Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine back issues from November 2007:
You Got Green and Saw Red.(From the Editor)(Editorial)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: FRED W. FRAILEY I've read a slew of comments from you, pro and con, about October's Green Issue. Our take on global warming and the search for alternative fuels was entirely directed toward your financial well-being--the same pocketbook journalism we've been doing here ...
Letters.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
Nov 01, 2007 ... Of the more than 800 entries to our "How Would You Spend $1,000?" contest ("What $1,000 Can Do," Aug.), we picked the one from Ken Knouf (at right). $1,000 WINNER We hear how financial illiteracy is wreaking havoc on our younger generation. As a board member of the ...
Tipping Away from Recession.(Ahead)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: ANNE KATES SMITH Hollywood crews were in downtown Washington, D.C., recently to film a spy thriller starring Russell Crowe and Leonardo DiCaprio. That same day, a real-life drama unfolded down the street at the Federal Reserve building, where central bankers--marquee ...
Blogs at a Glance.(Ahead)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007 ... Too busy (or overwhelmed) to surf the Web for news and opinion on the matters you care about most? Assemble it all in one easy-to-scan package with a ...
Taxes, Now and Later.(Ahead)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007 ... Forget about big fixes for big tax problems until after the 2008 elections. Left dangling: a decision on estate taxes and comprehensive reform of the alternative minimum tax ....
Throwing Darts at Target Funds.(Ahead)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007 ... Drew Carrington's division at UBS Global Asset Management offers 401(k) sponsors a new generation of retirement funds. Target-date funds are big sellers. You just pick a date, and the manager does the rest. What's not to like? The current generation of funds doesn't address ...
The Eyes Log In.(Ahead)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007 ... It's enough to make you go cross-eyed. Stanford University scientists are working on a password-entry system for ATMs that will let you log in to your account using eye movements instead of keystrokes. The object is to confound over-the-shoulder surfing by PIN thieves. Eye-tracking ...
Am I My Boss's Personal Servant?(Ahead)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Knight Kiplinger The woman who heads my division has started asking me to run personal errands for her, although I am not her executive assistant. Is this okay? No, she shouldn't ask this of you. It is okay for executives to ask their assistants for ...
No More Piggybacking on Dad's Credit.(Ahead)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: JOAN GOLDWASSER Once it was simple to create a good credit history and increase your credit score. If a parent or spouse with good credit added you as an authorized user of a credit card, you could simply piggyback on that person's history. This was possible because Fair ...
Pharma and More.(Ahead)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007 ... Like a lot of blue-chip drug companies, Abbott Labs has a blockbuster. Humira, for rheumatoid arthritis, is on track to reach nearly $3 billion in sales this year. But Abbott doesn't have to live or die by its drug pipeline because almost 40% of sales come from medical devices and ...
Mad as #$*@ at Your Cell-Phone Contract?(Ahead)
Nov 01, 2007 ... Apple's iPhone caused a furor when it debuted this past summer--and we're not talking about the cool technology or the eye-popping price tag. The phone, which can be used only on AT&T's calling plan, is also a glaring reminder of what cell-phone users hate most about wireless: They can't ...
Navigating the Mortgage Mess.(Ahead)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007 ... Talk about an extreme makeover. Home buyers and owners looking to refinance are finding a mortgage market drastically changed from this past summer, thanks to the onset of a credit crunch sparked by defaults on low-quality loans. Colorado Springs homeowner Tom Jenks refinanced his mortgage ...
Quick Facts.(Ahead)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007 ... THE TYPICAL U.S. ECONOMIC EXPANSION lasts 57 months. The present expansion is nearly 72 months old. 12.3%: The average gain of Standard & Poor's 500-stock index in the six months following a cut in the federal funds rate. 24% OF THE 401(K) BALANCES of recent hires ...
What You Need to Know About Smart Phones.(Ahead)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Mark K. Solheim 1. You're on call 24/7. While employers spin ubiquitous access to e-mail as 21st-century freedom, many workers now feel consigned to e-mail hell. Tales of employees who constantly check their BlackBerry, Treo or other handheld device on vacation (or in ...
Can You Save Too Much for Retirement?(Ahead)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Jeffrey R. Kosnett Kerry and Robert Moore defy the popular notion that Americans spend everything they earn and then some. Kerry, 37, an engineering manager for the U.S. government in the Denver area, sets aside 30% of her pay. She directs $597 to the government's ...
The Upside of Risk.(Ahead)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: James K. Glassman Investors this summer got a rude taste of something many of them had forgotten: volatility. Knowing what a stock (or any other investment) returns over time is not enough. You need to know how consistent those returns will be. Think of a baseball player ...
Cash Out Early.(The 40+Life)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Mary Beth Franklin RETIRE | You can quit the rat race, but prepare to ramp up your savings. By Mary Beth Franklin Faced with frozen pensions, disappearing retiree health benefits and lengthy retirements, many Americans are choosing to work longer to provide ...
Which Child Gets Mom's China?(The 40+Life)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Jane Bennett Clark After Frances Marcus died in 1994, her heirs, failing to find written instructions, did their best to divide her jewelry and personal possessions as she would have wanted. Years later, the Silver Spring, Md., family discovered Mom's instructions tucked ...
Starting Your Own Business.(Special Report)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Jane Bennett Clark He was tired of his commute. She was tired of her routine. So Thomas and Connie Betts took the next logical step for a fifty-something couple with a white-collar background. They bought an alpaca ranch. Four years later, Cascade Alpacas of ...
Shelter in a Stormy Market.(Investing)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Jeffrey R. Kosnett and Katy Marquardt Is the stock market out of control? It's a fair question to ask when you see automated trading programs dump gazillions of shares at the end of the day and clip 2% off the value of troubled and thriving companies alike. Consider that ...
Market Timing the Right Way.(Investing)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Knight Kiplinger I didn't lose sleep when the market slumped this summer after hitting record highs. I had lightened up on U.S. stocks a few months before--mind you, not in all of my family's investment accounts, but only in those with near-term goals. I did so because I ...
Something's Up Down on the Farm.(Investing)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Andrew Tanzer Say hello to food inflation. Prices of corn, soybeans, wheat, meat and dairy products are surging. As a result, investors have bid up agricultural stocks, such as Monsanto and Potash of Saskatchewan, to lofty heights usually associated with technology ...
Bold Bets that Pay Off.(Investing)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: KATY MARQUARDT Forget diversification. Jerry Jordan would rather make bold bets on a small number of fast-growing companies. Using this concentrated approach, Jordan Opportunity fund has made a strong impression in a short period. The $27-million fund, which invests ...
My Hedge Fund Gambit.(Investing)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Andrew Feinberg Iam in the process of starting a hedge fund, and I'm trying to persuade the 31 clients whose assets I manage via separate accounts to sign on. Some clients, especially those I've served well for many years, have reacted with varying degrees of horror ....
And Now, Muni ETFs.(Investing)(municipal bonds, exchange-traded funds)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: THOMAS M. ANDERSON Add municipal bonds to the growing empire of assets tracked by exchange-traded funds. These index followers, which trade like stocks, come at an opportune time, as income investors worried about choppy credit markets scramble to safer havens. But is a ...
Three Funds to Dump Now.(Investing)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Russel Kinnel The basic idea behind investing is to buy low and sell high. Yet investors' emotions sometimes cause them to sell low and buy high. That is, they read too much into recent performance and are inclined to put more into funds that have risen the most and cut ...
The Kiplinger 25.(Investing)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007 ... Having clobbered the S&P 500 by an astounding 42 percentage points over the past year, what does Ken Heebner do for an encore? The idiosyncratic Heebner's concentrated CGM Focus fund in no way resembles the index. Half of its 22 stocks as of June 30 were based overseas, and many of the ...
Fund Rankings: All-Star Fund is Back.(Investing)
Nov 01, 2007 ... Byline: KATY MARQUARDT Good news: A top-performing international fund is again accepting new customers. Masters' Select International, which offers exposure to a trove of experienced money managers, closed to new investors in October 2004 when it reached $1 billion in assets ....
Double Whammy for Taxpayers Who Lose Their Homes to Foreclosure.(Your Money)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007 ... DOUBLE WHAMMY: Taxpayers who lose their homes to foreclosure could be punished ...
Live Debt-Free.(Your Money)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Kimberly Lankford To hear the media tell it, Americans are basket cases when it comes to borrowing. The average credit-card balance per person is nearly $3,900. College grads who leave school with student loans typically owe more than $19,000. Home-foreclosure rates are ...
The Crackdown on Medicaid Planning.(Your Money)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Mary Beth Franklin Warning: Stricter Medicaid rules may derail your strategies for protecting your family's wealth. That's because Congress has stiffened the penalties for giving away money so that your parents are able to qualify for government-paid nursing-home care. ...
Stealth Health Costs.(Your Money)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: KIMBERLY LANKFORD This is not a year to let down your guard. Employers struggling with rising health costs continue to increase employee premiums and co-payments for doctors' visits and prescription drugs, as well as make less-obvious changes that could boost your ...
Hounded by Debt Collectors.(Your Money)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Kimberly Lankford I recently checked my credit report and found a $104 collection account dating from July 2006 for an unpaid utility bill. Xcel Energy claims I owe $86 from 2001, when I was in college, but I was never notified. This has knocked 100 points off my credit ...
A Break on College Costs.(Your Money)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Jane Bennett Clark Anew federal law increases college financial aid for families who qualify, offers grants to students who plan to teach and helps struggling graduates repay their student loans. Need-based aid. Pell Grants, awarded to students with financial ...
Credit Cards: Capital One Pulls the Plug on Fixed Interest Rates for Many Customers.(Your Money)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007 ... Byline: JOAN GOLDWASSER Capital One notified some fixed-rate cardholders that their cards will now carry variable rates. But don't panic. If you have excellent credit--never more than 60 days late on credit-card, medical-bill or loan payments, according to Capital One--and a ...
The Best List.(Rewards)
Nov 01, 2007 ... BEST STOCKS AND MUTUAL FUNDS DOMESTIC STOCK FUND OPEN TO NEW INVESTORS It's hard to go wrong with this concentrated fund (it held 24 stocks at last report). The value-investing discipline of managers Bruce Berkowitz, Larry Pitkowsky and Keith Trauner keeps Fairholme ...
Head for Denmark.(Rewards)(Company overview)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007 ... HEAD FOR DENMARK Trevisani, co-manager of Thornburg International Value fund, predicts that Danish drug maker Novo Nordisk, one of the world's leading producers of insulin, will benefit from an increase in diabetes treatment. The company's synthetic-insulin products, which ...
Experts' Picks for Their Best Investing Ideas.(Rewards)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007 ... FAVORITE EXCHANGE-TRADED FUND The author of All Star Fund Trader newsletter favors POWERSHARES VALUE LINE INDUSTRY ROTATION PORTFOLIO (PYH). It tracks an index that favors industries with the highest Value Line timeliness rankings, and stocks within those sectors that have the ...
Keep Your Cool.(Rewards)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007 ... KEEP YOUR COOL Jones, frugal-travel guru for BookingWiz.com, says the golden rule for complaining about poor airline service is to keep your cool. After your trip, compose a one-page letter to the chief executive or marketing vice-president of the airline. Never send an e-mail ...
Best Web Sites.(Rewards)
Nov 01, 2007 ... INVESTING MOST INFORMATIVE The site's large roster of contributors includes traders, bloggers and money managers. Nifty extras: a comprehensive section on exchange-traded funds and Q&As with CEOs. BONDS At this leading fixed-income specialist's ...
Best Credit Cards.(Rewards)
Nov 01, 2007 ... CASH-REBATE CARD AMERICAN EXPRESS BLUE CASH Earn 1% on everyday spending--gas, grocery and drugstore purchases--until you reach $6,500, after which you earn 5%. AIRLINE-MILES CARD CITI PREMIER PASS ELITE The card costs $75 per year, ...
Copper is Tops.(Rewards)(Buyers guide)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007 ... COPPER IS TOPS Saran, author of Indian Home Cooking and the upcoming American Masala, says when picking pots, copperware is "the way to go. It's heavy, durable and can outlive any of us. It's a one-time investment." His recommendations: Mauviel's 3-quart saute pan for $350, ...
Best Electronics Equipment.(Rewards)(Buyers guide)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007 ... GPS This portable GPS navigator has a 4.3-inch touch screen that's big, bright and easy to operate. The unit gives voice directions using street names--"turn left at First Street"--and up-to-date travel information from AAA, including restaurants, hotels and campgrounds. Price: ...
Sweet Deals on New Homes.(Rewards)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Patricia Mertz Esswein During the housing boom, new-home builders were like the hosts with the hottest invitation in town. They could raise prices with every newly opened phase of a development and display a "take it or leave it" attitude toward buyers. Now, amid the ...
Financial Adviser Writes a New Script.(My Story)(Interview)(Brief article)
Nov 01, 2007; ... Byline: Joan Goldwasser and Mark Motley What's the movie about? It's called Chasing 3000. It's the story of two teenage brothers--one is an athlete, the other has muscular dystrophy--who cross the country in 1972 hoping to see Pittsburgh Pirate Roberto Clemente's 3,000th hit. It ...