Money Talk

So long and best wishes to all of you

2008-08-28T17:36:53-04:00

The Money Talk blog has ended as a result of my retirement Aug. 29 after 37 years with the St. Petersburg Times. Jerilyn Stein invites those who wish to continue the discussion on Pearlman to post comments on the discussion board at scammedbypearlman.com .

Although I am retiring from the Times, I am not actually retiring. (Here's a story about my decision to leave the Times.) I will be an independent financial adviser with Holifield Huntley, offering advice on a fee-only basis, and will have an office in downtown St. Petersburg. Although I am leaving journalism behind, I will continue to be a great fan of the Times and Tampabay.com and I hope you will too.

Florida Trend takes a look at 10 of Florida's biggest crooks

2008-08-27T14:45:29-04:00

Florida's always attracted scam artists who think big as this retrospective from Florida Trend shows. Lou Pearlman is included in the pantheon of ne'er-do-wells. Some are dead, some are still in prison, some are out after having served their time and one-Victor Incendy- is still on the lam after 17 years. Incendy wife and others went to prison for the scam, which involved cooking the books and inventing store locations for Cascade International, a women's clothing chain.

Where to go for your personal finance fix

2008-08-27T11:03:31-04:00

Need a personal finance fix? Here are some of my favorite sources in addition to the St. Petersburg Times:
•Writers: Liz Pulliam Weston (subscribe to her columns), Eric Tyson (“Dummies” books), Jane Bryant Quinn (the dean of personal finance writers).
•Periodicals: Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine (800-544-0155), Consumer Reports Money Adviser (800-234-1970).
•Web sites: Yahoo Finance, Bloomberg,and MarketWatch for stock quotes and market news, Morningstar for mutual funds, Bankrate.com for bank products and MSN Money for educational articles

Donating cars to charity not as lucrative as you might think

2008-08-26T10:08:10-04:00

If high gas prices have you thinking about donating that gas guzzler, don't count on a getting a great tax break. Your deduction is based on what the charity sees when it sells the car, often at auction, unless the transaction qualifies under a couple of specific exceptions, detailed here by the American Institute of CPAS:

*The charitable organization uses it to perform some of its regular charitable activities – for example, using the vehicle to deliver food if providing food is part of the organization’s regular function.

*The charity makes a major improvement to the vehicle – replacing the engine would qualify, but not a minor repair or routine maintenance.

*The charity gives the vehicle away or sells it for significantly less than fair market value to someone who is underprivileged, so long as the charity’s purpose is to provide vehicles to poor or distressed individuals who need one.

Here are more details from the CPAs.

More banks likely to fail; What to do if you've got uninsured funds

2008-08-24T15:13:50-04:00

In today's paper I wrote about the likelihood that more banks will be shut down in the near future. Some think there could be 100 or more between now and the end of the year, after having been fewer than 10 so far this year.

Not surprisingly I have heard today from people who have CDs in excess of the FDIC-insured amounts at banks that have run into difficulty. They ask me what they should do? Here's what I recommend:

1. See if you can retitle a portion of the money in a way that brings you within the FDIC insurance limit. For example, if you have $200,000 in an individual account, could you put $100,000 of that in an account in your name "payable on death" to someone else? That person would have no access to the money while you are alive, but you would gain another $100,000 in FDIC protection.

2. If the above is not possible, ask how much the early withdrawal penalty would be to withdraw enough money to bring you below the FDIC insurance limit. It may be worth it to take the penalty so you can sleep better at night. Also, an early withdrawal penalty is tax deductible even if you don't itemize. And you may be able to put the money in another CD at a higher rate. Just keep it within the insurance limits.

Don't let your money end up as unclaimed property

2008-08-23T10:59:08-04:00

Think the money you stashed in the bank for a rainy day will be there if you need it? Maybe not if you haven't touched the account for years. Read what happened to one Times reader. After five years of inactivity, banks and brokers are required to turn accounts over to the state. They notify customers before they do it, but sometimes the notice doesn't get through---if the bank uses the wrong address or the customer doesn't open his mail.

Want to hang on to your money?
*Make sure your banks and brokers have your correct address. Notify them if you move.
*Keep accounts active by making a deposit or withdrawal once a year on your birthday — or any other day that’s easy to remember.
*Open your statements and review them for unusual activity and any notices from the company.
*Periodically check the unclaimed property records for any state where you have lived to see if your name is listed. In Florida, check this Web site or call toll-free 1-888-258-2253 .

Don't count on a scholarship paying your kid's way through school

2008-08-20T10:59:54-04:00

Mom and Dad are still the single largest source of money for college, according to a new survey out today from Gallup and Sallie Mae. Parents foot 48% of the bill, about two thirds of that from current income and savings and the rest from borrowing. Students pay 33% of the cost, but most of it comes from loans. Grants and scholarships? That would be a paltry 15% of the total.

The average cost last year was $14,628, but the price tag ranged from $5,263 at two-year public colleges to $27,679 at four-year private colleges. Federal student loans were the most common way to borrow, used by 28% of the students, who borrowed an average of $5,075. You can read the full report here.

Among the report's conclusions: Parents and students aren't giving careful enough consideration to how they are going to pay for college. "Not enough are using available college savings tools, too many are borrowing without considering how they will repay and too many are not completing federal financial aid forms," said C.E. Andrews, president of lender Sallie Mae.

If you're wondering how much education might cost you, try out this education planner from Sallie Mae.

Do owners of brokered CDs have to wait longer for the FDIC to pay up?

2008-08-19T13:57:44-04:00

Q: I invested in several FDIC-insured CDs through my broker at Fidelity and recently had one at First Heritage Bank of California "go south" in these economic times. According to Fidelity, accounts were transferred to the Bank of Omaha. However, when I checked my on-line account, it showed $0.00 as a balance for that investment. When I asked a representative about the value showing, he said that brokerage CDs are not treated the same as "brick & mortar" CDs when a bank closes. He implied that my account value should be restored in about 4 weeks. Is this true? Does the FDIC treat brokerage CDs differently? Why was this not required to be in the advertising literature? What is your opinion of these instruments???

A: Brokered CDs have the same FDIC insurance limits as those purchased directly from the bank. However, there is a time lag in getting access to your money after a bank fails. Here's an FDIC publication explaining how it works.

I use brokered CDs myself in my IRA just for the convenience of having everything on one statement. The one thing I would not do is buy a brokered deposit from one of the small companies that advertise themselves as CD brokers. They are just using CD rates as a tease to get people to come in and hear a sales pitch for an annuity. CDARS is an alternative to brokered CDs for those who want to invest more than the FDIC insurance limits.

Best wishes.

Working longer can pay big benefits

2008-08-16T08:20:29-04:00

Baby boomers are supposed to rewrite the definition of retirement. And since I'm one of them, I figure I might as well get started! Retiring without retiring is expected to be an increasingly popular choice, both because people want to stay active and because they want the additional money. If you are interested, you can read more about my decision here.

Continuing to work even a few more years can pay big financial benefits, as this study from T. Rowe Price points out (see page 14 for the article "Working longer and other ways to optimize retirement income.") The key factors are that you delay tapping your retirement savings and you put off receiving your Social Security benefits. Any additional money you manage to save for retirement will help even more. Here's a New York Times story that explains why down market times like this are a particularly bad time to retire and start tapping your retirement savings. So consider keeping on keeping on as long as your health allows it.

More firms settle auction rate securities cases

2008-08-15T13:30:40-04:00

Add Wachovia, J.P. Morgan Chase and Morgan Stanley to the list of brokerage firms settling with investors who bought auction-rate securities, income investments that had been pitched to them as safe but turned out to be anything but. Many found their accounts frozen along with the market for the securities. The three firms agreed this week to buy back investments from customers and to pay a combined $110-million in fines. UBS AG and Citigroup previously settled with regulators. New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is threatening Merrill Lynch with legal action if it doesn’t settle. Investigations also are in progress at other firms, including St. Petersburg-based Raymond James and Associates. Here's some background on the investigations.

Sale of the securities also has generated lawsuits and arbitration claims. One target is Charles Schwab, for its Schwab Yield Plus Fund, which was marketed as a consevative investment.