Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine back issues from November 2006:
Cover.(Cover)
Nov 01, 2006 ... www.kiplinger.com YOUR GUIDE TO MAKING MONEY WORK SPECIAL ISSUE BEST of everything 2006 ONLINE BROKER | STOCK MONEY-MARKET ACCOUNT RETIREMENT PLANS | ETF COLLEGE ...
A Willful Mistake.(estate planning among Americans)(Editorial)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: FRED W. FRAILEY People are funny. We act rationally most of the time--otherwise, no society could long exist. But as individuals we go and just blow it every now and then, doing something that is the financial equivalent of shooting ourselves in the foot. Would you like ...
Letters.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
Nov 01, 2006 ... A reader disputes columnist James Glassman's geopolitics. Another says that liquefied natural-gas imports are on the way. A reader tells how he boosted his credit score. And a BBB president weighs in on timeshares. STOCK REPLY I usually wince a little when I read ...
The New Rules of Raises.(pay for performance is good for employers as well as employees)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: ANNE KATES SMITH At Whirlpool, everyone is eligible for some sort of bonus--from the brass to the worker on the factory floor. Salaried workers can earn four times a target-incentive bonus that's a percentage of their base pay if their accomplishments are above and ...
www: Shadow Flying.(Flightview.com gives information about flights)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2006 ... Traveling or expecting someone for Thanksgiving? Flightview.com notifies you of airport delays (coming or going) and ...
Cheaper Oil, Lower Rates.(interest rates to remain low till next year)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2006 ... The 18% drop in oil prices from this summer's peak will temper the consumer price index by lowering the cost for fuel, transportation and ...
Stocks Get Her Vote.(influence of elections on stock markets)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2006 ... Veteran Wall Street strategist Gail M. Dudack is managing partner and director of research at Dudack Research Group. The first two years of a presidential term are historically lackluster for stocks, with a bottom just before midterm elections, followed by a boom year. Will that ...
iPods On Impulse.(Zoom Systems installs vending machines at airports)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: CHRISTINE M. VARNER Need, or crave, a music player while you're waiting for a plane? Want a spiffier cell phone but lack the time to visit a phone store? Robotic retailers--vending machines on steroids--are showing up in airports and hotels (sometimes replacing those ...
Mall Mania.(retail stocks went down due to rise in gas prices)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2006 ... Retail stocks have had it tough much of this year, hurt by high gas prices and low consumer confidence. But gas prices are tanking and retail sales figures look better. So stores are returning to favor. The stocks could rally strongly if there's a cold winter (people go to the mall more ...
Rent? Buy? Do the Math.(housing ratio rises)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2006 ... Think of the buy-versus-rent relationship as akin to a price-earnings ratio for stocks. The housing ratio rises as rents fall, home prices climb, or both. Some markets sport historically high--maybe dangerously high--ratios. The P/E in Miami, where p is the median mortgage payment and e is ...
Magic Wand.(Nintendo Wii from Nintendo Company Ltd.)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: SEAN O'NEILL AND MELISSA STEELEY The hot box this holiday will be Wii (pronounced we), a Nintendo video-game console you control by swinging a wireless wand the size and shape of a TV remote control. Wii debuts later this month at about $250, or half the price of rival ...
Interest That Really is Tax-Free.(alternative minimum tax)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2006 ... Keith and Melanie Lobel are among the millions acquainted with the alternative minimum tax--enacted in 1969 to keep the rich from stiffing Uncle Sam--which is reaching more middle- and upper-middle-income taxpayers each year. "I paid the AMT last year, and I'll be paying again this year," ...
Strings on High Rates.(Ahead)
Nov 01, 2006 ... Byline: JOAN GOLDWASSER It sounds great: 5.25% in an FDIC-insured, no-fee online savings account. But some virtual bank accounts have real restrictions. For example, to earn Countrywide Bank's rate of 5.25% in its SavingsLink account, you must deposit $10,000. A ...
What You Need to Know About How to Plug a Leak.(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: Sean O'Neill 1. It could be money down the drain. Expect a routine house call to repair a clogged drain or a leaky pipe to cost $50 to $70 an hour (rates may be higher in big cities). After-hours repairs--evenings, weekends and holidays--often run $80 to $100 an hour. To ...
Their Dream: Stay Home With the Kids.
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: Jeffrey R. Kosnett Aaron and Sera Eder believe it takes an actively engaged couple to raise a family. So Sera, 32, plans to quit work once they start having kids, and Aaron, 35, wants to retire early so that he can spend time with them before they leave the nest. The ...
Great Companies On Sale.(General Electric Co., Microsoft Corp., Nokia Corp.)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: James K. Glassman Are growth stocks dead? It sure seems that way. Between the end of 1999 and the beginning of September, a $10,000 investment in Vanguard Value Index fund grew to $13,396. But the same amount of money inside a companion fund, Vanguard Growth Index, ...
The Best Stocks and Mutual Funds.(Dodge and Cox Stock Fund, Fidelity Capital and Income Fund, Transamerica Assurance Co.)
Nov 01, 2006 ... BEST U.S. STOCK FUND Dodge & Cox Stock Dodge & Cox Stock boasts a 41-year pedigree and a track record for excellence that's simply superb. Compared with all diversified U.S. stock funds, it ranks in the first decile for total return for the past one, three, five, ...
The Best Investing Tools.(websites to help in trading )
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: DAVID LANDIS BEST OVERALL ONLINE INVESTING SITE Yahoo Finance Many have tried, but none has been able to match the depth and utility of Yahoo's investing portal (http://finance.yahoo.com). Type in a ticker symbol and you are instantly linked to ...
The Best Services to Make Life Easier.(Salary.com, Moving.com, Skype Technologies S.A.)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: SEAN O'NEILL BEST COST-OF-LIVING CALCULATOR Moving.com The calculator at this site (www.moving.com/ find_a_place/relosmart) doesn't just tell you what your salary would be worth in a different city. For example, if you own a home and want to buy ...
The Best Banking and Credit.(American Express Co., MasterCard International Inc., Pulaski Bank)
Nov 01, 2006 ... BEST GASOLINE CREDIT CARD BP Visa Cut the price of gas with the BP Visa (877-278-4729; www.bpchase.com), which gives you a 5% rebate on all BP purchases, including car washes and items at its convenience store. In addition, you get 2% back on most travel and dining ...
The Best Insurance.
Nov 01, 2006 ... Byline: PATRICIA MERTZ ESSWEIN BEST SITES FOR LIFE-INSURANCE QUOTES Insure.com, AccuQuote.com Insure.com asks all the right questions about factors that can affect your premiums, and it provides quotes from 40 companies quickly without alerting insurers ...
The Best for Retirement Planning.
Nov 01, 2006 ... BEST 401(K) PLAN It could be yours There's a good chance your plan will get better as a result of a new law that allows plan providers to give one-on-one investment advice. Or you may be able to participate in a managed 401(k) account, in which financial ...
The Best for Shopping and Travel.(Priceline.com, Kayak.com, Site59.com )
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: MARK K. SOLHEIM, WILL FRAILEY, CHEF, NEW YORK CITY BEST CELL PHONE Palm Treo Few phones let you surf the Web at the speed of the latest models of Palm's Treo: the 700w (pictured above, for Verizon users), the 700wx (for Sprint users), the 700p (for ...
Seven bargains for $7.(Investing)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: David Landis and Jeffrey R. Kosnett Sometimes stocks are like the sweaters you find at red-tag sales. They may be out of fashion, but they'll keep you warm this winter (and may even come back into style next year). With that in mind, we went shopping in the ...
Thrills Without Spills.(Investing)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: Thomas M. Anderson and Katy Marquardt You don't have to be a shrinking violet to like low-risk stock funds. Jay Landgraf, a 27-year-old Army captain, served in Iraq and now trains troops at Fort Riley, Kan. He also competes in triathlons and has taken up mountain biking ....
The Dodge & Cox Mystique.(Investing)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: Manuel Schiffres In its 76-year history, Dodge & Cox has launched precisely four mutual funds. The firm doesn't advertise and has no marketing department. Yet investors are so taken with its funds that it has had to shut half of its tiny lineup to new customers to stanch ...
Profiting in Biofuels.(Investing)
Nov 01, 2006 ... Byline: Andrew Tanzer The ethanol boom may defy economic logic and could easily drive up food prices. It certainly depends on the generosity of taxpayers, but it makes eminent political sense in Washington, D.C. With a rallying cry of "Money to the Midwest, not the Middle East," ...
What the Markets Say Now.(Investing)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: Jeremy J. Siegel I am often asked whether we should be concerned about the "twin deficits": the large government budget shortfall and the even larger trade gap. The federal budget deficit in fiscal year 2005 was $318 billion and is expected to drop to $260 billion this ...
Property Rights and Wrongs.(Investing)(real estate investment trusts)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: Jeffrey R. Kosnett As investors in tech stocks and many blue chips watched their wealth evaporate with the demise of the great bull market, holders of real estate stocks were having a grand old time. And none had more fun than shareholders of two unusual no-load funds: ...
Going Out On a Long Limb with Longleaf.(Investing)(Longleaf Partners Fund)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: KATY MARQUARDT It makes sense to invest in a fund that's stuck in a rut, if you understand--and accept--the reasons for the fund's underperformance. Case in point: Longleaf Partners International. The fund reopened to new clients with much fanfare in July ....
A So-So Sequel.(Investing)(Case in Point: The Little Book of Value Investing)(Brief article)(Book review)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: THOMAS M. ANDERSON Sequels are tough to pull off. For every The Godfather: Part II, there's a Rocky II. The rule holds true for investing books as well. Case in point: The Little Book of Value Investing, by Christopher Browne. It's packaged as a follow-up to The Little ...
Cut-rate Portfolios.(Investing)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: Thomas M. Anderson Like IKEA furniture, a good portfolio of mutual funds takes some effort to assemble. You find superior funds, buy their shares, monitor performance, and rebalance at least once a year. Too much work? For some people, yes. That explains why $346 billion ...
No Longer Overpriced.(Investing)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: THOMAS M. ANDERSON It didn't take long for a fund that relies on broker Raymond James's highly regarded stock research to go from overpriced to reasonably valued. When we first told you about Claymore/Raymond James SB-1 Equity in "Overpriced Buy List" (Aug.), the new ...
The Kiplinger 25.(Investing)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2006 ... A bond fund has outpaced more than half of the domestic stock-fund picks in the Kiplinger 25 over the past year. Loomis Sayles Bond, a flexible, globe-trotting fund, benefited from its holdings of high-yield corporate debt and foreign bonds. Half of its foreign holdings are in Canadian ...
Rankings: Top-Performing stock Mutual funds--One Year.(Investing)(Brief article)
Nov 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 ...
Debt Police Who Go too Far.(collecting debt illegally)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: Fred Williams Adam Wisniewski manages a department store near Buffalo, N.Y., and earns enough to support himself and his young son without falling behind on his bills. But one day in June, he learned he had been marked as a deadbeat. He swiped his bankcard to pay a ...
Travel and Terrorism.(everything about roth individual retirement accounts, travel insurance and custodial accounts)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: Kimberly Lankford Does trip insurance cover a cancellation I might make because of terrorism or the threat of it? That's one reason I might buy the insurance. --J.K., Madison, Wis. If it's fear of terrorism that causes you to stay home, forget about trip ...
Credit Cards.(American Express Co. and JetBlue Airways Corp. come with frequent flyer programs)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: JOAN GOLDWASSER With all the restrictions imposed on frequent-flier programs, you may despair of being able to use points before they expire. So JetBlue and American Express have come up with a solution: Spend $200 or buy a ticket using AmEx's JetBlue card (877-253-8258; ...
Backdoor Roth IRA.(individual retirement accounts)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: MARY BETH FRANKLIN In "tax-free income for All" (Aug.), we described a strategy you can use if you earn too much to contribute to a Roth IRA. To wit: Start contributing to a nondeductible IRA this year and switch the account to a Roth in 2010, when income restrictions on ...
Powerless Attorney.(power of attorney was of no use for Priscilla Jackman )
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: Steven T. Goldberg When Priscilla Jackman spotted a great rate on a certificate of deposit at PNC Bank, she thought the CD would be ideal for her 88-year-old mother, Irene. She drove to the PNC branch near her home in Pittsburgh, taking with her the power of attorney her ...
Stretch Your Dollar.(health reimbursement account)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: THOMAS M. ANDERSON As you head into benefits-enrollment season, one of your health-insurance choices--and possibly your only option--may be a high-deductible plan. More than 60% of midsize and large employers plan to offer high-deductible plans next year and pair them ...
It's D-Day Again.(prescription drug plans)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: Kimberly Lankford No sooner did we finish explaining the ins and outs of Medicare's new prescription-drug plan than it's time to reconsider your alternatives. Open enrollment for Medicare Part D runs from November 15 to December 31, and it's your only opportunity to ...
Give While You Live.(donating to charities)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: Kimberly Lankford Your bank account may not be as big as Warren Buffett's, but you, too, can make a sizable contribution to a favorite charity while you're still around to savor your good deed. Without the enormous resources of one of the world's richest men, however, ...
Value Vacations.(in Western Europe )
Nov 01, 2006 ... Byline: Sean O'Neill TANGO TIME Nick Guarino is still astonished by the size of the filet mignon he enjoyed last November in Buenos Aires. The meal for two (his wife had lamb chops), including a bottle of Argentine merlot, cost $24. A comparable dinner in New York ...
Video in Your Pocket.(portable video players)(Buyers guide)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: Jeff Bertolucci First came sound: the Walkman, then the MP3 player. Now you can add sight to the sound. Portable video players with tiny screens and capacious hard drives store more than 100 hours of video plus thousands of songs and photos. With screens of ...
5 Questions to Ask About Poker Tables.(Rewards)(advice on purchasing poker tables)
Nov 01, 2006 ... Byline: LISA GERSTNER 1. How large should the table be? The more elbowroom you have, the better--and the less likely someone will sneak a peek at your cards and a fight will ensue. A standard round or octagonal table with a 54-inch diameter will comfortably seat four to five ...
Subcompacts Come Back.
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: Mark K. Solheim A couple of years ago, the subcompact seemed all but extinct in the U.S. Models left over from the oil crisis of the 1970s--namely, the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla--had been expanded and loaded with bigger-car options. But Japan's Big Three carmakers ...
Take My Wallet.(pick pocketing of tourists)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2006; ... Byline: Sean O'Neill and Bob Arno Bob Arno of Las Vegas makes a living studying pickpockets. How do you track down pickpockets? I stuff my wallet with paper and keep it in my pants pocket. Then I linger in prime tourist spots in foreign cities. Sooner or later, ...