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Biz Brain takes your business questions

• Ask the Biz Brain
I can understand how you can report an index rose or fell, but how is it possible for anyone to say why? Aren't there thousands of individual, mutual and pension fund investors? It's impossible to contact and ask everyone.

• Ask the Biz Brain
I'm 43 and I'd like to open a Roth IRA to take advantage of what will hopefully be a nice market turnaround over the next five to 10 years. I have $5,000 to invest. Is it better to split it among specific stocks or pick a good mutual fund? Or maybe an index fund or something aggressive, like an extended market or small-cap fund?--Edward

• Ask the Biz Brain
My mom died recently at 101. She signed her home over to me and my siblings in 1992. She had life tenancy 'til her death. We recently sold the house and shared the proceeds. What are the tax consequences that I face for my share?

• Ask the Biz Brain
Many banks advertise themselves as being better, safer, solid, and so on. I want to put money into money market savings, but a lot of banks seem to be in trouble. Can I still trust ratings on BankRate.com? How can I know which ones are really solid?

• Ask the Biz Brain
I've told my wife that her fixed annuity with AIG is safe but she is not convinced. Is it?

• Ask the Biz Brain
Can an IRA be placed into a Unified Credit Trust?

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How do you buy DRIPs? I have a broker, but I don't want to pay commissions and I don't know if he would tell me how to do this.

• Ask the Biz Brain
I am considering cashing out an investment at a loss. I have held the investment for under a year. Is a short-term loss tax deductible to the same extent as a long-term loss? Is there any tax benefit to waiting until it becomes a long-term loss?

• Biz Buzz: One group's worst CEO could be another's best
The Free Enterprise Action Fund has made an annual practice of naming chief executives it considers to be among the worst of the year.

• Ask the Biz Brain
How do "zero percent financing" and "no payments until 2010" really work?

• Ask the Biz Brain
My friend recently had a stroke and set up a Power of Attorney. Her attorney said it needed to be registered with Freehold Township. My friends and I all have Powers of Attorney and none of us remember our respective attorneys saying they needed to be registered. Do we need to register it for it to be effective?

• Ask the Biz Brain
My property value has decreased considerably, so how do I get my New Jersey property taxes lowered? They were assessed at the height of the real estate bubble.

• Ask the Biz Brain
I know money market mutual funds can and occasionally have "broken a buck," or par value went below $1. Can bank money market accounts break a buck?

• Ask the Biz Brain
I have approximately $10,000 worth of Series EE bonds in my 22-year-old son's name. He recently graduated college and his $212/monthly school loan payment will soon start.