Your Essential Financial Toolkit

Pressed for time? We show you how to make short work of dozens of money tasks.

From Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine, May 2008
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Laurin Mack is a PHD candidate in clinical psychology, which leaves her little time to bone up on her finances. But Mack, 29, wants to learn how to diversify a portfolio, monitor her investments online and roll over a retirement account into an IRA. Mack and other time-starved readers can use our absolutely essential financial toolkit to accomplish each of those tasks, and 33 others, in five easy steps or less.

These tasks are organized into four key areas: Personal Finances, Investing, Credit and Retirement. Take a look and see what you can accomplish today.



Personal Finance Toolkit


• Boost Your Paycheck

• Track Your Spending

• Complain and Get Results

• Stop Junk Mail Forever

• Land a College Scholarship

• Replace a Social Security Card

• Hire a Reliable Contractor

• Protect Your Home and Valuables

• Write a Will Without the Hassle

• Start a 529 Plan

• Lock in a Cheap Mortgage

• Prepare for a Natural Disaster






Your Credit Toolkit


• Get Your Credit Report in a Flash

• Fix an Error on Your Credit Report

• Get Your Three Credit Scores

• Lower Your Credit Card Rate

• Decipher Your Credit Card Statement

• Pay Your Bills Online






Retirement Toolkit


• Transfer an IRA

• Set Up a Roth IRA

• Buy a Medigap Policy to Supplement Medicare

• Roll Over Your 401(k)




Investing Toolkit


• When to Dump Stock

• Find the Value of an Old Stock Certificate

• Build a Bond Ladder

• How Much Stock to Buy

• Diversify Your Investments

• Buy Treausries Online

• Invest in a DRIP

• Replace a Lost Savings Bond

• Understand a Mutual Fund Prospectus

• Track Your Investments Online

• Get the Inside Skinny on a Stock

• How to Open a Brokerage Account


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