PODCAST 2

http://rapidshare.com/files/71506290/podcast_2.wav.html

Els, Laura, Kathleen & Jan

EIGHT LEADING BANKS INVEST UNETHICAL

“Netwerk Vlaanderen” has brought information together in a sizeable file: “Bank secrets. Eight banks and their alarming investments”. It’s denouncing the investments by Axa, ING, Fortis, ABN Amro, Citigroup, Dexia, KBC and Deutsche Bank. With that would “Netwerk Vlaanderen” bring up the failure of transparency and social responsibility of banks.
There goes money from these banks to AviChina, that sells military material to Myanmar and Sudan, although has the European Union raised a weapon release against these countries.
According to the Christian union of employees (LBC) should the financial organizations reckon with important environmental- and human rights standards in their investment decisions and they aim at an ethical lower limit. That’s why the union invites all his militants to start a discussion within the social consultation in the sector. Belgium has given the example to prevent investments in controversial weapons. Nowadays we could become the pioneers in excluding intolerable practices on the field of environment and human rights.

Companies, banks, the government,… has to keep ethical investments always in mind because it became an important item that has been forced by the community. I think that banks can’t exclude unethical investments because they earn a lot of money with them.

Jan

http://www.standaard.be/Artikel/Detail.aspx?artikelId=DMF13112007_040&kanaalid=3

Belgian Children receive 190 euros for their toys.

Last year parents have spent about 190 euros on toys for their children. If we calculate also the videogames, than it would be 302 euros. The import didn’t grow, but because the prices are stable, can we say that there is more sold. With those marks, the Belgian market scores better than the average in the 15 countries of Europe. It represents 2,4% of the Belgian market. Videogames are very wanted; almost 37% of the budget went to those games. But who decides on what the money is given? The OIVO inquired many people and what can we say? Almost 70% of the children decides themselves which toys they want to have. Until the age of twelve, toys are the most important, but when they become fourteen, almost 90% will choose videogames.

I can’t say that this article shocked me, not at all in fact. If you see how children are getting spoiled and how expensive toys have become, I think it is a normal evolution. Not that I think that it is a good evolution. There is a lot of social pressure and parents often want that their children get the best, although they should need the money for other things. Producers are also very clever. They produce expensive toys or games, but they make also a lot of extra, expensive things for it. Like for example the play station it’s very expensive, but you have to buy all the games separately, and you pay for those also a large amount of money.

Els

source: http://www.demorgen.be/dm/nl/997/Ombudsman/article/detail/52769/2007/11/15/Belgische-kinderen-krijgen-voor-190-euro-speelgoed.dhtml

Young doctors in debt

Chris and Meg Reis are on their way to long medical careers. Now it’s time to deal with $500 000 in student loans.

The lives for medical residents aren’t easy: med school graduates getting years of on-the-job training, putting in brutal hours for salaries that, on an hourly basis, work out to a little more than they could earn stocking the shelves at Costco. But it will pay off, they say, once they become full-fledged doctors, they’ll have six-figure incomes, more reasonable hours, a respected occupation and work that they love.
But for this generation of doctors, financial security won’t come guaranteed with their medical licenses.

The couple’s work is rewarding, but not in the monetary sense. While they don’t have to make student-loan repayments yet, their low salaries qualify them for hardship deferrals the interest keeps accumulating, and the amount they owe keeps growing at the rate of about $17 000 a year!

The advice:
° ignore the usual advice
° get protected (insurance)
° deal with debt
° keep plugging away

In my opinion there is a serious problem in the US, student loans shouldn’t be as high as they’re at the moment. And it’s true that when people hear that you’re a doctor, they immediately associate it with high salaries and luxury lifestyle, but they seem to forget the accumulated debt and the hard work you put in it. The government should do something so that student don’t be discouraged to follow medicine in university.

Laura

Source: http://money.cnn.com/2007/11/16/pf/young_doctors.moneymag/index.htm?postversion=2007111611

Kicking the fund-trading habit

If you are not getting good results, and you are not even having fun, active investing is not for you.

There are people who spent five hours a week researching and tracking mutual funds, without any results.
You would certainly think that working hard and smart to pick the best mutual funds should result in better performance. But it rarely works out that way. That is because nearly all the research you can do is backward looking.

With thousands of mutual funds, the ones that have performed well over a short period, will show up at the top of your charts. But their good performance can usually be chalked up to luck. By the time you send the hot fund your money, you are set up for a few years of bad times.

A lot of people who research and track these funds, also buy and sell frequently. That triggers tax implications and opens you up to a whole lot of human error. Plus, actively managed funds charge far more in annual expenses. Those can really eat into the returns you get. So it really is much more effective to invest in the entire U.S. and international stock market using a handful of index funds. You can then forget about your portfolio, other than maybe rebalancing once a year. You save in expenses and taxes - not to mention what you save in stress.

I think lots of people can learn something of this article. It is not because you manage your portfolio actively, that you will earn more.

Kathleen

Source : http://money.cnn.com/2007/11/15/pf/funds/ask_the_mole.moneymag/index.htm?postversion=2007111513

A MOTORBIKE AS COMPANY VEHICLE

The company vehicles haven’t escaped to some unpleasant financial measures. The employer has to base his fiscal deduction on the CO2 discharge of the car. Earlier the costs of a company car could be reduced to 75 per cent, nowadays the per cent will be reduced progressive in proportion to the CO2 discharge. For environmentally friendly cars the deduction will be raised to 80 or 90 per cent. The measure becomes generalized to the complete fleet of cars in April 2008. Further on explains the article why we have to consider a company motorbike instead of a car.

If a motorbike is leased by an employer then count the next fiscal rules/advantages:
The employer receives monthly a leasing bill that’s fiscal deductible for 100 per cent. The paid V.A.T. is also 100 per cent deductible at his V.A.T. notification. Next to this he hasn’t to pay a CO2 tax.

An employee will be taxed on benefits in kind. Two factors are important for the calculation of the benefit:
Kilometers home to work travel: The advantage will be calculated on flat rate kilometers of 5000 a year when your home 25 or less kilometers from work is. Above 25 kilometers the flat rate kilometers will be 7500 a year.
Fiscal hp: The fiscal hp will be linked to a flat rate kilometer rate. If we keep that in mind is the taxable advantage of a motorbike smaller in comparison with a company car, because the fiscal hp of a motorbike is generally lower.

A motorbike as company vehicle is useful because of the fiscal advantages. It’s not recommended to use a motorbike as a private vehicle: the weather isn’t always good, not safe for children, high chance on injuries or death,…
A motorbike as company vehicle is debatable. The fiscal advantages can’t compensate to the disadvantages.

Jan

http://www.cash.be/articles/index.jsp?articleID=111401&sectionID=981&siteID=73

Text message charges soar

It is the communication method of choice these days, but texting can totally add up.

Although teenagers have been driving the trend, nearly everyone is texting.
But that convenience comes at a price. If you do not shell out for a texting package, which can cost $3 to $20 a month depending on the provider and the plan, most carriers will charge you for each message whether sent or received.
And the price per text is on the rise. Earlier this year, some providers raised their rates to 15 cents a text, while others upped the cost to 20 cents per text, and those prices get even higher across the board for international messaging.
That can really add up. Especially with incoming texts that you cannot control. Paying per text can exponentially impact your monthly bill.
To avoid getting hit with a huge bill, the best option is to explore cost-effective packages which can offer a few hundred texts per month for a few dollars extra.
Consumers can also track their messaging activity during the billing cycle by reviewing their account online. Once you near your limit, cutting down on texts will keep your bill under control.
But a sure-fire plan is to avoid texting completely, and stick with old fashioned calling.

There are people, especially teenagers, who cannot live without their sell phone anymore. I think the bill for these people will be very expensive, but if you only use your sell phone when it is really necessary I do not think there will be any problem.

Kathleen

Source: http://money.cnn.com/2007/11/08/pf/raw_deal_texting/index.htm?postversion=2007111213

Benefits from giving

It’s wonderful when you can go true life with the credo “it’s better to give than to receive”. But it’s probably better when you can give and receive at the same time. When you’re budgeting your charities you must reconsider everything twice. It’s also a nice thing when you can pass the methods to your family. Charity is a nice thing to do. On the website are already 2 allocations given: “charitable sweat equity” and “bigger charity spending by bigger earners”.

You also want to be sure you follow the rules so you'll be able to easily and rapidly justify your donations should the IRS ever question them. Underneath are some guidelines:

• Plan your charity budget
  


• Sweep away street solicitations
  


• Relies receipts
  


• Say no to propped-up value
  

You can still maximize the cumulative amount that goes around you'll be able to give for the rest of your life by careful planning in light of the following tax facts and rules

• Outer limits
  


• Maximum and minimum hassle
  


• Unlock stock and barrel
  


• Know a benefits self-benefit

Of course there are still several others ways to look and invest at your charity budget. But when I look in the article those 2 are the most important and have probably the most impact.

Els

Source: http://www.forbes.com/personalfinance/philanthropy/2007/06/18/donations-charity-taxes-pf-education-in_af_0618soapbox_inl.html

How $ 100 oil would cost you

You should brace yourself for record gas prices before the holidays and higher airfares.

Its recent rise will soon start to bite, at the pump, the airline ticket counter and possibly in your home.

Drivers had gotten off easy, gas prices hadn’t kept up with the increase in oil prices. The main reason: Demand has been fairly tame.

The relative price of gasoline is low, and that’s unsustainable, says Norrish.

Expensive flights

Higher oil prices also mean higher airfare for travelers. Jet fuel has been going up consistently for the last 3 to 4 years to the point where it’s affecting the airlines bottom line. Any cost gets returned to the customer, so they’ve been bumping up ticket prices to make up the difference.

Heating up a bit

There will be higher heating bills for those who use oil with a 22 percent increase in bills from last year.

The bigger picture

Higher gas prices will lift the costs to transport all goods, and manufacturers will respond by raising prices for consumers. But this is just a fear, it isn’t certain yet.

I think it’s normal that prices are rising, but this don’t mean I find it a good thing. They should think about other resources in stead of gas. I don’t think raising the price is the right solution, we should do more research to green business and green methods.

Laura

Source: http://money.cnn.com/2007/11/09/news/economy/oil_pay/index.htm?postversion=2007110916

FINANCIAL RULES OF THUMB

There are some rules of thumb that can help you gauge your financial progress. The article informs us about five rules:

How much debt should you have?
Most experts agree that your total monthly debt payments shouldn’t exceed 36% of your gross monthly income and over time you have to reduce that number.

How much home should you buy?
You should start by calculating your debt-to-income ratio using the 36% guideline for the sum of your monthly debts. After subtracting your other debt, you are left with a monthly payment that should be appropriate.
Another rule of thumb for housing is that you should buy a house that costs no more than two and a half to three times your annual income.

How much money should you save?
One of the most widely used rules for saving is that you should save at least 10% of your income. This is typically assuming you are saving additional money into a retirement plan as well. This 10% rule applies to creating a savings cushion for unexpected expenses, a college education, or other goals.

How big should your emergency fund be?
Most experts suggest a household have between three and six months worth of expenses available in the event of an emergency.
example: monthly obligations = 1 729.75 EUR
emergency fund = between 4 844 EUR and 10 381.38 EUR

How much money will you need in retirement?
Many experts use the assumption that you will need to replace your pre-retirement income by 75-80%. If you make 55 361.15 EUR the year before you retire, you should expect to have a little over 41 519.93 EUR in income during retirement.

Everyone has a unique situation so I think it’s not really easy to keep up to this financial rules,
unexpected problems are never far away.

Jan

http://financialplan.about.com/od/personalfinance/a/rulesofthumb.htm?p=1

Wanna retire rich? Don't spend like Britney

Whether you’re worth $ 100 million like Britney Spears, or $ 100, the same simple strategies can help ensure a comfortable retirement.
Britney f.i. isn’t saving for retirement while she got a large income. Her excess may shock most of the people, but her saving habits are actually pretty normal. The overwhelming majority of American 20-somethings aren’t saving anything for their retirement either. This way they don’t take advantage of their biggest asset namely time.
You have to be able to set aside just a little each month; this can help to maintain your lifestyle in perpetuity. Hiring a team of people to handle your investments isn’t really necessary. You can just put your 8% in a so-called target-date retirement fond.
As time passes, and you get closer to retirement, the fund will automatically adjust that mix of stocks and bonds to more conservative levels. The best part with these funds is that you do nothing. You’ll never have to say, “Oops I did it again” when it comes to your retirement.

I think it’s an interesting article, because many young adults don’t really see their retirement coming closer. Most of them use their first salary to buy a car, a house, … Finally they own and gain their own money, and they can do whatever they want with it. But if only they would put aside just a little amount for their old days, they wouldn’t have to face problems in the future with it.

Laura

Source:
http://money.cnn.com/2007/11/06/pf/retirement/revell.moneymag/index.htm?postversion=2007110617

Time to get out of debt

When money was easy and housing was booming, piling on debt seemed to pose little risk. Now it is time to dig yourself out.

Not so long ago, living a little beyond your means was not necessary. Just live well, knowing you could always tap your equity once those credit-card balances got a bit too high. But that gamble is no longer paying off.
If you are in over your head, you have got to think strategically about managing your debt portfolio so that it does not crush you. The plan that follows can help you bear the burden.

Reset your priorities
Sometimes the best thing you can do is defer savings and instead put every available cent into paying off debt until you get your finances under control.

Stretch it out
If you own a house and you are now tapped out, lowering your payments with a 40-year loan could be a good move. You will spend more in interest charges, but if the alternative is falling behind in your bills and having to sell your house in a falling market, a longer mortgage is the lesser evil.

Shop like crazy
It is a reminder that you will need to shop around more than ever for the best deal.

I think this is a good plan to get your finances back under control. But if I was you, I would not let it get this far.

Kathleen

Source:
http://money.cnn.com/2007/11/02/pf/chatzky_november.moneymag/index.htm?postversion=2007110210

Working five more years really pays off

Research has shown that working 5 years longer after your 60, can increase your pension with 80%. The study is done because so many people want to stop early with working. And the age that people quit their job is an important key factor for the standards of their pension. To calculate how much you want to have when you are retired, they use “replacements ratios”. It gives the relationship between their earnings and what they want to receive in their pension.

There are tables made and they show the differences when you work 5 years longer. Also something you must be aware off is the fact that extras that you got from the company, like cars etc are not calculated in those ratios. There are a couple of strong reasons why you should work 5 years longer after your 60:
- Higher earnings
- A cheaper pension
- Extra contributions
- Compound interest

But these are not the only ones, your insurance will have to pay you more when you are retired and women have even more advantages of it, because they live most of the time longer. Also can you invest 5 years longer in other investment products.

I know that longer working isn’t such an attractive idea, but maybe we must consider it, certainly with now, when we must face the social problem of people who keep growing older. The more and more people retire but the less go working, and to solve this problem, we must work longer. So don’t look only on the negative side of the story, but do also think at the advantages you can take from it.

Els

source: http://www.persfin.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=4112108