THIS WEBSITE---Clean, crisp, straight-talk, no jargon or gobble-de-gook, easy to navigate, valuable information and advice.

BOB ROSEFSKY is one of the nation’s most distinguished authorities on personal finance. A multi-award winning author, broadcaster and educator, he has published 12 books, including his long-running college textbook, “Personal Finance.” (See right column for more details.) His Emmy Award winning college-credit TV series, based on the textbook, was nationally distributed by PBS for over 25 years. He has also won the prestigious national John Hancock Award for Excellence in Financial Journalism.

THE UNIVERSITY OF BOB is an admittedly light-hearted title for a serious subject, but it was chosen because it illustrates Bob’s sense of humor and his light touch on weighty matters, as well as his educational skills. Web technology now allows him to offer his expertise to a much wider audience in a much more efficient way.

THE COURSES

SPEAKING DOLLAR-WISE--These postings will keep you up-to-date and give you valuable action insights into the world of money. Bob has no sponsors and is not beholden to anyone. He tells it like it is, often to the dismay of those who are selling something.

LIFE'S A TRIP is designed to help get you the best values for your travel dollars, and your (ever-increasing) leisure expenses. Bob owes no favors. His opinions are based on real-life experiences, for better or for worse.

ENRICH YOUR RETIREMENT--(Baby Boomers take note!) This course will help you mind your money and nourish your mind. It includes a unique program that can be very personally fulfilling: A SPA FOR YOUR BRAIN.

"WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?"--Whimsical observations of America's foibles, taken from a unique book written by retrospective speculative historian Hubert Hindsight and published in the year 2020.

COMMENTS?
Bob welcomes your comments but regrets he cannot respond to them all individually. Send them to info@universityofbob.com.

There is no fee and no registration required to make use of the University of Bob website. You will be completely anonymous.

If you want to go beyond the website you can access Bob Rosefsky’s broader source of expertise--his college textbook, “Personal Finance.” As originally published by John Wiley & Sons, one of the nation’s major textbook publishers, it was sold in hardcover for close to $140--a fearsome price. It was used by by colleges across the country for eight editions and 25 years.

The complete 700 page Eighth Edition is available here for a limited time AT NO CHARGE. The book is written in "plain talk" language and covers virtually all personal financial concerns. Of particular importance are the extra end-of-chapter features which explain how the economy impacts on our lives, plus how to anticipate and solve real-life financial problems, and much more. PLEASE NOTE: Give the pages a few moments to load. Some of the first few pages are blank, owing to the way the book was originally published. The "Quick Click" links and the Update Link (www.wiley...etc.)are no longer operative; they will be replaced in the website's articles. Scroll to the textbook's Table of Contents for a complete look at the subject matter.

Click below to access the book, which is viewable on your monitor but not currently downloadable. The contents of the Eighth Edition, plus the postings on this website, will constitute the Ninth Edition of Personal Finance.



Advertisers whose products or services might appear on this site are not affiliated with--nor should their appearance here be construed in any way as an endorsement by--The University of Bob or Bob Rosefsky personally.

This website was constructed by Mike Gerber (www.mikegerber.com.)

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©2008 Robert S. Rosefsky. All rights reserved.

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

PERSONAL FINANCE---A LOOK AT THE BOOK


As the right column on this home page states, you have free access to PERSONAL FINANCE, a college textbook by Bob Rosefsky. The first edition was published in 1978 and the eighth edition in 2003. It was used by hundreds of colleges around the country, and PBS was the national distributor of a college-credit television course based on the book. The regular postings on this website will continually update the book. You don't have to register or sign in to access the book. Just click on the box near the bottom of the right column, and it's all yours on your monitor. To return from the textbook to this Home Page just click on the Back Button.


The book is over 700 pages long. There's a lot of ground to cover. Take it in bits and pieces as your needs dictate. To help you navigate, following is a quick summary of the five parts of PERSONAL FINANCE. You can scroll to a detailed Table of Contents of the book in its front pages (not to be confused with the Table of Contents for the articles on this website, which can be accessed from the Home Page.)


Part One---FAMILY ECONOMICS---offers a unique explanation of How the Economy Works, and how it impacts on our day-to-day lives. This has been a very popular part of the book, as it offers a clear and easy-to-understand translation of the mumbo-jumbo that the media and economists toss around. It also explains how governmental policies affect us, whether we like them or not.


Other chapters in Part One include Working, Planning and Budgeting---the nitty-gritty on how to structure the best ways to provide yourself and your family with the needs and the luxuries. Sensible Shopping and Spending contains an abundance of tips on how to get the best values for your money. Frauds, Swindles and How to Avoid Them exposes Snake Oil Sam, his army of con artists, and how they conspire to separate you from your money. Part One concludes with a chapter on Transportation---getting the best value when you buy, finance and insure your cars.


Part Two---A ROOF OVER YOUR HEAD---deals with all aspects of housing: Buying a Home, Financing a Home, Housing Costs and Regulations, Renting and Selling Your Home. It contains numerous charts to help you figure all the costs you'll face, and explains the often misunderstood gobble-de-gook of how mortgages work.


Part Three---WHERE THE MONEY IS---describes the various types of Financial Institutions you can make use of, and the regulations that control them. There is a detailed discussion of Credit and Borrowing, to help you get the loans you need, when you need them, on the best possible terms. Credit abuses and Cures for Overindebtedness are also explored.


Part Four---MAKING YOUR MONEY GROW---covers the full spectrum of investing, starting with an Overview, and delving deeply (but clearly) into The Money Market, The Stock Market, plus Real Estate and Other Opportunities. These chapters will help you determine how much risk you can and should take, how the stock market works, how to evaluate various types of investments, how to measure your return and what criteria you should use in judging an investment. Among the "other opportunities" are discussions on investing in commodities, collectibles, foreign currencies and many other situations that are often pitched (too vigorously?) on television.


Part Five---PROTECTING WHAT YOU WORK FOR---covers the main kinds of personal insurance you should evaluate: Life, Health and Disability Income. All of the basics of insurance policy lingo are explained, and checklists are available to help you determine how much of each kind of coverage you might need. Chapters on Financial Planning for the Later Years and Estate Planning cover the range of retirement concerns, and the discussions are geared not just to retirees but to the children of retirees, who themselves must deal with these matters in the not-too-distant future. The chapter on Income Taxes illustrates ways you can protect your income most effectively from Uncle Sam. And a final chapter on Working For Yourself explores all of the factors you must take into account if you plan to go it alone.


EXTRA FEATURES: All chapters begins with segments titled This Could Happen to You, and What You Need to Know. These segments introduce the realities of financial life and how to prepare yourself to deal with them. Other features in all chapters include Caveats (warnings about dangers in that respective subject area); Strategies for Success (tips that can pay off for you); Personal Action Worksheets (helping you determine how you'll take action if faced with various financial dilemmas); Consumer Alerts (to prepare you to deal with ongoing trends that can affect your financial well-being); Ups and Downs---The Economics of Everyday Life (why things happen that impact on your finances); What If...? (self-quizzes asking you to plan how you would deal with various real life possibilities); and Number Crunchers (how to do the calculations you need to make the right decisions on real life financial possibilities.)


The book concludes with a comprehensive Glossary, explaining all the words and phrases that make up financial reality, and a detailed Index.

posted by Bob Rosefsky at 10:01 AM