I have often read that one of the ways to prevent identity theft is to never share one’s Social Security Number (SSN), unless it is absolutely essential. Of course anybody with a reasonable amount of common sense will never do so, but I cannot help but wonder – how do we determine when it is necessary?  

My husband and I have just invested in a piece of land, and are currently in the process of building our home on it. The land is owner-financed, and the sellers are a charming retired couple who live next door. We have known them for over two years now and share a great rapport. The other day they said that their new CPA has asked for our SSNs. Now I have very high regard for this couple and will trust them with all I own, but sharing our SSNs did sound off the warning bells in my head. Since their previous CPA did not need these details, why does the new CPA need them and how will I know that this kind of sensitive information is safe with her? All these thoughts made me do some digging up on matters relating to sharing SSN details. I wanted to make sure whether I was under any obligation to furnish this information since it has been requested, or whether it is optional. 

Why Must You Be Very Careful With Your Social Security Number?

For starters, the 2010 Identity Fraud Survey Report states that identity fraud claimed over 11 million U.S residents last year, resulting in a total cost of $54 billion. When in the wrong hands, your SSN can leave you in a mammoth financial mess. The good news is that most of those victims did not lose more than an average of $373, though it took each victim 21 hours to get things sorted out.  

How Can You Safeguard Your SSN? 

It is quite simple really, if you just take a few precautions:

•Always keep your Social Security card in a safe place, and no, your wallet does not count.

•Your SSN is confidential, period. Never jot it down behind checks, even if asked to do so. If anyone uses your SSN as your account number, get it changed immediately. 

•Always ignore phone calls or email requests for your SSN, even if you are familiar with the organization.  

•Sometimes you cannot avoid sharing your SSN, like when you have requested for an online insurance quote. In such cases, always ensure that the company you are dealing with is trustworthy, and the server that is carrying the information is a secure one.  

•Make sure you receive your free credit reports every year and look out for any unusual credit lines.

When Is Sharing Your SSN Necessary?

There are some instances when you must provide your SSN, like the following:

•When you take up a new job, you have to give your SSN to your employer, for payroll purposes. Your employer’s payroll records and W-2 must show your accurate name and number, as Social Security has to credit your earnings.

•Financial institutions you deal with must have your SSN for purposes of tax reporting. 

•Government agencies like motor vehicle departments will ask for your SSN. However, you must know that all government agencies, be it local or federal, are obligated to inform you whether your SSN is necessary or optional, how they intend to use it, and the authority under which it is being asked for.

When Your SSN Is Requested, But Not Required

Most businesses will ask for your SSN, and unfortunately, there aren’t any stringent restrictions on how they can use it. Businesses like health care organizations, consumer reporting agencies and information resellers can use your SSN in a number of ways. The law gives you the right to refuse sharing your SSN details, but then the business may refuse to provide you their services. When faced with such a dilemma, make sure you ask the following questions:  

•Why do you need my SSN?
•How do you intend to use this information?
•Is it mandatory by law and if yes, which one?
•What security measures does your company take to safeguard customer SSNs?
•If I refuse to provide it, how will it impact our association?

Clearly express your concerns about identity theft with a manager or supervisor of the company and find out if they are willing to accept an alternative identifier instead of your SSN. If they do not and you are not comfortable, find someone else to business with.

Coming back to our story, eventually we did not have to share our SSNs as the sellers did not need them any more. It seems they had asked for our numbers as it was required for filing taxes online, which they opted out of. Of course I had not suspected any kind of fraudulent activity here, but prevention is always better that cure, right? Remember, keeping your SSN confidential is vital, and a request for it is not always a necessity.

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If you have mastered the art of frugal living then you are one of those lucky people who can make do with what they already have. It is not only a great way to curtail unnecessary expenditure, but also stops the hoarding of stuff that you forgot you own and probably would not need anyway.

However, if you are like me, chances are you often land up buying something that you think you need and are thrilled with the great deal you found on it, only to later realize that you already have the same thing at home, never used and forgotten about. I cannot remember how many times this has happened with me – I gloat about a great buy, and then am forced to sheepishly smile at my husband and  confess that not only did I spend money on a duplicate, but by the time I found that out, it was too late to return it.

I have three young children and literally go crazy at sales, without realizing that they already have all they need. In the bargain, it would eventually turn out that all of them had tons of casual wear but not a decent pair of pants! I finally got out of this cycle by implementing a plan, where I sort their clothes by sizes instead of simply storing them haphazardly in the attic. Also, I never go to a sale or a thrift store without a list in hand, so I always know what I need and can avoid unnecessary spending.
 
Once you learn how to keep your home de-cluttered, you will be pleased to see how much money you end up saving. Instead of hoarding all those old clothes, broken furniture, kitchenware and loads of other stuff that you will never use again, organize a yard sale, use EBay, or donate to a charity and get a deduction from your taxes.   

Organizing your bookshelves from time to time will also help you save money. Every time I do the same, I find a handful of unread books, which gives me enough reading material and stops me from picking up new books. Now I do the same before going grocery shopping too, since I always find unused stuff on my pantry shelves or in the refrigerator.

Even when you practice frugal living, it is quite possible that there some things that you tend to accumulate more than you need. Hence it is a good idea to take inventory and de-clutter from time to time.

Easy steps to de-cluttering your home:

1. Be a smart shopper and avoid buying duplicate items. You do not really need them, even at an extremely enticing sale price. No point buying another pair of black pants when you already have so many of them.

2. Get rid of all the broken stuff that you have stashed away in the attic. If you really needed them, you would have had them repaired a long time ago. Go through each and every item and unless you are sure that you will need it and can get it repaired, lose it. Also, when it is possible to get it fixed, do not go out and buy a replacement.

3. Most of us have a hard time getting rid of old stuff that we no longer use. We keep old clothes, books, CDs, stationery and loads of other stuff, hoping that some day soon we will need them again. Guess what, if you haven’t used them in a year, you may never use them again, ever. Heirlooms, antique collections, and of course, the fire extinguisher, do not fall in this category.

4. Before you hit the stores, jot down all the things you need to buy and keep it in your purse or wallet. This will help you save lots of money and time. This list will also come in handy when the question of gifts for the family comes up.

5. Learn to organize things simply. For example, a bottle opener or your sewing kit should be kept within easy reach. Things that are not required often can be stored in the upper shelves, and stuff that is needed once in a while can be stashed away from your regular living space. Your home will look so much neater, and you will always find things when you need them.   

Being frugal does not mean living a life without the things you enjoy. It simply means smartly using all the resources already available with you. Just by spending a little time to take stock of what you have and listing down all that you need, you will be able to buy wisely and make the best use of stuff that you already own.

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We have searched long and hard to find the top paying savings accounts that can help in these tough times.

Obviously we cannot guarantee that these rates we are about to disclose will remain because they are variable but for the time being these are the highest paying we could find.

These nationally available accounts are:

1. Franklin Synergy Bank: With a $25,000 minimum deposit you will be able to take advantage of the 1.75% that this account offers.  Franklin Synergy Bank is located in Franklin, Tenn.

2. Palladian Private Bank: Based in Chicago the Palladian Private Bank offers a 1.70% savings account with a $10,000 minimum deposit.  Locations in 10 states.

3. UFB Direct: With only a minimum deposit of $1 you will be able to benefit from the .55% APY.  UFB Direct is an online affiliate of Waterfield Bank.

4. Chesapeake Bank: Also with only a $1 minimum deposit you can receive a .55% APY savings account.  Chesapeake Bank is located in Williamsburg, VA.

If you have been looking into money market accounts you might want to consider one of these savings accounts as they pay out more.

This post was brought to you by USA Debt Help

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In today’s economy you might want to think about investing in CDs.  The returns might not be that terrific but they are guaranteed.  Umbrella Bank is offering a top paying CD that might be worth looking into.

It’s offering 2.75% APY on an 18-month CD, beating most yields on 12- and 24-month CDs.

The minimum deposit is only $1,000 and if you’re looking for the income, you can get monthly or quarterly interest checks.

UmbrellaBank.com is the online division of New South Federal Savings Bank, which has one full-service branch in Birmingham, Ala., and mortgage offices across the region.

New South is losing money and its portfolio of bad loans nearly tripled last year, so it earns only one star out of five stars on Bankrate’s Safe & Sound ratings.

But that’s so typical of banks offering the best rates and it’s FDIC insured, so your deposits are guaranteed.

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Getting out of debt needs you to be disciplined in order to achieve this goal. As I mentioned earlier on the post How To Spend cutting back on your credit card use is critical in becoming debt free.

Many credit card companies have great interest rate incentives for balance transfers, which can be extremely helpful to efforts of reducing debt. You should be able to find introductory rate offers of 0 percent for a year and rates of 13 percent or less for the following years and all without annual fees. Be sure to find a credit card that does not hike up its interest rates after the appealing introductory rate, though. Also, do not be seduced by unimportant benefits, such as shopping gift certificates as rewards or promotional gift offers for signing up. The point of this new credit card is to lower your debt, not to make spending more fun. Transferring your credit card debt to one of these cards can save you incredible amounts of money on interest and fees.

Before you make the switch, you can call your current credit card company to give them the chance to give you a similar deal without losing your business. If you explain to your company that you will transfer your balance to another company unless they lower your rate, you should be able to get your rate dropped below 10 percent. If your credit score is very poor, you may only be able to get your rate lowered by a few points, but even this is very helpful in the long run.

Remember, your credit card company wants you to pay your minimum payment each month and take 30 years to pay off your debt – this is how they make a profit. However, they cannot count on making a profit off of you if they cannot keep your business, so if they are not willing to give you what you want, you can find another company that is.

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[singlepic id=3 w=150 h=150 float=left]Most people these days are questioning how they could have safeguarded themselves from the rapid decline of their 401ks.

You say I should have picked better funds and taken less risk with my Retirement Portfolio.

For those who are facing retirement soon all this discussion might not help you but for those who have many more years of planning for retirement listen up. You need to improve your investing strategies and you need to save more. You heard me correctly. SAVE MORE!

I know it is not what most of you thought but lets look at it from a logical point of view. You are worried that by saving more you are throwing money away especially in this downturn of the market. 36% of people over the age of 45 have stopped putting money into their 401K.  (Source AARP) Well this is the wrong strategy. There is one way to avoid a market downturn and that is to have more money saved.   Makes sense , right? That is the right strategy.

Why gamble that the stock market will produce double digit gains and lets make a retirement plan that will work for you.

If you have seen your account balances drop 20% then saving more can be added insurance.

Lets say you earn $100,000 and are at the age of 40. You also have $200,000 already saved. You would would a nice cool $2 million to play with at age 65. This assumes you will receive a 3% pay increase each year with a 10% contribution at a growth of 7%.

Then the unthinkable happens, your portfolio suffers a 20% loss. Your new retirement portfolio would now come to $1.6 million. That is considerable change in you annual income at retirement.

Now lets take those same numbers and assumption but this time you have been contributing 15% to your retirement. The market once again affects your account balance by 20% but now that you have been contributing 15% you will have close to 1.9 million at age 65. That number looks much nicer and healthier doesn’t it.

This is just one method of increasing your savings. Other include IRA‘s and tax-efficient funds in a taxable account. Just stay disciplined by having your company directly transfer cash from your checking account to the fund. It never hurts to save more into you Retirement Portfolio.

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Cutting up your credit cards is perhaps a bit too finite of a gesture, but in order to get out of debt, you definitely have to cut back if not stop your credit card use. The long-term relationships you have with your credit card companies and the unused credit your cards make available to you are beneficial to your credit score, so do not close your credit card accounts, but do act as if you have closed them.

Determine a healthy amount of money you can afford to spend each week on typical day-to-day costs and carry that amount of cash with you each week. This cash will be what you use for all of your purchases for the week, never touching your credit cards. When you actually see the money that you are spending, instead of just the handy credit card swiping machine, you are much more likely to make wise spending choices. Furthermore, having this limit – remember that amount of cash has to last you the entire week – keeps you from spending more than you can afford and puts a limit on your purchases. When you run out of cash, you stop spending.

Of course, there are purchases, such as online or mail-order buys that have to be done with plastic, but use your debit card, instead of your credit cards. Your debit card can be your emergency backup, too, in case you run out of cash and absolutely cannot go without for some reason. The goal of these changes is to completely cut yourself off from your credit cards. You want to live your life in a way that only decreases the amount of debt on your credit cards and never adds any debt to them.

The best way to make sure you follow through with this change is to take your credit cards out of your wallet. If you do not have your credit cards with you, you cannot use them. Instead of constantly tempting yourself to charge your next purchase, place your credit cards in a safe place that you cannot easily access, such as your safe-deposit box or in the care of a responsible family member.

If you are truly concerned about the temptation your credit cards hold for you, consider getting your credit limits lowered and go ahead and cancel your least favorable accounts. If you have more than a few credit cards, closing some of your credit card accounts is definitely a practical option to avoid temptation. You can even stop most credit card offers from piling up in your mailbox, tempting you to collect one more charging option, by opting out of pre-screened credit card offers online.

Once your credit cards are safely out of reach, do not figure they are incapable of harming you. Stopping your credit card spending is only part of the battle; now you need to concentrate on making your credit cards less harmful to your debt situation while you work to pay off that debt. Lowering your credit card rates is the perfect place to start.

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Money Magazine has a nice little section where  you can send in your questions and the answers will be printed in the next addition.  I thought it would be a good idea to post for all my readers to see.

Q. I plan on retiring in Five to 10 years. For asset-allocation purposes, should I consider myself a short-term or long-term investor?

A. You definitely a long-term investor.  The past year has clearly demonstrated why you don’t want a portfolio made up mostly of stocks when you’re within a few years of retirement.  But you’ll be living on this money for decades.  Even though the 10-year return on stocks looks poor right now, equities have come out ahead over a 30-year period.

Rather than Solely focusing on time horizon to determine your stock/bond mix, figure out how much long-term growth you need from your portfolio, suggests Allan Roth, a financial planner in Colorado Springs.  Among the things to consider:  the value of your savings today, what you’ll collect in pensions or Social Security and what you expect your expenses will look like post-retirement.
– Carolyn Bigda

Q. I’m thinking about putting most of my cash in Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac stock, since the price of the shares is so low. Shouldn’t the bailout help those stocks rise?

A. Putting all your money into one or two stocks is an invitation to disaster and that true even if the company isn’t, like these, losing billions of dollars in an imploding market.  Moreover, it’s not even clear that Fannie and Freddie are a deal at today’s prices.  Such bargain-basement temptations are usually cheap for a reason, says Erick Ormsby of Alcosta Capital Management.  “These companies have a whole host of problems that will take a long time to work out,” says ornsby, “even if the government doesn’t let them fail.”
– George Mannes

Q. If a large investment firm went bust, would I lose the money I have in Mutual Funds, IRAs or other accounts?

A. To date, no mutual fund company has failed.  In this market, though, anything is possible.  But even if a fund family were to go belly up, the money you have in its funds – whether in an IRA, a 401(k) or any other account – would be safe.  Here’s why.

First, unlike when you buy a CD at a bank, the money you invest in a mutual fund doesn’t become part of the assets of the parent firm.  Instead, it goes to whichever mutual fund you’re buying, which is a seperate entity.  In fact, the fund company doesn;t even own the funds under the firm’s name; it merely has an agreement to manage the assets and sell shares.  if the parent company went bankrupt, the assets of individual funds would not be avilable to the firm’s creditors.  Finally, to protect shareholders, federal law requires funds to have insurance that cover instances of fraud, embezzlement and the like
– Waletr Updegrave

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ETrade has returned their ever popular promotion where they are offering a $25 bonus on their online savings account. It was such a success the first time around they figured why not bring it back.

All you need to do is sign up for a new 2.5% APY online savings account and $25 gets credited to your account. Easy as that.

There is however the ever daunting $1 minimum to sign up.

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Sign up for a personal checking account at Bank of America and receive a free $50 bonus. The minimum deposit needed to attain this bonus is only $100, so this is a very hot deal.

With the recent troubles of the banking industry now is a good time to find deals.  Bank of America is offering a $50 bonus if you open a personal checking account with them and that is required is a minimum deposit of $100.  I would have to say this deal is worth looking into.

Offer end on february 28th 2009.

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