from Moneywatch Personal Finance
Buy the manager, or buy the mutual fund? That’s the challenge for investors when a fund manager leaves. A management switch is a red flag, forcing shareholders to play fund detective — asking hard questions, deciphering answers, and ultimately choosing to stay or to sell.
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from Moneywatch Personal Finance
From the expiring estate tax in 2010 to the various Obama administration proposals, including a bigger child-care tax credit and small-business breaks, there’s no shortage of tax-related headlines these days. But none of that is going to help when you do your 2009 taxes.
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from Moneywatch Personal Finance
Does a day go by without a lawmaker proposing a new tax provision? Maybe a day does, but certainly not a week. And this week was a doozy, with President Obama proposing a number of tax-law changes to help out the middle class, including a higher child-care tax credit, a more generous [...]
from Moneywatch Personal Finance
Good news on a variety of real-estate fronts. Mortgage rates won’t jump as high as expected. Borrowers now have access to a new Web site for vetting mortgage lenders and brokers. Builders appear ready to embrace the idea of building smaller homes.
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from Moneywatch Personal Finance
U.S. stocks fell this week as worries about technology company earnings and outlooks coupled with uncertainty about the political situation and concerns about sovereign debt stability weighed on sentiment and valuations. Stocks had their worst month since February 2009.
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from Moneywatch Personal Finance
Most Americans still think owning a home is part of the American Dream, but only a minority of people thinks President Obama has done a good job stabilizing housing during his first year in office, according to a survey released this week.
from MintLife Personal Finance News & Advice
529s are great: you put in after-tax money and it grows tax-free. You can put a lot of money into them; the money can be used for tuition, room, board, textbooks, and other fees; there are no age or income limits; and you can change the beneficiary if your [...]
from Moneywatch Personal Finance
Times have changed, and the square footage of new American homes is dropping. Super-sized homes are out, and efficiency and versatility are in. MarketWatch’s Amy Hoak reports on the latest building trends.
from Slate – Moneybox
The surviving investment banks are bristling at efforts aimed at recouping taxpayer losses and forestalling a repeat of the panic of 2008: congressional proposals to tax bonuses, President Obama’s planned tax on large banks’ liabilities, and his suggestion that banks be prohibited from using taxpayer-insured funds for proprietary trading. [...]
from Slate – Moneybox
Internet famous still doesn’t quite cut it in the film world. Last week, at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, YouTube held a press conference to launch its brave new $3.99 video rental service and introduce its featured filmmakers. Unfortunately, after opening remarks, everyone was promptly ejected. [...]