Personal Finance
401(k) withdrawals for education may bring penalties
By NEIL DOWNING
Monday, October 16, 2006
Planning to withdraw money from your 401(k) or other such retirement-savings plan to pay for college expenses?
Be careful, because you could be slapped with a penalty, said Bob Scharin, senior tax analyst at RIA of New York, which provides tax information and software to accountants and other professionals.
A home loan with mortgage insurance vs a piggyback loan
By HOLDEN LEWIS
Monday, October 16, 2006
You can get lower monthly payments in some cases by getting a home loan with mortgage insurance rather than a piggyback loan. Don't assume that your loan officer or mortgage broker knows this.
"Our message to consumers is look at all the options," says Sal Miosi, vice president of marketing for mortgage insurer MGIC.
Questions on IRAs, pensions
By KATHLEEN PENDER
Thursday, October 12, 2006
Readers have been asking a lot of questions about the pension bill President Bush signed this month, which is not surprising since it's more than 900 pages long.
Free credit report again available
By NEIL DOWNING
Important news for consumers: Mark your calendar for this Friday. That's the day you become eligible, once again, to obtain a free copy of your credit report.
To place your order, use the clearinghouse that's run by the three big nationwide credit reporting companies.
zits says it all
The comic strip ZITS has brought up an important point when Zits, a fifteen-year-old asks his parents whether they have set up a trust fund for him. Are parents responsible for an adult child's livelihood? Isn't time we let our teenagers set up their own funds for their futures and work weekends to add earned money to provide for themselves as they become young adults? Why do our labor laws deny youngster who have entered their teens and are able to make babies but can't get a paying job?

