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Dan McCarthy is an expert in leadership and management development. For over 20 years McCarthy has helped thousands of leaders and aspiring leaders improve their leadership capabilities. McCarthy is a leadership development speaker, consultant, and executive coach. He’s consulted with companies on how to develop their leaders, and coached leaders from around the world. McCarthy is the Director of Executive Development Programs at the Paul College of Business and Economics, the University of New Hampshire (UNH)....

Growth Stocks Growth stocks grow and keep growing. When they stop growing they aren’t growth stocks anymore and their share price is likely to drop dramatically unless the slowing is seen to be the natural process of a maturing company. Growth investors focus on share price appreciation and are not concerned with dividends since few growth stocks pay any. Investors choose growth stocks for their above-average growth rates and hope the stock price follows the growth....

Secured Bonds Secured bonds are those that are collateralized by an asset, such as property, equipment (especially for airlines, railroads, and transportation companies), or by another income stream. Mortgage-backed securities (MBS) are an example of a single bond-type secured by both the physical assets of the borrowers, like the titles to the borrowers’ residences, and by the income stream from the borrowers’ mortgage payments. The purpose of collateralizing a bond is so if the issuer defaults and fails to make interest or principal payments, the investors have a claim on the issuer’s assets that will enable them to get their money back....

A record 49.7% of homes sold for over their list price in the four-week period ending on May 16, according to data from real estate firm Redfin that dates back to 2012—up from 26.7% in the same period a year ago and 24.8% in the same period in 2019. Separate data from real estate website Zillow shows a similar doubling, though it’s only as recent as February and puts the share that sold above list price at 28....

Refinancing has become a very viable option for cutting the cost of your mortgage. For those who were recently in forbearance, however, that can be tricky. Here’s what you need to know about how forbearance affects your refinancing options. What Is Forbearance? Forbearance is an agreement between you and your mortgage lender that temporarily hits the pause button on your mortgage payments due to a financial hardship. Your lender agrees not to pursue foreclosure during this time....

Risks include those of inflation, recession, and other economic hazards that impact the entire market—systematic risks. Other—unsystematic—risks can be reduced through the diversification of holdings and include industry and company-specific hazards such as default or regulatory risks. The green line shows the growth in value by investing in a safe investment, like short-term certificates of deposit (CD). The blue line shows the outcome if invested in five-year ​Treasury securities, also considered a low-risk investment....

A DBA is easy and inexpensive to set up, and some business structures may even require it. If you’re wondering why you might want to set up a DBA for your business, keep reading. Why Use a DBA for Your Business? “Doing business as,” or DBA, is a fictitious name that lets you use a name for your business without creating a formal legal entity such as a corporation, partnership, or LLC....

Here is the definition of intestacy and a summary of the Pennsylvania intestacy succession laws in various situations. Intestacy Succession Laws A person drafts a will to leave their belongings to the people they love, focusing on how they are distributed. Without a will, someone has “died intestate.” States pass intestate succession laws to establish a precedence for possessions and assets given to the family to keep things orderly and reduce confusion and conflicts....

To put it simply, ETFs hold tax advantages over mutual funds because the underlying assets are traded less frequently and individual investors can choose when to trigger those taxes by actualizing the gains. Still confused? Keep reading for a deeper explanation of these concepts. Capital Gains Tax Whenever you sell an asset for a profit, the government wants its share of the sale. The tax on this profit is known as the capital gains tax....

How To Avoid the Early-Withdrawal Penalty Certain uses exempt you from an IRA early-withdrawal penalty. There are no exceptions, however, to paying income tax on the amounts withdrawn under any of these conditions. Paying for Medical Costs You might qualify for an exemption from the IRA penalty tax if you use your IRA early withdrawal to pay for medical costs that are more than 7.5% of your adjusted gross income....

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Thursday sent orders requesting information to buy now, pay later (BNPL) services Affirm, Afterpay, Klarna, PayPal, and Zip. The bureau is attempting to determine whether customers using BNPL are building up excessive debt, whether the companies are skirting consumer protection laws that apply to financial products, and what companies are doing with the financial information they collect from customers. “Buy now, pay later is the new version of the old layaway plan, but with modern, faster twists where the consumer gets the product immediately but gets the debt immediately too,” Rohit Chopra, director of the bureau, said in a statement....

Since 1934, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has helped insure home loans through its Federal Housing Administration (FHA). Compared to conventional mortgages, FHA loans offer easier credit qualifications, lower down payments, and lower closing costs. But FHA loans require you to pay for FHA mortgage insurance, offered through lenders and FHA business partners. What Is FHA Mortgage Insurance? FHA mortgage insurance is government-backed insurance that protects the lender if the borrower defaults on a mortgage....

Thomas Barwick / Getty Images However, there are numerous first-time homebuyer grants out there that can help. How Do First-Time Homebuyer Grants Work? Homebuyer grants are designed to offset some of the purchasing costs for first-time buyers. They typically cover part of a down payment, closing costs, or sometimes, even the total purchase price of the home. They don’t require repayment, as long as you live in your home for a required period of time....

However, may not be advisable to head immediately back to work when on long-term disability because this can jeopardize your benefits. This is especially true if you are awaiting a legal settlement or getting disability benefits that are nearly as much as your previous wages. But, there are some ways to work and earn a small income while you are getting long-term disability. Check the Specifics of Your LTD Policy Some long-term disability plans prohibit working while receiving benefits, and they also define what actual disability is under the policy terms....

The Consumer Price Index, which measures prices for pretty much everything consumers buy, rose 0.4% compared to the previous month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said in its monthly inflation report Wednesday. That made for a 5.4% increase over the same time last year, matching June and July for the highest yearly inflation rate since 2008. Increases in the cost of necessities such as groceries, energy, and housing contributed heavily to the overall figures....

Real estate agents make about $55,300 on average in their first year. Agents with between one and three years on the job made roughly $82,100. That number reaches nearly $150,000 once agents get between four and 10 years of experience. Aside from the number of completed transactions, pay depends on the amount of commission paid to the real estate brokerage and the commission split arrangement with the realtor’s sponsoring broker....

Depending on your state, past actions, and current situation, you may also face misdemeanor or felony charges, such as driving while intoxicated (DWI), driving under the influence (DUI), or impaired driving, and a suspension of your driver’s license. Because driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs is so dangerous to yourself and others, it is usually treated as a criminal offense with many potential negative consequences. Here’s how driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol could impact what you pay for insurance this year and in the future....

This article gives you some information on differences and similarities between LLC and corporation business forms. Corporations, LLCs, and Limited Liability Both corporations and LLCs limit the liability of the investors (owners and shareholders) from the debts of the business and against lawsuits against the business. The concept of limited liability is usually expressed by stating that liability is limited to the extent of the person’s investment. Both business types must work to keep their operations separate from the activity of the owners to maintain their liability protection....

How Bitcoin and Blockchain Technology Can Help The thought of bitcoin as a way to change the way we vote was considered during the early days of the new technology. In 2012, computer scientists in Canada were looking to exploit the capabilities of Bitcoin as “a form of ‘carbon dating’ for digital information" and “something that would make electronic voting more secure.” Jeremy Clark and Aleksander Essex were computer scientists from Ontario-based universities who saw the potential for Bitcoin and blockchain technology to enhance the ability to secure and validate the voting process....

Treasury Bonds A Treasury bond is essentially a loan to the government that is usually purchased by domestic consumers. These bonds impact the economy by providing more spending money for the government and consumers. For a variety of reasons, foreign governments purchase a large percentage of Treasury bonds. In effect, they are providing the U.S. government with a loan, which allows Congress to spend more, which stimulates the economy and also increases the U....