Law & Money

Why now’s a good time to seek dividends

By: Mark Jewell
Why now’s a good time to seek dividends

Glance at 2010 returns and it’s easy to see why mutual fund investors might be tempted to chase the stock market’s hot spots. Thinking small paid off big last year. Funds specializing in stocks of smaller companies gained an average of 23 percent, compared with 13.6 percent for large-cap funds, according to Lipper Inc.

Is it too late to return to the stock market?

By: Mark Jewell
Is it too late to return to the stock market?

Investors are finally inching back into the stock market. But are they too late? While millions sought refuge in traditionally stable bonds over the past two years, they missed a more than 90 percent rally in stocks. Suddenly bonds don’t look so safe, and some of the $11 trillion that Americans have parked in mutual funds is shifting back to stocks.

Muni bonds offer income, but risks, too

By: Kathy M. Kristof
Muni bonds offer income, but risks, too

Worries about out-of-control state deficits, underfunded municipal pension plans and rising interest rates have been kicking the teeth out of the municipal bond market lately, with prices plunging and yields soaring. And that’s got some contrarians saying that now may be the time to jump into the market.

IRS no longer mails packages of tax forms

By: Carole Feldman
IRS no longer mails packages of tax forms

The start of tax season used to be heralded by the arrival of tax forms in the mail. Not any more.

Test your knowledge of common frauds

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Test your knowledge of common frauds

Con artists are very good at tricking consumers into parting with money or divulging personal information that can be used to steal funds or run up thousands of dollars in fraudulent credit card charges. How good are you at telling a scam from a legitimate offer or advertisement? Take the following quiz to see. Correct answers follow.  

Now’s a good time to review your portfolio

By: Mark Jewell
Now’s a good time to review your portfolio

Mutual funds have been put to the test. Over the last three years investors saw their balances nose-dive, then edge back toward prior heights. But few investors have fully recovered. On the bright side, all that drama should make it relatively easy to perform an annual portfolio checkup, to decide which funds to keep and which to cast out. How a fund performed through meltdown and recovery are good indicators of how it will fare from here, whether the current rally has legs or not.

Convertible securities offer smoother ride

By: Steven T. Goldberg
Convertible securities offer smoother ride

If I were a betting man, I’d wager that 2011 turns out to be a better year for stocks than for bonds. With the extension of the Bush tax cuts and the clear resolve of the Federal Reserve to spur economic growth, I think that the stock market will do well for the remainder of this year — albeit with its customary stomach-churning dips.

Online checking accounts offer benefits

By: Candice Choi
Online checking accounts offer benefits

You may never have to wait in line at a bank again. Now that most routine transactions can be handled online or at ATMs, you may be weighing whether it’s worth making the leap to an exclusively online checking account.

What fund ratings do and don’t tell you

By: Mark Jewell
What fund ratings do and don’t tell you

As a mutual fund investor, you don’t want to pay “the stupid penalty.” That’s what Russel Kinnel calls the difference between the best and worst funds. It’s a penalty that he’s studied closely as director of mutual fund research at Morningstar.

Retirees looking to become entrepreneurs

By: Mark Miller
Retirees looking to become entrepreneurs

One of the Steve Jobs stories circulating in the wake of the legendary Apple founder’s death is the line he used to convince PepsiCo’s John Sculley to join Apple Computer: “Do you want to sell sugar water for the rest of your life, or come with me and change the world?”