Tucci - The Handy Personal Finance Answer Book

Paul A. Tucci is a writer, researcher, and author of the books Traveling Everywhere (2001) and The Handy Geography Answer Book (2008), as well as numerous articles on the information industry. He is a frequent guest lecturer in management, marketing, and strategy at various universities, including New York University, Northwestern University, the University of Michigan, and Oakland University. An amateur investor for over thirty years, and a former global information/publishing manager, he is also a business owner and partner of an innovative IT services and software development firm, a consultant to and investor in small private equity funded businesses, and board of directors member of the Rislov Foundation, a charitable foundation dedicated to providing funding for classical music education, instruction, and programming. He resides in Michigan.

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Please visit the Handy series website at handyanswers.com

Copyright 2012 by Visible Ink Press

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Managing Editor: Kevin S. Hile
Art Director: Mary Claire Krzewinski
Typesetting: Marco Di Vita
Proofreaders: Sharon Malinowski
Cover images: iStock.

Library of Congress Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

Tucci, Paul A., 1962

The handy personal finance answer book / by Paul A. Tucci.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-57859-322-4 M ISBN 978-1-57859-389-7 ISBN 978-157859-390-3 ISBN 978-1-57859-391-0

1. Finance, Personal. I. Title.

HG179.T817 2012

332.024dc23

2011027529

Printed in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

I wish to thank my parents, for their encouragement to open my first bank account when I was about five years old, to save at such a young age, and for letting me begin to work when I was nine years old; my big sister, Michele, who was my accountant for my paper route, as well as a model to me of financial responsibility when I was young and impressionable.

This book is also for Leo, who helped me to learn about what a money market fund was when I was sixteen, when interest rates were at historic highs. Also, from back in the days when I working as an intern in Washington, D.C., I wish to acknowledge the guy from the brokerage house on K Street, who advertised a free seminar that I attended when I was eighteen that taught me what a mutual fund was. John Riedel, former CFO of Proquest, taught me a lot about corporate finance over many years, and Zach Savas, with whom I had conversations over the years on the markets and private equity investing. I also spoke with Nick Demopoulos about global markets and currency trading over the years. Ray and Brad Berk taught me about tax issues. In addition, I would like to thank the following people who assisted with ideas and questions for the book; all of them are masters in their respective fields:

• Michele Tucci-Berube, J.D.: legal questions
• Amy Randazzo: personal tax questions
• Nick Demopoulos: stocks and mutual funds questions
• Sarah Butterfield, a tax professional, in the area of high net worth family and individual accounting: on tax questions
• John OBrien, marketing/advertising professional: on all questions, specifically on financial advisors
• Isabella Tucci, Realtor, thirty-five-year-real estate professional, Cranbrook Real Living, Inc.: real estate questions
• Michael Garcia, an automotive industry and logistics executive and entrepreneur who is experienced in issues about health and the subsequent loss of his beloved parents: caring for the elderly
• Dr. Evelyn Katz, cognitive therapist extraordinaire: financial mindset

I would also like to acknowledge the team at Visible Ink Press, who make this and so many other consumer reference works possible and accessible to so many people: Roger Jnecke, Publisher; Kevin Hile, Managing Editor; Mary Claire Krzewinski, for cover art and page design.