women and finance...

[tapestrybabe]

well, i remember i posted a topic in
regards to investing your money awhile ago
and i feel mostly guys participated in that thread
also, when i read the thread about
participating in the 401k...
it seemed mostly guys participated in that too...
so yeah, i guess it seems a guy dominated topic
when subjects of money and financial management
usually comes up...

while i know there are already females here
who are into this topic as well...
i guess i'm curious in wanting to just hear
their voice instead...
i'm curious in wanting to get a sense of
of the variety of women on this board and the level of
interest you all have in this topic too-
managing your own money, saving, investing, etc...

i wish i had gotten interested in this topic earlier in life...
last time i posted about investing your money...
i couldnt fantom about opening up a retirement account...
like what, a retirement account, thats SO FAR AHEAd-
but i've finally opened a roth
and am trying to max it out for the year
same thing with my 401k...
i put the maximum my company matches
and i love hsbc and being able to watch
my savings account grow too...
online banking- i just recently got into it
and i love it...

what about you?

[rice cracker]

I love online banking. I have my banking and investments online and it's really fun to go in at the beginning of the month and see how much interest has accrued (not much, but still fun!). My 401K is online too, so that's fun to look at on pay days to see the incremental growth.

Lately I've been really into organizing my monthly budget, and online banking has been so useful for that.

If you haven't already, make an appointment with a financial advisor. Mine didn't really cost anything out of pocket, and they can give you your financial "picture" and really good tips on what to do with your money so that you can arrange your finances to meet any of your goals.

[wetheril]

I'm currently too poor to start "investing" in anything. I got a job recently, and have yet to receive the first paycheck. However, during my time in college, when I worked an on-campus job, I have been managing my credit by signing up for credit cards and making sure I payed them on time. Now I've built up a fairly decent credit rating, and hope to buy a house once I have enough money saved up for a downpayment. It's still a long ways away, since houses in California are rediculously expensive!

And I'll definitely open a 401k in the near future.

[AngryABCGirl]

I have a money market account right now in the US and something similar in Taiwan. Opening 401k in near future when I have real steady employment.

[luv]

I remember a while back i read on Yahoo! finance forum (mostly men posting) how they can never trust their wives with checkbooks. I balance the checkbook and most other women I know hold the key to household finances - needless to say I had problems with the posting.

In general I do find that women's eyes glaze over when conversation switches to markets, finance, stocks, and investing. With information that is available online it is quite easy to invest and learn about investing. Markets are pretty interesting!!

[kasia]

Saving isn't difficult, but learning to invest does seem intimidating. I have an IRA and a 401(k), and then other savings accounts but the money, I guess, just sits there until I figure out what to do. I chose the Aggressive Growth portfolio but I guess I can be managing my money a little better.

Luv - Can you point us to any good resources? It's true that there is a lot of info on the internet, but it's hard to tell which sources are reliable.

[luv]

It seems more intimidating than it is but I think its always good to begin with news. I found a good way to increase my interest was researching the company/industry I work for and career tips:

Editorials on http://finance.yahoo.com/
- The Ben Stein articles are hilarious sometimes
- Markets and currency - finding out that USD is worth sh*t in the world right now but the world is still hopeful

www.thestreet.com/

- Mad money is entertaining show for investing advice

What are good/reliable online brokerages? - I think Interactive Brokers have reasonable prices but Ameritrade is more personal investing friendly - my opinion only.

www.reuters.com - great business newsfeed, much of the news you read on search engines are direct from reuters.

http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/asia/
- new developments in Asia - interesting reads
- Business Week is good investing source - I just really like the Asia section

[kimpossible]

I don't have much to add here that hasn't already been said. All I'll add is to advocate finding and using a good accountant and estate lawyer. They can help you protect the assets you build up.

I've read over time women tend to do better at investments than men because we hold onto them longer but I've also learned from my husband to look harder at cutting losses, especially since a strategically capped loss can offset the tax burden from a gain in the same year.

An aside, when you all get engaged, married, longterm whatever, don't give up your own checking account. Maybe that's an idea of the past, I think I've reached that marriage milestone where I don't remember much of life pre-mom and pre-wife, but I knew a lot of gals that were into merging all money accounts. My advice is multiple accounts, at least three. His, hers and shared for bill paying, etc.

[AngryABCGirl]

http://www.bankrate.com/

[eos]

An aside, when you all get engaged, married, longterm whatever, don't give up your own checking account. Maybe that's an idea of the past, I think I've reached that marriage milestone where I don't remember much of life pre-mom and pre-wife, but I knew a lot of gals that were into merging all money accounts. My advice is multiple accounts, at least three. His, hers and shared for bill paying, etc.

i believe in this also. and don't let a guy guilt you into closing your account and merging with him..."if you love me, you wouldn't keep your money all to yourself"."

there's always the "just in case" factor, and i was taught that girls have to protect themselves.

[SunWuKong]

i believe in this also. and don't let a guy guilt you into closing your account and merging with him..."if you love me, you wouldn't keep your money all to yourself"."

there's always the "just in case" factor, and i was taught that girls have to protect themselves.

what kind of guys are you meeting? i thought it was the women that want to share the bank account.

[Banana]

^ Yea, really.

[eos]

i don't feel like explaining.

main point still stands: his, hers, and one for bills.

[kimpossible]

There's more reasons for the separate bank accounts. It helps with discretionary funds so you don't have to coordinate to the Nth degree to buy something without worrying about the rent or mortgage check clearing first. Especially in the days of electronic banking. We ship so much between accounts. Keeps things simple to have a dedicated, shared checking for bills. Money goes in and only comes out for bills.

You also want to be able to buy a present for your loved one with at least some element of surprise. It also protects you somewhat to have your funds at different banks in case one gets hit by data thieves or tanks.

[eos]

oh yeah....my finance instructor taught us that married couples could be insured for up to 1.1 million dollars if a bank goes belly up vs. a couple hundred thou for single accounts. so having multiple accounts under variations of your names will safeguard your money even better. i will post the article up when i find the link.

Make sure your bank deposits covered by FDIC (http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/yourmoney/chi-ym-fdic-1014oct14,0,833785.story)

[kimpossible]

At the risk of sounding paranoid or idiotic, if anyone gets the chance you may want to think of European accounts (savings in euros) and mutual funds. I realize it kinda falls under "Oh Shit! The sky is falling and the US economy is collapsing!" paranoia but anything you can do to diversify softens the blow when it comes to unforeseen circumstances.

Does anyone use Microsoft Money for 'snapshot' evaluations of your financial situation? We've been using it for a number of years but only because we haven't really found anything better. Could be laziness, I'd like to hear if anyone uses anything different.

[AngryABCGirl]

At the risk of sounding paranoid or idiotic, if anyone gets the chance you may want to think of European accounts (savings in euros) and mutual funds. I realize it kinda falls under "Oh Shit! The sky is falling and the US economy is collapsing!" paranoia but anything you can do to diversify softens the blow when it comes to unforeseen circumstances.

Does anyone use Microsoft Money for 'snapshot' evaluations of your financial situation? We've been using it for a number of years but only because we haven't really found anything better. Could be laziness, I'd like to hear if anyone uses anything different.

Do you know if any better software than Microsoft Money to track accounts? I only have about five accounts to track (checkings, savings, a CD, credit card, overseas account), but all my statements always import into it all messed up.

[kimpossible]

Honestly, we've been using it for years and it's always seemed awkward and a bit wonky. I like the snapshots because it's a nice overhead view and visually calls attention to things you didn't realize by processing numbers and data alone. But for up-to-date balances... man, it always seems like it's a day of reckoning every time we try to see how much we have, or don't have =(, and where. I swear, there's always a good hour afterwards of tracking down and fiddling to clean up loose ends. But that may be typical?

It may not be Money's fault entirely because it's accessing the bank's data and presenting it in another format. Regardless, it's a pain in the ass.

Looked at QuickBooks, didn't like it enough. I want something closed end, nothing online that stores the data by a 3rd party. I suppose I could stop shopping online for kids' toys right now and check, hence getting off my ass and doing something about it.

[eos]

investopedia.com

had to look up stuff for my finance exam. the whole subject seems really daunting to me, but when i think about how i'd like to have money when i retire and not live in a cardboard box, it motivates me to learn as much as possible.

[kasia]

Do you know if any better software than Microsoft Money to track accounts? I only have about five accounts to track (checkings, savings, a CD, credit card, overseas account), but all my statements always import into it all messed up.

i use quicken.

[SunWuKong]

At the risk of sounding paranoid or idiotic, if anyone gets the chance you may want to think of European accounts (savings in euros) and mutual funds.

right now might not be the best time though because the US is very weak against the Euro.

[kimpossible]

Been checking out different software. Looking at Money by Jumsoft and Moneydance. So far, preferring Moneydance. So there's a couple of options in case anyone wants an alternative.

[bmwhype]

"I like my money where I can see it, hanging in my closet"