturday, 29th March 2008 @ 8:09 PM

As a financial planner, you probably already know all of the best techniques and methods for a business to earn more money, to lower its costs and to overall better manage its finances. So you'll almost certainly agree with the idea that, as a financial planner (or anyone who is an expert in managing finances really!), you can certainly earn some extra money by expanding your business to the Internet. After all, both the starting up and maintenance costs of securing a domain and a we... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Ranju Kumar @ Saturday, 29th March 2008 @ 10:01 AM

Nowadays there are companies that allow an investor to purchase stocks from the company directly. It is perfect according to the Securities & Exchange Commission. These are called Direct Stock Plans. It is called DSPP. The company may require information that you have stocks through employment with the company. But it is not required in all companies. The Direct Stock Plan operates in different manner than buying stock through a broker. There may be small amount of fee & no commissions ar... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Obinna Heche @ Friday, 28th March 2008 @ 1:55 PM

The report card for any business is its profit and loss statement and in order for the business to succeed, profit is determined by two categories, income and expenses. As all business owners know it is easier to adjust expenses than it is to increase income but for profits to show a significant rise, income should go up while expenses go down. Some businesses make the mistake when they are reducing their expenses of eliminating costs in some of the wrong areas. Typically, one of the bigg... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By James Hunaban @ Thursday, 27th March 2008 @ 9:02 PM

Debt can be a terrible burden as it often creeps up on an individual who hasn't recognized they have a problem; if this is something you recognize then take advice from a financial counselor to regain some kind of control over your finances. You must seek methods that will provide debt relief in the short and long term. The best way to beat the debt stress is to learn how to manage your finances more thoroughly. Do not let panic over the situation rule your actions as you will probab... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Jerry Leung @ Wednesday, 26th March 2008 @ 3:07 AM

You will certainly find that it is really not easy to evaluate a money manager. Some money managers cannot really help. As a matter of fact they should be able to help you to increase your net worth. When you consider hiring a money manager, you should bear the following issues in mind. First of all, you will need to consider how they make money grow. What are the tools they will use to help you to increase the net worth? Do they invest on stocks or mutual funds? What is the focus ... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Jeffrey Voudrie @ Saturday, 22nd March 2008 @ 9:05 PM

One of the biggest issues seniors face as they get older is how to preserve an inheritance for their children. Their biggest fear is spending all of that money on assisted living and/or nursing home care. As each family situation is different, so is each solution. Perhaps you can learn something from the experience of one of my clients. Here's their situation in their own words, with their names changed, of course: "Tom's mom has decided that she wants to move to a re... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Apurva Shree @ Thursday, 20th March 2008 @ 10:24 PM

Debt consolidation mortgage loan is one of the options available to those who have mounting debts and are seeking a viable solution. It can be harrowing to find that you have more debts than you can afford to repay. It is a time to take a quick but informed decision. Steps To Be Debt-Free Fast When your unpaid bills are escalating and you are facing hefty late payment penalties you need to take time to assess your financial situation. You need to estimate the extent of your liabil... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Apurva Shree @ Thursday, 20th March 2008 @ 10:22 PM

Getting bad credit mortgage refinance is a good option if you are going under debt. Debt situations can trouble us at any stage of our life whether you take a loan for higher education, getting married, for renovating the home, or paying medical expenses. Another debt trap people fall into often is credit card loans. To repay the credit card bill, you need to take out another loan. This continues until it becomes a vicious debt cycle. Refinancing Options Today, you have more refin... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Apurva Shree @ Thursday, 20th March 2008 @ 10:20 PM

If you are thinking of availing a quick online no teletrack or telecheck payday loan, then you might want to do a bit of homework before you sign up with any such lending institution, because knowing the facts right can help you save a considerable amount of money. So What Exactly Are These Loans? In simple words, a no fax no teletrack payday loan is a small amount of money (ranging from $100-$1500) borrowed against your subsequent paycheck. This means that these quick money advanc... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Eddie Lamb @ Sunday, 16th March 2008 @ 12:51 AM

Do you equate family finance with tax law? Does it seem like an overwhelming concept to develop a budget you can live with? If this applies to you, take heart - budgeting doesn't have to be rocket science! Here are five tips to make creating a realistic budget easy: Tip #1: Think positively about your money. Money, and budgets, are not bad things. In fact money is wonderful! Money enables you to have a wonderful roof over your head, to wear the clothes that help you tell the world... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Sean Rasmussen @ Saturday, 15th March 2008 @ 6:45 PM

To be sure, the stock markets and share markets of the world are prime targets for investment and money making. Many millionaires and billionaires the world over have proven that there is money to be made by investing in stocks. For the average person interested in creating wealth by investing in stock markets, a financial planner seems to be the best route to take. But what are the qualities and skills that you should look for when choosing the best financial planner to guide your investment... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Shellaine Enfesta @ Saturday, 15th March 2008 @ 2:28 PM

The news or threat of foreclosure on your home or property could be very devastating for anyone, especially seniors. Knowing the regulations preventing foreclosure could do you a lot of favor. If your financial situation is stressed out thin, you are definitely under huge pressure to come out with the much needed money. When you are burdened with foreclosure, you need to know the basic regulations preventing foreclosure. There are so many possible reasons why one would be unable to pay hi... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Bercle George @ Thursday, 13th March 2008 @ 1:06 PM

Know that effective management skills are applicable to every financial scenario imaginable. Money management really does apply to everyone, from minimum wage workers to CEOs of billion dollar conglomerations. It is widely thought that if you cannot manage your life, you can't begin to manage your money. It can mean gaining greater control over outgoings and incomings, both in personal and business perspective. You must understand that leveraging your money with management can turn a... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Wayne Miller @ Monday, 10th March 2008 @ 3:06 AM

This is not a given for every employee. It used to be in the generation that was in the workplace of the nineteen fifties and sixties that staying with a company for thirty or more years and retiring with full benefits was the norm. That is not the norm any more. We cannot just blame the job hopping ways of employees for the change of culture away from going for the gold watch and retiring in a company. From the corporate side, so many companies have eliminated retirement packages enti... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Sharron Nixon @ Friday, 7th March 2008 @ 2:59 AM

More often than not, the most well meaning people seem to develop bad credit at some stage in their lives. It does not seem to matter whether you have had perfect credit in the past, we seem to go through periods of time where debt takes on a life of its own and grows uncontrollably, like a newborn puppy. Going along hand in hand with this, paying bills on time becomes more and more difficult. So, why does bad credit have a habit of creeping up on good people with the best of intentions... more...

Finance » Financial Planning | By Joseph Kenny @ Thursday, 6th March 2008 @ 4:31 AM

One will find at least one credit card in American household. These days carrying debt has almost become inevitable and in many households, is necessary. Most of the cases sound financial budget is forgotten. In between credit cards, mortgages, carloans, retirement funds, many of the Americans have no time to even ponder what to do next. The ever-growing debt consumes the largest chunk of their incoming resources. All said and done, a sound financial budget can be daunting for every pers... more...