Antique shoppers'' best-kept secret
Anyone who appreciates antiques or collectibles understands the bliss that comes from scoring some one-in-a-million piece at one-hundredth of its price -and then telling everybody about your amazing catch. Perhaps the best place to discover that perfect find, and a best-kept secret of antiques dealers, is the estate sale.
Why student loan business turned bad
For years, financial firms made good money making government-guaranteed loans to college students.
Gas bills ate your rebate
When President Bush announced that the government would begin distributing economic stimulus checks on Monday, he did so in the shadow of ever-rising gas prices.
Can a new tax code foil my Roth?
No one can predict what the future holds, so you might be better off hedging your retirement by tax diversifying.
The look for less: Kitchen and bath bargains
Most times you get what you pay for, but sometimes you luck out. Here are a few true deals, with features of higher-end products for less money.
Your kid''s in college! How will you pay?
Patrick and Laura Matheny began saving early for their children''s college education. After stashing some $50,000 in college savings accounts for their son Daniel, now 20, and their daughter Natalie, 18, they began paying down their mortgage in earnest with the intention of tapping their home equity once the bills began rolling in.
The plan to save early retirement
Conventional wisdom says that since Americans are living longer, we should work longer too - and that 401(k)s are the best tool for funding whatever retirement we can hope to afford.
Calming words for troubled times
For guidance in these unsettled days, we corralled some of the best minds in investing. What we got was wisdom, perspective, reassurance - and a couple of TV viewing suggestions.
How a good financial adviser can help
Question: I am a financial adviser, and I feel it''s easy for you to be critical of our practices when you are at your desk and not in the field trying to help actual human beings. Can''t you find just one testimonial or write one article reflecting a scenario (and there are a lot of them, believe it or not) in which an adviser has helped a person achieve their financial goals?
Getting out of a bad investment
A variable annuity inside of an IRA is usually not a good move. But there are a few ways to get out.
3 best mutual funds to pick now
Coping in a market like this requires patience and prudence (and maybe a few dividends).
A strong case for market optimism
The economy is in trouble and fear rules Wall Street. No wonder. Banks and other financial companies are posting huge losses. The Federal Reserve has had to engineer a rescue of investment bank Bear Stearns. Home prices are sinking.
Don''t let money ruin your marriage
When we married 22 years ago, my wife and I started with two old cars and not much more. I had spent my last dime on our honeymoon; she was just finishing school. At the time it seemed as if years would pass before we''d have the income to travel again. So without telling her, I began to sock away $20 a week. It was my secret vacation fund - and, it turns out, my first act of financial infidelity.
When a HELOC freezes over
When Diane Carr, 55, received word in February that her home-equity line of credit would be canceled, she was dumbfounded. The HELOC had been open since 2003, when she bought her Woodside, Calif. home. And Carr had never even tapped it.
Vacation where the dollar is still strong
Check out these 7 places where the greenback is worth a lot more than the paper it''s printed on.
