The Personal Finance Calculator: How to Calculate the Most Important Financial Decisions in Your Life Book

	Acknowledgments	vii
	Introduction	ix
Part 1	Assessing Your Current Wealth
	Financial Calculator
1	How to Determine Your Net Worth	3
2	How to Determine a Cash Inflows and Outflows Statement	8
3	How to Formulate a Budget	12
4	Time Value of Money and What It Can Do for You	20
5	Simple Interest and How to Calculate It	22
6	Compound Interest and How to Determine Future Value	23
7	What You Need to Know About Nominal Versus Effective Interest Rates and How to Calculate the Effective Rate	30
8	Present Value and How to Calculate It	33
9	Annuities and How to Calculate Them	37
10	How to Determine the Amounts Needed to Fund Your Objectives	52
11	How to Reconcile Your Checking Account	61
12	How to Prepare Your Records for Your Tax Accountant	68
Part 2	Managing Your Personal Wealth--Debt
	Financial Calculator
13	Determine Your Debt Capacity	75
14	How to Determine the Best Source of Credit	77
15	How to Determine the Annual Percentage Rate Costs of Using Credit Loans	81
16	How to Determine the Rate of Interest on Your Credit Cards	90
17	How to Manage Your Debt	94
18	How Much of a Mortgage Can You Afford?	99
19	How to Calculate Your Monthly Mortgage Payment	103
20	How to Determine Your Mortgage Balance	107
21	Determine Your Mortgage Balance When Additional Principal Payments Are Made	111
22	Adjustable Rate Mortgages and How They Work	114
23	Which Type of Mortgage Should You Choose?	121
24	When Should You Refinance Your Mortgage?	125
25	Should You Rent or Buy a House?	127
26	What You Should Know About Leasing a Car and How a Lease Works	131
27	Should You Buy, Lease, or Finance Your Car?	136
28	How to Create a Simple Interest Loan Schedule	142
Part 3	Managing Your Personal Wealth--Investments
	Financial Calculator
29	Determine Your Investment Objectives	149
30	Determine Your Risk Tolerance	152
31	How to Allocate Your Investments	158
32	How to Determine Your Equity Style in the Selection of Individual Stocks	165
33	How to Determine Which Types of Bonds to Buy for a Portfolio	171
34	How to Rebalance Your Portfolio	175
35	The Rule of 72 and How to Use It to Determine How Long It Will Take to Double Your Money	179
36	How to Assess and Balance Risk and Return in the Choice of Different Investments	180
37	How to Calculate a Simple Rate of Return for Stocks and Bonds	186
38	How to Determine a Rate of Return for a Mutual Fund	190
39	How to Determine the Yield on Treasury Bills	193
40	How to Determine the Purchase and Selling Price of Treasury Bills	197
41	How to Buy and Sell Treasury Securities Directly from the Federal Reserve	201
42	How to Convert Municipal Bond Yields to Before-Tax Yields	207
43	Duration and How It Can Help You in the Choice of Bonds for Your Portfolio	211
44	How to Value Bonds	217
45	How to Value Common Stock	220
46	How to Determine the Growth Rate of a Stock	226
47	How to Analyze and Evaluate Your Common Stocks	229
48	How to Choose a Mutual Fund	246
49	How to Determine the Tax Consequences of Buying and Selling Shares in a Mutual Fund	254
50	How to Determine the Average Cost in Dollar Cost Averaging	259
Part 4	Planning for Your Future
	Financial Calculator
51	How to Determine Your Future Financial Needs and How to Fund Them	265
52	How to Determine How Long Your Money Will Last in Retirement and the Amount of the Payment in a Systematic Withdrawal Plan	272
	Appendices	277
	Index	287