Selected Topics in Bond Portfolio Management (Frank J. Fabozzi Series)

Book Description

The bond market is one of the largest and most important financial markets in the world. For professional investors, building and managing a portfolio of bonds to achieve above-market returns is a continual challenge. In Selected Topics in Bond Portfolio Management, leading experts discuss state-of-the-art strategies for managing indexed, corporate, high-yield, municipal, and global bond portfolios. Each chapter includes questions and answers to enhance the reader's understanding.

Book Description

"For anyone who needs to understand different types of life insurance, as well as considerations for purchasing and managing policies, this book should be on your nearby reference shelf. If you’ve frequently found yourself fumbling around with terminology, such as the differences between variable, universal, and variable universal life (VUL) policies, you’ll finally see some light through the haze." - MorningstarAdvisor.com

Life insurance doesn't have to be complex or intimidating. Ben Baldwin's completely revised and updated guidebook makes it clear and logical, discussing how to analyze insurance products based on their investment merits and best overall financial returns. This clear, authoritative resource for consumer insurance information covers the pros and cons of Internet purchases, techniques to use capital within a policy, the fixed premium feature, insurance for different stages of life, and the new emergence of "immediate annuities."

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This clear, authoritative resource for consumer insurance information covers the pros and cons of Internet purchases, techniques to use capital within a policy, the fixed premium feature, insurance for different stages of life, and the new emergence of "immediate annuities."

Customer Reviews:

An excellent resource.......2007-06-27

This is the best source I have come across for dissecting and analyzing VUL. Most insurance professionals shy away from this product because of its risks. My feeling has been that this reaction is born out of a lack of understanding. This book is very clear about the risks and the rewards, teaching both with depth and candor. Knowledge is power and this book provides both.

good info, but too biased towards VUL.......2007-03-17

The book is very informative, entertaining, and instructive. It gives the benefits and drawbacks of each type of life insurance. It's a good reference book. It's easy to read and understand.

However, it is very biased towards variable universal life (VUL). In fact, the author states that this type of policy is the reason why the book exists. He even goes so far as to say that VUL is one of the best investment vehicles of the century! He's a good cheerleader for VUL and even though he is honest and does point out the pitfalls of VUL, he sort of skims over the probability of problems with these policies in later years.

This book inspired me to check VUL policies and get some illustrations. I was shocked at the high probability of lapse in these policies if the expected return in the investments was average, say expected 8% return. You really need to get over 10% annualized return in the policies to be assured that the policy will not lapse. Anything less than that and you are running a grave risk of having to fund the policy dramatically or see it lapse just at a time when you need it most, after age 70. The trick is to adequately fund the policy from the start, and the funding can be quite expensive. And even after all of that, the insurance company makes YOU assume the risk of generating enough return to keep the policy in force. Even if you don't take any loans, the policy can lapse if the returns are just a little bit less than expected. That's very high risk to me. There are no affordable guarantees of minimum death benefit or cash values in a VUL, regardless of loans or premiums paid on time. I was shocked to learn this in reality.

So don't fall for the hype in this book about VUL. The author greatly under-estimates the risk inherent in VUL policies.

Ultimately, I'd say there are better books on insurance if you just want to learn about the basics.

Excellent User's Guide in Clear Language.......2006-11-10

Ben Baldwin has always been one of the clearest writers about life insurance from a financial planning perspective. The explanations of what the insurance industry would call "Advanced Underwriting" uses of life insurance in this book are clear, concise and free of jargon. Although this is a consumer book, I would recommend it to financial planning professionals to enhance their own understanding and to see how to explain complex financial topics to clients.

Great way to learn about insurance.......2006-07-27

The author did a geat job in explaining life insurance products. Those that have panned the book have a built in bias against insurance companies and their salesmen/woman. Fine, but I am waiting for one to write a cogent critique of why the author is wrong in his analysis. Frankly, I haven't found one financial services professional that can, even those that don't sale insurance products. Bottom line, the strategy makes sense for a many if not most folks who are trying to accumulate retirement $$. And yes the insurance industry makes good fees selling their products just like the securities companies make great fees with their products whether they are indexed mutual funds or stocks and bonds. I simply consider this the cost of doing business and move on. So what if someone makes some money helping you have a more comfortable retirement. Read it, take the ideas seriously, and incorporate the ideas into your plan. I have.

So far, so good..........2005-10-20

I'm an avid reader and have ordered dozens of books through Amazon, but this is the first one I've taken the time to write a review for, because I believe this book can help others in the same situation I was.
I ordered this book when I was applying for Life Insurance, based on the investment strategy in Douglas Andrew's book, "Missed Fortune 101". I wanted to review another reference on life insurance to learn more about it, and to corroborate Andrews' strategy. This is the only other book I could find that discussed LI from a financial investment perspective. This is a very comprehensive book about LI. It's a large book, and so far I've only read portions, skipping around to the areas I needed to understand the type of policy I was applying for, and to justify in my mind that indeed it was the right one for me (I'm working with a financial planner who recommended a particular plan, and has largely focused his practice on Doug Andrews' strategy). This book gave me a lot of the information I needed to ask my agent questions about my policy. In fact, he was impressed with my questions and wanted the name of this book.
This is a very easy to read book, with plenty of *understandable* tables as examples. I have also found it to be very objective, discussing the tradeoffs of the different types of policies, and discussing in what personal situations a particular policy might be best. The intent of this book is clearly educational - there's no hidden agenda or bias that I can detect. The author has CFP, CLU, and CHFC credentials.
Finally, and very importantly, this author stresses the need to manage your life insurance policy over time, as you would any other investment - especially the flexible aspects of policies, and including, where necessary, 1035 transfers to a more appropriate policy.

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Annuities Today

Manufacturer: Kaplan Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Investing | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Introduction | Investing | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Personal Finance | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0793139864

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Annuities for Today's Investor
Dearborn Financial
Manufacturer: Kaplan Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Investing | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

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Annuities Today

Manufacturer: Dearborn a Kaplan Professional Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Book Description

Annuities Today is designed for financial services professionals who need an introduction to annuities. This is a short, focused course that covers immediate and deferred annuities, fixed, variable and equity indexed annuities, payout options, and the fundamentals of common annuity provisions and options.

If you are taking this course for CE, the CE exam will automatically be added to your basket when selecting CE credit. Certain states require that a proctor or monitor supervise the exam taking process.

Book Description

This new work by Neil W. Chamberlain will be of great importance to the business community -- and to all those charged with defining the role large corporations play in the affairs of society.

Social Strategy and Corporate Structure is an objective, indepth examination of the organizational requirements of a social role for large-scale business. The role Neil Chamberlain presents is one of heroic dimensions: the political choice of goals, the strategic allocation of resources, and the tactical operations of the mechanisms of production.

While there has been much discussion of corporate social responsibility, few have investigated the ways its structure will have to change if the corporation is to pursue a strategy that is both economic and social. This timely book integrates a large number of issues involving corporate activities and governance that go directly to the heart of this problem.

In step-by-step detail, Chamberlain analyzes the organizational imperatives of this new age of social responsibility: the composition and functions of boards of directors and the relation of their duties to a broad system of national planning; the internal social audit; changes in the characteristics of corporate social planning; and proposals for restructuring ultimate corporate authority, either through public or outside directors. In addition, he examines the potential relevance of federal chartering of corporations, and the effects of international economic interdependence on the development of a new corporate social strategy.

This book is not a detailed blueprint for change. Rather, it presents a thorough, systematic study of available courses of action for improvement, based on the principle that conventional notions of corporate independence will have to be modified for any social strategy to work. And while not everyone will agree with Neil Chamberlain, few can afford to ignore his provocative insights into what corporations must do to function effectively in a changed social environment.

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Gamechange: The Impact of Information Technology on Corporate Strategies and Structures
David Kaye
Manufacturer: Butterworth-Heinemann
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Decision-Making & Problem Solving | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Management | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Culture | Business & Culture | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books
Manager's Guides to Computing | Business & Culture | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0434910228

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Corporate Strategies in Recession and Recovery: Social Structure and Strategic Choice
Richard Whittington
Manufacturer: Unwin Hyman
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Industrial | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Management | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0044451229

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Corporate strategies in the active society: The role of human resources (Research paper / [Center for Research in Career Development])
Charles J Fombrun
Manufacturer: Center for Research in Career Development, Columbia University]
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Labor Policy | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Organizational Change | Organizational Behavior | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Social Policy | Government | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0006Y9FX8

Book Description

Economists have long recognized the importance of capital accumulation for productivity and economic growth. The National Bureau of Economic Research is currently engaged in a study of the relationship between such accumulation and taxation policies, with particular focus on saving, risk-taking, and corporate investment in the United States and abroad. The papers presented in Taxes and Capital Formation are accessible, nontechnical summaries of fourteen individual research projects within that study. Complete technical reports on this research are published in a separate volume, The Effects of Taxation on Capital Accumulation, also edited by Martin Feldstein.

By addressing some of the most critical policy issues of the day with a minimum of economic jargon, Taxes and Capital Formation makes the results of Bureau research available to a wide audience of policy officials and staff as well as to members of the business community. The volume should also prove useful for courses in public policy, business, and law. In keeping with Bureau tradition, the papers do not contain policy recommendations; instead, they promote a better understanding of how the economy works and the effects of specific policies on particular aspects of the economy.

Corporate taxation, capital formation, and the substitution elasticity between labor and capital.: An article from: National Tax Journal

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Corporate taxation, capital formation, and the substitution elasticity between labor and capital.: An article from: National Tax Journal
Robert S. Chirinko
Manufacturer: National Tax Association
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This digital document is an article from National Tax Journal, published by National Tax Association on June 1, 2002. The length of the article is 8559 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Corporate taxation, capital formation, and the substitution elasticity between labor and capital.
Author: Robert S. Chirinko
Publication: National Tax Journal (Refereed)
Date: June 1, 2002
Publisher: National Tax Association
Volume: 55 Issue: 2 Page: 339(17)

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Public capital formation and the growth of regional manufacturing industries. (Proceedings of a Conference on the Tax-Exempt Bond Market): An article from: National Tax Journal

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Public capital formation and the growth of regional manufacturing industries. (Proceedings of a Conference on the Tax-Exempt Bond Market): An article from: National Tax Journal
Charles B. Hulten , and Robert M. Schwab
Manufacturer: National Tax Association
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

Book Description

This digital document is an article from National Tax Journal, published by National Tax Association on December 1, 1991. The length of the article is 7493 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Public capital formation and the growth of regional manufacturing industries. (Proceedings of a Conference on the Tax-Exempt Bond Market)
Author: Charles B. Hulten
Publication: National Tax Journal (Refereed)
Date: December 1, 1991
Publisher: National Tax Association
Volume: 44 Issue: n4 Page: S121-134

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Solow and the states: capital accumulation, productivity, and economic growth. (Robert M. Solow): An article from: National Tax Journal

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Solow and the states: capital accumulation, productivity, and economic growth. (Robert M. Solow): An article from: National Tax Journal
Douglas Holtz-Eakin
Manufacturer: National Tax Association
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

Book Description

This digital document is an article from National Tax Journal, published by National Tax Association on December 1, 1993. The length of the article is 6938 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Solow and the states: capital accumulation, productivity, and economic growth. (Robert M. Solow)
Author: Douglas Holtz-Eakin
Publication: National Tax Journal (Refereed)
Date: December 1, 1993
Publisher: National Tax Association
Volume: 46 Issue: n4 Page: 425-439

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Venture-capital bill tops business groups' priorities: Business leaders say the state's sagging economy makes the Iowa Capital Formation Act more important ... article from: Business Record (Des Moines)

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Venture-capital bill tops business groups' priorities: Business leaders say the state's sagging economy makes the Iowa Capital Formation Act more important ... article from: Business Record (Des Moines)
Beth Dalbey
Manufacturer: Business Publication Corp.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

The White House Conference on Small Business.: An article from: The Tax Adviser

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The White House Conference on Small Business.: An article from: The Tax Adviser
Lisa A. Winton
Manufacturer: American Institute of CPA's
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Raising Capital | Small Business & Entrepreneurship | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This digital document is an article from The Tax Adviser, published by American Institute of CPA's on November 1, 1994. The length of the article is 2009 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

From the supplier: The White House Conference on Small Business, a yearlong process that will include conferences at the regional and national levels, will focus on areas of concern to small business owners. The three greatest concerns are easing government-imposed burdens, improving access to capital and making businesses aware of opportunities. Government burdens include taxation and environmental regulation. Capital needs to be more readily available through simplified and relaxed loan procedures. Improvements are needed in education, health care and small business involvement in international trade.

Citation Details
Title: The White House Conference on Small Business.
Author: Lisa A. Winton
Publication: The Tax Adviser (Magazine/Journal)
Date: November 1, 1994
Publisher: American Institute of CPA's
Volume: 25 Issue: n11 Page: 710(3)

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