Terms of Use: This knowledge article is part of a series of knowledge articles aimed to help you define your roadmap to savings and investing. To review the previous knowledge article in this series, click here . To review the table of contents for the articles, click here How To Pick A Financial Professional Are you the kind of person who can go solo on the journey of saving and investing? Do you have a firm command of your investment choices and how to go about making them? Maybe you&#  More...

Terms of Use Determine Your Risk Tolerance This knowledge article is part of a series of knowledge articles aimed to help you define your roadmap to savings and investing. To review the previous knowledge article in this series, click here . To review the table of contents for the articles, click here . You are approaching the half-way point in your journey to saving and investing. This is a good point to make sure that you understand some key concepts: Savings Your savings are usually put i  More...

Terms of Use: Investors searching for relatively low-risk investments that can easily be converted into cash often turn to certificates of deposit (CDs) or share certificates. A CD/share certificate is a special type of deposit account with a credit union, bank or thrift institution that typically offers a higher rate of interest than a regular savings account. Unlike other investments, certificates are insured up to $250,000. Here’s how CDs and share certificates work: When you purchase one, yo  More...

Terms of Use The three main categories of mutual funds are money market funds, bond funds, and stock funds. There are a variety of types within each category. Money Market Funds have relatively low risk compared to other mutual funds. They are limited by law to certain high-quality, short-term investments. Money market funds try to keep their value (NAV) at a stable $1.00 per share, but NAV may fall below $1.00 if their investments perform poorly. Investor losses have been rare, but they are  More...

Terms of Use: Make A Financial Plan Figuring Out Your Finances This knowledge article is part of a series of knowledge articles aimed to help you define your roadmap to savings and investing. To review the previous knowledge article in this series, click here . To review the table of contents for the articles, click here . You can never take a journey without knowing where you're starting from, and a journey to financial security is no different. You'll need to figure out on paper your current s  More...

Terms of Use: A mutual fund is created when a company brings together money from many people and invests it in stocks, bonds, or other securities. The advantage of investing in a mutual fund is that your investment is diversified among stocks and possibly bonds of several different companies depending on the type of mutual fund. Several companies offer different types of mutual funds. Investors in mutual funds buy shares in the mutual fund at the Net Asset Value (NAV) of the fund plus any s  More...

Terms of Use More Americans are investing in the stock market and many of them are doing so through the Internet. The price of some stocks can soar and drop suddenly. In these fast markets, when many investors want to trade at the same time and prices change quickly, delays can develop. Executions and confirmations slow down, while reports of prices lag behind actual prices. In these markets, investors can suffer unexpected losses very quickly. Investors trading over the Internet, who are u  More...

Terms of Use: You can't open a newspaper or read a magazine without seeing ads promoting the stellar performance of "hot" mutual funds. But past performance is not as important as you may think, especially the short-term performance of relatively new or small funds. As with any investment, a fund's past performance is no guarantee of its future success. Over the long-term, the success (or failure) of your investment in a fund also will depend on factors such as: the fund's sales charges, fee  More...

Terms of Use Need some help finding the right path for your financial future? You've come to the right place. We've put together an itinerary that takes in all the basics for your journey to learn more about saving and investing. Traveling down the right road to achieving financial well-being is one of the most important trips that you'll ever make in life. Y ou don't have to be a genius to do it … and you don't have to be rich … you just need to hit the road   More...

Terms of Use Define Your Goals This knowledge article is part of a series of knowledge articles aimed to help you define your roadmap to savings and investing. To review the table of contents for the articles, click here . What are the things you want to save and invest for … A home? A new car? Your education or that of a child? A comfortable retirement? The needs of your parents? All of these goals will cost money. To make sure that you will have enough money when you need it, follo  More...