For previous generations, living within your means was a simple formula. Now, with the staggering rise in education, health care, and housing costs, millions of people find themselves skating from paycheck to paycheck with no idea how to move forward. As the most-read personal finance columnist on the Internet, Liz Weston has heard the questions and has the answers. Her 10 Commandments of Money will help readers avoid critical mistakes, survive the bad times, and thrive in the good ones. Just a few of Weston's invaluable pointers include how to: • Balance Your Budget • Pay Down Toxic Debt • Get the Right Mortgage • Pay for College • Save for Retirement • Maximize Your Financial Flexibility Liz Weston's goal is to provide THE practical guide to the brave new world of money. What Sylvia Porter's Money Book was to the 1970s, The 10 Commandments of Money will be for the 2010s. Watch a Video

    Buy it and read it." -Kenneth L. Fisher Forbes The runaway bestseller-updated with new material included for the first time! "The Warren Buffett Way outlines his career and presents examples of how his investment techniques and methods evolved and the important individuals in that process. It also details the key investment decisions that produced his unmatched record of performance." -from the Foreword by Peter S. Lynch Bestselling author, One Up on Wall Street and Beating the Street ." . . an extraordinarily useful account of the methods of an investor held by many to be the world's greatest." -The Wall Street Journal "Robert Hagstrom presents an in-depth examination of Warren Buffett's strategies, and the 'how and why' behind his selection of each of the major securities that have contributed to his remarkable record of success. His 'homespun' wisdom and philosophy are also part of this comprehensive, interesting, and readable book." -John C. Bogle Chairman, The Vanguard Group "It's first rate. Buffett gets a lot of attention for what he preaches, but nobody has described what he practices better than Hagstrom. Here is the lowdown on every major stock he ever bought and why he bought it. Fascinating. You could even try this at home." -John Rothchild Financial columnist Time magazine

    Kohler presents wage earners with applicable strategies beyond writing off mortgage interest and contributing more to their IRA. Following the story of a typical family, tax payers discover the undeniable benefit of owning a side/or small business, how hiring their spouse and children can help their bottom line, the financial windfall that comes with owning rental real estate, and the secret success behind self directing their retirement plan, which is something 9 out of 10 CPAs don’t know or don’t talk about! Small business owners uncover new avenues for adding to their bottom line including how to save on health care and legitimate bookkeeping techniques that can put thousands back in their pocket—all illustrated through checklists, charts and templates available in the additional resources toolkit provided by Kohler.

    Page by page, you'll learnhow to create a portfolio with the widest diversification andlowest costs; one that can move up your financial freedom by adecade and dramatically increase your spending rate duringretirement. And all this can be accomplished by using some commonsense techniques.Along the way, Kevin and his dad discuss fresh, new approachesto investing, and detail some tried-and-true, but lesser knownapproaches. They also take the time to debunk the financial mythsand legends that many of us accept as true, and show you what itreally takes to build long-term wealth with less risk.Discusses how to design a portfolio composed of a few basicbuilding blocks that can be "tweaked" to fit your personalneedsAddresses how you can reengineer your portfolio in order tostop needlessly paying taxesReveals how you can increase returns, regardless of whichdirection the market goes, by picking the "low-hanging fruit" weall have in our portfoliosWith just a little time and a little work, you can become abetter investor. With this book as your guide, you'll discover howa simpler approach to today's markets can put you on the path tofinancial independence.

    Generations of readers have found that it has more to teach them about markets and people than years of experience. This is a timeless tale that will enrich your life--and your portfolio.

    His awesome investment record has made him a cult figure popularly known for his seeming contradictions: a billionaire who has a modest lifestyle, a phenomenally successful investor who eschews the revolving-door trading of modern Wall Street, a brilliant dealmaker who cultivates a homespun aura.Journalist Roger Lowenstein draws on three years of unprecedented access to Buffett’s family, friends, and colleagues to provide the first definitive, inside account of the life and career of this American original. Buffett explains Buffett’s investment strategy—a long-term philosophy grounded in buying stock in companies that are undervalued on the market and hanging on until their worth invariably surfaces—and shows how it is a reflection of his inner self.

    Later this year, the REIT industry will experience a watershed event when Standard & Poors creates a new Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS) sector called Real Estate. On September 1st, publicly traded equity REITs will be removed from Financials, where they have been classified since their creation in 1960, and begin trading as their own S&P Sector. This separation from banks and financial institutions already is attracting new investors, but REITs require an industry-specific knowledge that is neither intuitive or readily accessible to newcomers—until now. Using straightforward language and simple example to illustrate important concepts, this book will enable any reader to quickly learn and understand the lexicon and valuation techniques used in REIT investing, providing a wealth of practical resources that streamline the learning process. The discussion explains terminology, metrics, and other key points, while examples illustrate the calculations used to evaluate opportunities. A comprehensive list of publicly-traded REITs provides key reference, giving you access to an important resource most investors and stockbrokers lack. REITs are companies that own or finance commercial rental properties, such as malls and apartment buildings. Despite historically high total returns relative to other investments, such as the Nasdaq or S&P 500 index, most investors are unfamiliar with the REIT industry, and wary of investing without adequate background. This book gets you up to speed on the essentials of REIT investing so you can make more informed—and profitable—decisions. Understand REITs processes, mechanisms, and industry Calculate key metrics to identify suitable companies Access historical performance tables and industry-specific terminology Identify publicly-traded REITs quickly and easily REITs have consistently outperformed many more widely known investments. Over the past 15-year period, for example, REITs returned an average of 11% per year, better than all other asset classes. Since 2009, REITs have enjoyed positive returns; large cap stocks and cash are the only other classes that paralleled that record. Even in 2015, a 'year of fear' related to rising rates, REITs returned 2.4%, beating most all other asset classes. REITs have a long history (over fifty years) of performance, and are about to enter the big leagues. If you feel like you've been missing out, don't keep missing out. Prepare yourself, and your portfolio, to benefit from the demand for REITs that will follow the creation of a Real Estate GICS sector. The Intelligent REIT Investor gives you the information you need to invest wisely and manage your real estate risk effectively. By maintaining a tactical exposure in the brick and mortar asset class, investors should benefit from the information contained in The Intelligent REIT Investor. Join the REIT world and look forward to owning stocks that will help you to sleep well at night.

    The earlier we choosetosave(R), the sooner we can stop saving, and the later we start saving the more we need to know in order to catch up. What you need to know; where you can find the answers; how you can take action. It is all here." -Dallas Salisbury, CEO, Employee Benefit Research Institute and American Savings Education Council (www.choosetosave.org) "Bookstores are full of tomes advising people how to save for retirement, yet millions of people are still hopelessly confused about what they should do. Gail MarksJarvis breaks it down into simple steps that anyone can do to ensure a more comfortable retirement. Read this book and prosper!" -Liz Pulliam Weston, MSN Money Personal finance columnist and best-selling author of Your Credit Score "This book offers a sensible, sophisticated approach for tackling the daunting challenge of saving for retirement. The good news? You can retire-without living on canned food or buying lottery tickets-if you follow Gail's realistic strategies for saving, investing, and ultimately spending money in retirement." -Susan Tompor, Detroit Free Press "You can wallpaper a warehouse with all of the awful investment advice offered up every year in newspapers, magazines, and books. One of the most difficult tasks is to separate the get-rich-quick hype from the truly worthwhile knowledge that will make you wealthy over time. I'm thrilled to say that Gail MarksJarvis has cut through the claptrap of investment cacophony and provided not only a solid plan for retirement saving, but a realistic, common-sense approach to personal finance in general. This is a triumph." -John F. Wasik, Bloomberg News personal finance columnist and author, The Merchant of Power Drawn from responses to questions from over 20,000 readers of the author's personal finance columns. Over the years, Chicago Tribune financial columnist Gail MarksJarvis has taken the time to listen and respond to thousands of her readers about the issues, questions, and concerns that are most important to them. Saving and investing for retirement has never been more important...and with this book, it's never been clearer what you need to do and how to do it. Don't wait another day! Discover...How much you'll need and how to get there...even if you've fallen behind Exactly how to set up IRAs, 401(k)s, or 403(b)s in minutes and pocket your tax money How to harness the money-making power of the stock market How to pick the right mutual funds confidently with simple strategies and specific recommendations Incredibly easy, safe investing strategies based on professional money-management techniques "Gimmick-free" investing shortcuts that won't backfire on you How to keep debt from making you poor How to get reliable help if you need it...and avoid incompetents or scam artists How the new 2006 pension laws affect you MarksJarvis eliminates the insider jargon, confusion, and math...takes the mystery out of the stock market...simplifies investing techniques...answers all your questions...clears away every obstacle in your way so you make money without taking foolish risks. She's already done it for millions, in the nation's top newspapers and most popular financial radio and TV shows. Now, she'll do it for you, too! Introduction 1 Start Investing Early, or Start Now 1 2 Know What You'll Need 9 3 Savings on Steroids: Use a 401(k) and an IRA 39 4 An IRA--Every American's Treasure Trove 59 5 IRA Decisions: How to Start, Where to Go 65 6 Why the Stock Market Isn't a Roulette Wheel 89 7 What's a Mutual Fund? 105 8 Making Sense of Wacky Mutual Fund Names 115 9 Know Your Mutual Fund Manager's Job 127 10 The Only Way that Works: Asset Allocation 151 11 Do This 163 12 How to Pick Mutual Funds: Bargain Shop 181 13 Index Funds: Get What You Pay For 189 14 Simple Does It: No-Brainer Investing with Target-Date Funds 209 15 Do You Need a Financial Adviser? 219 Index 229

    Understand the essentials of stock investing, how to get started, and how to pick winners.

    Money Wise shows you the way. It cuts through the clutter of jargon and technical terms, leading you step by step on how to grow wealthy. In it, you will learn: Ways of allocating your income The only mutual funds hack worth knowing Why you should be watching not what Warren Buffett says but what he does Written in Shenoy’s trademark style, Money Wise is a book as much fun to read as it is informative. If you want to start investing, this is the book for you. If you have already started, then read this and up your game.

    After four decades spent ascending to the top of the investment management profession, he is today sought out by the world's leading value investors, and his client memos brim with insightful commentary and a time-tested, fundamental philosophy. Now for the first time, all readers can benefit from Marks's wisdom, concentrated into a single volume that speaks to both the amateur and seasoned investor.Informed by a lifetime of experience and study, The Most Important Thing explains the keys to successful investment and the pitfalls that can destroy capital or ruin a career. Utilizing passages from his memos to illustrate his ideas, Marks teaches by example, detailing the development of an investment philosophy that fully acknowledges the complexities of investing and the perils of the financial world. Brilliantly applying insight to today's volatile markets, Marks offers a volume that is part memoir, part creed, with a number of broad takeaways.Marks expounds on such concepts as "second-level thinking," the price/value relationship, patient opportunism, and defensive investing. Frankly and honestly assessing his own decisions--and occasional missteps--he provides valuable lessons for critical thinking, risk assessment, and investment strategy. Encouraging investors to be "contrarian," Marks wisely judges market cycles and achieves returns through aggressive yet measured action. Which element is the most essential? Successful investing requires thoughtful attention to many separate aspects, and each of Marks's subjects proves to be the most important thing.

    But, actually, this isn't the case at all. In fact, these super-rich individuals realize that their money needs to work for them and so they learn how to take what are known as "calculated" risks. The super-rich are definitely not psychics, nor do they have a "magic" secret that they hold close to their own kind. In fact, their real secret lies in the fact that they know what simple investing mistakes should be avoided. And, in truth, these mistakes are common knowledge, even among those investors who are not particularly wealthy at all. Investing properly is a guided, purposeful tool for building and adding to wealth, but it is not only for the rich. Actually, anyone can get started quite easily, and there are multiple avenues that make it easy to begin, with small amounts to start up a portfolio. Additionally, what differentiates using investment (as opposed to gambling) is that it takes a period of time for the "magic" to happen. Therefore, it is not a get-rich-quick scheme, at all. I want us to be clear on that point from the get-go. By the end of this book, you'll have a great understanding of what investing is, and you will know how the magic of compounding works too. We'll take a look at other options that you might find useful, so then you'll have the knowledge you need before you get started with your own investing. Again, thank you for joining me here; it's my pleasure to guide you through this important information. I believe that knowledge is power, and I hope that you'll feel more comfortable once you get the real gist of how it all works, and how it can work really well for you.

    Many couples find themselves deeply in debt and not even sure of how they got there let alone how they can get out of it. Larry Burkett has the solution!His bestselling book, Debt-Free Living, has been updated and modernized. Debt-Free Living has been providing poignant and biblical teaching on debt for over a decade. This updated resource will teach the consumer about the origin of most financial troubles and help him or her break the 'debt cycle.' Debt-Free Living is a necessary resource to battle the temptation and trappings of debt that are weighing you down.

    Learn how to maximize your health coverage and save money.Social Security provides the bulk of most retirees’ income and Medicare guarantees them affordable health insurance. But few people know what Medicare covers and what it doesn’t, what it costs, and when to sign up. Nor do they understand which parts of Medicare are provided by the government and how these work with private insurance plans—Medicare Advantage, drug insurance, and Medicare supplement insurance. Do you understand Medicare’s parts A, B, C, D? Which Part D drug plan is right and how do you decide? Which is better, Medigap or Medicare Advantage? What do you do if Medicare denies payment for a procedure that your doctor says you need? How do you navigate the appeals process for denied claims? If you’re still working or have a retiree health plan, how do those benefits work with Medicare? Do you know about the annual enrollment period for Medicare, or about lifetime penalties for late enrollment, or any number of other key Medicare rules? Health costs are the biggest unknown expense for older Americans, who are turning sixty-five at the rate of 10,000 a day. Understanding and navigating Medicare is the best way to save health care dollars and use them wisely. In Get What’s Yours for Medicare, retirement expert Philip Moeller explains how to understand all these important choices and make the right decisions for your health and wealth now—and for the future.

    This revised and updated third edition includes completely new material on: • Internet banking • Debit and prepaid credit cards • Online car shopping • The latest in effective job hunting • Online college degrees and what they can get you • Investment strategies for the next decade • Home-based employment opportunities • New financial impact of marriage and children • Home ownership options from building your own to townhouses and condos • Online mortgage brokers • All-new websites and resources