Boston Public Library
Kirstein Business Library

Concourse Level, Johnson Building, Central Library, 617-859-2142

Retirement Resources on the Internet

Broker Check | Calculators | Financial Planners | General Resources | Investing for Retirement |
Investor Protection | Jobs for Older Adults | Medicare / Medicaid | Organizations | Pension Information | Periodicals

 

Broker Check

  • FINRA
    http://www.finra.org/InvestorInformation/index.htm
    Financial Industry Regulatory Authority FINRA provides information on investor protection and smart investing. To get to “Broker Check”, click on “Tools and Calculators”, then “FINRA Broker Check” on the left side of the page. www.finra.org/Investors/ToolsCalculators/BrokerCheck/index.htm
  • Investment Advisor Public Disclosure (IAPD)
    http://www.adviserinfo.sec.gov
    Search for an investment adviser firm on this web site and view that firm’s Form ADV. Investment advisers file Form ADV to register with the SEC and/or the states. Form ADV contains information about an investment adviser and its business operations. Form ADV also contains disclosure about certain disciplinary events involving the adviser and its key personnel.
  • Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth Securities Division
    http://www.sec.state.ma.us/sct/
    Call the Securities Division of the Massachusetts’ Secretary of the Commonwealth if you have questions about your broker.

Calculators

  • Choose to Save
    www.choosetosave.org
    American Savings Education Council.
    Tool to help figure out how much money one needs for retirement.
  • Dinkytown
    www.dinkytown.net
    KJE Computer Solutions
    Interactive calculators for investment and retirement planning.

 

Financial Planners

Start by looking at the Investor Protection Trust website ( http://www.investorprotection.org/learn/) and their Investor Protection Booklets. “Getting Help with your Investments” has sections on “Choosing and Using a Broker” and “What a Financial Advisor can do for You”. The “How to Pick an Advisor” section lists a few of the many acronyms that describe financial professionals for example CFP (Certified Financial Planner), ChFC (Chartered Financial Consultant), and CPA/PFS (Certified Public Accountant/Personal Financial Specialist). You can contact your public library for help understanding these and other acronyms.

  • American Institute of CPAs
    http://pfp.aicpa.org
    The Personal Financial Planning Division will provide the names of Certified Public Accountants with the CPA/PFS credential.
  • Financial Planning Association
    http://www.fpaforfinancialplanning.org
    This association connects those who need and deliver financial planning. Click on “Find a Planner” or other useful links.
  • Internet Retirement Alliance
    http://www.ira.com
    Retirement planning help from unbiased financial planning experts. Click on “Using a Professional” in the “Research Center” section.
  • Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth Securities Division
    http://www.sec.state.ma.us/sct/
    Call the Securities Division of the Massachusetts’ Secretary of the Commonwealth if you have questions about your financial advisor.
  • National Association of Personal Financial Advisors
    http://www.napfa.org
    Financial planning professionals that work on a fee-only basis.
  • Society of Financial Service Professionals
    http://www.financialpro.org
    This is an organization of a variety of financial service professionals including CFPs, CPAs, insurance specialists, employee benefits specialists, attorneys and more that will send you the names of professionals that are advisors, or you can request names via its website.

 

General Resources

 

Investing for Retirement

  • Bank Rate Monitor
    www.bankrate.com
    Provides interest rate figures from 4800 financial institutions.
  • Motley Fool
    www.fool.com
    Investment and retirement information from popular financial experts.
  • Mutual Fund Investors Center
    www.mfea.com
    Extensive information on mutual funds.
  • Yahoo.com
    http://finance.yahoo.com
    Yahoo finance has retirement and investment information.

 

Investor Protection

 

Jobs for Older Adults

 

Medicare / Medicaid

  • Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
    www.medicare.gov
    Official site for information about Medicare and enrollment.
  • MA Medicare/Medicaid Outreach and Education Program
    www.medicareoutreach.org
    Click on the SHINE link on the left side of the page to learn about the SHINE initiative (Serving the Health Information Needs of Elders).

 

Organizations

 

Pension Information

  • CCH Capital Changes Reporter
    http://www.bpl.org/electronic/business.asp
    Search this database for a chronological history of a stock’s changes in corporate capital structure, including name changes, mergers, spin-offs, bankruptcy filings, stock splits, etc. This database must be used in the library. Please ask a librarian for assistance.
  • Pension Action Center
    www.pensionaction.org
    Pension Action Center at the University of Massachusetts/Boston. New England Pension Assistance Project-help find “lost” pensions.
  • Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation
    www.pbgc.gov
    Website will help locate a “lost” defined benefit pension.

 

Periodicals

  • Better Investing Magazine
    www.betterinvesting.org
    Offers educational support for the individual investor and helps one start and maintain an investment club.
  • Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc.
    www.kiplinger.com
    Provides unbiased financial information for retirement and personal finance.