How-To Guides

  • How to Invest in a CD

    Even in times of interest rate uncertainty, a certificate of deposit (CD) can still be part of your cash strategy.

  • Dear Shareholder: You May Never Get This Message. But Don't Blame Us.

    WSJ.com

    The Motley Fool family of funds is holding an annual "shareholder party" this month. But a significant number of its fund investors—those who hold the shares through Fidelity Investments—didn't get the recent postcard invitation.

  • Are You Paying Too Much for Your Investment Advice?

    WSJ.com

    Regarding Burton Malkiel's "You're Paying Too Much for Investment Help" (op-ed, May 29): The data promulgated by John Bogle and others incontrovertibly demonstrate that essentially all actively managed stock mutual funds, over the long ...

  • Spotlight: Janus Balanced; This stock-and-bond fund has posted steady gains with less risk

    WSJ.com

    Investors who still have nightmares about the 2008 financial crisis might want to consider Janus Balanced. The fund doesn't deliver shoot-the-lights-out performance, but it's a steady performer that offers remarkable downside protection.

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    Julius Baer Gets Request for Data on U.S. Clients

    WSJ.com

    ZURICH—Swiss private bank Julius Baer Group AG Tuesday said it has received a request from U.S. authorities for information about American clients, a development that comes as the two countries wrangle over alleged tax evasion involving ...

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    By Jason Zweig; How Funky Is Your 401(k)?

    WSJ.com

    Is the invasion of the "offbeat bond funds" about to reach your 401(k)?Over the past three years, bond funds that invest outside the mainstream of U.S. Treasurys and investment-grade corporate debt—in high-yield bonds, foreign and ...

  • No such thing as risk-free investment; Commentary: Instead of looking for risk-free returns, know the risks

    MarketWatch

    Ben is a 60-something investor who approached me recently for investing advice: “If your mother came to you and asked where she could get the very best risk-free return right now, what would you tell her to buy, or would you tell her to ...

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    Small Group Held Sway in Outcome

    WSJ.com

    A small group of investors helped James Dimon win a surprisingly large victory in a shareholder vote over his roles as chairman and chief executive of J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.

  • Credit Unions Boost College Loans

    WSJ.com

    Credit unions are offering more private student loans, creating new choices for borrowers grappling with high college costs.Nearly 590 of the nation's 6,955 credit unions offered student loans as of December, according to the Credit Union ...

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    Regulators Scrutinize Firms' Ties to Insurers

    WSJ.com

    New York's top financial regulator subpoenaed a handful of Wall Street investment firms about their entries into a corner of the insurance industry that guarantees steady payments to hundreds of thousands of retirees and other consumers.

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    Advisers Help Avoid 'Twice-Taxed' Syndrome

    WSJ.com

    Financial advisers are telling some clients it could be better to spend or give away dividends, interest and IRA distributions, instead of plowing the money back into the market where it will be taxed again.

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    Hidden Debt Postpones a Client's Retirement

    WSJ.com

    The client was in his mid-50s and hoping to retire within the year. He had planned well for retirement, and his wife wanted to continue working for several more years.

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    Being Too Fair Invites Trouble in Estate Planning

    WSJ.com

    How can wealth managers help keep an estate from winding up tangled in legal battles between the heirs? For one thing, encourage clients not to be too "fair" in the division of assets, say estate lawyers E. Patricia Chantler and Wonsun ...

  • Execs on their favorite finance apps; How financial executives use their smartphones

    MarketWatch

    I was recently at the annual Tiburon CEO Summit in New York, a sort of United Nations gathering of finance executives. Given how often these CEOs seemed to be checking their smartphones, I began to wonder what tools and apps they favored.

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    Retailers: Food & Drug

    WSJ.com

    Healthy living paid off for Sean Naughton in 2012.Mr. Naughton, an analyst with Piper Jaffray Cos. in Minneapolis, fed off vitamin retailers and grocers peddling organic food to become the top food and drug analyst in the Best on the Street ...

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    Internet & Computer Services

    WSJ.com

    Stocks of companies involved in cloud computing, or data storage on the Web, and IT outsourcing have been on a tear in recent years, which caused some analysts to bet against continued gains in 2012.

  • Wednesday's Personal Finance Stories

    MarketWatch

    Don’t miss these top stories:10 things the sleep-aid industry won’t tell you.Why iPhone repair costs have soared.15 new mental illnesses in the DSM-5.

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    Focus Shifts to State Estate-Tax Planning

    WSJ.com

    The federal government won't tax an individual's estate if it's worth less than $5.25 million.But many states will tax estates worth far less. For example, New Jersey's estate tax kicks in at $675,000--the lowest threshold in the nation.

  • The Experts: What Is the Best Way to Invest on Your Own?

    WSJ.com

    What advice do prospective do-it-yourself investors need to hear before they start managing their own money? The Wall Street Journal put this question to The Experts, an exclusive group of industry and thought leaders who engage in in-depth ...

  • Has Cash Been Holding Your Stock Fund Back? It Could Pay Off Later.

    WSJ.com

    Is cash in a stock fund's portfolio trash or treasure?How an investor answers can depend on whether stocks are rising or falling. So far this year, with stocks surging and the Dow Jones Industrial Average blowing past its ...

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    J.P. Morgan Seeks More Risk Savvy

    WSJ.com

    J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. is looking for more directors who can serve on the board's risk committee, said people close to the company, amid calls from some investors for corporate-governance changes at the largest U.S. bank.

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    Some Banks Halt Foreclosures, Citing Regulator's Bulletin

    WSJ.com

    Some of the nation's largest banks, including Wells Fargo & Co., suspended foreclosure sales in a number of states following guidance issued last month by federal banking regulators.

  • Western Union Could Be in the Money

    WSJ.com

    Competition in the $466 million consumer money-transfer business is growing, and industry giant Western Union is feeling the heat.The company cut prices by at least 5% last fall for customers sending money abroad, and the move appears to be ...

  • Sucking a Business Dry

    WSJ.com

    Sometimes private-equity firms do little more than suck up money like a vacuum cleaner and leave someone else holding a big, ol' dusty bag full of debt.

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    Oil & Gas Producers

    WSJ.com

    Analysts following the refining sector spent 2012 focusing on the central U.S., where a surge in domestic oil production was creating low prices for those refiners. But Craig Weiland's gaze was fixed on the West Coast.

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    Nationstar Foreclosure Processes Are Probed

    WSJ.com

    Nationstar Mortgage Holdings Inc. halted foreclosure proceedings against home-loan borrowers in 23 states at the request of four state attorneys general, but then resumed the procedures after an internal review of its practices, according ...

  • New College Lenders Step Up

    WSJ.com

    Credit unions are offering more private student loans, creating new choices for borrowers grappling with high college costs.Nearly 590 of the nation's 6,955 credit unions—member-owned nonprofit financial institutions—offered student loans ...

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    Weigh Taxes When Picking a State for Retirement

    WSJ.com

    When it comes to choosing the best state in which to retire, some people look beyond traditional needs like nice weather and recreational opportunities.

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    Financial Advice, Served Rare

    WSJ.com

    You don't have to be a Rockefeller to join a family office.Family offices are private firms that manage just about everything for the wealthiest families: tax planning, investment management, estate planning, philanthropy, art and wine ...

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    An Estate Plan to Prevent Sibling Disputes

    WSJ.com

    The 60-something client came into adviser Ross Gerber's office to help address a rift that was opening in his family.He had remarried and had young children, but both he and his new wife had adult children from their previous marriages. And ...

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    Foreclose-Pact Miscues Put Firm on Hot Seat

    WSJ.com

    WASHINGTON—Lawmakers and federal bank regulators are stepping up scrutiny of a consulting firm that twice bungled payments to consumers in a foreclosure-abuse settlement.