Q. I've had a few jobs and now I've got retirement accounts in different places. Would it be better to keep all my personal finances (retirement or otherwise) in 1 or 2 financial institutions or have several different ones (should one place fold?)? No one ever covers this in all those advice columns, articles, lectures. Thanks.
A. Banks are insured so don't worry about one folding unless you have over the insurance limit of $250,000. I would consolidate if my cash and CDs were below that. My stocks are in mutual funds so that's not a worry at least as regards to who holds the certificates so I have one brokerage.
What is the Best Software Available For Personal Finance?
Q. What is the best software available for personal finance? Both Microsoft Money and Quicken's product were recommended to me -- but both seemed to receive poor reviews at Amazon.com.
A. The problem with any software is that they add a ton of bells and whistles that most people don't use to justify their existence.
I use Microsoft Money and I probably use 5% of the features.
Eg, I set up the accounts (a pain), I enter my transactions and I run a reports (also a pain to set up). I do not use the charts, I do not use the advice, and I don't do any account management via signons and passwords. I've mimiced my paper records (which were too difficult to keep up with with a manual calculator).
If you've never used such software, I would suggest buying a sprial notebook and write down all expenses for a month before setting the software up.
My categories (that I've used for 20 years) are:
food & entertainment
car (gas, parking, everything)
appearance (exercise, clothes, medical)
miscellaneous
books & records
hobby (this needed it's own category)
phone
financial expenses (finance charges, account fees, work expenses)
trips and gifts
Housing (Rent, Utilities, Insurance, Taxes, Furniture)--I used to use several categories, now I don't.
Income taxes
Social Security
Medicare (These I had as one category and now split them out to match the paycheck stubs).
I found the myriad of choices in the software to be far too much.
I use Microsoft Money and I probably use 5% of the features.
Eg, I set up the accounts (a pain), I enter my transactions and I run a reports (also a pain to set up). I do not use the charts, I do not use the advice, and I don't do any account management via signons and passwords. I've mimiced my paper records (which were too difficult to keep up with with a manual calculator).
If you've never used such software, I would suggest buying a sprial notebook and write down all expenses for a month before setting the software up.
My categories (that I've used for 20 years) are:
food & entertainment
car (gas, parking, everything)
appearance (exercise, clothes, medical)
miscellaneous
books & records
hobby (this needed it's own category)
phone
financial expenses (finance charges, account fees, work expenses)
trips and gifts
Housing (Rent, Utilities, Insurance, Taxes, Furniture)--I used to use several categories, now I don't.
Income taxes
Social Security
Medicare (These I had as one category and now split them out to match the paycheck stubs).
I found the myriad of choices in the software to be far too much.
Know what the number one cause of personal bankruptcy in America is?
Q. The answer is medical bills. Know something else? Most of these people who go bankrupt have health insurance. And medical bills are going to skyrocket even further in the coming years. Still think you, your family, and your personal finances/retirement are safe under the "protection" of insurance companies?
A. Its funny that a country that claims life to be an inalienable right would allow Insurance Giants to continually make decisions about treatment that would cause someone to lose their life. Or that the poorest people are not even afforded this luxury.
I guess inalienable rights are just for the wealthy.
I guess inalienable rights are just for the wealthy.
What should I dual major in with finance?
Q. I am already a Finance major at Georgia State University and I would like to dual major, but I do not know what my best option for dual major is with Finance.
My choices are:
Accounting
Actuarial Science
Business Analysis
Business Economics
Computer Information Systems
Hospitality Admin
Human Resources Management
International Business
Marketing
Real Estate
Risk Management and Insurance
What would be best for finance? I am still not sure if I would like to go into personal finance, or go the corporate route.
My choices are:
Accounting
Actuarial Science
Business Analysis
Business Economics
Computer Information Systems
Hospitality Admin
Human Resources Management
International Business
Marketing
Real Estate
Risk Management and Insurance
What would be best for finance? I am still not sure if I would like to go into personal finance, or go the corporate route.
A. I would suggest opting for Marketing. Because you are not clear about your future in personal finance or corporates, it would help to have a balance of both - Finance and Marketing.
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