Clark Smart Kids

Is the Facebook IPO more hazard or opportunity?

Facebook's initial public offering (IPO) is the hottest one of recent years. But is this an opportunity or is this trouble for you? I Googled 'Facebook' a little while ago and found more than 46,000 news stories on the IPO. The price has been pushed up and the number of ...

• 1:24 p.m. Wednesday, May 16, 2012
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Bonds may seem safe, but are they really?

Are you among those investors who ran to bond funds for safe harbor when the stock market went topsy-turvy? Those who did so generally saw nice rewards from making the move. But there is a hidden danger that I want to make you aware of. When interest rates rise, the ...

• 1:33 p.m. Tuesday, May 15, 2012

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Are bond funds a safe investment?

A lot of investors consider bond funds a safe harbor in their retirement portfolio, not subject to the volatility of the stock market. But Clark has some words of warning about this hot investment option.

• 12:00 a.m. Tuesday, May 15, 2012
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How do you teach your kids about money?

How do you teach your kids about money? If you don't do it, one thing is certain: They'll learn their lesson in the school of hard knocks and you don't want that. As a parent, there is so much you can do in this arena, yet a recent T. Rowe ...

• 2:49 p.m. Friday, May 4, 2012
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Many entrepreneurs not saving anything for retirement

How confident are you that you'll ultimately be able to retire in comfort? If your answer is "very confident," there are not a lot of people like you! USA Today  reports that a third of all entrepreneurs and small business owners aren't saving anything at all for their retirement. Now, ...

• 1:40 p.m. Tuesday, May 1, 2012
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Save more today to avoid putting off retirement tomorrow

Unless you want to keep working forever, you've got to learn how to save more today for your retirement tomorrow. What percent of Americans contribute to an IRA or Roth IRA? Less than one in four, according to one new survey. Of those that do contribute, what percent put in ...

• 1:24 p.m. Friday, April 20, 2012

The art of giving your kids an allowance

Several years ago, I wrote a book called Clark Smart Parent, Clark Smart Kids in which I discussed the art of giving an allowance. And it is an art, definitely not a science. Trying to figure out how best to use an allowance to give kids a sense of responsibility ...

• 1:42 p.m. Monday, April 9, 2012
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Women need to over-plan their retirement

I have some disturbing news where women are definitely not living life equal to men. Women tend to live five years live longer than men on average. Yet they save far more less money for retirement than men, and they tend to invest too conservatively. When you just save money, ...

• 1:59 p.m. Thursday, March 29, 2012
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Investors do better with a hands off approach

Investors, do you think you can time the market, play the market and beat the market? There's an easier way that yields more profit, according to a respected new study. There are always investment advisors or newsletters you may see that promise they can time the market or pick the ...

• 2:25 p.m. Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Goldman Sachs letter highlights importance of fiduciary responsibility

People are missing the bigger picture amid all the brouhaha about former Goldman Sachs employee Greg Smith's very public resignation letter: All full-commission stockbrokers are legally allowed to sell you junk to their profit. Smith's dis of his former employer as a corrupt entity where brokers routinely played both sides ...

• 1:59 p.m. Thursday, March 15, 2012
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