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|HA1C_011113C^~ CYAN |HA1C_011113Mo~ MAGENTA |HA1C_011113KW~ BLACK |HA1C_011113Y1~ YELLOW CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK ( CYAN ) ( YELLOW ) ( MAGENTA ) ( BLACK ) MENACHEM M O NEY C SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2010 EDITOR: JANE WOOLDRIDGE [email protected] 305-376-3629 A1 BUSINESS MONDAY Bucking the odds and creating jobs despite a down economy. Miami-based Datamyne is the largest searchable database in the world. MiamiHerald.com/business Digital Dish: Bridget Carey reviews the Earloomz Bluetooth earpiece. COLLEGE COSTS 101 Ask author and scholarship expert Kelly Tanabe your questions about scholarships and other ways to pay for college Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. at www.Facebook .com/SallieMae. Tanabe says a million scholarships are available. TAKING STOCK OF GENERAL MOTORS, 2E INVESTING F inding safer alternatives BY ANDREW MENACHEM Special to The Miami Herald ‘‘Don’t put all your eggs in one bas- ket.’’ You probably heard that advice as a child and it’s just as true today as an adult investor. After all, if your portfolio includes nothing but stocks and bonds, you’re more vulnerable to a downturn in the financial markets than an investor with a more diversified portfolio. Diversification is one of the fundamen- tals for successful long-term investing because while it won’t eliminate risk, it can help reduce it. If you own real estate, commodities or other types of alterna- tive investments — along with a mixture of stocks and bonds — a drop in the financial markets may not be quite as damaging. While the basic concept of diversifi- cation is easy to understand, putting this TURN TO INVESTING, 2C A DOZEN OYSTERS $12.65 on Nov. 10 Average of costs at three raw bars HEAL THCARE Scrambling for coverage It’s time to choose, and many Florida seniors are finding they must find new providers. BY BOB LAMENDOLA Sun Sentinel Like more than 100,000 Florida seniors, Boynton Beach retirees Barry and Gladys Lubliner got a letter from their Medicare drug plan last month say- ing it will halt coverage in the state. Upset, the Lubliners and Medicare recipients like them must go through the burdensome process of finding new health insurers for 2011, with the Medi- care signup period starting on Nov. 15. ‘‘It’s very unsettling,’’ Barry Lubliner said. Other big changes in Medicare for 2011: Less flexibility in switching HMOs after Jan. 1, and more help with the ‘‘doughnut hole’’ gap in prescription drug coverage. For 2011, no fewer than 15 Medicare prescription drug plans in Florida are dropping out, including four with the largest enrollments. Among them, low- premium United Healthcare AARP Rx Saver and Universal American Prescri- baRx Bronze that were popular with bar- gain hunters. The good news is that Florida still will have 32 drug plans in every price range, plus dozens of HMO-style health plans — 90-plus in South Florida counties and up to 59 in most Central Florida counties. Contrary to some political commenta- tors, the federal health care overhaul did not cause the streamlining. Medicare pressured insurers to weed out plans that are nearly identical and cloud the choices. ‘‘People will have plenty of choices,’’ said Judith Stein, executive director of the nonprofit Center for Medicare Advo- cacy. ‘‘Some plans disappearing should make the choosing somewhat easier. This is a good thing for recipients.’’ But seniors have been most upset by their plans dropping them. As soon as the letters arrived last month, seniors started lining up to see state-funded counselors to shop for new coverage. The Broward and Palm Beach county offices of Serving the Health Insurance Needs of Elders program (SHINE) are booking up weeks earlier than normal. ‘‘They’re anxious,’’ said Palm Beach coordinator Jennifer Vandermay. ‘‘They want to get it over with and done and find a new plan.’’ The Lubliners are paying $19.80 a month apiece in Coventry First Health Secure plan, the least expensive drug plan in Florida. When the plan leaves, if they want to stay with First Health, the lowest option will cost $41.30 a month. The Lubliners don’t like HMOs, which tend to be cheaper, and only two drug plans in Florida will cost less than $25 a month next year. So they expect to pay more. One new plan, Humana Walmart Preferred, will run $14.80 a month, but advocates said seniors should make sure TURN TO MEDICARE, 4C BEST OF THE BLOGS Not all sales created equal The holiday shopping season is at hand, but is that deal really a deal? BY NIRVI SHAH [email protected] I long ago gave up the frenzied ritual of Black Friday shopping. I figured the really good deals, like the $3 appliances Target will offer this year, will be in short supply and there is nothing I need so badly that I should deprive myself of sleep to get it. Or risk being trampled. And it’s hard to tell whether I’m really getting a deal. A recent check by Shop- Smart (a magazine by the same people who produce Consumer Reports) found that some sales are anything but. For example, they found that a coffeemaker marked on sale at Kohl’s and at Kohls.com was on sale for $61.99, a sup- posed discount from the retailer’s posted TURN TO SHIPPING, 4C EMPLOYMENT Y oung w orkers off to a slow start The effects of the Great Recession are likely to haunt the careers of the new generation of workers for years to come. BY DON LEE Tribune Washington Bureau WASHINGTON — As the nation struggles with the after- math of the Great Recession, few groups have suffered greater set- backs or face greater long-term damage than young Americans — damage that could shadow their entire working lives. Unemployment for 20- to 24- year-olds hit a record high of more than 17 percent earlier this year. Even for young adults with college degrees, the jobless rate has averaged 9.3 percent this year, double the figure for older graduates, according to the Labor Department. Adding to the impact, surveys by the Pew Research Center indicate, a greater share of work- ers in their 20s lost hours or were cut down to part-time sta- tus than any other age group. And their incomes have fallen more sharply, even as they are far more likely than others to say they are working harder than ever. ‘‘These are young workers just trying to establish a connec- tion to work, and it will cause permanent damage to long-term pay. This crisis has the potential for scarring,’’ said Ron Black- well, chief economist at the AFL- CIO. The effect of the recession is reflected in the fact that many young Americans who started out living independently are moving back home with their parents because they are unable to survive financially. Also, new Census Bureau fig- ures show that couples increas- ingly are postponing marriage and parenthood, waiting for their financial prospects to improve. Meanwhile, more young families are falling into poverty. ‘‘It makes you almost want to cry for the future of our coun- try,’’ said Andrew Sum, director of the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern Univer- TURN TO YOUNG WORKERS, 4C RON BORRESON/BRADENTON HERALD Story HA1C_011113 System MIAE by KSCOTT Time 20:33:29 Date 11/12/10 Story # 0 Story name HA1C_011113 Basket INL PAGES Last text user KSCOTT C , 1, A1 , Keyword:
Transcript

|HA1C_011113C^~ CYAN |HA1C_011113Mo~ MAGENTA|HA1C_011113KW~ BLACK |HA1C_011113Y1~ YELLOW

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK( CYAN )( YELLOW )( MAGENTA )( BLACK )

MENACHEM

MONEY CSATURDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2010 EDITOR: JANE WOOLDRIDGE [email protected] 305-376-3629 A1

BUSINESS MONDAY• Bucking the odds and creating jobsdespite a down economy.• Miami-based Datamyne is thelargest searchable database in theworld.

MiamiHerald.com/businessDigital Dish: Bridget Carey reviews theEarloomz Bluetooth earpiece.

COLLEGE COSTS 101Ask author and scholarship expert KellyTanabe your questions about scholarshipsand other ways to pay for college Tuesdayfrom 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. at www.Facebook.com/SallieMae. Tanabe says a millionscholarships are available.

TAKING STOCK OFGENERAL MOTORS, 2E

INVES TING

F inding s aferalternati vesBY ANDREW MENACHEMSpecial to The Miami Herald

‘‘Don’t put all your eggs in one bas-ket.’’ You probably heard that advice as achild and it’s just as true today as an

adult investor. After all,if your portfolioincludes nothing butstocks and bonds,you’re more vulnerableto a downturn in thefinancial markets thanan investor with a morediversified portfolio.

Diversification isone of the fundamen-

tals for successful long-term investingbecause while it won’t eliminate risk, itcan help reduce it. If you own real estate,commodities or other types of alterna-tive investments — along with a mixtureof stocks and bonds — a drop in thefinancial markets may not be quite asdamaging.

While the basic concept of diversifi-cation is easy to understand, putting this

•TURN TO INVESTING, 2C

A DOZEN OYSTERS$12.65 on Nov. 10Average of costs at three raw bars

HEAL THCARE

Scr ambling f or c ove rage■ It’s time to choose, and manyFlorida seniors are finding they mustfind new pro viders.

BY BOB LAMENDOLASun Sentinel

Like more than 100,000 Floridaseniors, Boynton Beach retirees Barryand Gladys Lubliner got a letter fromtheir Medicare drug plan last month say-ing it will halt coverage in the state.

Upset, the Lubliners and Medicarerecipients like them must go through theburdensome process of finding newhealth insurers for 2011, with the Medi-care signup period starting on Nov. 15.

‘‘It’s very unsettling,’’ Barry Lublinersaid.

Other big changes in Medicare for2011: Less flexibility in switching HMOsafter Jan. 1, and more help with the‘‘doughnut hole’’ gap in prescription drugcoverage.

For 2011, no fewer than 15 Medicareprescription drug plans in Florida aredropping out, including four with thelargest enrollments. Among them, low-premium United Healthcare AARP RxSaver and Universal American Prescri-baRx Bronze that were popular with bar-gain hunters.

The good news is that Florida still willhave 32 drug plans in every price range,plus dozens of HMO-style health plans— 90-plus in South Florida counties andup to 59 in most Central Florida counties.Contrary to some political commenta-tors, the federal health care overhaul didnot cause the streamlining. Medicarepressured insurers to weed out plans thatare nearly identical and cloud thechoices.

‘‘People will have plenty of choices,’’said Judith Stein, executive director ofthe nonprofit Center for Medicare Advo-cacy. ‘‘Some plans disappearing shouldmake the choosing somewhat easier.This is a good thing for recipients.’’

But seniors have been most upset bytheir plans dropping them. As soon as theletters arrived last month, seniors startedlining up to see state-funded counselorsto shop for new coverage.

The Broward and Palm Beach countyoffices of Serving the Health InsuranceNeeds of Elders program (SHINE) arebooking up weeks earlier than normal.

‘‘They’re anxious,’’ said Palm Beachcoordinator Jennifer Vandermay. ‘‘Theywant to get it over with and done andfind a new plan.’’

The Lubliners are paying $19.80 a

month apiece in Coventry First HealthSecure plan, the least expensive drugplan in Florida. When the plan leaves, ifthey want to stay with First Health, thelowest option will cost $41.30 a month.

The Lubliners don’t like HMOs, whichtend to be cheaper, and only two drug

plans in Florida will cost less than $25 amonth next year. So they expect to paymore. One new plan, Humana WalmartPreferred, will run $14.80 a month, butadvocates said seniors should make sure

•TURN TO MEDICARE, 4C

BES T OF THE BLOGS

N ot all salescr eated equal■ The holiday shopping season is ath and, but is that deal really a deal?

BY NIRVI [email protected]

I long ago gave up the frenzied ritualof Black Friday shopping. I figured thereally good deals, like the $3 appliancesTarget will offer this year, will be inshort supply and there is nothing I needso badly that I should deprive myself ofsleep to get it. Or risk being trampled.

And it’s hard to tell whether I’m reallygetting a deal. A recent check by Shop-Smart (a magazine by the same peoplewho produce Consumer Reports) foundthat some sales are anything but. Forexample, they found that a coffeemakermarked on sale at Kohl’s and atKohls.com was on sale for $61.99, a sup-posed discount from the retailer’s posted

•TURN TO SHIPPING, 4C

EMPL O YMENT

Y oung w orkers off to a slow start■ The eff ects of the Great Rec ession a re lik ely t o haunt thecar eers of the new generation of w ork ers f or y ears t o come .

BY DON LEETribune Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON — As thenation struggles with the after-math of the Great Recession, fewgroups have suffered greater set-backs or face greater long-termdamage than young Americans— damage that could shadowtheir entire working lives.

Unemployment for 20- to 24-year-olds hit a record high ofmore than 17 percent earlier thisyear. Even for young adults withcollege degrees, the jobless ratehas averaged 9.3 percent thisyear, double the figure for oldergraduates, according to theLabor Department.

Adding to the impact, surveys

by the Pew Research Centerindicate, a greater share of work-ers in their 20s lost hours orwere cut down to part-time sta-tus than any other age group.And their incomes have fallenmore sharply, even as they arefar more likely than others to saythey are working harder thanever.

‘‘These are young workersjust trying to establish a connec-tion to work, and it will cause

permanent damage to long-termpay. This crisis has the potentialfor scarring,’’ said Ron Black-well, chief economist at the AFL-CIO.

The effect of the recession isreflected in the fact that manyyoung Americans who startedout living independently aremoving back home with theirparents because they are unableto survive financially.

Also, new Census Bureau fig-

ures show that couples increas-ingly are postponing marriageand parenthood, waiting for theirfinancial prospects to improve.Meanwhile, more young familiesare falling into poverty.

‘‘It makes you almost want tocry for the future of our coun-try,’’ said Andrew Sum, directorof the Center for Labor MarketStudies at Northeastern Univer-

•TURN TO YOUNG WORKERS, 4C

RON BORRESON/BRADENTON HERALD

Story HA1C_011113 System MIAE by KSCOTT Time 20:33:29 Date 11/12/10

Story # 0 Story name HA1C_011113 Basket INL PAGES Last text user KSCOTT C , 1, A1 , Keyword:

|HA1C_021113Ce~ CYAN |HA1C_021113Mv~ MAGENTA|HA1C_021113K^~ BLACK |HA1C_021113Y8~ YELLOW

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK( CYAN )( YELLOW )( MAGENTA )( BLACK )

Increased Dividends[Quarterly unless noted]Adams Rescs & Engy .54A from .50AAmeriSource Bergen .10 from .08Automatic Data Proc .36 from .34Baxter Intl .31 from .29Buckeye GP LP .47 from .45Cinemark Hldgs .21 from .18DeVry Inc .12S from .10SEMC Insurance .19 from .18Equifax Inc .16 from .04Estee Lauder .75A from .55AExcel Trust .12 from .08Intel Corp .18 from .1575Keynote Systems .06 from .05Lexington Rlty Tr .115 from .10Lincoln National .05 from .01MDU Resources .1625 from .1575Meadowbrook Ins Grp .04 from .03Mesa Labs .12 from .11Pan Amer Silver .025Q from .025SPrudential Financial 1.15A from .70ARockville Financial .065 from .06Sanders Morris Harris .05 from .045StanCorp Financial .86A from .80AStarwood Prop Tr .40 from .33Sysco Corp .26 from .25Telus Corp g .525 from .50Timken Co .18 from .13Vectren Corp .345 from .34Wendys/Arbys .02 from .015Weyco Group .16 from .15g- Canadian fundsExtra or Special DividendsColumbia Sportswear $1.50Haverty Furniture .07Haverty Furniture A .065Knight Transportation .75Medtox Scientific $1.25Nelnet Inc .49Southside Bancshares .17Stein Mart Inc .50Initiated Cash DividendsIDT Corp .22Q

Navios Maritime Acq .05QResumed DividendEscalade Inc .10Liquidating DividendWilliams Coal Seam Gas $2.3814Declared Stock DividendLandmark Bancorp 5pcDeclared Stock SplitsLigand Pharmaceutical 1 for 6 revMagna International 2 for 1Stock Splits This WeekGeeknet Inc 1 for 10 reverseGushan Environ Engy 1-5 revJacada Ltd 1 for 4 reverseKemet Corp 1 for 3 reverseOptimumBank Hldgs 1 for 4 reverseRiverbed Technology 2 for 1Annual Earnings HigherGAAP fully dilutedConexant Systems .27 vs (.38)Penford Corp .57 vs (5.80)Pricesmart Inc 1.65 vs 1.43Tyco Intl Ltd 2.32 vs (3.80)Zep Inc .61 vs .42Annual Earnings Lower(Losses)Amcon Distributing 11.99 vs 16.61Chapter 11Ambac Financial Group IncEmerged from chapter 11Chemtura CorpGeneral Growth PropertiesCalled for RedemptionDelphi Financial Group 8pc notes due5-15-2033 Dec. 23Huntsman Intl LLC 7.875pc niotes due11-15-2014 Nov. 26Mack-Cali Realty LP 7.75pc notes due2-15-2011 Dec. 15Markwest Energy 6.875pc notes due11-1-2014 Dec. 8MetroPCS Wireless 9.25pc notes due11-1-2014 Nov. 18

Tanger Factory Outlet Centers 7.5pc pfCDec. 9Teco Finance Inc 7pc notes due 5-1-2012Dec. 2Unisys Corp 8.5pc notes due 10-15-2015Dec. 8Acquisitions and MergersMinimum value $100 millionAmazon.com - Quidsi Inc ($500M)Ametek Inc - Atlas Material Testing Tech-nology LLC ($159M)Chevron - Atlas Energy ($3.2B)Harris Corp - Schlumberger GCS ($347.5M)New Stock ListingsNYSEChemtura CorpNoah Holdings Ltd ADSGeneral Growth Properties newHoward Hughes CorpInphi CorpSemGroup CorpStanley Black&Decker cv pfNASDAQ Global and Global Select MarketsRDA Microelectronics IncSabra Healthcare REIT wiUniTek Global Services IncStocks Removed from TradingNYSEAmbac Financial Group IncGeneral Growth Properties oldInergy Holdings LPMariner Energy IncNeteeza CorpPS Business Parks pfLNYSE AMEX EquitiesGulfstream Intl GroupNASDAQ Global and Global Select MarketsAlloy IncComarco Inc (to Capital Market)GenVec Inc (to Capital Market)Corporate Name ChangesAmerican Dairy Inc to Feihe InternationalInc

INVESTING

F inding s afer alterna tiv es•INVESTING, FROM 1C

strategy to work can be a bit of a chal-lenge. That’s because effective diversifi-cation involves more than looking at amenu of asset choices and picking two orthree that sound appealing.

The key to successful diversificationis understanding which assets typicallyrise and fall in value at the same time — aconcept called correlation. For instance,at times, U.S. and international stockscan be highly correlated, producing bothpositive and negative returns at the sametime. That was certainly the case in the2008 financial meltdown, when bothstock and bond prices plummeted.

But there are other assets — oftencalled alternative investments — thatmay rise in value, or may at least holdtheir own, when Wall Street takes a tum-ble. These include private equity funds,hedge funds, commodities and managedfutures. Therefore, including some alter-native investments in qualified investors’portfolios may help reduce volatility.

A number of market studies indicatethat managed futures may provide aneffective way to balance a portfolio.

Let’s take a closer look at managedfutures as an investment class, which hasdeep roots in American history. Decadesago, farmers, ranchers and bankerssought a way to reduce the price swingsin the agricultural markets. The resultwas the concept of a futures contract,which set a certain delivery price inadvance for a specific commodity.

As the advantages of this risk manage-ment strategy became more apparent,the concept of the futures contract wasextended to the foreign exchange andinterest rate markets in the 1970s and’80s. Since then, the future markets havecontinued to grow and play an importantrole for many investors.

Today, a managed futures fund isguided by a manager called a commoditytrading advisor (CTA) who can followdifferent strategies in six major marketsectors: agricultural products, curren-cies, energies, interest rates, major met-als and stock indices.

This can be a benefit to suitable inves-

tors, who have little opportunity to par-ticipate directly in these markets, such ascrude oil, Japanese debt or foreignexchange relationships. Therefore, man-aged futures offer the benefit of expo-sure to these markets at a certain level.

Underlying futures markets can bedriven by different factors than thoseinfluencing stock and bond prices. Thatalone may reduce the correlation. Inaddition, the CTAs can make potentiallyprofitable investment decisions regard-less of whether the markets are movingup or down. So even when Wall Street ishaving a bad year, managed futures maystill show a positive return. On the otherhand a good year for stocks and bondscan result in negative returns for man-aged futures.

Since 1980, there have been six timeswhen the S&P 500 Index has fallen by 10percent or more. In each case, managedfutures, as measured by the Barclay CTAindex, produced positive returns. In2008, for instance, managed futures wereup 14.4 percent while the S&P was down36 percent. Of course, it is important toremember that past performance is not aguarantee or prediction of comparablefuture performance.

For an investor, managed futuresholdings might be somewhere between 3and 10 percent of the overall portfolio.Historically, that has been shown toimprove both the overall portfolio diver-sification and the overall risk-adjustedreturn. So we know that managed futureshave benefits such as historically lowcorrelated performance relative to tradi-tional investments such as stocks andbonds and that they can be an effectivediversifier when combined in a portfoliowith other types of investments.

It’s important to know, however, thatthey are not suited for everyone and doinvolve risks.

In our next column, we’ll look at othertypes of alternatives to stock and bonds.

Andrew Menachem, CIMA, CWS is awealth advisor at the Menachem Group atMorgan Stanley Smith Barney in Miamiand Aventura and teaches at the Univer-sity of Miami.

THE WEEK AHEAD

T ime tota ke st ockof GM?BY TOM HUDSONNightly Business Report

Do you want to own apiece of American his-tory? Should you own apiece of what may beAmerica’s future? Moreplainly, will you be buy-ing stock in the slimmer,trimmer and profitableGeneral Motors when itgoes public this week?

It is rare for a U.S.automaker to go public.

OK, maybeit’s not thatrare judgedby thisyear’sactivity. Inlate Juneelectric carmaker

Tesla sold stock to thepublic for the first time.Since then, Tesla sharesare up 23 percent.

General Motors is amuch different story. Thestock sale comes after 40days in bankruptcy reor-ganization and a bailoutby the U.S. taxpayers.GM is a smaller companynow compared to the lasttime it had a publiclytraded stock. The Pon-tiac, Saturn, Saab andHummer brands haveeither been left for deador sold. It has 40 percentfewer dealers.

This new generationof GM seems to havemore incentive disciplinethan a few years ago.During the easy creditdays of 2004 and 2005,making cars seemed sec-ondary at GM (alongwith many of the otherautomakers) to securingthe financing. Zero per-cent financing and bigrebates caused GM to failas much as the souringeconomy did. Financialengineering was morevaluable than mechanicalengineering.

GM is an iconic Amer-ican brand. But it’s not anentirely American com-pany. Two-thirds of itsauto and truck salescome from outside theU.S. European sales areweak and Asia is growingin competition. That maybe America’s future asmuch as it is GM’s.

Tom Hudson is anchorof Nightly BusinessReport, produced by NBRWorldwide and distrib-uted nationally by PBS. InSouth Florida, the show isbroadcast at 7 p.m. week-days on Channel 2.

THE COL OR OF MONEY

Student loans teacha hard lesson in lifeBY MICHELLE SINGLETARY

Tick tock. Tick tock.That’s the sound

recent college graduatesare hearing as they nearthe day of reckoning. Thetypical six-month graceperiod on student loans isabout to end.

Then wham! — as theyface the reality of what itcosts to get an education.

For years, I’ve written,talked and generallyfussed about the way peo-ple handle their money.Yet it never — and I

meannever —ceases toamaze mehow peo-ple borrowmoneywith so lit-tle under-

standing about how muchthey owe and how long itwill take to pay it back.And the worst are bor-rowers who take loans forcollege.

So what should you doif your grace period iscoming to an end thismonth? Here are somesuggestions from the Pro-ject on Student Debt, aninitiative of the Institutefor College Access & Suc-cess, a nonprofit indepen-dent research and policyorganization. You canmore tips at http://bit.ly/avNe7V:

• Know what youowe. ‘‘Don’t bury yourhead in the sand,’’ saysLauren Asher, the insti-tute’s president. ‘‘Dealingwith the debt head-ongives you the mostoptions. If you’ve got fed-eral student loans, youreally do have choices inhow to deal with it. But ifyou ignore it, you havefewer choices.’’

To find out your loanterms, go to the source —your lender or lenders.You can also find detailsof your student loans,including balances, bygoing to the National Stu-dent Loan Data System,which is the U.S. Depart-ment of Education’s cen-tral database for studentaid. The website iswww.nslds.ed.gov.

• Know when youowe. A grace period ishow long after leavingschool before you have tomake your first payment.It kicks in after you grad-uate, leave school or dropbelow half-time enroll-ment. But the amount ofgrace you get varies. ForStafford loans, it is sixmonths, nine months for

Perkins loans. If you don’tknow your grace period,you could end up indefault. This is not a greatposition to put yourself inbecause it could affectyour ability to apply forother options.

• Let your lenderknow where you are. I getcomplaints from borrow-ers who are in defaultbecause they say theirloan statements weremailed to an old or incor-rect address. But it oftenturns out the persondidn’t forward new con-tact information. Ormaybe he or she didinform the lender, but amonth or two or threegoes by and nothingcomes in the mail. Comeon. You know you owethis money — everymonth. If you don’t hearfrom the lender, then call,e-mail, text or tweet.

• Find the rightrepayment option: One ofthe best is the relativelynew Income-BasedRepayment program, orIBR. This option, which isnot available for privatestudent loans, is intendedto set a reasonablemonthly payment basedon a borrower’s incomeand family size. UnderIBR, after 25 years ofqualifying payments,your remaining debt,including interest, will beforgiven. New federalloans taken out by newborrowers in 2014 andlater are forgiven after 20years, Asher said. Forpublic service workers —teachers, nurses andthose in military service— the debt is forgivenafter 10 years. To getmore details, go towww.IBRinfo.org.

About this time ofyear, I begin to gete-mails from panicky bor-rowers. Their cries ofdesperation go somethinglike: ‘‘My income isn’tenough to cover rent,transportation and myother bills, plus my stu-dent loans,’’ or ‘‘Whatshould I do?’’

My answer is sadly thesame: There is no magicsolution. You’ve got topay the debt. Somehow.The tips from the Projecton Student Debt will helpwith the somehow.

Hear Michelle Single-tary’s personal financereports on www.npr.org.Readers may write to herc/o The Washington Post,1150 15th St., NW, Wash-ington DC 20081.

2C SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2010 A1 MiamiHerald.com/Business THE MIAMI HERALD

PERSONAL FINANCE

SINGLETARYHUDSON

STOCK NEWS

SOUTH FLORIDA CONSUMER FINANCE GUIDE

Money Market

0.00

0.25

0.50

0.75

1.00

1.25

1.50

N D J F M A M J J A S O

Money Market national averages are based on federally insured accounts requiring a min. deposit of $5,000 or less

Money Market Accounts This Week Last Week $5K or less 0.24 0.24 $10,000+/- 0.32 0.33 $25,000+/- 0.40 0.40 $50,000+/- 0.49 0.49

CD Rates

0.000.250.500.751.001.251.501.75

N D J F M A M J J A S O

6 mo 12 mo

CD national averages are based on federally insured accounts requiring a $10,000 min. deposit or less for term.

Certificates of Deposit This Week Last Week 6 Mo 0.48 0.49 12 Mo 0.75 0.75 24 Mo 1.10 1.11 36 Mo 1.38 1.38

Money Certificates of Deposit Market 3 Mo 6 Mo 12 Mo 24 Mo 36 Mo 60 Mo Company Min/APY Min/APY Min/APY Min/APY Min/APY Min/APY Min/APY Comments

Financial Indexes

0.00

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

N D J F M A M J J A S O

10 Yr T-Bill 6 Mo LIBOR

Key Financial Indexes This Week Last Week 1-yr T-Bill 0.220 0.230 10-yr T-Bill 2.610 2.670 Prime Rate 3.250 3.250 National COF 1.700 1.700 6 Month LIBOR 0.448 0.448

Mortgages

3.50

4.00

4.50

5.00

5.50

6.00

6.50

N D J F M A M J J A S O

30 C 15 C

Based on $175,000 loan for single family home with 20% down, and 0 point origination and discount fees.

National Average Mortgage Loan Rates This Week Last Week 30-yr Fxd Conf 4.398 4.398 15-yr Fxd Conf 3.869 3.931 30-yr Fxd Jumbo 4.825 4.825 5/1 ARM Conf 3.238 3.273

1st National Bank of S. FL 305-247-5541 www.1stnatbank.com

2,500 0.20

1,000 0.25

1,000 0.60

1,000 0.90

1,000 1.33

1,000 1.43

1,000 2.03

We are a full-service bank serving the South Florida community.

Chase 800-788-7000 www.chase.com

100 0.05

1,000 0.15

1,000 0.25

1,000 0.25

10K 0.50

10K 1.00

10K 1.49

Contact us to learn more about our relationship rates.

Citibank 800-374-9500 www.citibank.com

100 0.20

500 0.15

500 0.30

500 0.50

500 0.60

500 1.01

500 1.25

CD rates apply to CDs opened online or by calling 800-374-9500. Visit us online for many more products & specials.

Comerica Bank 800-266-3742 www.comerica.com

50 0.10

1,000 0.10

1,000 0.20

1,000 0.20

1,000 0.40

1,000 0.65

1,000 1.25

We have more than 150 years of experience. Please contact us today.

First Century Bank, N.A. 800-332-8231 www.myfirstcenturybank.com

Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Our mission is to create a banking environment that will constantly deliver quality personal service to you.

Grand B&T of Florida 561-615-5000 www.grandbankflorida.com

2,500 0.10

1,000 0.50

1,000 0.75

1,000 1.10

1,000 1.45

1,000 1.75

1,000 2.00

Visit one of several convenient locations for all of your banking needs.

HSBC Bank USA, NA 800-975-HSBC www.us.hsbc.com

1 0.10

1,0000.05

1,000 0.10

1,000 0.70

1,000 0.40

1,000 0.40 N/A

Visit our website to choose from a broad selection of products tailored to your needs and budget.

International Financial Bk 305-648-8800 www.ifbbank.com

3,500 0.18

2,500 0.40

2,500 0.55

2,500 1.00

2,500 1.35

2,500 1.80

2,500 2.50

Ask for “Choice” Checking with no maint. fee, no min. balance. Other requirements apply. Member FDIC.

Optimum Bank 888-991-2265 www.optimumbank.com

5,000 0.50

1,000 0.50

1,000 0.75

1,000 1.050

1,000 1.30

1,000 1.60

1,000 1.90

Visit our website to learn more about our checking and savings products.

Sterling Bank 561-204-2400 www.sterlingbankfl.com

Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call us or go online to get more information about our products and services.

VISIT http://miami-financial-rates.infotrak.com for much more. . .

Current Rates Financial Calculators Tips and Advice

All rates are believed to be accurate but cannot be guaranteed. Rates are subject to change without notice and certain restrictions may apply. Contact each company for details. Companies may pay a fee to be in this Guide. APY = annual percentage yield; N/A = not available; P = prime rate; K = thousand; Min = minimum; Mo = month; Money Market accounts and Certificates of Deposit should be federally insured unless otherwise noted. Copyright 2010 INFOTRAK National Data Services, Inc. Rates as of 11/10/10

To be in this guide, please call 781-276-1711

Story HA1C_021113 System MIAE by KSCOTT Time 18:29:04 Date 11/12/10

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