Few winners and many losers have come out of the current credit crisis. However, when it comes to money-market mutual funds, which are investments in short-term debt, the exact opposite is true. Funds that have been indirectly exposed to the exotica linked to mortgages have been taken care of by those responsible for managing them. Many others have had success and concerned investors are running to them in search of economic safety.

Money market funds have played a considerable role in the credit crunch. Most of the short-term debt that was holding up the finance was bought by them. Their sudden withdrawal is what caused the market to freeze up. They also resulted in liquidity problems for banks because they were reluctant to hold the debt.

For years, money market villains have been taking market share away from banks. The larger banks were not concerned with deposit competition because they were relying on loans. Because money market funds have been regarded as safe havens for investors, the credit crisis just accelerated their dominance. Over the past year, money funds in the American market have increased by nearly forty percent to well over $3 trillion.

The growth is contributed to mainly by local governments, pension funds and businesses. At the end of last year, money market funds were the holders of more than thirty percent of the short-term debt of corporate America.

adminStock Market21 Jun, 2008Comments Off

According to actuarial reports, by the year 2014, the amount of money being saved in worldwide defined-contribution will take over the amount of money that is defined-benefit. This poses a problem for many people. In a scheme of defined-contribution, the pension is dependant on the performance of the investment in which the employee has paid, taking a risk of poor investment. On the contrary, with schemes that are defined-benefit employees are promised an income upon retirement based on their pay and how long they performed service. This way the employer, instead of the employee, is taking the risk.

An even greater problem is the fact that the amount contributed by both the employees and the employers into defined-contribution schemes is less than what is contributed into the defined-benefit schemes. No matter how you argue it, the less money you put in the less money you are going to get out of it. To make matters worse, the cost of defined-contribution is higher on average. Not to mention the fact that defined-contribution schemes require a decision-making ability for which the employee is not properly equipped.

The end result is that employees will find themselves with far less of an income from their retirement payments than they expect.

adminGeneral, Pensions21 Jun, 2008Comments Off

More and more people today are looking for ways to stay at home with their families and spend less time slaving away at some distant office. Most people are afraid to stay at home because they do not believe that they can run their household with sole dependence on just the salary of one parent. More and more men and women everyday are finding ways to make it possible for at least one parent to remain at home with the children.

The initial step to the process is to add up the cost of work-related expenses of having both parents employed outside of the home, and then deduct that amount from the actual household income. The amount you have left over is the actual contribution of the second income. Make a list of all of the expenses that are incurred because both parents work away from home such as childcare, transportation, clothing, food and professional fees. By doing this, you will find out how much that second income is actually costing you.

Once you have determined the actual contribution being made to the household, look at your expenses to find ways to cut back. Track your spending to find out where you money is going and if there is anything you can do without. Try working out at home instead of paying for a gym membership. Switch to generic to cut the cost of food and other household items. Opt for a cheaper cable television package. You will be amazed at the amount you can save by trimming just a few luxuries.

Now that you know how much you are making from the second job and how low you can get your expenses, you will be able to see if staying at home can be a reality for you.

adminHomeworkers6 Jun, 2008Comments Off