from Moneywatch Personal Finance
Bernie Madoff became a household name this year. Watching from afar as the story of the world’s largest Ponzi scheme came to light, it was fun to poke fun at that name, the perfect name for a man who made off with so much money. But more than a few investors weren’t [...]
from Moneywatch Personal Finance
As years go, 2010 is on course to be a blockbuster for retirement-account owners. Starting in January, all Americans who own a traditional IRA — not just those who have modified adjusted gross income under $100,000 — will be able to convert their accounts to a Roth IRA. But don’t rush for [...]
from Slate – Moneybox
The economic crisis, which has claimed more than 5 million jobs since the recession began, did not strike the entire country at once. A map of employment gains or losses by county tells the story of how those job losses first struck in the most vulnerable regions and then spread rapidly to [...]
from Moneywatch Personal Finance
On his road to homeownership, Scott Leibfried has learned one thing: Expect the unexpected.
from Moneywatch Personal Finance
With home prices and interest rates lower than they’ve been in years, plus an $8,000 tax credit still available, it’s no surprise first-time home buyers are eager to dip their feet into the housing market. But just because you have some money saved up for the down payment and monthly mortgage costs [...]
from Slate – Moneybox
In November, I met with an executive at one of China’s new private equity firms. He talked up the firm’s investments in energy software and mobile communications. But companies that export? He wouldn’t touch them.[more ...]
from Slate – Moneybox
For most of 2009, pundits on both the left and right have insisted that the programs enacted to bring the financial system back from the brink wouldn’t—and couldn’t—work. And they have been wrong. They said the TARP would throw good money after bad, but now Bank of America, recently a basket case, [...]
from Slate – Moneybox
TEL AVIV, Israel—Amram Aharoni has a serious résumé, but he has the mien of a comedian. On Sunday at the Globes’ Israel Business Conference, Aharoni, who teaches investment theory and finance at the Herzliya Interdisciplinary Center, ran through his many qualifications—degrees from Tel Aviv University, a doctorate in finance from New York [...]
from Slate – Moneybox
One of the main criticisms of the massive bank bailouts was that the Feds didn’t get sufficiently medieval on bank shareholders, including top executives who owned big chunks of stock. The United States eschewed the Swedish approach—simply nationalizing the faltering banks. [...]
from Slate – Moneybox
Strategic defaults—the phenomenon of people who could continue to make payments on the mortgages on their homes deciding to walk away from their obligations—are rising. According to the Wall Street Journal, strategic defaults are likely to exceed 1 million in 2009. This is making some worry about the very future of capitalism. [...]