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“If you want advice that’s free of such conflicts, you’ll need to look for a true fee-only (not fee-based) financial planner.”

A conversation between a wirehouse advisor and a senior citizen who seeks trust

Federal revenue has been relatively constant while federal spending has grown out of control.

The Obama administration has been claiming that failure to raise the debt ceiling would be the end of the world. We are all tired of failed apocalyptic predictions. Perhaps all that will end is politics as usual.

Money worries are harming marriages and impairing health, according to a quarter of 1,400 married individuals polled online recently by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling.

Adding bonds to an all-stock portfolio can boost returns and lower volatility, especially in choppy markets. Bonds should be a small but important part of your gone-fishing portfolio allocation.

Before you spot a single Ivy League or big-name private school, public campuses grab 17 of PayScale’s first 18 spots. Leading is Georgia Tech’s 13.9% return on investment. Next is the University of Virginia’s 13.3%.

To solve the deficit reduction riddle, Obama reportedly is embracing an idea that purports to raise tax revenue without a tax hike and claims to cut Social Security outlays without cutting benefits. Better check your wallet.

Despite assurances to the contrary, a segment of hedge funds still has up to $100 billion locked up and won’t allow redemptions.

International bonds now make up more than 35% of the world’s investable assets, and yet many domestic investors have little or no exposure to these securities.

On Tuesday, July 12, 2011 from noon-1pm, David John Marotta was interviewed on radio 1070 WINA’s Rob Schilling Show. The topic was the battle between Amazon.com and the state of California over taxation.

Hard assets have been one of the most significant asset classes over the last decade. From all indications, it will continue to be a critically important investment category to protect your portfolio from the effects of inflation and the continuing devaluation of the U.S. dollar.

This article from Donald Jay Korn for Investor’s Business Daily describes the benefits of advance tax planning to reduce the tax bite that is inevitable as you grow older and required minimum distributions (RMDs) become a larger portion of your retirement account.

Last month the Obama administration announced it would release 30 million barrels of oil, the largest ever, from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Only those without an understanding of basic economics would applaud such a move.

David Marotta discusses why real estate should be part of a portfolio asset allocation.