“Thursday's Personal Finance stories - Marketwatch” plus 3 more

Thursday's Personal Finance stories - Marketwatch
Equifax Launches New Personal Finance Blog - PRWeb
Personal Finance, Consumer Trends Feature Package - Seattle Business Journal
Personal Finance Roundup - Inside Fidelity

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Thursday's Personal Finance stories - Marketwatch

Posted: 10 Jun 2010 02:00 PM PDT

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By MarketWatch

Don't miss these top stories:

The Senate is working on a big job-creation and tax-break bill that includes seemingly random and disconnected measures -- extending a tax deduction for charitable donations for people 70-1/2 or older, providing Medicaid funding for states, and levying higher taxes on oil companies, to name just a few. But one thing you will no longer find in the bill, because senators stripped it out, is a provision that would have required 401(k) plan providers give participants greater clarity on what they are really paying for the pleasure of investing for their retirement.

The fee disclosure provision is in the version of the bill passed by the House on May 28; it's hard to know right now whether it'll somehow get added back in to the final bill, but it seems unlikely.

But maybe it doesn't really matter, in this case, that the U.S. Senate didn't go to bat for America's workers. Read Robert Powell's column today to find out how some plan providers already are moving to disclose fees to participants, and how momentum seems to be gaining among various industry groups to do the same.

Still, the naysayers on the Senate provision did hold out, and those fee-disclosure critics aren't only in Washington, so you have to wonder whether workers ever will really be given the straight story, on total plan costs, in a nice clear layout on their quarterly statements.

-- Andrea Coombes, Personal Finance editor

Fee disclosure is coming to your 401(k)

Investors lost a battle this week, but the war isn't over. Lawmakers in the Senate decided to drop a measure that would have forced the 401(k) industry to disclose fees to participants. But that's OK, because the numbers still favor retirement savers.
See Robert Powell.

REAL ESTATE

Rates on 15-year-fixed loans drop to record low

Bond yields fell and mortgage rates followed after a relatively weak employment report, allowing the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage to hover near its record low set late last year, Freddie Mac's chief economist said on Thursday.
See Mortgages.

SAVING & SPENDING

Global wealth recovers to pre-crisis levels

Looks like North America is in need of a good financial adviser. While global wealth has returned to where it was before the financial crisis in 2008 and the world's millionaires grew 14%, North America has lagged other regions and remained at 2006 levels, according to the latest wealth report by research firm Boston Consulting Group.
See story on global wealth recovers to pre-crisis levels.

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Equifax Launches New Personal Finance Blog - PRWeb

Posted: 10 Jun 2010 09:14 AM PDT

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Finance experts partner with credit reporting powerhouse to create online consumer finance resource

Atlanta, GA (Vocus/PRWEB ) June 10, 2010 -- Equifax announced the launch of the Equifax Personal Finance Blog earlier this week. The Equifax blog aims to inform and educate consumers about personal finance topics and features weekly insights and practical information from top consumer finance experts— Ilyce Glink (Real Estate), Daniel Solin (Investment), Eva Rosenberg (Tax) and Linda Rey (Insurance), as well as a team of Equifax subject matter experts covering select credit-related topics.

The Equifax Personal Finance Blog marks the company's latest Web 2.0 effort to further engage with consumers and transform its website, www.equifax.com, into a trusted consumer resource and destination for topical personal finance information. Equifax also boasts an iPhone app, a Facebook Fan Page, and a new Twitter profile (@EquifaxPFB).

"Now, more than ever, consumers are searching for information and answers about their credit and finances," says Trey Loughran, President, Equifax Personal Information Solutions. "We created the Equifax Personal Finance Blog as a destination for consumers to find sensible, straightforward information and insights to help them make informed decisions about their day-to-day finances."

Every day on the blog, consumers will find new posts and helpful answers on topics like:

"Credit touches almost every part of our financial lives and can be confusing, explains award-winning real estate writer and author Ilyce Glink. "The consumer finance experts who write for the Equifax Personal Finance Blog will combine our real-world experience and expertise to create original, easy-to-digest content about the five pillars of personal finance—credit, tax, insurance, investment/retirement, and real estate—that breaks through the misinformation in the market to help consumers make smarter decisions with their money."

Get smart information on everything from real estate to retirement, all in one place at the Equifax Personal Finance Blog, www.equifax.com/blog. Find out more about Equifax's suite of credit, identity and debt-related products designed to maximize your financial well-being at www.equifax.com.

About Equifax Inc. (www.equifax.com) Equifax empowers businesses and consumers with information they can trust. A global leader in information solutions, we leverage one of the largest sources of consumer and commercial data, along with advanced analytics and proprietary technology, to create customized insights that enrich both the performance of businesses and the lives of consumers.

With a strong heritage of innovation and leadership, Equifax continuously delivers innovative solutions with the highest integrity and reliability. Businesses -- large and small -- rely on us for consumer and business credit intelligence, portfolio management, fraud detection, decisioning technology, marketing tools, and much more. We empower individual consumers to manage their personal information, protect their identity, and maximize their financial well- being.

Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Equifax Inc. operates in the U.S. and 14 other countries throughout North America, Latin America and Europe. Equifax is a member of Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500(R) Index. Our common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol EFX.

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Personal Finance, Consumer Trends Feature Package - Seattle Business Journal

Posted: 10 Jun 2010 08:52 AM PDT

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The following feature package is a roundup of feature stories dealing with Personal Finance issues and is appropriate for special sections and for general use. For those receiving this copy via computer, the stories are easily identified by the initial word of the slug: "Personal."

This is the latest in a series of topical feature packages PRN will carry as part of its regular Feature News Service. Coming up in 2010 are features on:

Personal Finance, Consumer Trends Feature Package

1. Managing the Cost of College

If you would like a copy of the complete schedule, or if you would care to comment, please email featuredesk@prnewswire.com. We welcome suggestions. Copies of previous packages are available for the media. Feature packages and feature photos are also available on the PR Newswire Web site, http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/feature-news-latest-news.

Photos that accompany releases are available via the PRN Photo Desk, 888-776-6555, or via Newscom, http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/pub/search/search2?f=PRN%2fprnpub. Select photos are available via AP PhotoExpress and AP Photo Archive.

NOTE TO EDITORS: All PR Newswire features and other releases, both current and for the past 12 months, are available at no charge at PR Newswire for Journalists, http://www.prnewswire.com/media.

/PRNewswire -- June 10/

SOURCE PR Newswire- No Charge Account

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Personal Finance Roundup - Inside Fidelity

Posted: 10 Jun 2010 05:46 AM PDT

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A weekly look at money advice from across the Web.

Cameron Huddleston, Contributing Editor, Kiplinger.com, Kiplinger Washington Editors

Starting today, I'll be providing you with a weekly roundup of personal finance insights from across the Web. You'll find money tips that I think are the most useful, interesting or sometimes just plain weird (we all need a good laugh, right?).

Banking

A Banker Reveals How Banks Try to Take Your Money
"Here are the three most common ways banks give you the bait and switch." [Mint.com]

Identity theft

"Got ID?" Is a Question Many More Businesses Will Be Asking Soon
"It's a mandate from Federal "Red Flag Rules" intending to stop identity theft before it starts." [Consumerist]

Money-saving tips

Bargain Shopping at Whole Foods (Symbol : WFMI): 12 Strategies for Success
"Wanting to explore organics and plant-based eating without spending the equivalent of a second mortgage? " [WiseBread]

Ten Things I'll Never Buy Again
"If you want to start living a better financial life but don't know where to start, I say start simple." [Money Crashers]

Sticky money conversations

Worry About Only What You Can Change
"When I see a friend making financial choices that could significantly hurt him or his family, I might offer some suggestions in a non-judgmental way." [Consumerism Commentary]

How Do You Deal With Splitting the Check?
"You eat $20 worth of food but Bob the Spendthrift convinces everyone to just "split it," now leaving you on the hook for $40? It's not fun." [Budgets Are Sexy]

Father's Day gift ideas

4 Fun Ways to Have a Fun and Frugal Father's Day
"Here are a few of the favorite gifts my kids have given me over the years." [Almost Frugal]

10 Father's Day Gift Ideas Under $50
"The perfect Father's Day gift is something that is thoughtful, useful, and perhaps even sentimental." [Frugal Dad]

Five Filters featured article: Into the Abyss. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

Personal Finance

Thursday, June 10, 2010