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| The Real World | |
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| Personal Finance: The Stuff They Didn't Teach You in College | |
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| Exactly What Is Personal Finance? | |
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| Why Don't I Already Know This Stuff? | |
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| Whatever Happened to Personal Finance 101? | |
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| But I Don't Think I'll Be Able to Understand It | |
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| Somebody's Got to Mind the Store | |
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| Money's Not a Dirty Word | |
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| Personal Finance Is for My Parents | |
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| How Hard Is This Gonna Be? | |
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| Let's Get Started | |
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| You're Out Here--Now What Are You Gonna Do? | |
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| Hey! Nobody Told Me It Was Gonna Be Like This! | |
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| Mom and Dad, Where Are You? | |
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| It's a Big, Cold World Out Here | |
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| A Look at Where You Are | |
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| A Look at Where You're Going | |
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| A Personal Finance Test | |
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| Your Personal Finance Knowledge Assessment Quiz | |
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| Answers | |
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| Taking a Look at Your Bank Accounts | |
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| Do You Have the Accounts You Need? | |
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| Checking Accounts | |
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| Savings Accounts | |
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| Other Useful Accounts | |
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| All Banks Are Not Created Equal | |
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| Commercial Banks | |
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| Credit Unions | |
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| Thrifts | |
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| So, What's a Percentage Point or Two Among Friends? | |
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| Another New Bank Fee? | |
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| Nickel and Diming | |
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| The Great Interest Versus Bank Fee Dilemma | |
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| Stop at the ATM, I Need More Cash | |
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| Automatic Teller Machines or Automatic Theft Machines? | |
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| Tips to Cut ATM Fees | |
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| Credit Cards and Debt | |
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| Everybody Wants a Credit--Card Until They Have One | |
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| Getting a Card If You Don't Have One | |
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| Co-signers and Secured Cards | |
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| How Many Credit Cards Does One Person Need? | |
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| Keep It (Your Credit Card) in Your Pants | |
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| Knowing When to Use Your Credit Card | |
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| Sometimes Cash Is King | |
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| Finding a Better Deal on Your Credit Cards | |
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| Annual Fees | |
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| Interest Rates | |
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| Fees and More Fees | |
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| Timeliness Is Next to Godliness: Paying Off Your Debt | |
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| Finding a Place with the Right Zip Code | |
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| Doing the Apartment Thing | |
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| Scouting Locations | |
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| Signing Your Life Away | |
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| Up-Front Costs | |
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| Three's Company--or a Crowd | |
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| Renter's Insurance | |
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| Full House | |
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| What Am I Gonna Sleep On? | |
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| Furnishing Your Place Without Spending a Fortune | |
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| Quality Is Key | |
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| I Gotta Pay for That, Too? | |
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| Electricity | |
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| Phone | |
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| I Want My MTV | |
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| Road Rules | |
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| Cruising the Auto Industry Landscape | |
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| Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | |
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| Not Everybody Needs a Car | |
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| Renting a Car When You Need One | |
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| The Great Debate: Buying or Leasing | |
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| Financing Your Car | |
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| Leasing | |
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| New or Used, Big or Small? | |
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| Your Car Costs You More Than You Think | |
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| Maintenance | |
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| Insurance | |
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| The Total Cost | |
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| On Your Own and Loving It | |
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| What Do You Have? | |
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| That's My Salary? You've Gotta Be Kidding! | |
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| Asking for a Raise | |
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| Looking for Another Job | |
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| Sticking It Out | |
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| There's More to a Job Than the Money | |
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| Contacts | |
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| Experience | |
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| Benefits | |
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| Assessing Your Assets | |
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| Your Secret Stash | |
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| Accounts | |
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| Mutual Funds | |
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| Stocks (Equities) | |
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| Bonds | |
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| Emergency Money | |
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| What Do You Need? | |
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| Your Financial Lifestyle | |
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| Evaluating Your Expectations | |
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| Looking at What You Need and What You Don't | |
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| The Bare Necessities | |
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| Niceties or Necessities? | |
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| The B Word: Budgets | |
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| Why Budgets Have Such a Bad Rep | |
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| Everybody Needs a Budget | |
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| What Your Budget Should Include | |
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| Non-Routine Expenses | |
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| Routine Expenses | |
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| Trimming the Fat: Analyzing Your Expenses | |
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| Spending Ratios | |
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| One Job, Two Jobs, Three Jobs, Four | |
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| Sticking with It | |
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| Software and Web Sites for Budgeting | |
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| Getting Into the Swing of Savings | |
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| Are You a Saver or a Spender? | |
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| Evaluating Your Financial Personality | |
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| Savers Have It Made (Almost) | |
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| Spenders Have to Work a Little Harder | |
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| A Penny Saved Is More Than a Penny Earned | |
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| Getting Into a Savings Mindset | |
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| Tips for Saving Money on Almost Everything | |
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| Food | |
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| Eating in Restaurants | |
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| Clothes | |
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| Fitness | |
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| Grooming | |
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| Vacations | |
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| Household Expenses | |
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| Every Little Bit Counts | |
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| Your Credit: Use It, Don't Abuse It | |
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| Building a Credit History | |
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| Knowing When Enough Is Enough | |
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| Oops! I Think I'm in Trouble | |
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| Recognizing Credit Trouble | |
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| Knowing When to Get Help | |
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| Repairing the Damage | |
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| Your Credit Report | |
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| How to Get a Copy of Your Credit Report | |
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| Coasting Along | |
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| Movin' On Up | |
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| Emergency Funds | |
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| Finding Another Car | |
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| Knowing When to Trade It In | |
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| Knowing When to Keep It | |
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| Back to School | |
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| Life Is Better in the Tropics | |
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| Aren't These Computers Cool? | |
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| Getting Your Own Place | |
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| What's All This Talk About Investments? | |
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| Starting Small | |
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| How Much Do You Have to Invest? | |
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| What's Out There? | |
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| Mutual Funds | |
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| Money Markets | |
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| CDs--We're Not Talking Compact Discs | |
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| 401 (k)s | |
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| Vesting | |
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| A Taxing Topic | |
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| What's Your Taxable Income? | |
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| How to Make Less of Your Income Taxable | |
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| Standard Deductions | |
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| Itemized Deductions | |
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| Fitting In: Tax Brackets | |
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| Preparing Your Tax Returns | |
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| I Can Do That! | |
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| Help! I Need Somebody (Not Just Anybody) | |
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| Web Sites and Software That Can Help You Prepare Your Taxes | |
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| Looking Out for What You Have | |
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| Welcome to the Insurance Jungle | |
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| Insurance 101 | |
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| Sometimes You Need It, Sometimes You Don't | |
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| Health Insurance | |
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| Auto Insurance | |
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| Property Insurance | |
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| Disability Insurance | |
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| Life Insurance | |
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| You Just Don't Need It | |
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| My Mama Told Me: You Better Shop Around | |
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| What Do You Mean I'm Not Covered? | |
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| To Everything There Is a Season | |
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| The Game of Life | |
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| Footloose and Fancy-Free | |
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| She (Gulp!) Wants Me to Move in with Her! | |
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| Financial Advantages | |
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| Financial Disadvantages | |
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| Breaking Up Is Hard to Do | |
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| Will You Marry Me, Bill? | |
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| Uh, Could You Sign Here, Please? | |
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| Goin' to the Chapel and We're Gonna Get Married | |
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| With This Ring | |
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| Ouch! Here Comes the Bill | |
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| Uncle Sam Has a Little Wedding Present for You | |
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| Not Your Father's Pension Plan: Retirement Funds in the Modern World | |
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| Is Retirement Planning Your Top Priority? It Should Be | |
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| What's Out There? | |
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| Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) | |
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| Roth IRAs | |
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| Doing It on Your Own | |
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| SEP-IRAs | |
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| Keoghs | |
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| Annuities | |
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| So Where Should My Retirement Money Go? | |
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| Early Withdrawal Penalties | |
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| Investing Beyond Retirement Accounts | |
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| When Is the Best Time to Start Investing? | |
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| What Kind of Investor Do You Want to Be? | |
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| High-Risk Investors | |
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| Moderate-Risk Investors | |
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| Conservative Investors | |
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| Your Timetable Is Important, Too | |
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| You Can't Tax That! Can You? | |
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| Show Me the Way to the Investment Store | |
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| Buying Mutual Funds | |
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| Buying Stocks or Bonds | |
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| Where to Learn About Investments | |
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| Books | |
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| Web Sites | |
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| Newspapers and Magazines | |
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| TV Shows | |
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| Investment Options | |
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| How Does the Stock Market Work? | |
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| When You Own | |
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| When You Loan | |
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| Mutual Funds | |
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| Understanding the Risks | |
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| Where to Invest Your Money | |
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| Safe, but Not Too Exciting | |
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| Exciting, but Just How Safe? | |
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| Is Investing in Beanie Babies a Good Idea? | |
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| We All Need Somebody to Lean On | |
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| Know Thy Finances, Know Thy Advisor | |
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| Do I Need a Financial Advisor? | |
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| The Who's Who of Financial Advisors | |
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| Financial Planners | |
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| Certified Financial Planners | |
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| Financial Consultants | |
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| Bank Customer Service Representatives | |
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| Certified Public Accountants/Personal Financial Specialists | |
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| Insurance Agents | |
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| Money Managers | |
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| Finding a Reputable Financial Advisor | |
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| How Long Have You Been in This Business? | |
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| How Have You Prepared for This Job? | |
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| What Was Your Job Before You Became a Financial Advisor? | |
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| Can You Give Me the Names of Some Other Clients, Please? | |
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| Go with the Gut | |
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| Places and People to Avoid | |
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| Too-High Fees | |
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| Conflicts of Interest | |
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| I Know What You Did Last Summer | |
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| The Sleaze Factor | |
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| Things Your Investment Advisor Should Never Do | |
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| Misrepresentation | |
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| Churning and Burning | |
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| Ignoring Your Wishes or Neglecting to Keep You Informed | |
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| So You're Thinking of Buying a House | |
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| There's No Place Like Home | |
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| It's the American Dream--But Is It Right for Everyone? | |
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| Quiz | |
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| How Much House Can You Afford? | |
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| How Much Do You Make? | |
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| Your Expenses | |
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| Your Monthly Mortgage Payment | |
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| The All-Important Down Payment | |
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| Choosing the Right Real Estate Agent | |
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| The Great House Hunt Begins | |
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| Single, Double, Townhouse, Duplex, or Condo? | |
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| There Goes the Neighborhood | |
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| Don't Forget to Check Out the Schools | |
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| Pier One, Here We Come | |
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| We'd Like to Borrow Some Money, Please | |
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| Just What Exactly Is a Mortgage? | |
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| Getting the Mortgage That's Best for You | |
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| Fixed-Rate Mortgages | |
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| Adjustable-Rate Mortgages | |
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| Which Is Better: Fixed-Rate or Adjustable? | |
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| Other Types of Mortgages | |
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| Thirty-Year Versus Fifteen-Year Mortgages | |
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| Points | |
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| Alternative Types of Mortgages | |
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| Federal Housing Administration Loans | |
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| Veteran's Administration Loans | |
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| Community Home Buyer's Program | |
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| Fannie Neighbors | |
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| Where to Go to Get Your Mortgage | |
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| Getting Your Mortgage Approved Faster | |
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| What Happens at Settlement? | |
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| Paying It Off, Little by Little | |
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| How Quickly Should You Pay Your Mortgage? | |
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| How Much Extra Do I Have to Pay? | |
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| What About Biweekly Payments? | |
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| Put Your Money Where Your Mortgage Is | |
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| What If I Can't Make a Payment? | |
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| Late Penalties | |
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| Mortgage Insurance | |
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| Putting Money in an Escrow Account | |
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| How Owning a Home Affects Your Taxes | |
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| Tax Benefits of Owning a Home | |
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| Deductions, Deductions | |
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| Capital Gains Exclusion | |
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| You Wanna Play House? You Gotta Pay Taxes | |
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| Home Equity Loans and Lines of Credit | |
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| Weighing the Tax Advantages Against the Disadvantages | |
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| Homeowner's Insurance | |
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| Nobody Should Be Without Homeowner's Insurance | |
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| How Much Homeowner's Insurance Do You Need? | |
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| Look for a Guaranteed Replacement Provision | |
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| Personal Property Coverage | |
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| Exactly What Should You Insure? | |
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| Make Sure You Know What You Have | |
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| Liability Insurance | |
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| Insuring Against Natural Disasters | |
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| We Don't Have Earthquakes Here! | |
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| The Government Will Take Care of Us | |
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| The Best Places to Buy Homeowner's Insurance | |
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| Additional Resources | |
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| Show Me the Money Glossary | |
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| Index | |