Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, July 31, 1995 TAG: 9507310011
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MAG POFF
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
A: First Union Corp., which purchased Roanoke-based Dominion Bankshares in 1993, has agreed to settle claims of some persons who had purchased Dominion stock. Plaintiffs in that suit alleged that they were misled about Dominion's financial condition at the time they bought the stock.
Arthur Strickland, a Roanoke lawyer who is local counsel for the plaintiffs, said the claim period covers stock purchases made between March 6, 1989, and July 17, 1990.
Strickland said the fund available for claimants totals about $3 million after payment of legal and administrative fees.
People who purchased stock between those two dates originally had to file their claims by May 1. Strickland said the date was extended to July 9 because of complications in determining which Dominion employees were covered. Dominion had four employee investment and pension plans that had purchased company stock, and it took time to determine which employees were entitled to file claims. Strickland described that job as "a nightmare."
The court has appointed Heffler, Radetich and Saitta, a Philadelphia firm of certified public accountants, to study and report on the claims.
Michael Bancroft, who is handling the matter for the Heffler firm, said it received 3,019 claims by the July 9 deadline. Some are still straggling in and are marked as being received late.
Bancroft said each claim is being examined individually. Some are being rejected because they failed to file documentary evidence of the claim as required, while others are being rejected because the stock purchase did not fall between the specified dates. These people will be given time to file new evidence or appeal the rejection.
Bancroft said the firm plans to submit a report on its findings toward the end of the year. The report would include a tabulation of the amount of money each claimant would receive as a pro rata share of the funds available. The court would then consider the report and authorize payments.
Q: We're a young married couple, ages 23 and 24, with a small child. I'm looking for some advice for our financial planning for retirement and for our child's college education. We're on a limited budget, with $100 a month to invest. What would be the best options for us as far as long-term planning for retirement and the college fund? Also, what could we invest in that would have a good return within a few years? We're going to build a home within six years and looking for something that would grow quickly toward this new home.
A: If your employer has a retirement program at work, such as a 401(k) plan, you should be contributing as much as possible toward your retirement through this tax-deferred plan. This is especially true if your employer matches your contributions to the fund. If no such plan is available, you should set up an IRA to shelter part of your savings.
Because you are young and talking about very long-range goals for retirement and your child's college, you should invest in aggressive growth mutual funds. Historically, these investments have provided the highest return over the years, even though there always are down years. You should read Money and similar magazines for recommendations on the best no-load funds that have a goal of maximum growth.
Saving for a down payment on a house is more of a problem because you will have less time to ride out any downturns in the market. You should invest in any mutual fund with the idea of riding it out for at least five years. You might try investing in an aggressive fund within a family of mutual funds at first. As the date approaches for you to buy a house, you can switch into a more conservative fund within the same fund family. You should be able to make this switch at no cost.
Because you are starting on a savings program at a very young age, you should be able to build a significant amount of money through the miracle of compounding.
by CNB