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5 Fabulous Consumer Staples Stocks 04/05/2016 08:00pm • With fears of a U.S. recession now left behind, investors are pouring into U.S. stocks. The Standard & Poor's 500 index has made up for all of its February losses and now sits up about 3 percent for the year. For the year-to-date, the U.S. consumer staples sector has been a strong performer, wit 3 Financial Questions to Answer When Making the Final College Choice 04/05/2016 08:00pm • College acceptance letters have arrived, and families are trying to decipher financial aid awards. By balancing academic, social and financial information, families can make a smart choice together. With college debt on the minds of everyone from students to presidential candidates these days, it co 4 Steps for a Successful No-Spend Challenge 04/05/2016 08:00pm • A survey conducted by GOBankingRates.com last year revealed a disturbing fact: as American consumers, saving money just isn't our thing.Nearly one-third of the more than 5,000 people polled admitted to having a zero balance in their savings account, while 21 percent of consumers have no savings acco How to Catch Up if You're Behind on Retirement Savings 04/05/2016 08:00pm • Many people are behind on their retirement savings, but there are ways to catch up, even on the verge of retirement. You will have to be disciplined and make some solid financial choices. Working at least part-time in retirement could also give your finances a boost. Here are seven ways to catch up Why Not All ETFs Are Created Equal 04/04/2016 08:00pm • The market for exchange-traded funds, popular stock-market instruments that track all sorts of equity and bond indexes and commodities, is continuing to grow. But some are better investments than others, experts say. At the end of last month, the number of U.S.-based ETFs reached 1,585 with $1.95 b 6 Reasons the Bull Market Won't Go Away 04/04/2016 08:00pm • In market parlance, the U.S. bull market for stocks is a senior citizen -- now in its eighth year, Wall Street's run has exceeded the historical average length of a bull market by more than three years. While markets were volatile early in the year, with the Standard & Poor's 500 index down mor Why You Should Avoid Debt Consolidation Programs - and What to Do Instead 04/04/2016 08:00pm • For people struggling with mounds of debt, a debt consolidation program can seem like a wonderful thing. These programs promise to take all of your debts and reduce them down to one convenient monthly payment, leaving you with only one bill to worry about and a seemingly direct path to debt freedom. Why It's OK to Love Legacy Investments 04/04/2016 08:00pm • There's the long-term investment strategy known as buy-and-hold -- and then the version as practiced by billionaire Warren Buffett, which you could call buy-and-hold-and-hold. In fact, Buffett has been famously quoted as stating, "Our favorite holding period is forever." Coca-Cola Co. (ticker: KO) When Your Credit Card's Interest Rate Doesn't Matter 04/03/2016 08:00pm • There's a simple way to avoid paying interest on all your credit card purchases: Pay your bill in full every month. You won't need a credit card with a 0 percent APR period, or have to sweet-talk a customer service representative into waiving charges. You can make the interest disappear on your own. 5 Sneaky Downsides of Using a Company Credit Card 04/03/2016 08:00pm • There's nothing like having a shiny company credit card to make you feel like a high roller. Entertaining clients? No problem. Taking a business trip to Chicago? You'll book that flight. Attending an annual conference? The registration fee is covered. But there are some pesky downsides to flashing How Job Changers Manage Their 401(k) Plans 03/31/2016 08:00pm • Every time you change jobs, you need to decide what to do with the savings you have accumulated in your 401(k) plan. Separating from service can be an opportunity to seek out a retirement account with better investments and lower costs. However, you also need to watch out for fees and tax penalties How to Know if You're Saving Enough for Retirement 03/31/2016 08:00pm • As a financial planner, one of the most common questions I am asked is "How much money should I have saved?" or "How far behind am I in saving for retirement?" My answer? It depends. There's no one size fits all solution when it comes to how much you should have stashed away for your retirement. Wha 10 Law Schools With the Most Full-Time Applications 03/30/2016 08:00pm • The U.S. News Short List, separate from our overall rankings, is a regular series that magnifies individual data points in hopes of providing students and parents a way to find which undergraduate or graduate programs excel or have room to grow in specific areas. Be sure to explore The Short List: C Determine the Risks, Rewards of a Master's in Fine Arts 03/30/2016 08:00pm • The decision to get a master's degree in an artistic field can be a fraught one. If you're good, after all, you should be able to make it without one, right? And you're already looking at a high probability of living in relative poverty, at least compared with MBAs and techies, so why make matters w Income Sensitive Repayment: the Forgotten Student Loan Plan 03/29/2016 08:00pm • The Student Loan Ranger talks a lot about the various repayment options available to student loan borrowers. With most of the new income-driven plans, there's usually a caveat that only federal direct loan borrowers are eligible for the plan, while Perkins and federal family education loan borrower