Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, January 13, 1992 TAG: 9201130025
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-7 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MAG POFF
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
DON'T LAY CLAIM TO THIS SCAM
Q: I am constantly receiving a card from a company called Unclaimed Funds Network of Pompano Beach, Fla. They state: "Unclaimed funds have been located and are being held for you." Also printed on the card under the heading of Instructions is: "Please send this card immediately to receive your Cash Award. Send this card along with . . . $9.97 to receive prompt shipment of the Network Data Package and your guaranteed cash award."Is this a sales pitch to get $9.97 in money from me? How good is the company's reputation in refunding unclaimed funds of cash?
A: "It's a rip-off," according to Mary Frances Stephanz, executive secretary of the Better Business Bureau of Western Virgina. And, "it's been around for a while," she said.
This particular scam was put out of business in the 1970s, she said, but recently made a revival.
Stephanz said you won't get anything for your money. It's the sweepstakes scheme that sends you a few pennies for your "share."
The Better Business Bureau of South Florida issued a bulletin this year urging people to contact the proper officials to determine if they might have unclaimed property in a specific state. The state lost-and-found in Florida is the Abandoned Property Section of the Florida Comptroller's Office, The Capitol, Tallahassee, Fla. 32301. The phone number is 904-487-0510.
Finding a planner
Q: My husband will be retiring in several months and will be taking his pension in a lump sum. We definitely could use some professional advice and would appreciate your recommendations for a fee-only financial planner in this area. We've already been contacted by any number of investment brokers looking for business. I'd rather pay someone who is looking out for our interests.
A: The Institute of Certified Financial Planners, the nation's largest association of financial planning professionals, maintains a toll-free consumer assistance line to help people locate certified planners in their own areas.
The association will also send you a copy of "Selecting a Qualified Financial Planning Professional: Twelve Questions to Consider."
To obtain a list for your area, call 1-800-282-PLAN (7526). From that list, you can choose a fee-only planner.
Keep cash at hand
Q: My husband is in a nursing home which costs me about $25,000 a year. I get help for half of this amount.
I have two CDs coming due which will automatically renew at the current low rate if I don't invest in something else. One is for $20,000 and one for $7,000. I thought I would put $10,000 in savings to pay for 1992 and invest the remaining $17,000 in a fund of government securities with either Vanguard or Federal Investors-AARP Liberty account. I could withdraw what I needed for 1993, if I need it.
Am I thinking correctly? I can meet my living expenses with our Social Security, his retirement checks and what I make selling Avon.
A: Both funds are highly rated by Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine. If you choose Vanguard, opt for the short-term government fund.
You are right to put the money where you can reach it as you need it rather than lock it up in a bank certificate. If you can accept the volatility of a fund, you should get a somewhat higher return as well.
Mag Poff covers banking and finance for the Roanoke Times & World-News. She will help find answers to your personal finance questions. Send them to her at the Roanoke Times & World-News, P.O. Box 2491, Roanoke, Va. 24010.