When it comes to our own personal finances, we can find almost anything we need on the Internet, provided we know where to look.
The World Wide Web is a vast wellspring for financial novices and junkies alike, but it also is a minefield littered with sites providing less-than-correct information or self-promotional data from sources with distinct conflicts of interest or worse.
It is those problems that prompt readers to write, looking for good Web sites to help them assess their goals and needs or that can assist in finding the right investment to make next.
Today, we’re going to talk about some of my favorite Web sites for various types of financial information. Depending on what you need to do with your finances or what kind of information you want, trolling these sites could be a big help.
I will warn you upfront that this is not a listing of “the best” Web sites. I haven’t looked at everything and would not presume to know all of the criteria that make a Web site great.
Rather, these sites meet my criteria, which are:
1) Free information. Yes, there are some great subscription sites, some with unique content, but nothing that is so important that I either can’t find most of the data elsewhere or simply live without it.
2) No sales pressure and limited conflicts of interest. There are, for example, plenty of good locales run by mutual fund and investment companies (www.vanguard.com tops that list), but there is always a subtle undercurrent that goes along with the information.
Either there is overt pressure to order a prospectus or sign up for a service, or there is subtle nudging toward downloading that kind of stuff. I prefer my financial material without the undertones.
3) Easy navigation. Nothing is worse than going to a site expecting to find, say, credit card rates, and getting lost along the way.
And while a lot of sites promise real-time, up-to-the-second stock quotes, that is not an enticement for me. It’s easy to check prices in a reasonably timely fashion; if you have gone from where a once-a-day check or 15 minutes of lag time is insufficient, you may be making the transition from investor to day trader.
So with those criteria out of the way, here are some sites you should look at if you want information on the following subjects:
– Credit cards. If you are searching for a new credit card or a better rate, the place to look is www.cardtrak.com. In its “card surveys” section, it has the most detailed lists I have found for low-rate, no-fee, rebate, secured, gold cards and more. The best thing is that the surveys have depth. It is not just rates and data from a few providers; there are plenty to choose from, so you can shop for terms you like the best.
– Stock data. One of the most common questions I am asked involves where to go for historical data on stocks. Investors need those numbers to help determine their cost basis on a stock, or to use in complicated charts for whatever investment system they have designed. From daily numbers to ancient history, you should be able to find it at www.dailystocks.com.
– Market news. This is one area where it can be hard to distinguish one Web site from the next. Almost every site can give you up-to-the-second market news; the trick is finding something with a little heft, the kind of detail that makes you comfortable that you haven’t missed out on anything.
Not only does cbs.marketwatch.com fit the bill, it has some other nice features, including a good mutual fund center and more. So, too, does cnnfn.com, which is every bit as thorough and complete. Best of all, both of these free sites compare favorably with several of those pay sites that charge $9.95 a month.
– Interest rates. If you want to know what is happening with any type of interest rate, from auto loans to credit cards to certificates of deposit, mortgages and more, go to www.bankrate.com. Bank Rate Monitor, the leading rate follower in the country, has made this site ideal for comparison shopping; before you close on a loan, invest in a CD or do any rate-sensitive transaction, look here and find out how your deal compares with regional and/or national averages.
If your interest is money market funds, however, head to www.ibcdata.com. IBC Financial Data is the leading provider of rate and yield information on money funds, so it is no surprise the Web site can walk you through the selection process and help you find the right match for your needs.
– Mutual funds. As in most things mutual fund, Morningstar Inc. leads the pack. Its site, www.morningstar.net, is not perfect. I’d like to see more detailed ways to screen funds, for instance, but it is hard to beat the breadth of research and the depth of commentary you will find here.
Best of all, this site is free of the conflicts found in many fund sites. There are plenty of places that offer fund advice, but few where the experts have such uncompromised knowledge and integrity; considering that most of those other sites rely on Morningstar data, you might start your search here and save yourself a few clicks of the mouse.
– Bonds. Unlike the stock market, the world of bonds is often shrouded in mystery. If you are lucky enough to understand how bonds work, you often can’t get prices or can’t find bonds that meet your needs.
For just those reasons, the Bond Market Association created www.investinginbonds.com. Launched in March, this site clearly is still evolving, but it offers a crash course in bond details, from corporates to mortgage securities and inflation-indexed Treasuries.
– Financial calculators. If you like the idea of plugging your numbers into a few boxes to see where you are, where you are going, what might be right for you or what could be going wrong, www.financenter.com is the place for you. Every calculator you could think of is here. These calculators, however, are based on broad generalities and rules of thumb, so before taking their results to heart and overhauling your financial approach, you may want to seek the more direct guidance of a financial adviser.
– Other financial Web data. One of the big problems with the Internet is that it is hard to figure out where to look. Search engines are great, but it is easy to miss relevant sites.
To avoid that problem–especially when looking for information not mentioned in one of the previously cited locales–
check www.investorama.com or www.cyberinvest.com. The two are a tossup–Investorama is a a complete directory of investing resources on-line, but some people might find it easier to navigate cyberinvest.
