Bookmark these financial Web sites

Basic financial Web sites on subjects from accountants to zero-coupon bonds.

Bookmark these financial Web sites

With all the financial Web sites available today, it's difficult to know where to start in your search for solid, basic information. Here's our guide to the best of the financial Web sites, on subjects from A to Z.

Jump to:

Choose article section...Accountants Automobiles Bonds Financial Calculators Financial Planners Insurance Interest rates Lawyers Money-market rates Mortgage calculators Mutual funds Savings bonds and treasuries State Insurance Departments Stocks Taxes Zero-coupon bonds

Accountants

American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
www.aicpa.org/yellow/ypascpa.htm

Although AICPA doesn't give referrals to CPAs, many state CPA societies have set up their own referral services. Links to these organizations are listed here.

Automobiles

Kelley Blue Book,
www.kbb.com

Edmunds.com
www.edmunds.com

Wide-ranging automotive information resources provide new car prices and used car values along with coverage of insurance, financing, buying, selling, and leasing topics.

Bonds

Bond Market Association
www.investinginbonds.com

This site supplies comprehensive education on the world of bond investing as well as prices of municipals, corporates, and treasuries.

Financial Calculators

Bankrate.com
www.bankrate.com/goocalg/rate/calc_home.asp

Nolo's Plain English Law Centers Calculators
www.nolo.com/lawcenter/calc/index.cfm

A myriad of financial calculators are available at Bankrate.com; savings, currency, credit card payments, cost of living comparisons, among others. Nolo is a self-help legal information Web site that also provides a number of calculators: how much you'll need to save for a new car, the cost of renting vs the cost of buying a home, as well as interest and payment calculators, and the time it'll take to reach your financial goals.

Financial Planners

Financial Planning Association (FPA)
www.fpanet.org/plannersearch/plannersearch.cfm

National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA)
www.napfa.org

These associations provide searchable databases of their members. The FPA's PlannerSearch finds Certified Financial Planner (CFP) professionals and NAPFA's Find-a Planner includes fee-only advisers.

Insurance

Insurance Information Institute
www.iii.org

Constructive advice on auto, health, home, business, life, disability, and other types of insurance from the organization whose mission is to improve public understanding of insurancewhat it does and how it works.

Interest rates

Bankrate.com
www.bankrate.com

Find the best rates in your area on loans, mortgages, CDs, savings accounts, and more. Objective advice on these and many other financial topics is featured on this site.

Lawyers

Martindale-Hubbell's Martindale.com
lawyers.martindale.com/xp/Martindale/home.xml

Search for a lawyer in your area, by name, by specialty, by firm, and more.

Money-market rates

iMoneyNet
www.ibcdata.com

Search for the best money-market mutual fund rates, both taxable and tax-free; learn the basics of money-market fund investing.

Mortgage calculators

Interest.com
www.interest.com/calculators

HSH Associates, Financial Publishers
www.hsh.com/calculators.html

Besides being able to calculate payments, refinancing, prepayments, and many other important figures for the home buyer/owner, both sites allow you to shop around for the best mortgage rates in your area.

Mutual funds

Morningstar.com
www.morningstar.com

The premier site for any and all kinds of mutual fund information, both on specific funds and in general.

Savings bonds and treasuries

US Department of the Treasury's Bureau of the Public Debt
www.publicdebt.treas.gov

Visit this site if you're thinking of investing in any kind of treasury security. Savings bond calculators and TreasuryDirect (investing directly with the US Treasury) are two of the services featured here.

State Insurance Departments

National Association of Insurance Commissioners
www.naic.org/state_contacts/sid_websites.htm

Click on the map or the links to go to your state insurance department's Web site.

Stocks

Quicken
www.quicken.com/investments

Morningstar.com
www.morningstar.com

Quicken long ago established itself as one of the leading suppliers for stock information, providing volumes of detailed objective information on thousands of issues.

Taxes

Internal Revenue Service's The Digital Daily
www.irs.gov

Nolo's Plain English LawCenters Taxes & Audits
www.nolo.com/lawcenter/ency/index.cfm (click on Taxes & Audits)

The IRS site publishes tax forms, instructions and publications, as well as a wealth of tax information for individuals and businesses. Nolo, a self-help legal information Web site, explains how to deal with the IRS and offers tips on what to do if you can't afford your tax bill.