Smart401k Blog

In the headlines

A look at some of the market movers over the past week:

• Google’s co-founders registered to sell roughly five million shares
• Wal-Mart is cutting 11,000 jobs in its Sam’s Club stores
• TARP watchdog Neil Barofsky new investigations into the government’s handling of the AIG bailout
• The U.K. economy squeaked its way out of recession

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Once again the Super Bowl is upon us and my beloved Kansas City Chiefs are watching from home.  But I have hope.  Recently the organization secured two of the top coordinators available — Charlie Weis will be the new offensive coordinator and Romeo Crennel will be the new defensive coordinator.  These are the same individuals that contributed to the Patriots’ three Super Bowl victories from 2001-2004.  For the first time in a decade, I feel like there is a strategy in place and it’s designed to get the Chiefs to the ultimate destination – a Super Bowl victory.

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In the headlines

A look at some of the market movers over the past week:

• Hershey dropped out of the running as Cadbury accepted a buyout offer from Kraft
• Tyco acquired Brinks Home Security for $2 billion
• Japan Airlines became one of Japan’s largest bankruptcies
• The victory of Scott Brown in Massachusetts may put healthcare reform at risk

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In the headlines

A look at some of the market movers over the past week:

• Bankruptcy looks likely for Japan Airlines
• More bad news could be ahead in Dubai as Barclays won the first foreclosure case in the country
• Populist outrage is at a boil again as Wall Street banks get ready to dole out massive bonuses
• Continuing its efforts to stay on top of inflation, China raised banks’ reserve ratio

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In the headlines

A look at some of the market movers over the past week:

• Novartis set the wheels in motion to buy the rest of Alcon
• Warren Buffett made waves by speaking out against Kraft’s battle to acquire Cadbury
• In the wake of the financial crisis the banking landscape in the U.K. continues to shift
• Credit Suisse became the target in a $24 billion lawsuit over its lending practices

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In the last installment of Common 401(k) pitfalls, I discussed an investor’s options for their 401(k) when they leave an employer.  In this installment, I thought I would go into a little more depth and cover some a couple of lesser known distribution strategies.  The first is a strategy used to withdraw money prior to age 59 ½ without penalty and the second involves company stock.

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In the headlines

The year’s biggest news:

• The stock market opened the year in complete freefall, but then mounted an incredible rally through the end of the year
• Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States
• Confidence was stoked by the results of banking stress tests
• Bernard Madoff pleaded guilty to running a multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme

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In the headlines

A look at some of the market movers over the past week:

• The much-debated healthcare bill passed a crucial first milestone in the Senate
• Citadel Broadcasting filed for protection under Chapter 11 bankruptcy
• Moody’s downgraded Greece’s sovereign debt rating to A2
• The U.S. housing market continues to experience severe headwinds

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Last year I wrote about two topics that received extra attention from our members, capital gains and tax loss harvesting. Because we are coming to the end of the year I thought it would be a good idea to reiterate how you can use capital gains and tax loss harvesting in your favor at tax time.

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Regular readers of the blog will know that I have a three-year-old son.  As we prepare for Christmas, I recently learned about one of the greatest tools a parent can have – making sure my child knows the difference between naughty and nice as it relates to Santa’s willingness to bring him presents.  Every time I remind him that only ‘nice children get presents’ he quickly reverts to his usual well-mannered behavior.

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