Financial

As a small-business owner, you may need to review the benefits and incentives you can provide prospective employees — particularly in the area of retirement planning. If a 401(k) is not appropriate for your business, you can offer your workers a SIMPLE IRA (Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees). This plan is available for any type of business with 100 or fewer eligible employees — those who earned at least $5,000 in compensation in any two previous years and are reasonably expected to

Whether you’re a seasoned investor or you’re just getting in the habit of putting money away, saving for retirement takes discipline and strict adherence to a well laid-out plan. Sometimes it may seem far away, but preparing now for the time when you’ll be done bringing home a regular paycheck is critically important.

While it’s something we hope would never happen, losing a spouse becomes an unfortunate reality many people must face. While the emotional trauma is the first and hardest blow, an important next step is looking towards the future and assessing your financial situation. As a single person for the first time in years, there are several steps you should take in order to help you effectively manage your financial and household needs. Locate important documents: Determine the location of key docu

Investing is the first step toward building a more financially secure future - congratulations on being ready to take that step. As you’re probably all too aware, investing can also be intimidating, especially when you’ve never done it before. But like anything else, it’s much simpler if you have a plan in place. Identify Goals The first thing you want to do is define your goals.

When you’re in a state of panic, you can do some things really well, such as run after a bus, think up an excuse or find a last-minute gift. Other tasks, however, require a calmer approach. You don’t want to be panicky when you’re slicing a tomato, pouring hot coffee or preparing your taxes — and you certainly don’t want to panic when you’re investing for the long term.Yet, in the midst of the $700 billion Emergency Economic Stabilization Act, the failure of some well-known banks

Cost basis. What is it? You may have heard this term used many times, but if you are an investor, it is important to know what it means. Cost basis is a means of measuring the value of a security or other assets for tax purposes. When you sell a security, you compare its selling price with your cost basis to determine whether you’ve realized a taxable gain or a tax-deductible loss.

When you invest in a company, you become an owner of the company with a vested interest in the company’s performance. Whether you’re managing money for a household or for a multinational corporation, you want the money you invest to give you the best possible return. This article discusses basic investing and portfolio-planning concepts that can help you make wiser choices. Short-Term Investments If you find yourself with cash reserves that you’re not ready to invest or spend immediatel

We’re in a recession, which could be severe. Several financial services companies have either collapsed or been bailed out by the government. And the stock market is down about 45 percent since hitting its peak in October of 2007. Is this a “perfect storm” that should blow investors out of the market — or is it actually an opportunity for investors to jump back in? If you’re an investor, your first impulse might be to join the “get out while you can” camp.

Over the past few weeks, the country’s attention has been riveted on the presidential election. Of course, we didn’t exactly forget that we’re in difficult economic times, but we did have something else on which to concentrate our thoughts and energies. Now, however, the election is over, and, for many of us, it’s back to focusing on the economy and our investments.

You may be one of the millions of Americans who change jobs or retire each year and receive a distribution from your employer’s retirement plan. Naturally, you will be faced with many questions that may dramatically affect your financial future. Perhaps the most important decision you will have to make is determining when you will access this money.