Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine back issues from May 2006:
Making It in America.(Olga Barsky )(Editorial)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: FRED W. FRAILEY Our cover story this month is all about making it in America--becoming a millionaire. When I ask Olga Barsky whether she's crossed the seven-digit line yet, she laughs. But Olga Barsky has made it in America. A bit back, we got an e-mail from her taking ...
Letters.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
May 01, 2006 ... Our story on sabbaticals conjured pleasant memories for one reader, while a story on adult camps prompted another to practice his guitar licks. A reader warns about credit-score woes. And one reader claims the editor is full of hot air. BREAKING AWAY I saw your story ...
Pensions: The Big Chill.(Ahead)(Brief article)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: ANNE KATES SMITH Brrrr. That nip in the air is from frozen pension plans across America. Companies big and small that once guaranteed generous checks to retirees are capping benefits at whatever you've earned so far. Many are also closing their pension plans to new ...
www: Home Search.(Ahead)(Brief article)
May 01, 2006 ... Find out how much your high school sweetheart's home is worth--or your co-worker's or yours--at www.zillow.com. View data on some 60 million homes--not just those for sale or that sold recently. ...
A Slow Climb for Rates.(interest rates)(Brief article)
May 01, 2006 ... Long-term interest rates will creep higher at least till fall, nudged upward by bond traders' lingering concerns about inflation. Any economic dampening from the Fed's short-term rate hikes won't be apparent until ...
Join the Online Bazaar.(Ahead)(Brief article)
May 01, 2006 ... Daniel Nissanoff, 40, is author of FutureShop (Penguin Press, $24.95) and co-founder of a company that helps resell luxury goods online. He buys a new cell phone twice a year, funded in part by reselling his "old" one. You say we're going to be moving stuff in and out of our ...
Travel Deals.(Ahead)(Brief article)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: SEAN O'NEILL Tracking great hotel and airline deals is getting easier. Instead of e-mail alerts for way too many late-breaking discounts, you can get regular news of deals tailored to your hottest destinations with newsfeeds, a freebie from Orbitz, Travelocity, SideStep, ...
Buyers Get the Edge.(home buying)(Brief article)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: PAT MERTZ ESSWEIN Homebuilders hate to cut prices for fear of torching everyone's property values and setting off stories about weakness in housing. But they know real estate is cooling, so they are advertising goodies galore. And now there are signs that the taboo ...
Own a Piece of Wall Street.(New York Stock Exchange Inc. merged with Archipelago Holdings Inc.)(Brief article)
May 01, 2006 ... Investors jumped at the chance to own a piece of the New York Stock Exchange when it began trading publicly in March, following a merger with electronic exchange Archipelago. The stock (symbol NYX) opened at $67 and ...
70 Is the New 65.(Gerald Schwinn's investment planning after retirement)(Brief article)
May 01, 2006 ... At 68, Gerald Schwinn has never been busier. The retired energy consultant tutors kids in the Washington, D.C., public schools and works part-time at the public library and an art gallery. He'll keep working at least until 70, when he's eligible for maximum social security benefits. "As ...
Ethanol's Thirst for Water.(Ahead)(Brief article)
May 01, 2006 ... Don't be surprised if the most precious liquid gold turns out to be water. As U.S. ethanol production ramps up, water--or the lack of it--is foiling some plans to supplement oil with fuel from alcohol. The Lincoln-Pipestone Rural Water System in Minnesota "has been approached on ...
What You Need to Know About Buying a Dog.(Ahead)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Sean O'Neill 1. Buy the puppy in the window, not Windows. Americans buy about 150,000 puppies a year, sight unseen, on the Internet, says the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association. That leaves you little recourse if the deal goes sour. Only ten states regulate ...
In Search of a More Diversified Mix.(Bob Przybylski's retirement planning)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Jeffrey R. Kosnett If extreme retirement saving were an Olympic sport, Bob Przybylski would be a medal contender. Bob, who is 44 and single, invests $16,000 a year, about one-third of what he earns as a producer for a public-TV station in central Michigan. Bob, who lives ...
Faith Based Investing.(in mutual funds)(Column)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: James K. Glassman When mutual funds got their second wind in the late 1980s, they democratized American investing. Just 6% of U.S. households owned funds in 1980. The figure was 48% by 2005. The typical stock mutual fund is a portfolio of about 100 companies, managed by ...
The 25 Best Mutual Funds.(Investing)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Steven T. Goldberg If there's one question we hear again and again, it's this: What is the best mutual fund? The question usually has a follow-up: What's the best fund for retirement? Or for college? Or for other vital goals? To all who ask, here are our answers--our ...
The Ups and Downs of Owning a Racehorse.(Investing)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Katy Marquardt All eyes at the Gulfstream Park racetrack in Hallandale Beach, Fla., are on the 12 towering thoroughbreds filing into the starting gate. As the jockeys, resplendent in colorful silks and white pants, guide their companions into position, the sky opens up ...
Magellan's New Skipper Changes Course.(Fidelity Magellan Fund's Harry Lange interviewed)(Interview)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Manuel Schiffres Throughout the 1980s, the name Fidelity Magellan was synonymous with mutual fund excellence. Peter Lynch, who ran the fund from 1977 until 1990, produced a 2,700% total return over that period. His two immediate successors, Morris Smith and Jeff Vinik, ...
Rising (Morning) Star.(Morningstar Inc.'s sales growing)(Brief article)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: THOMAS M. ANDERSON Morningstar Inc. is one growth stock you won't find rated on the company's popular investing Web site. Too bad. Since going public in May 2005, shares of the Chicago-based investment-research firm have more than doubled and are now worth $1.7 billion ....
When Big Isn't Better.(BlackRock Aurora)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Thomas M. Anderson From 1996 through 2001, State Street Aurora threatened to become the Barry Bonds of funds. The fund, which invested mainly in small companies, beat the Russell 2000 index five times, each time by at least 12 percentage points--and twice by 40. During ...
Short Hops Ready for Takeoff.(airlines and their pricey services)(Column)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Knight Kiplinger America's air-travel system works great--if you happen to live in a large metro area and want to fly to another one. In most such markets, nonstop flights are plentiful and fares are reasonable, thanks to competition among big national airlines. But ...
What's Google Worth?(market share)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: David Landis Nearly everyone agrees that Google is a great company. But at what price? The market isn't sure. Shares have lurched from a high of $475 in January to $338 in mid March. Analysts aren't much help. Their target prices range from $255 to $600. ...
The Joys of Focusing.(Alexander Motola's investment choices)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Thomas M. Anderson Thornburg Core Growth makes big bets on a small number of stocks. The fund (symbol THCGX; 800-847-0200; 4.50% sales charge for the A shares) holds just 35 to 40 companies that manager Alexander Motola thinks have been ignored despite rapid growth. The ...
My Jack Bogle Problem.(john Bogle's management)(Column)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Andrew Feinberg Before I pounce on John "Jack" Bogle--and I will--let's give him his due. He is a legend. Fortune named him one of the investment industry's four "Giants of the 20th Century." Not only did Bogle start Vanguard Group, but he also created the first ...
Rankings: Top-Performing Stock Mutual Funds--One Year.(Investing)(Brief article)
May 01, 2006 ... RANKINGS: Top-performing stock mutual funds--one year HOW TO USE THE TABLES: Diversified funds are categorized by the average market value of their holdings. Funds that invest in stocks of all sizes are included in the Midsize category. Investment Style describes the kinds of ...
How to Make a Million.(Your Money)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: KIMBERLY LANKFORD, JANE BENNETT CLARK, SEAN O'NEILL, JEFFREY R. KOSNETT "IN MY GUT, I KNEW I COULD DO THIS" When Nina Vaca came to Los Angeles from Quito, Ecuador, at the age of 2, her parents' goal was to build a family business that all of their children ...
Medicaid Gets Tough.(Your Money)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Mary Beth Franklin William Zatlin, 90, of North Babylon, N.Y., may not realize it, but his bed in a Long Island nursing home costs about $11,000 a month and wiped out his cash savings in less than a year. It's just as well that the disabled World War II veteran, who ...
Advice for First-Time Buyers.(investing in purchasing house)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Jessica Anderson Anh Nguyen always dreamed of having a walk-in closet. So the first thing she did after buying her Arlington, Va., duplex a year ago was make that dream a reality: Racks and shelves of clothes and shoes now line the walls of what was once a tiny bedroom ....
A Fresh Look at Long Term Care.(long term care insurance)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Kimberly Lankford Could you afford to withdraw $250,000 from your retirement savings to pay for one year in a nursing home? Based on current charges, that's the projected cost in 25 years, when today's 55-year-old is likely to need care. And with nursing-home stays ...
Last Chance to Lock In.(student laons prices growing)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Jane Bennett Clark It seems like only yesterday that student-loan rates were sinking faster than a December sun. Alas, the days of magically vanishing--or modestly rising--rates are about to end. Starting July 1, the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 will set a fixed rate of ...
Checkups On the Run.(offered by retail clinics)(Column)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Thomas M. Anderson Your child wakes up with an earache--and you take him to Target. You suspect your nagging cough may signal bronchitis, so you have it checked--at Wal-Mart. You don't need an appointment for either visit, the cost is a fraction of what you would have ...
Can Hackers Clean Me Out?(mutual fund industry and information security)(Column)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Kimberly Lankford Mutual fund firms are pushing hard to get customers to sign up for online access to their accounts. But what if someone hacks into my account and empties it? Would I have any legal recourse to require the mutual fund company to reimburse me for the ...
Credit Cards: Get a Jump On College Savings.(Your Money)(Brief article)
May 01, 2006 ... Byline: JOAN GOLDWASSER Open a 529 college-savings plan for your child, and a new credit card will help you fund the account. Barclays Bank has joined with Mothers Work, which sells maternity clothes, to introduce the Futuretrust MasterCard (888-878-7868; www.futuretrust.com) ....
Honest Credit Repair.(financial counselling)(Brief article)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Kimberly Lankford Credit counseling is a fine idea. The government thinks so highly of it that the law now requires you to get credit counseling within six months of filing for bankruptcy. Trouble is, the field has more than its share of shady operators who ...
How Green is My Hybrid?(hybrid vehicles)(Product/service evaluation)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Mark K. Solheim Give this to hybrid cars: Their timing is impeccable. The first half of the decade saw the few available hybrids hugged mainly by the green crowd. But now, just as gas prices mount and concern grows over the automobile's impact on global warming, the ...
Make Your House a Smart Home.(Rewards)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: Jeff Bertolucci As Doug Burton pulls his Mercedes into the garage of his Hollywood Hills, Cal., home, the symphony of automation has already begun. Outdoor Malibu lights, programmed to shine at sunset, illuminate the exterior. As he enters the house and disarms the ...
5 Things to Ask About Espresso.(Rewards)(Buyers guide)
May 01, 2006; ... Byline: SEAN O'NEILL 1. Can home machines deliver Starbucks-quality espresso? Yes. These machines hiss and pop like coffeehouse devices, and deliver the same hazelnut and orange-peel aromas. Espresso is brewed by quickly forcing near-boiling water through ground coffee at high ...
I Published My Own Book and the Critics Noticed.(Stepin Fetchit)(Column)
May 01, 2006 ... Byline: AS TOLD TO HIS SISTER, JANE BENNETT CLARK The name Stepin Fetchit has long been used to signify the ultimate negative African-American stereotype--but almost nothing had been written about him. He made his name as a comedian while becoming a polarizing figure, so I ...