Barton Simmons's Articles http://www.a1articles.com en-us editorial@articlealley.com Defining the 401(K) The 401(k) retirement plan is funded by employee contribution and a matching employer contribution. The major feature of the plan is that the contributions are taken from pre-taxed salary. The fund accumulates tax-free until it is withdrawn. Most business... http://www.a1articles.com/defining-the-401k-1361015.html 22nd January 2010 A Look at the Four Public Retirement Systems It is that time in life that we all look forward to. It is time to sit and relax and no longer have to worry about catching the bus or missing lunch just to beat the deadline. It is that point in our lives that the challenges of a planned working schedule... http://www.a1articles.com/a-look-at-the-four-public-retirement-systems-1361013.html 22nd January 2010 Living on $300 per Month Do you think this is a joke spending money only $300 a month for the whole family? With this tight budget, what sort of food would make the list?Could you save $25 a month on groceries? How about $50 or $100? Possibly you could cut your bill by almost 50%... http://www.a1articles.com/living-on-300-per-month-1361012.html 22nd January 2010 The Basic Facts on Federal Grants Federal grants are given by the federal government (of course!) to many different areas of need, with one purpose and that is to stimulate productivity within the country and the world from which they are counting on reaping more profits. Instead of the g... http://www.a1articles.com/the-basic-facts-on-federal-grants-1361010.html 22nd January 2010 The Benefits of Online Bill Paying Just about every big bank with a website offers you some bill pay online functions. If your bank doesn't have a website, or if they do but haven't quite figured out the whole bill pay online thing, you may want to consider finding a new bank. I think o... http://www.a1articles.com/the-benefits-of-online-bill-paying-1361009.html 22nd January 2010 How to Fund a Trading Account Although many will suggest that you can trade with the minimum margin requirement we do not necessarily recommend it. Let's say that you are about to start trading an S&P 500 futures daytrading system. Let's say that the exchange minimum margin requir... http://www.a1articles.com/how-to-fund-a-trading-account-1361007.html 22nd January 2010 Your Finances During a Disaster We have all heard the stories of financial institutions exploiting consumers with shady practices such as exorbitant interest rates, hidden fees, and the like. These accounts anger us and, rightfully, those that practice these deeds should be exposed. For... http://www.a1articles.com/your-finances-during-a-disaster-1361005.html 22nd January 2010 Planning for a Secure Retirement Knowing if you have saved enough is just part of retirement security. The other part involves creating an investment scheme that will create income without touching your savings. If you're past 40 or in your 50s, things are a little more difficult. It'... http://www.a1articles.com/planning-for-a-secure-retirement-1361003.html 22nd January 2010 When to Use Pay Day Advances A lot has been said about pay day advances in the past few years. Most think of it as a boon-helping you get through the maze of bills and exigencies that crop up at the most inconvenient hours imaginable. Yet others bad mouth it and consider it another d... http://www.a1articles.com/when-to-use-pay-day-advances-1361001.html 22nd January 2010 Knowing if You Should Refinance There are plenty of reasons why people chose to refinance. The needs for home improvements, sending a child to college or simply lower their monthly mortgage are a few. You need to find a loan company that offers you the best rate when you chose to refina... http://www.a1articles.com/knowing-if-you-should-refinance-1360999.html 22nd January 2010 An Overview of Structured Settlements For most people when they buy a house it is considered their life's largest deal. In some cases of structured settlements the compensation and financial considerations for a persons life duration and the total present value of the settlement can reach few... http://www.a1articles.com/an-overview-of-structured-settlements-1360998.html 22nd January 2010 Can You Buy a Home After a Foreclosure? Even though buying a home after a recent foreclosure is possible, homebuyer should not apply for a mortgage blindly. Because of your current credit standing, many lenders are ready to take advantage of you. Your options are limited. Nonetheless, this does... http://www.a1articles.com/can-you-buy-a-home-after-a-foreclosure-1360995.html 22nd January 2010 Your Opportunities as a Financial Planner To become a financial planner, you first must know what their job profile is. Financial planners help in determining the financial resources required to meet the company's operating program. They also help in forecasting the extent to which these require... http://www.a1articles.com/your-opportunities-as-a-financial-planner-1360994.html 22nd January 2010 Are You Looking for a Good Business Investment? You have always been interested in investing in a business, however you always hold back because you are scared of making a bad choice and losing your investment. However, there are some ways to evaluate businesses to reduce the risk you are taking when y... http://www.a1articles.com/are-you-looking-for-a-good-business-investment-1336797.html 08th January 2010 The Pitfalls of Buying Used Autos Whenever a person buys or leases a car, he seeks ways to finance this move. Most auto financing involves a car loan, which entails a detailed check on his credit history and a tough interview about car finance. When he undergoes all these to buy a used ca... http://www.a1articles.com/the-pitfalls-of-buying-used-autos-1336794.html 08th January 2010 The Advantages of California Home Loans California Home loans make the process of buying a new home in California more affordable than ever. As you may already know, these types of loans give you many opportunities that wouldnt be possible without them. When you buy a home, you should underst... http://www.a1articles.com/the-advantages-of-california-home-loans-1336790.html 08th January 2010 Structured Settlement or Lump Sum? If you are involved with a legal decision, financial claim or insurance arrangement, the financing process to settle and resolve the claim can often take two forms. Either a one-time lump sum payment, or a long-term periodic series of deferred structured ... http://www.a1articles.com/structured-settlement-or-lump-sum-1336783.html 08th January 2010 The Pros and Cons of Cash-Out Refinancing If you need extra funds for large purchases, or simply want to obtain a better interest rate on your home loan, refinancing may be a good option. Today, many homeowners are taking advantage of a cash-out refinance. There are several advantages to refin... http://www.a1articles.com/the-pros-and-cons-of-cashout-refinancing-1336773.html 08th January 2010 The Rent-to-Own Scam If you had the opportunity to buy a television or a sofa at a price that was three times the suggested retail price, would you do it? That scenario may seem ridiculous, but thousands of people do just that every day when they sign an agreement at a rent-... http://www.a1articles.com/the-renttoown-scam-1336769.html 08th January 2010 Planning for Retirement and Beyond Retirement doesn't mean the end of an active lifestyle. Quite the contrary, it opens up new opportunities for many new activities. Some retirees substitute voluntary community work for their former work. This gives definition or meaning to their roles aft... http://www.a1articles.com/planning-for-retirement-and-beyond-1336766.html 08th January 2010 Maintaining Your Business Afloat Business debt is the easiest debt to get into and the most difficult to get out of. Debt consolidation is an easy, effective way of making sure that a business has its cash flow available at a time when it needs it. There are many struggling businesses to... http://www.a1articles.com/maintaining-your-business-afloat-1336750.html 08th January 2010 Welcome to Los Angeles! Los Angeles is the counterfeit document capital of America ID theft business is booming in the Californian metropolis Officials warn that the fake ID business is booming in Los Angeles. Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in America says the Fe... http://www.a1articles.com/welcome-to-los-angeles-1336744.html 08th January 2010 Is Your Home in Danger of Repossession? The threat of repossession is a real one to many people. When the economy is good, mortgage lenders are willing to lend many times your salary at low interest rates. If interest rates rise, however, or your experience job loss, sickness, divorce or other ... http://www.a1articles.com/is-your-home-in-danger-of-repossession-1336740.html 08th January 2010 How to Take Advantage of Factoring Factoring is one of the oldest methods of business financing in existence. The history of factoring dates back to the days of moneylenders in the middle ages. Factoring has been the working capital facility of choice in Europe for centuries. It has taken ... http://www.a1articles.com/how-to-take-advantage-of-factoring-1336733.html 08th January 2010 Playing Deal or No Deal with Your Bank "Deal or No Deal" a popular game show on NBC has captured audiences with its large prize amounts, and unorthodox game show structure. Game show fans have become accustomed to trivia, dating and stunt -based games. "Deal or No Deal" presents a new format f... http://www.a1articles.com/playing-deal-or-no-deal-with-your-bank-1336730.html 08th January 2010 Understanding the Meaning of APR APR stands for Annual Percentage Rate. APR attempts to create a single figure of interest allowing the consumer to compare like with like when selecting the best product for their lifestyle. Without APR it would be literally impossible to make this kin... http://www.a1articles.com/understanding-the-meaning-of-apr-1336728.html 08th January 2010 Finding the Best Equity Loans Since the slump in house prices during the early-to-mid 1990s, millions of UK homeowners have seen the value of their property rise by considerable amounts. This has made many a UK homeowner equity rich and, on paper, very wealthy. But, with all the equit... http://www.a1articles.com/finding-the-best-equity-loans-1336722.html 08th January 2010 A Closer Look at Factoring Banks won't lend money to a business seeking to acquire larger contracts because its not viewed as an asset. So if you are a small start up company, funding for expansion may be hard to obtain. Accounts Receivable Financing could be the key to funding for... http://www.a1articles.com/a-closer-look-at-factoring-1336720.html 08th January 2010 Understanding Your FICO Score Obtaining copies of your credit reports from the three major credit reporting bureaus is a must for all American consumers. If you order your copies directly from each bureau, you can get yours for free [once per year per bureau]. That is the law. There i... http://www.a1articles.com/understanding-your-fico-score-1316776.html 29th December 2009 What Determines Foreign Exchange Rates? Yen! Euro! Dollar! Franc! Pound! There are many choices and decisions to make when it comes to forex trading, and the task can seem pretty daunting. If you have decided to try your hand at the foreign exchange market, newly opened to the individual invest... http://www.a1articles.com/what-determines-foreign-exchange-rates-1316773.html 29th December 2009 How to Secure Financing After a Bankruptcy Unless you are willing to pay terribly high interest rates, you should try to raise your credit score as much as possible. The lower your credit score, the higher the risk for the lender to grant you a loan and the higher the risk, the higher the rate. Th... http://www.a1articles.com/how-to-secure-financing-after-a-bankruptcy-1316772.html 29th December 2009 The Versatility of Pre-Paid Calling Cards Prepaid phone cards are very popular among college students, frequent travelers or simply by anyone who wants to save on their long distance and international calls. Rechargeable prepaid phone cards are especially economic because the minutes that are add... http://www.a1articles.com/the-versatility-of-prepaid-calling-cards-1316771.html 29th December 2009 Tithing as an Alternative to Insurance Have you ever experienced a major paradigm shift? You know, the kind where you think you already know something about something... But suddenly, you learn something new about that 'something' that changes your whole perspective and outlook on the topi... http://www.a1articles.com/tithing-as-an-alternative-to-insurance-1316770.html 29th December 2009 Bulk Discounts on Surety Bonds Every now and then I get a call from a new client asking how much of a discount they will receive for obtaining multiple bonds. I immediately know the conversation will take a bit longer than usual, as I will have to explain what surety bonds are in order... http://www.a1articles.com/bulk-discounts-on-surety-bonds-1316769.html 29th December 2009 Precious Metals Are Hotter than Ever For the last two years, I have been purchasing and recommending precious metals against an inevitable currency crisis. Since my last report, gold has added another $50 per ounce and is now topping $600. The gold rally is just getting warmed up, and I f... http://www.a1articles.com/precious-metals-are-hotter-than-ever-1316767.html 29th December 2009 Why Home Loans Are Good Debts A mortgage is referred to the house loan, and it will be placed as the security with the lender. The house will also be seized by the lender if the borrower does not pay a certain number of monthly installments. Most of the time mortgage is related to rea... http://www.a1articles.com/why-home-loans-are-good-debts-1316764.html 29th December 2009 Where to Look for Government Grants Each year, the federal government gives out over 150 billion dollars in Government funded grant programs to businesses and individuals. These grants are provided to assist businesses in growing and providing jobs, and to help individuals raise funds for e... http://www.a1articles.com/where-to-look-for-government-grants-1316761.html 29th December 2009 New Laws Make Filing for Bankruptcy More Difficult Most of us already are aware that the change in the bankruptcy law will be effective this October. Those who are already in debt argue that it is unfair. Companies that have suffered profit loss through the years are relieved to hear the news. The chan... http://www.a1articles.com/new-laws-make-filing-for-bankruptcy-more-difficult-1316758.html 29th December 2009 Tips on Managing Your Debt Debt is a four-letter word that puts us on parole for the rest of our lives. The cost of living alone is so demanding that debt mounts, mounts, mounts, and breaks us with each heaping rise. We have to pay folding money, pay for apparel, food, gasoline, Un... http://www.a1articles.com/tips-on-managing-your-debt-1316756.html 29th December 2009 What the FMS Does The Financial Management Service (FMS) is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, to provide a centralized debt collection service to most federal agencies. The FMS has begun utilizing two Congressionally mandated federal debt collection programs. One... http://www.a1articles.com/what-the-fms-does-1316754.html 29th December 2009 Why You Should Bank Online Online banking is one of the newest internet fad, with millions of users flocking to their personal computers to pay their bills online. With a variety of advantages, such as convenience and simplicity, it is no wonder that so many are enthralled by this ... http://www.a1articles.com/why-you-should-bank-online-1316751.html 29th December 2009 Payday Advance: Friend or Foe? Pay day advances are all about having the cash to haul you out of trouble. The reasons why you need the cash could be numerous. It could be because your planning went haywire or maybe because you forgot to account for certain expenses. It could also be th... http://www.a1articles.com/payday-advance-friend-or-foe-1316749.html 29th December 2009 The Facts About eCurrency You keep on listening about this profit pulling business that requires no marketing or selling, merely an hour a day (at the most) and no special skill. Yeah right! At least that's the 1st perspective it gives any person that has been in the interne... http://www.a1articles.com/the-facts-about-ecurrency-1316747.html 29th December 2009 What Affects the Outcome of a Claim? There are a number of factors affecting the likelihood of the accident claims' success. * Timescale. It is unlikely that a solicitor will be willing to deal with the case if the incident occurred more than three years ago. The limitation period for mos... http://www.a1articles.com/what-affects-the-outcome-of-a-claim-1316746.html 29th December 2009 What to Look for in an Accountant Have a good laugh at this joke concerning accountants: A businessman was interviewing applicants for the position of divisional manager. He devised a simple test to select the most suitable person for the job. He asked each applicant the question, "How... http://www.a1articles.com/what-to-look-for-in-an-accountant-1316744.html 29th December 2009