What is a LinkedIn Profile? Your LinkedIn profile is the landing page that your connections, recruiters, and others see when they view your information on LinkedIn. Your profile includes details on your job qualifications, employment history, education, skills, experience, volunteering, articles you have posted, and content you have commented on or liked. Think of your LinkedIn profile as an online resume. Like your resume, it should demonstrate your abilities, work experience, and education....

When you take out a HELOC, you have a “draw period,” which is the specific time period you are able to access your available credit. During this time, you can make a withdrawal anytime you wish. Learn more about how to use a HELOC when you need funds to cover expenses. How Does a HELOC Draw Period Work? The draw period of a HELOC, which is typically 10 years, is the period when you are allowed to withdraw cash from your home equity line of credit....

Learn the benefits of writing a check payable to cash, as well as the potential risks involved. What Is a Check to Cash? A check payable to cash has the word “Cash” on the line where you normally write the payee’s name. Because, in this instance, the check is not payable to a particular person or organization—anybody who has possession of the check can cash or deposit the check. Part of the process of writing a check is listing who should receive the funds, and most checks go to a specific payee....

Credit card issuers use a variety of factors to set the credit limit for credit cards, and until they’ve considered these factors, they can’t offer a firm credit limit to you. Factors That Affect Your Credit Limit The Type of Credit Card Think of credit cards as a product with predefined features. Like the interest rate and fees, credit limits are another predefined feature. How credit limit is set depends on the credit card....

In short, “coupon” tells you what the bond paid when it was issued. The yield—or “yield to maturity”—tells you how much you will be paid in the ​future. Here’s how it works. Coupon vs. Yield to Maturity A bond has a variety of features when it’s first issued, including the size of the issue, the maturity date, and the initial coupon. For example, the U.S. Treasury might issue a 30-year bond in 2019 that’s due in 2049 with a coupon of 2%....

In this article, you’ll learn the definition of index funds, how index funds work, and the various types of index funds. Index Fund Definition Index funds are mutual funds that are designed to track the returns of a market index. An index is a group of securities that represents a particular segment of the market (stock market, bond market, etc.). Among the most well-known companies that develop market indexes are Standard & Poor’s and Dow Jones....

To help you feel confident in choosing the best fit for your needs, we’ll go over the differences between these two types of insurance professionals. What’s the Difference Between Agents and Brokers? Insurance agents who work exclusively for one company are known as “captive agents," while those who work for multiple insurers are called “independent” agents. In general, captive agents sell more personal lines, like home and auto insurance, than independent agents, who focus more on commercial insurance....

Learn more about interns, internships, and what they entail. What Are Interns and Internships? An intern usually works at a company for a short period of time to gain knowledge about working in a particular field. They may learn about the day-to-day functions of a particular position or department and gain work experience to add to their resume. Internships also afford interns the opportunity to experience a line of work before they’ve fully committed to a career path....

Here’s what you need to know to develop an effective response to this interview question. What the Interviewer Wants to Know Pay attention to that second part of the question, about how you handled the issue. Your interviewer is not interested in dishing on how evil your last boss was or how messed up your previous employer’s stock inventory system was. Instead, this question is your opportunity to share how you deal with adversity and challenge....

Cryptocurrencies in January represented 13% of the average investor’s portfolio compared to 3.8% a year earlier, according to a report by consumer data company Cardify, based on analysis of transaction data. Cryptocurrency deposits grew by 10 times in that period, compared to 2.6 times for retail investing fueled by new investors who account for 41.5% of all cryptocurrency deposits, up from 14.8% in November. The popularity, and the price, of digital currency appears to be outpacing knowledge of how it works: Only 16....

How Does An Invoice Work? An invoice is an itemized bill for goods or services to be paid at a later time. Note the word “itemized,” meaning that each item on the bill or each charge is listed separately. Also, note that the invoice includes information on when the customer must pay (more on this later). Invoices vs. Bills, Receipts, and Purchase Orders Invoices are essentially bills, but they are more complex than a simple bill because they are itemized and they include terms of payment....

Leaving your plan money behind at your employer is an acceptable choice, that’s not what typically occurs. The money, which had been earmarked for retirement, is often cashed out instead. This retirement plan distribution is usually subject to federal taxes, state taxes, and an early distribution penalty as a result. You’ll also lose future growth on the money you take out. An IRA Rollover Is Often the Smart Way to Go An IRA rollover is a relatively simple process where the full amount of your qualified plan balance is effectively transferred to an Individual Retirement Account (IRA)....

ARM Terminology Index: A mortgage index is a guide that lenders use to measure interest rate changes. Common indexes used by lenders include the activity of one-, three-, and five-year Treasury securities, but there are many others. Each ARM is linked to a specific index. Margin: Think of the margin as the lender’s markup. It is an interest rate that represents the lender’s cost of doing business plus the profit they will make on the loan....

Adjustable-Rate Mortgages If you have an adjustable-rate mortgage and your rate has reset to a higher rate than the initial low rate, it is definitely worth looking into a refinance. The good news is that adjustable-rate mortgages can change their interest rates over the term of the loan, and when rates are going down, that can be good. But the real problem is that even so, you’re still likely to find that you’re paying more than you would be with a fixed-rate mortgage....

Here’s a quick look at the most significant economic indicators of the day and what they tell us. Job Openings A Bureau of Labor Statistics report showed workers maintained their upper hand in the job market in February.In a bit of good news for employers, the number of people hired edged up 4.1% from January. Other than that, though, the story was a by-now familiar tale of near-record job openings (steady at 11....

The best way to use lagging indicators is in conjunction with the two other types. The first are leading indicators. These include stock prices, manufacturers’ orders for durable goods, and interest rates. They predict new phases in the business cycle. These indicators are better understood with some foundational knowledge of what causes the business cycle. You should also look at coincident indicators, such as gross domestic product and employment. They tell you what is happening right now....

And at 78 years old, she’s excited to achieve this lifelong goal. Gamez is one of a growing number of Latinos who are accounting for an increasingly larger percentage of first-time homebuyers. While her age may be unusual for a first-time Latino homebuyer, the story of how she got to this point is not. She’s long dreamed of owning her own place, but until recently has struggled to save for a down payment or keep her credit score healthy....

Federal student loans, in particular, have a number of repayment and forgiveness options that can make it easier to deal with debt. Standard Repayment Plan This is the default repayment plan and will go into effect if you make no alternate choice. Payments are set at a fixed amount, and the loan is paid off over a 10-year period (or up to 30 years for consolidation loans). Who Is This Best For?...

Example Art owns a small auto repair business called A-1 Auto Service. He employs two mechanics, Bill and Ed. One day, a customer named Susan drops off her pickup truck so the shop can install a new alternator. Bill completes the work and then prepares to take the truck for a test drive. He is backing the vehicle out of the bay when he accidentally collides with a car Ed is driving into a second bay....

Buying put options on commodities futures contracts can be an effective way to take a short position in a commodity. When one purchases a put option, the risk is limited to the price paid for the put option (the premium) plus any commissions and exchange fees. Buying or selling a futures contract exposes a trader to potentially unlimited losses. Most traders do not exercise put options (or convert into a short futures position)....