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	<title>Business &#38; Money &#187; Martha C. White &#124; TIME.com</title>
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		<title>Business &#38; Money &#187; Martha C. White &#124; TIME.com</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com</link>
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		<title>Oklahoma&#8217;s Dangerous Dearth of Storm Cellars</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/05/22/oklahomas-dangerous-dearth-of-storm-cellars/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/05/22/oklahomas-dangerous-dearth-of-storm-cellars/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 22 May 2013 09:45:36 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Real Estate & Homes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=80555</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[UPDATED 5/22/13 12:30 pm The deadly tornadoes that struck outside Oklahoma City on Monday have a lot of people asking why there aren&#8217;t more storm cellars and safe rooms in the area, which would have enabled more residents to shelter safely. Glenn Lewis, the mayor of devastated Moore, Oklahoma, said today that he wants to pass a law requiring either tornado shelters or safe rooms in new homes. &#8221;We&#8217;ll try to get it passed as soon as I can,&#8221; he told CNN. In the meantime, however, why were so many area residents unable to flee into a conventional storm cellar or basement as the storm approached? To debunk one popular myth: It’s not that these structures can’t be built in the area. But a combination of market and climatological forces makes them expensive and rare. A key factor behind the dearth of basements in Oklahoma is the region&#8217;s frost line. Structural foundations everywhere need to be set below the depth at which the surrounding ground freezes. In most northern states, that means digging as much as six feet down — and if you’ve already gone to that much effort, you might as well just go ahead and build a basement. In Oklahoma, however, the frost line is only about 18 inches below the earth&#8217;s surface, and since there’s no structural or financial advantage to digging deeper, most builders don’t. “The main issue is cost,&#8221; explains Calvin Taylor, owner of Taylor Concrete Construction in the northeast Oklahoma city of Tahlequah. &#8220;They can go down and put a slab floor down for less.” (PHOTOS: Tornado Flattens Suburb Outside Oklahoma City, Kills Dozens) Then there&#8217;s the unusual quality of the earth itself in parts of Oklahoma. In the northeast part of the state, rocky soil often requires builders to use a jackhammer to dig basement, which is more expensive than the conventional process. Other parts of the state have unusually shallow soil covering sandstone bedrock, which means even more heavy-duty excavation. That can add several hundred to a few thousand dollars onto the cost, says Mike Hancock,<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=80555&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	<primary_category>Real Estate &amp; Homes</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/personal-finance-2/real-estate-homes/</primary_category_link>
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			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<item>
		<title>The $7,000 Computer Science Degree &#8212; and the Future of Higher Education</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/05/21/the-7000-computer-science-degree-and-the-future-of-higher-education/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/05/21/the-7000-computer-science-degree-and-the-future-of-higher-education/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 21 May 2013 12:30:37 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Career Strategies]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Careers & Workplace]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Educational Financing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Information Technology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Job Markets]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Planning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[College Degree]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Georgia Institute of Technology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Georgia Tech]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[MOOC]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[online education]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[texas]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Udacity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[University of Texas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=80324</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[While a new report puts the average debt load of new college grads at a stomach-churning $35,200, the Georgia Institute of Technology is rolling out an alternative program experts say offers a beacon of hope for both students and employers: A three-year master’s degree in computer science that can be earned entirely online — and that will cost less than $7,000.  The school is partnering with Udacity, a for-profit provider of MOOC (massive open online course) education, and AT&#38;T, which is contributing $2 million and will provide connectivity tools and services. “We believe this program can establish corporate acceptance of high-quality and 100 percent online degrees as being on par with degrees received in traditional on-campus settings,&#8221; a statement from the school says. This isn&#8217;t academia&#8217;s first foray into offerings that promise some combination of low cost and high tech education, of course, but it&#8217;s the first one that industry observers say has the potential to shake up the status quo. “Georgia Tech’s announcement probably is a game changer that will have other top-tier universities that offer degrees in computer science scrambling to compete,” says Asa Sphar, vice president of recruitment and profiling at tech recruiting company CSI Executive Search, LLC. The price is a key factor in that. &#8221;MOOCs are open and free—unless you want to attach any type of assessment, credentialing or professional certification to them. Certification, assessment and authentication of college level learning is not free,&#8221; blogger Vicky Phillips writes on GetEducated.com. According to research by GetEducated.com, the average cost of an online computer science master’s degree program is just under $25,000. Georgia Tech undercuts that average by more than two-thirds. “It’s big step forward here” for a school of Georgia Tech’s caliber to offer not just courses but an entire graduate degree online, says John Challenger, CEO of executive outplacement firm Challenger, Gray &#38; Christmas. Online education has a reputation — some would argue a self-inflicted one — as an inferior substitute for brick-and-mortar scholarship. Georgia Tech is a good candidate to pioneer an online degree program that could challenge those assumptions about<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=80324&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://business.time.com/2013/05/21/the-7000-computer-science-degree-and-the-future-of-higher-education/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	<primary_category>Educational Financing</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/planning/educational-financing/</primary_category_link>
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			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<title>This Trick Will Motivate You to Reach Your Financial Goals</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/05/16/this-trick-will-motivate-you-to-reach-your-financial-goals/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/05/16/this-trick-will-motivate-you-to-reach-your-financial-goals/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 16 May 2013 18:35:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Odd Spending]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Saving & Spending]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[credit card debt]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[debt]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[goal setting]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[goals]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[saving money]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=80087</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[You’ll be more successful reaching your financial goals if you give yourself a target range rather than a single number you want to achieve. It sounds weird, but a new study shows that we’re more motivated when we have a little wiggle room in our goal.  Let’s say, for instance, that you want to save $100 a month, or put an extra $100 a month towards paying down a credit card. Rather than committing to that $100, give yourself a range of, say, $75 to $125 a month instead. Having a range is more motivating because we perceive it as being both attainable and challenging, says Maura Scott, assistant professor of marketing at Florida State University. There are dual psychological forces underpinning our motivation to stick with a long-term goal. The harder it is to reach a goal, the more we’ll be rewarded with a feeling of satisfaction if we succeed. But it’s also more likely that we’ll fail and give up in discouragement. (MORE: 5 Smart Strategies to Eliminate Your Credit Card Debt) “If it’s too easy it doesn’t feel like a goal; but at the same time, it needs to work within a person’s ability,” Scott says. “The nice thing about these less specific goals is they give consumers for the best of both worlds.” she says. Even if you hit the low end, you still make your goal and you won’t feel defeated. And if you get fired up enough to hit the high end of your goal range, you’ll get a greater feeling of accomplishment. Don’t use a range as an excuse to lowball your expectations, however. Making a goal too easy backfires. In her experiments, Scott found that achieving something that takes hardly any effort at all is as de-motivating as having a goal that’s impossibly high. (MORE: Beware of Discounts: How Being Bad at Math Costs Consumers) “What we found is in both of those cases it’s just not very motivating. In one case you’re not pushing yourself, and in the other, even if you’re<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=80087&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	<primary_category>Odd Spending</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/saving-spending/odd-spending/</primary_category_link>
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			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<title>4 Dirty Secrets of So-Called Installment Loans</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/05/16/4-dirty-secrets-of-so-called-installment-loans/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/05/16/4-dirty-secrets-of-so-called-installment-loans/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 16 May 2013 14:00:26 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Borrowing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Saving & Spending]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=80021</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[There’s been a lot of chatter about the risk of payday loans lately, prompted by a new report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that called them “a long-term, expensive debt burden.” But there’s another, fast-growing category of small, short-term loans pitched mostly to low-income Americans &#8212; and the unbanked in particular &#8212; that can be just as dangerous. ProPublica and Marketplace teamed up for an in-depth look at installment loans, and uncovered a dark side to what an industry spokesman termed &#8220;the safest form of consumer credit out there.&#8221; Consumer advocates say installment loans can be a better option than payday loans because they don’t have a final balloon payment that can push the borrower even deeper into debt. Lenders also report to credit bureaus, so on-time payments can help someone with a checkered credit history to improve their standing. But they’re not necessarily safe products, says Lauren Saunders, managing attorney at the National Consumer Law Center. “Some installment loans have exorbitant rates, deceptive add-on fees and products, loan flipping, and other tricks that can be just as dangerous, and sometimes more so, as the loan amounts are typically higher.” Like payday loans, installment loans don’t start off sounding like they involve a whole lot of money. On its website, installment lender World Acceptance Corp., says, “World’s average gross loan made in fiscal 2012 was $1,180, and the average contractual maturity was approximately twelve months.” One woman interviewed by ProPublica took out a loan for $207 to get her car repaired, agreeing to make seven $50 monthly installments to repay it &#8212; for a total of $350. At a time when credit card interest rates average in the mid teens, that’s a huge markup. But that’s really just the start of what makes these loans risky, especially for the financially vulnerable people who make up the core customer base for these products. They’re not “one time” fixes. These loans are pitched as a simple, one-time solution to a cash crunch. In reality, they can be renewed just as payday<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=80021&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	<primary_category>Borrowing</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/saving-spending/borrowing-saving-spending/</primary_category_link>
		<media:content url="http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/9a5a9e4f28beb5afb59b1202632d219a?s=96&#38;d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D96&#38;r=G" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<item>
		<title>Please Don&#8217;t Use a &#8216;Best Places to Retire&#8217; List to Decide Where to Retire</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/05/13/please-dont-use-a-best-places-to-retire-list-to-decide-where-to-retire/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/05/13/please-dont-use-a-best-places-to-retire-list-to-decide-where-to-retire/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 13 May 2013 12:00:53 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Decision Making]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Florida Real Estate]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Government]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health Care]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Healthcare]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Planning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Real Estate & Homes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Retirement]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Taxes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[AARP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[income taxes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[National Council on the Aging]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[North Dakota]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Oregon]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[property taxes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[retirement community]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sales taxes]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=79540</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It can be confusing making sense of the many “best places to retire” lists out there. In fact, it&#8217;s probably best to eye these lists with extreme skepticism &#8212; unless you really do want to spend your golden years in (gulp) frigid North Dakota. What with all the &#8220;best places to retire&#8221; lists in circulation, you&#8217;d think there would be some consensus about the top spots to kick back in retirement. Yet these lists are literally all over the map, and often contradictory. Bankrate.com&#8217;s new roundup ranking the &#8220;surprisingly best&#8221; states for retirement touts the Dakotas, West Virginia, and Mississippi — and ranks Oregon dead last in its corresponding &#8220;worst places&#8221; list. A Forbes list, on the other hand, included Medford, Ore., in its roundup of the best places to retire in 2013, and CNN/Money listed Portland, Ore., in a roundup published last fall. These discrepancies are the rule rather than the exception, partially because the rankings emphasize different criteria. Some lists emphasize college towns, whose populations tend to skew young, while others put a premium on communities with a lot of senior residents. Many publications advise looking at local tax rates, but they clash when it comes to deciding whether income, property or sales tax is most important. Here’s the good news: you can probably ignore them all. As Malcolm Gladwell pointed out two years ago in the New Yorker, rankings fail when they bite off more than they can chew. A “best of” list can aim to evaluate a broad set of criteria or a large number of contenders, but not both. “It’s an act of real audacity when a ranking system tries to be comprehensive and heterogeneous,” Gladwell wrote. Gladwell was critiquing the way college rankings are conducted, but the principle is the same when it comes to cars, restaurants and where to spend your retirement years. (MORE: Um, You&#8217;ve Actually Been Able to Order Authentic Viagra Online for Years) The way &#8220;best places to retire&#8221; lists are graded often misses the point: they don’t tell you much about<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=79540&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	<primary_category>Retirement</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/retirement-2/</primary_category_link><featured_image>http://timebusinessblog.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/retirement1.jpg?w=240</featured_image>
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			<media:title type="html">retirement</media:title>
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		<media:content url="http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/9a5a9e4f28beb5afb59b1202632d219a?s=96&#38;d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D96&#38;r=G" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
		</media:content>
	</item>
		<item>
		<title>Internet Sales Tax or Not &#8212; 5 Ways to Save Money Shopping Online</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/05/08/5-ways-to-save-money-shopping-online/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/05/08/5-ways-to-save-money-shopping-online/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 08 May 2013 16:24:21 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Saving & Spending]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Smart Spending]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=79443</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In a rare moment of bipartisan collaboration this week, the Senate passed the Marketplace Fairness Act, a bill that brings us one step closer to paying sales tax for online purchases. If it becomes law, you won&#8217;t be able to avoid the bite, so here are some ways you can still save a buck.  Look for coupon codes. If you&#8217;re on a retailer&#8217;s mailing list, you probably get coupon codes delivered right to your inbox. But you don&#8217;t have to sign up for anything: Websites like RetailMeNot.com, CouponCabin.com, and BradsDeals.com aggregate codes from online merchants. You might run into some expired duds, but there&#8217;s an advantage to the quick turnover: If you don&#8217;t need whatever you&#8217;re buying right away, try waiting a week and checking again. Use the right card. Both credit as well as an increasing number of debit cards now offer merchant-funded rewards program. Check whether any of your cards have an online merchant mall (Discover&#8217;s ShopDiscover program is one example). Go to the retailer&#8217;s website via the card&#8217;s online portal and get a discount. Some programs give you a statement credit rather than money back at checkout, but money is money. (MORE: Online Shoppers: Meh, Same-Day Shipping Isn’t That Big a Deal) Hit up rebate sites. Websites like Ebates.com and FatWallet.com operate a lot like credit card merchant malls, except you don&#8217;t need to have a specific credit card to get discounts. Abandon your shopping cart. Many web retailers will email you a discount offer if you put items in your shopping cart and just leave them there. You might have to wait a few days, although some sites reportedly will follow up within hours. Retailers use data like your shopping history and where you live to help determine what kind of offer you&#8217;ll get, or if you&#8217;ll get one at all. They&#8217;ve figured out that customers who get that close to placing an order can sometimes be coaxed into completing the transaction with a little extra incentive. Smart online shoppers started picking up on this and spreading the word<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=79443&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	<primary_category>Smart Spending</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/saving-spending/smart-spending/</primary_category_link><featured_image>http://timebusinessblog.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/136147882.jpg?w=240</featured_image>
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		<media:content url="http://timebusinessblog.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/136147882.jpg?w=240" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">Piggy Bank</media:title>
		</media:content>

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			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<item>
		<title>7 &#8220;Smart&#8221; Credit Tips That Aren&#8217;t</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/05/06/7-smart-credit-tips-that-arent/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/05/06/7-smart-credit-tips-that-arent/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 06 May 2013 16:01:30 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Credit Cards]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Saving & Spending]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[credit cards]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[credit scores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FICO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Good Credit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Raise Credit Score]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[secured credit card]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=78922</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[There&#8217;s a lot of advice floating around out there about how to manage your credit cards and other debts to maximize your credit score. The trouble is, not all this wisdom is created equal, and some tips intended to help your credit can actually have the opposite effect. Here are seven supposedly &#8220;smart&#8221; tips we&#8217;ve heard bandied about recently that generally ought to ignored. Asking for a lower credit limit If you can’t control your spending, asking for a lower credit limit may indeed keep you out of trouble by simply capping how much you can borrow. But there&#8217;s also a risk to this approach. As MyFICO.com explains, 30% of your credit score is based on how much you owe. The formula looks at how much you owe as a percentage of how much available credit you have, otherwise known as your credit utilization ratio. So if you&#8217;re unable to pay off your debts, lowering your credit limit will increase your ratio &#8212; and damage your score. The impulse to impose external limits on your spending is understandable, and in some cases wise, but you&#8217;re better off focusing your energy on internal restraint. Paying off an installment account early Paying off debts early might seem like a good way to improve your credit, but paying off an installment loan like a car loan early can actually ding your score because it raises your utilization ratio. For instance, if you have a $10,000 car loan with a $5,000 balance that you pay off in one fell swoop, your debt load will drop by $5,000, but your available credit will drop by $10,000 once the account is closed. This isn&#8217;t to say you shouldn&#8217;t pay off a debt early if you find yourself with a windfall on your hands. An earlier payoff can save you a bundle in interest. But if you&#8217;re trying to raise your credit score, paying off a credit card rather than an installment loan is the way to go. (MORE: 10 Steps to Spring Clean Your Finances) Opening a<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=78922&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	<primary_category>Credit Cards</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/saving-spending/credit-cards-saving-spending/</primary_category_link>
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			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<title>CFPB Finally Fixes the &#8220;Anti-Housewife&#8221; Rule</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/05/02/cfpb-finally-fixes-the-anti-housewife-rule/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/05/02/cfpb-finally-fixes-the-anti-housewife-rule/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 02 May 2013 09:45:28 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Economy & Policy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Financial Reform]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CARD act]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cfpb]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Credit Card]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Credit CARD Act of 2009]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Credit Card Applications]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[credit cards]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=79084</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Just in time for Mother’s Day, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau reversed an unpopular rule that some women’s advocacy groups called &#8220;insulting&#8221;— although it still took the agency almost a year to do it.  On Monday, the CFPB updated existing regulations so it will be easier for stay-at-home spouses to get credit cards. Intended to keep credit card companies from giving people more credit than they could handle and letting them plunge into debt, the rule is an object lesson in the law of unintended consequences. It stipulated that issuers would have to take into account the applicant’s individual income rather than household income. Sounds logical&#8230;until you realize that it renders every stay-at-home parent who isn’t paid for dishes-and-diaper duty basically uncreditworthy. This ill-considered rule was part of an amendment to the Truth in Lending Act’s Regulation Z, a CARD Act-era regulation the CFPB inherited from the FDIC. According to the CFPB’s own calculations, more than 16 million Americans, or one in three married couples, could have been affected. (MORE: 10 Steps to Spring Clean Your Finances) “I understand that the Federal Reserve is trying to make sure that the person responsible for the credit card can make the payments but did they go too far with this?” SmartCredit.com president of consumer education John Ulzheimer asked when the rule kicked in back in 2011. A lot of people thought the answer was “yes.” Holly McCall of the group MomsRising.org blogged about the embarrassment she felt getting turned down for a Target credit card in spite of her excellent credit score and her husband’s good job. She launched a Change.org petition that garnered 45,000 signatures and campaigned for the CFPB to change the rule she labeled “demeaning” and “flat-out unfair.” As the issue gained notoriety, lawmakers joined her cause. At a Congressional hearing last June, Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), chair of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit challenged the CFPB and said the rule was a threat to women in abusive relationships and could create an added burden<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=79084&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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	<primary_category>Financial Reform</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/economy-policy/financial-reform-economy-policy/</primary_category_link><featured_image>http://timebusinessblog.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/160888481.jpg?w=240</featured_image>
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			<media:title type="html">Monthly Retail Sales Data Shows Strong January</media:title>
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		<media:content url="http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/9a5a9e4f28beb5afb59b1202632d219a?s=96&#38;d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D96&#38;r=G" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<title>10 Steps to Spring Clean Your Finances</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/04/29/10-steps-to-spring-clean-your-finances/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/04/29/10-steps-to-spring-clean-your-finances/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 29 Apr 2013 09:45:18 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[401(k) Savings]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Banking]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Decision Making]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Financial Planning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health Insurance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Insurance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Investing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Personal Finance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Planning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Saving & Spending]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Smart Spending]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Taxes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[401k]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[budgeting]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[credit cards]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[insurance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[IRS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[saving money]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[savings]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=78144</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[When it comes to spring cleaning, you probably haul the junk out of your garage, scrub your fridge, and wash the rugs and drapes. But don&#8217;t forget about your personal finances. Just after tax season is the perfect time to perform an annual evaluation and tidying up of your budget, bank accounts, debts, and investments. Here are ten steps for straightening up your finances: Evaluate your debt load. How much do you owe, and how much are you paying the lenders in interest? Comparison shop what you&#8217;re paying in interest with what&#8217;s available now, and consider refinancing your mortgage or asking your credit card company for a lower interest rate. If you want to take advantage of the 0% balance transfer offers that are all over the place, make sure you’ll be able to pay off the transferred balance in full before the promotional period expires — and resist the temptation to run up new debt on the old card. Chip away at that debt. The question has always been whether you should you start paying off the balance with the highest interest or knock out the smallest bills first. Although starting with the highest interest rate makes the most sense mathematically, researchers found that people are more motivated to continue with a debt-reduction plan if they knock out a small debt in its entirety rather than merely a chunk of a bigger one. Also known as the &#8220;snowball approach&#8221; as advocated by personal finance expert Dave Ramsey, paying off one debt gives you the momentum to keep chipping away until that debt is history. Update your budget. If you’ve undergone a major job-related change like getting a big promotion or switching from two incomes to one, revisit your household budget. If you&#8217;d like to have one partner stay home with a child or go back to school full-time in 2013, the best way to adjust to being a single-breadwinner family is to start living like one six months beforehand. This will expose any weak spots in your budget or expenses you’ve<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=78144&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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	<primary_category>Personal Finance</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/personal-finance-2/</primary_category_link><featured_image>http://timebusinessblog.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/145629365-copy.jpg?w=240</featured_image>
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			<media:title type="html">Piggy Bank</media:title>
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			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<title>Can Frozen-Food Companies Make TV Dinners Cool Again?</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/04/26/can-frozen-food-companies-make-tv-dinners-cool-again/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/04/26/can-frozen-food-companies-make-tv-dinners-cool-again/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 26 Apr 2013 09:45:11 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Advertising]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Companies & Industries]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Food and Beverage Industry]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Saving & Spending]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Smart Spending]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=78463</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[American diners have been giving frozen food the cold shoulder lately. Aging boomers are put off by high sodium and calorie counts in many frozen dishes, while many young adults would rather stop by Subway, Chipotle or Domino&#8217;s than bother turning on an oven at all. But frozen foods are refusing to be relegated to the metaphorical back of the freezer of consumers’ minds. “According to proprietary research from the organizations, 98% of products in the frozen aisle are experiencing flat or declining sales in the U.S., across nearly all categories,” Advertising Age magazine says. Ad Age reports that a consortium of industry heavyweights is getting ready to throw $50 million in cold, hard cash at the problem. A huge advertising blitz will be launched later this year. A spokesperson from the American Frozen Food Institute tells NPR, &#8220;Frozen-food manufacturers are united to weigh in in a comprehensive fashion.&#8221; “Weigh in” might not be the best term to use, given that many people view frozen food as unhealthy. Our dining habits and preferences today are supposed to lean toward fresher, less-processed food. What we’re eating might not necessarily be better for us — Panera’s Chipotle Chicken on Artisan French Bread sandwich sounds innocuous, but it’s really an 830-calorie fat-and-salt bomb. But many consumers think they&#8217;re eating healthier, and that’s what counts when we go to the grocery store, sandwich shop, or drive-through. Increasingly, the frozen-food aisle doesn&#8217;t come across as particularly tasty or healthy. “I don’t think it’s particularly appealing merchandise,&#8221; says Bob Goldin, executive vice president at Technomic, a food-industry consulting firm. “There’s a perception among consumers that probably the quality doesn’t meet the standards of fresh prepared or restaurants.” What&#8217;s more, &#8220;there’s so much competition for the food dollar these days, there are other alternatives that are perceived to be more attractive than frozen food.” (MORE: Why We’re Wasting Billions on Gluten-Free Food) Analysts say categories that could be described as ingredients rather than dishes — frozen veggies, for instance — are holding their own. Frozen breakfast items are doing<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=78463&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	<primary_category>Smart Spending</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/saving-spending/smart-spending/</primary_category_link><featured_image>http://timebusinessblog.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/200494066-001-e1366910904600.jpg?w=240</featured_image>
		<media:thumbnail url="http://timebusinessblog.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/200494066-001-e1366910904600.jpg?w=240" />
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			<media:title type="html">Young man eating TV dinner, mid section</media:title>
		</media:content>

		<media:content url="http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/9a5a9e4f28beb5afb59b1202632d219a?s=96&#38;d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D96&#38;r=G" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<title>Light Switch: Why You&#8217;ll Start Using LED Bulbs This Year</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/04/25/light-switch-why-youll-start-using-led-bulbs-this-year/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/04/25/light-switch-why-youll-start-using-led-bulbs-this-year/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 25 Apr 2013 15:23:19 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Energy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Government]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Green]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Saving & Spending]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Smart Spending]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CFL]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[energy efficiency]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[incandescent light bulbs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[LED]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[light bulb]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[lighting]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=78347</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[LED bulbs are already the go-to technology for illuminating cell phones, tablets and TVs. They haven&#8217;t become the standard in the lamps and lights in American households, however, largely because they&#8217;re so expensive. But as prices drop sharply, the upgrade to LED makes more and more sense. If traditional incandescent bulbs are the tail-finned gas guzzlers of the lighting universe, compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) are like plug-in electric cars: Better for the environment, but not appealing to many because of the way they look and perform, as well as higher upfront costs. The third bulb breed, LED, combines the warmth of incandescent light with the never-have-to-change-it lifespan and energy efficiency of CFLs. The down side is that LED bulbs have always been really expensive. “The public has been less keen on them, as price points for 40-watt bulbs begin around $20 a pop,” the Christian Science Monitor pointed out last month. At that price, LEDs just weren’t going to shine in middle-class American homes, no matter how great their other qualities were. This is the year that could change. Manufacturer Cree came out with a $10 LED bulb last month that replaces a 40-watt incandescent bulb, and one equivalent to a 60-watt bulb that costs $14. Philips says it will have a $10 LED bulb on the market by year-end, and it started selling a $15 one last month. (In Europe, German manufacturer Osram just started selling a 40-watt equivalent LED bulb for about $13). (MORE: Maybe All the Skepticism and Paranoia Over New Light Bulbs Is Justified) These LEDs look and act like incandescent bulbs, and experts say the price point is low enough that people will be persuaded to give them a shot. &#8220;I just think that LEDs are becoming more affordable for consumers. If they buy this bulb for $9.97, they will cover that cost in the first year, and they have the bulb for the next 20 years, [and] that will bring them cost savings in the amount of energy that they use,&#8221; Marianne DiMascio of<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=78347&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	<primary_category>Smart Spending</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/saving-spending/smart-spending/</primary_category_link>
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			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<title>4 Prepaid Debit Card Fees You Should Never Pay</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/04/18/4-prepaid-debit-card-fees-you-should-never-pay/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/04/18/4-prepaid-debit-card-fees-you-should-never-pay/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 18 Apr 2013 18:37:27 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Paying With Plastic]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Saving & Spending]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=77879</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The entrance of mainstream financial institutions transformed the prepaid debit card market. Customers have more options today, and many of the newer cards closely resemble the checking accounts they are replacing. The big difference is that prepaid cards are more lightly regulated than bank accounts, which is a concern to consumer advocates because the quality and consumer-friendliness of the cards on the market varies widely as a result. It’s still a buyer-beware marketplace, and Bankrate.com breaks down the details in its annual survey of the 24 biggest prepaid cards by market share.  A word about monthly fees: About two-thirds of the cards in Bankrate’s survey charge a monthly fee. Roughly half of those can be waived if you have a paycheck or benefits direct-deposited onto the card, but some of the thresholds are prohibitively high. For example, to avoid the $3.95 monthly fee charged by the READYdebit Control card, you have to have $1,500 loaded onto the card monthly. It’s the same story with the Moneygram AccountNow card, except the user has to have $2,500 deposited each month to avoid a $9.95 monthly fee. You can knock only $5 off the AchieveCard Visa’s $9.95 monthly fee, not eliminate it completely, and to do that you still have to have $2,000 deposited onto the card each month. All of these are considerably higher than the direct deposit thresholds Bank of America, Chase, Citibank, and Wells Fargo set to waive the fee for their basic checking accounts. But you shouldn&#8217;t choose a card based solely on its monthly fee or lack thereof. Some cards that tout no monthly fees stick in all sorts of other fees. Meanwhile, some cards that do charge monthly fees offer a lot of other features and services at no cost. The Chase Liquid card, for instance, charges $4.95 a month (waived if you already have a Chase bank account you link to the Liquid) but gives users access to many of the services regular checking account customers get. (MORE: Should You Get a Prepaid Debit Card?) Some<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=77879&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	<primary_category>Paying With Plastic</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/saving-spending/paying-with-plastic/</primary_category_link>
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			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<title>Boston Marathon Bombings: How to Send Help (and Avoid Scams)</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/04/17/boston-marathon-bombings-how-to-help-and-avoid-scams/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/04/17/boston-marathon-bombings-how-to-help-and-avoid-scams/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 17 Apr 2013 18:57:52 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Giving]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Saving & Spending]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Smart Spending]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Boston]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Charitable Giving]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[charity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Marathon]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[marathons]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[New England Patriots]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Non-Profits]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=77947</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[(Clarification added 4/18/13) It&#8217;s only human nature to want to help out victims of a disaster, but tragic events also bring scam artists out of the woodwork. In the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombings, an outpouring of support has prompted numerous charitable campaigns: some legitimate, others not.  The Better Business Bureau says it’s already seeing charity scams and expects more to come. The BBB says social media is a favorite tool of scam artists today because it’s a good way to reach a lot of people quickly, and the willingness of people to take action makes it easy to prey on their emotions. Within hours of the attack, Domains.com says more than 125 Boston-related domain names were registered, including several with words like “relief” or “help” in the name. There were reports of at least one fake Twitter account (since shut down) and a warning about a link circulating via email claiming to be video footage of the bombing that really installs malware on the computers of people who click on it. (Although this last instance isn&#8217;t charity-related, opportunistic cybercrooks often do use seemingly-legit solicitations for donations in phishing attacks following disasters.) Avoid Getting Scammed The BBB’s Wise Giving Alliance says you should take precautions before making a donation to any organization claiming to raise funds for victims of the bombing. Give to established charities, or vet any unfamiliar ones before giving. Make sure they have nonprofit 501(c)(3) status. Most states require charities to register themselves, usually through a branch of your state attorney general’s office. Check there, as well as with sites that evaluate nonprofits. (These include the BBB&#8217;s own Wise Giving Alliance at give.org, CharityNavigator.org, CharityWatch.org, GuideStar.org, and FoundationCenter.org.) One factor to consider is what percentage of donors’ money goes to their cause, as opposed to administration and other expenses. Sometimes, victims’ loved ones or communities will set up fundraising campaigns. These informal charitable efforts can be worthy causes, but the BBB recommends making sure that a CPA, lawyer, or other experienced professional is overseeing the collection of<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=77947&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	<primary_category>Giving</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/personal-finance-2/economics-policy/giving/</primary_category_link>
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			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<title>Hoping For a Raise? How About a Gift Card, Instead?</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/04/17/hoping-for-a-raise-how-about-a-gift-card-instead/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/04/17/hoping-for-a-raise-how-about-a-gift-card-instead/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 17 Apr 2013 18:14:53 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[gift cards]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[perks]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=77717</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Many a disgruntled employee has complained of working for peanuts. But is working for lattes any better? Unemployment rates are still high and wages stagnant, but American workers are more productive than ever. That’s good news for the economy, but means that rank-and-file employees are working longer and harder. And what are we getting for all that extra effort in lieu of more pay? In many cases, gift cards. That&#8217;s right: About two-thirds of companies give their employees gift cards, says the Incentive Research Foundation, and it&#8217;s the biggest and fastest growing category of employee rewards. In an Incentive Research Federation research report published last year, 12% of responding companies said they gave gift cards for quarterly or end-of-year bonuses, and 43% said they gave gift cards as holiday gifts or bonuses. (MORE: Free Lunches at Work? The Tax Man Wants a Bite) Collectively, American companies spent nearly $23 billion on gift cards for employee “incentive and loyalty” in 2012. While that’s not a small number, data from the St. Louis Fed last month shows that companies made $1.8 trillion in profits in the final quarter of 2012 — a little more than the quarter before that, when profits hit a record high — even as wages as a percentage of GDP hit a record low. In that context, these small-scale rewards — most gift cards are valued at between $25 and $150 — might be categorized as token gestures, if not outright stingy. People in the industry of incentives and recognition — the technical terms for “freebies” and “attaboys” — are quick to point out that gift cards for stores like Starbucks, Best Buy, or The Gap aren’t technically replacing raises and end-of-year bonuses. And that is technically true: Compensation is generally given (and taken away) by a company’s finance department. Goodies like gift cards are generally doled out by the HR department. But that doesn’t mean workers don’t feel like they’ve just had their raises replaced by frappucinos. If the folks in HR are doing their job correctly, though, here’s the funny part: You won’t really<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=77717&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	<primary_category>Careers &amp; Workplace</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/careers-workplace/</primary_category_link>
		<media:content url="http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/9a5a9e4f28beb5afb59b1202632d219a?s=96&#38;d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D96&#38;r=G" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<title>The 6 Most Common Tax Time What-Ifs, Answered</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/04/12/your-6-biggest-tax-time-what-ifs-answered/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/04/12/your-6-biggest-tax-time-what-ifs-answered/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 12 Apr 2013 09:45:02 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Economy & Policy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Taxes]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=77506</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[April 15 is just around the corner &#8212; Monday, to be exact. For many people, it can be a time fraught with anxiety. Here&#8217;s how to handle six of the what-ifs most likely to keep you up at night.  What if I need more time? File an extension. It&#8217;s IRS form 4868, and you can do it online. That gives you until Oct. 15 to file your federal income taxes. If you don&#8217;t, a failure-to-file penalty kicks in, which is 5% per month of any taxes you owe. But (yes, there is a &#8220;but&#8221;), it’s only an extension of time to send in your paperwork, says Mark Steber, chief tax officer at Jackson Hewitt Tax Service. If you&#8217;re getting a refund, you don&#8217;t need to worry. But if you owe or even if you think you might owe, you&#8217;ll have to do some number-crunching now, because 90% of your estimated tax liability has to be paid by April 15. Just taking a guess isn&#8217;t really a good idea, Steber says. &#8220;You can guess, and many people do, but you have to guess in the IRS’s favor. You have to overestimate, not underestimate.&#8221; If the IRS doesn&#8217;t get paid what you owe them by the 15th, a late-payment penalty is applied. This is 1/2% per month on your outstanding tax bill. If you&#8217;re self-employed or in another situation where you pay estimated quarterly taxes, you could also get dinged with an additional 1/2% per month penalty fee for underpaying those. (MORE: The Hidden Cost of Tax Refunds) What if I owe more than I can pay? The IRS has a few options for people who are surprised by a big-ticket tax bill. You have to be pro-active, though. Reaching out to the IRS, even if it&#8217;s to say, &#8220;Hey, I can&#8217;t pay you right now,&#8221; is much better than waiting for them to initiate contact. One option is a short term extension. You get up to 120 days, and you&#8217;ll have to pay the late payment penalty plus interest. The IRS ties<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=77506&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	<primary_category>Taxes</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/economy-policy/taxes-economy-policy/</primary_category_link><featured_image>http://timebusinessblog.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/2100_biz_taxforms_0713.jpg?w=240</featured_image>
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		<media:content url="http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/9a5a9e4f28beb5afb59b1202632d219a?s=96&#38;d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D96&#38;r=G" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<title>Can You Afford to Start Parenting at Middle Age?</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/04/11/can-you-afford-to-start-parenting-at-middle-age/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/04/11/can-you-afford-to-start-parenting-at-middle-age/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 11 Apr 2013 11:21:16 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Budgeting]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Careers & Workplace]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Decision Making]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Planning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Saving & Spending]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Work/Life Balance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[family]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[kids]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[parenting]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://moneyland.time.com/?p=44584</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Advances in reproductive technology and a trend towards marriage later in life have led to an increase in older parents. But do these old fogies know what they&#8217;re getting themselves into, financially speaking? Actually, there are some economic advantages to having children when you&#8217;ve reached a more mature age (for more, read Jeffrey Kluger&#8217;s story in the new issue of TIME, available to subscribers here). Older parents tend to be more financially stable. They&#8217;ve (hopefully) eliminated their student loans and dug out of any ill-conceived credit-card debt run up in their young adult years. They’re more likely than parents who are barely out of their teens to own a home and have money set aside for retirement and emergency expenses. There’s a “but” here, though. Taking on parenthood at a more advanced age can mean paying for things like tuition and textbooks when many of your peers are enjoying the financial freedom of being empty-nesters. And with a growing number of adult children returning home to live after college, there’s a good chance that your kid could still be raiding the fridge when you’re eligible for Social Security. None of this has to be a dealbreaker, of course; it just requires more forethought and planning. Here are some questions experts in financial planning and late-in-life parenting suggest that you should ask yourself before trying to have a child. Who’s paying for college? The biggest financial challenge for older parents is that they’ll probably be looking to retire just when some major financial obligations hit. &#8220;Retirement dates coincide with college and wedding expenses,&#8221; says David Lamp, a certified financial planner at Brighton Jones. &#8220;I&#8217;d say the cluster of life events is a little bit tighter now.&#8221; (MORE: Got Stuff? Typical American Family Home Cluttered with Possessions &#8212; And Stressing Us Out) As a parent, the impulse to give your child the best of everything is only natural, but it also can be financially devastating, he says. The smart move is to &#8220;favor putting money towards retirement, with the idea being that there<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=58452&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	<primary_category>Decision Making</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/planning/decision-making-planning/</primary_category_link><featured_image>http://timebusinessblog.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/sb10068929c-001-e1352925446375.jpg?w=240</featured_image>
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			<media:title type="html">older parent with young child</media:title>
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		<media:content url="http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/9a5a9e4f28beb5afb59b1202632d219a?s=96&#38;d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D96&#38;r=G" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<title>American Families Increasingly Let Kids Make Buying Decisions</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/04/11/american-families-increasingly-let-kids-make-buying-decisions/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/04/11/american-families-increasingly-let-kids-make-buying-decisions/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 11 Apr 2013 09:45:52 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Odd Spending]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Saving & Spending]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=77145</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Breakfast is the most important meal of the day — so why are you letting your kid pick what you’ll eat? A new study from the NPD Group shows that parents defer to their children about a third of the time when it comes to deciding what to eat for breakfast, and about a quarter of the time for lunch. (The family members who are old enough to bring home the bacon are still the ones calling the shots on dinner, with only 3% of kids dictating that menu.) The mealtime surrender is just one more way parents are increasingly letting their children dictate what they buy, and it’s got marketers scrambling.  NPD advises companies, “By understanding who controls the meal&#8230; you can more effectively target your audience.” According to a study conducted last year by Viacom’s Nickelodeon, kids pick what to eat 85% of the time at fast-food visits. (Maybe that’s why those apple slices haven’t been selling like, well, hotcakes infused with syrup and wrapped around eggs, cheese, and a sausage patty.) Food manufacturers seem to have gotten the message: Market research firm Packaged Facts says in a new report that it expects breakfast versions of “popular indulgent” dessert items like cookies and pies in flavors like chocolate to become more popular. Breakfast cookies are obviously a kid-friendly concept, but these new versions also aim to please parents with better nutritional content. It’s not just food choices that kids are dictating &#8212; or at least voting on. “Decision-making within families today is almost entirely collaborative – and as kids become more influential, they’re impacting purchasing decisions,” Christian Kurz, vice president of research at Viacom International Media Networks wrote on Viacom’s blog last year after Nickelodeon conducted its study. Kids also help pick clothes, shoes, and where their families go on vacation. (MORE: Parent Holiday Conundrum: How to Walk the Fine Line Between Treating and Spoiling Your Kids) The Nickelodeon study found that family decision-making in general is more inclusive these days; more than half of parents seek their kids’<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=77145&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	<primary_category>Odd Spending</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/saving-spending/odd-spending/</primary_category_link><featured_image>http://timebusinessblog.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/83590584.jpg?w=240</featured_image>
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			<media:title type="html">83590584</media:title>
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		<media:content url="http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/9a5a9e4f28beb5afb59b1202632d219a?s=96&#38;d=http%3A%2F%2F0.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D96&#38;r=G" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<title>10 Biggest 401(k) Mistakes—and How to Avoid Them</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/04/10/10-biggest-401k-mistakes-and-how-to-avoid-them/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/04/10/10-biggest-401k-mistakes-and-how-to-avoid-them/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 10 Apr 2013 18:14:43 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[401(k) Savings]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Financial Planning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Investing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Personal Finance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Planning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Portfolio Strategy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Retirement]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Saving]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wall Street & Markets]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[401k]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[401k Contribution]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[401k Fees]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[401k Match]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[401k Savings]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[retirement investing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Retirement Plan]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Retirement Savings]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=76088</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[As traditional defined-benefit pensions become increasingly rare, more Americans instead are offered employer-sponsored 401(k)s, defined-contribution plans that require participants to be more proactive and educate themselves. Here are the biggest pitfalls experts say can do the most damage to your nest egg. Not having one. Let’s get this one out of the way. The experts unanimously agree that the biggest mistake you can make is to not have a 401(k), especially if your employer matches your contributions. Collectively, we’re ridiculously underfunded for retirement Going with the default contribution level. Some people assume that their plan’s &#8220;default&#8221; contribution level is sufficient to fund retirement: It’s not. The most common default contribution level is 3% of an employee&#8217;s income, but Stephen Utkus, principal and director in the Vanguard Center for Retirement Research says people with a household income of between $50,000 and $100,000 should be saving 12% to 15%, between their contributions and whatever their company matches. People who make more than that should aim to save 15% to 20%, and workers earning below $50,000 should ideally be socking away 9% to 12%. Abandoning a 401(k) after you switch jobs. With all of the upheaval that comes with switching jobs, it can be easy to forget about rolling over your 401(k). But letting one languish can have serious consequences, says Dana Levit, owner of Paragon Financial Advisors, a fee-only financial planning firm. The funds themselves where your money is parked could change to the point where they no longer fit your investment goals, and if the plan changes hands, your money could get dumped into cash by default, where it won&#8217;t even keep up with inflation. So don&#8217;t put off a rollover once you&#8217;re eligible to join your new company&#8217;s plan. (MORE: We Talk a Big Game But Don&#8217;t Follow Through When it Comes to Saving for Retirement) Withdrawing funds too soon. Cashing out your retirement fund is a horrible idea all around. The money will be taxed at your regular income tax bracket, plus you&#8217;ll get hit with a 10% penalty fee. On top of this,<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=76088&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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	<primary_category>401(k) Savings</primary_category><primary_category_link>http://business.time.com/category/personal-finance-2/401k-savings-personal-finance/</primary_category_link><featured_image>http://timebusinessblog.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/91830055-1.jpg?w=240</featured_image>
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			<media:title type="html">marthacwhite</media:title>
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		<title>How Much Will It Matter If Student-Loan Interest Rates Double?</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/04/10/how-much-will-it-matter-if-student-loan-interest-rates-double/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/04/10/how-much-will-it-matter-if-student-loan-interest-rates-double/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 10 Apr 2013 09:45:06 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Educational Financing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Planning]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=77316</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The bell has been rung in the next round of the fight over student-loan interest rates, and borrowers could take it on the chin this time. On July 1, if Congress does nothing, the interest rate on federally subsidized Stafford student loans will double from 3.4% to 6.8%.  “It’s not the end of the economy as we know it,” says Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of student-lending websites Fastweb and FinAid. He’s right, but that doesn’t mean it won’t really stink, especially for the poorest college students. Advocacy group U.S. PIRG says it could cost students an extra $1,000 over the life of their loan if the interest rate on those loans goes up to 6.8% in July. In reality, it might be more: some students wind up paying off their loans for upwards of 20 years, and that $1,000 is calculated based on the average one-year loan amount borrowers take out, which is $3,357. But the average bachelor’s degree recipient who graduates with debt does so with $11,329 in subsidized Stafford-loan debt. Still, as Kantrowitz points out, that’s only a little more than $20 a month. So, for most borrowers, this probably still wouldn’t make much of a difference. The rub is that these subsidized Stafford loans are widely used by lower-income families. In the 2007–08 academic year, about half of bachelor’s degree recipients who graduated with student-loan debt had a subsidized Stafford loan. Of these, “70% come from families who make less than $50,000; 24% from families with incomes between $50,000 and $100,000; and 6% from six-figure-income families,” Kantrowitz wrote last year in a New York Times op-ed article written jointly with Lynn O’Shaughnessy, author of The College Solution. Poor students and their families are already grappling with cuts to the Pell Grant system that make it necessary for them to take out more loans if they want a higher education. “I would rather the focus be on reducing the debts by increasing the grants,” Kantrowitz says. But that&#8217;s a whole other political battle, and letting rates rise on borrowers isn&#8217;t a<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=77316&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<title>We Talk a Big Game But Don&#8217;t Follow Through When It Comes to Saving For Retirement</title>
		<link>http://business.time.com/2013/04/09/we-talk-a-big-game-but-dont-follow-through-when-it-comes-to-saving-for-retirement/</link>
		<comments>http://business.time.com/2013/04/09/we-talk-a-big-game-but-dont-follow-through-when-it-comes-to-saving-for-retirement/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 09 Apr 2013 19:00:26 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Martha C. White</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://business.time.com/?p=76894</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Like the diet that always starts “tomorrow,” Americans like to say they’re going to get their finances in shape, but then fail to follow through on those good intentions. After the financial crisis gave a lot of us a harsh reality check about the inadequacy of our saving and investing plans, we promised to do better. We’re still saying the same things, and making the same excuses, today.  Insurance company Northwestern Mutual surveyed more than 1,500 Americans earlier this year to find out about our saving and spending habits. About a third of respondents said a “slow and steady” approach to spending was the way to go, but around quarter of respondents said they have “a lot of catching up to do.” A little over half said their approach was to “Save. Be careful and aim for long- term financial security, “ and almost four out of five said they were going to save as much or more this year than they did last year. Sounds good, right? (MORE: Financial Independence? Today’s Young People Don’t Expect It Anytime Soon) It would be good if we were actually following through on those ambitions. But at the beginning of 2009, when Northwestern Mutual conducted a similar survey of 1,000 people, the responses were about the same. About 70% said their savings would be higher or about the same over the next 12 months, and 41% said they’d spend less money. Something’s not adding up. When asked this year, the number of people who said they’d spend less this coming year was about the same — 39% — but why haven’t we been more successful? About half of survey respondents said “unexpected expenses” kept them from saving more. A slightly smaller number blamed their debts for keeping them from reaching their savings goals, while 37% (maybe a more honest minority) admitted they just hadn’t done a good job of planning their finances for the long term. What’s worse is that 22% of respondents in the 2013 survey said they’ve stopped or cut their retirement<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=business.time.com&#038;blog=31173800&#038;post=76894&#038;subd=timebusinessblog&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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