All > Business > Finance > Insurance > Auto Insurance
A person who investigates and settles losses for an insurance carrier.
The person who manages the various aspects of the claim and determines what will be paid out in accordance with the policy and the facts.
A person who investigates and settles insurance claims.
- Browse Related Terms: Adjuster, Agency, claim, Claimant, Claims Adjuster, Covered Expenses, Deductible, Insured, Insurer, Limits, Loss, Occurrence, Settlement
All > Business > Finance > Insurance > Homeowners Insurance
A person who investigates and settles losses for an insurance carrier.
An individual employed by an insurer to evaluate losses and settle policyholder claims. Also see “public insurance adjuster.”
Texas Department of Insurance and Office of Public Insurance Counsel - Cite This Source - This Definition- Browse Related Terms: Adjuster, Agency, Claims Adjuster, Independent adjuster, Insurer, Public Adjuster, Public insurance adjuster, Staff adjuster
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance
The advance-decline line graphs the ratio of stocks that have risen in value - the advancers - to stocks that have fallen in value - the decliners - over a particular trading period.
The direction and steepness of the A-D line gives you a general idea of the direction of the market. For example, a noticeable upward trend, which is created when there are more advancers than decliners, indicates a growing market.
A downward slope indicates a market in retreat. At times, however, there may be no clear trend in either direction.
- Browse Related Terms: Advance-decline (A-D) line, Advancer, Decliner, Gainer, Loser, Rally, Sell-off
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance > Consumer Credit
A form of fraud in which consumers are asked to pay a fee up front and receive a quick loan of a large size with a very low APR. Consumers are lured to wire funds (oftentimes to Canada ) through newspaper and internet advertisements.
State of Maine, Department of Professional and Financial Regulation - Cite This Source - This Definition- Browse Related Terms: Advance Fee Loan Scam, Conforming Loan, construction loan, Credit Service Organization, Cure, Debit card, Default, Escrow Account, Jumbo, Loan/Mortgage Broker, processor, Third Party Fees
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance
Stocks that have gained, or increased, in value over a particular period are described as advancers.
If more stocks advance than decline - or lose value - over the course of a trading day, the financial press reports that advancers led decliners. When that occurs over a period of time, it's considered an indication that the stock market is healthy.
- Browse Related Terms: Advance-decline (A-D) line, Advancer, Decliner, Gainer, Loser, Rally, Sell-off
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance
Under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, a creditor's refusal to grant a loan on the terms requested, or termination of an existing line of credit loan.
- Browse Related Terms: Adverse Action, application, Credit score, Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), FICOî score, Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP)
Also listed in:
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance
The notice required by the Equal Credit Opportunity Act advising a loan applicant or existing debtor of the denial of their request for credit or advising of a change in terms considered unfavorable to the borrower. Freezing the line of credit on a home equity loan requires the financial institution to send the adverse action notice to the borrower describing why the financial institution froze the line.
- Browse Related Terms: Adverse Action Notice, Annual Percentage Rate (APR), Credit application, Discount rate, Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), Finance Charge, interest, Interest rate, Money factor, Origination fee, Periodic interest rate, Prequalification, Prime rate, Regulation Z, Right of rescission, Truth-in-Lending Act
Also listed in:
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance
A sworn statement in writing before a proper official, such as a notary public.
Also listed in:
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance > Consumer Credit > Credit Card
A card that offers rewards that benefit groups and organizations.
- Browse Related Terms: Affinity card, Credit counseling service, Opt-in, Opt-out, Premium credit card, Prime rate, Purchases
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance
Affinity fraud occurs when a dishonest person plays on your affiliation with a group - such as a house of worship, social club, support group, charity, or veterans' group - as a way to win your confidence in order to sell you something worthless or trick you into handing over cash.
The scammer may actually be a member of the group or may just pretend to be.
Affinity fraud is one the most difficult scams to protect yourself against because being suspicious of colleagues can undermine the reason you belong to a group.
- Browse Related Terms: Affinity fraud, Earnest Money, ex-dividend, Good faith deposit, Net change, Record date, Settlement date, Tick, Uptick
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance
Securities, such as stocks and bonds, may change hands on organized markets and exchanges after regular business hours, in what is known as the after-hours market.
These electronic transactions explain why a security may open for trading at a different price from the one it closed at the day before.
There's also trading in benchmark indexes such as Standard & Poor's 500-stock Index (S&P 500) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) before US stock markets open. The level of activity and the direction the trading - up or down - is widely interpreted as an early indicator of what's likely to happen in the market during the day.
- Browse Related Terms: After-hours market, American depositary share (ADS), Bellwether, Composite trading, DIAMONDs, Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval System (EDGAR), Listed security, Listing requirement, Nikkei Stock Average, Options Clearing Corporation (OCC), OTC Bulletin Board (OTCBB), Regional exchange, Restricted security, Unlisted security
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance
An after-tax contribution, or excess deferral, is money you put into your 401(k) or other employer sponsored retirement savings plan in addition to your pretax contribution.
You might make an after-tax contribution if you've added the maximum pretax amount permitted for the year, but haven't reached the ceiling that your employer allows.
The advantage of making an additional contribution is that any earnings on the after-tax amount accumulate tax deferred. The disadvantage is that figuring the tax that's due on your required distributions may be more complicated than if you had made only pretax contributions.
- Browse Related Terms: 401(k), 401(k) Plan, 403(b), 457, After-tax contribution, After-tax income, Automatic enrollment, CAP, Catch-up contribution, earned income, Employee stock ownership plan (ESOP), Excess contribution, Health Savings Account (HSA), High deductible health plan (HDHP), Highly compensated employees, Independent 401(k), Individual retirement account (IRA), Individual retirement annuity, individual retirement arrangement (IRA), Keogh plan, Matching contribution, Money purchase plan, Pretax contribution, Pretax income, Profit sharing, Recharacterization, Required beginning date (RBD), Roth 401(k), Roth IRA, Salary reduction plan, SIMPLE, Simplified employee pension plan (SEP), Tax-Deferred
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance
After-tax income, sometimes called post-tax dollars, is the amount of income you have left after federal income taxes (plus state and local income taxes, if they apply) have been withheld.
If you contribute to a nondeductible individual retirement account (IRA), a Roth IRA, or a 529 college savings plan, purchase an annuity, or invest in a taxable account, you are using after-tax income.
In contrast, if you contribute money to an employer sponsored retirement plan or flexible spending account, you are investing pretax income.
- Browse Related Terms: 401(k), 401(k) Plan, 403(b), 457, After-tax contribution, After-tax income, Automatic enrollment, CAP, Catch-up contribution, earned income, Employee stock ownership plan (ESOP), Excess contribution, Health Savings Account (HSA), High deductible health plan (HDHP), Highly compensated employees, Independent 401(k), Individual retirement account (IRA), Individual retirement annuity, individual retirement arrangement (IRA), Keogh plan, Matching contribution, Money purchase plan, Pretax contribution, Pretax income, Profit sharing, Recharacterization, Required beginning date (RBD), Roth 401(k), Roth IRA, Salary reduction plan, SIMPLE, Simplified employee pension plan (SEP), Tax-Deferred
All > Business > Finance > Insurance > Auto Insurance
A non-original equipment manufacturer (OEM) replacement part, either new or used, for any of the non-mechanical parts that generally constitute the exterior of the motor vehicle, including inner and outer panels.
- Browse Related Terms: Actual cash value, Actual cash value (ACV), Aftermarket Crash Part, Arbitration, Assigned risk plan, Auto Replacement Coverage, Betterment, Exclusion, Full Tort, Illinois Automobile Insurance Plan (assigned risk plan), Liability, Liability Coverage, Property damage (PD), Total Loss
All > Business > Finance > Insurance > Auto Insurance
A firm that solicits insurance for one or more insurance carriers. It also may issue policies and adjust losses.
- Browse Related Terms: Adjuster, Agency, claim, Claimant, Claims Adjuster, Covered Expenses, Deductible, Insured, Insurer, Limits, Loss, Occurrence, Settlement
All > Business > Finance > Insurance > Homeowners Insurance
A firm that solicits insurance for one or more insurance carriers. It also may issue policies and adjust losses.
- Browse Related Terms: Adjuster, Agency, Claims Adjuster, Independent adjuster, Insurer, Public Adjuster, Public insurance adjuster, Staff adjuster
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance
Includes any executive agency as defined in 5 U.S.C. § 105 - any executive department, Government corporation, or independent establishment in the executive branch; any military department as defined in 5 U.S.C. § 102; and the Postal Service and the Postal Regulatory Commission.
- Browse Related Terms: Agency, Dependent Child, Fair Housing Act, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), Minor Child, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Value
Also listed in:
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance
Some federal agencies, including Ginnie Mae (GNMA) and the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), raise money by issuing bonds and short-term discount notes for sale to investors.
The money raised by selling these debt securities is typically used to make reduced-cost loans available to specific groups, including home buyers, students, or farmers.
Interest paid on the securities is generally higher than you'd earn on Treasury issues, and the bonds are considered nearly as safe from default. In addition, the interest on some - but not all - of these securities is exempt from certain income taxes.
Securities issued by former federal agencies that are now public corporations, including mortgage-buyers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, are also sometimes described as agency bonds.
- Browse Related Terms: Agency bond, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Government bond, Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae), Quasi-public corporation, Sallie Mae, Scripophily
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance > Mortgage
Code to identify the supervisory/regulatory agency of the HMDA reporting institution. The agency code along with the respondent ID number is the unique combination that identifies a specific institution. The codes for each agency are:
- 1 - Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)
- 2 - Federal Reserve System (FRS)
- 3 - Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)
- 4 - Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS)*
- 5 - National Credit Union Administration (NCUA)
- 7 - Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
- 9 - Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)
* OTS reporting of agency code four (4) only applies for years 2010 and prior.
- Browse Related Terms: Agency Code, Branch Office, Capitalization, Depository Institution, Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC), Federal Home Loan Bank Act of 1932, Federal Home Loan Bank Board (“FHLBank Board”), Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks), Federal Housing Administration (FHA), Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation (FSLIC), FHA Approved Lenders, Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act (FIRREA), Nondepository Institution, Respondent or Reporter ID (RID), Thrift
All > Business > Finance > Investment
Securities issued by U.S. government agencies, such as the Federal Home Loan Bank. These securities have high credit ratings but are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government.
Securities issued by U.S. government agencies, such as the Federal Home Loan Bank. These securities have high credit ratings but are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government.
- Browse Related Terms: Agency Securities, BA (Banker's Acceptance), Banker’s Acceptance (BA), CDs (Certificates of Deposit), Certificates of Deposit (CD), Commercial Paper, Corporate Bond, Coupon, Federal Funds Rate, Federal Reserve Board, Maturity Date, money-market fund, Moody's Corporate Ratings, Moody's Short-term Debt Ratings, Principal, Salomon Brothers Broad Investment-Grade (BIG) Bond Index, T-Bill (Treasury Bill), Treasury bill (T-bill), Treasury Bond or Note
All > Business > Finance > Insurance > Auto Insurance
A representative who sells insurance for one or more companies.
An insurance salesperson. An agent represents the insurance company, not the consumer. A) An independent agent usually represents two or more insurers in a sales and service capacity and is paid on a commission basis. B) An exclusive agent or captive agent represents only one company, usually on a commission basis.
A person who sells insurance policies.
A representative who sells insurance for one or more companies.
All > Business > Finance > Insurance > Homeowners Insurance
A representative who sells insurance for one or more companies.
An insurance salesperson. An agent represents the insurance company, not the consumer. A) An independent agent usually represents two or more insurers in a sales and service capacity and is paid on a commission basis. B) An exclusive agent or captive agent represents only one company, usually on a commission basis.
A person who sells insurance policies.
Texas Department of Insurance and Office of Public Insurance Counsel - Cite This Source - This Definition
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance
An agent is a person who acts on behalf of another person or institution in a transaction. For example, when you direct your stockbroker to buy or sell shares in your account, he or she is acting as your agent in the trade.
Agents work for either a set fee or a commission based on the size of the transaction and the type of product, or sometimes a combination of fee and commission.
Depending on the work a particular agent does, he or she may need to be certified, licensed, or registered by industry bodies or government regulators. For instance, insurance agents must be licensed in the state where they do business, and stockbrokers must pass licensing exams and be registered with NASD.
In a real estate transaction, a real estate agent represents the seller. That person may also be called a real estate broker or a Realtor if he or she is a member of the National Association of Realtors. A buyer may be represented by a buyer's agent.
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance > Mortgage
A person, including an independent contractor, who acts with the consent and on behalf of another.
- Browse Related Terms: agent, Beneficiary, Co-Homeowners, Deed, Default, Grantor, Negative Equity, Real property, Title, trust, trust deed, Trustee
Also listed in:
- All > Business > Banking
- All > Healthcare > Health Insurance
- All > Law > Bankruptcy
- All > Technology > E-mail > Lotus Domino
- All > Technology > E-mail > Microsoft Email > Microsoft Exchange > Microsoft Exchange 2007
- All > Technology > Programming > Java
- All > Technology > Security
- All > Technology > Storage
- All > Technology > Telecommunications
- All > Travel > Visa
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance
Aggressive-growth mutual funds buy stock in companies that show rapid growth potential, including start-up companies and those in hot sectors.
While these funds and the companies they invest in can increase significantly in value, they are also among the most volatile. Their values may rise much higher - and fall much lower - than the overall stock market or the mutual funds that invest in the broader market.
- Browse Related Terms: Aggressive-growth fund, Conscience fund, Diversified Mutual Fund, Emerging markets fund, Green fund, Sector fund, Sector Mutual Fund, Socially responsible fund
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance > Retirement
Designation for an American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) Professional Financial Planner. This person is a certified public accountant who has earned the financial planner designation from the AICPA.
- Browse Related Terms: AICPA PFP, Asset allocation, Asset Classes, Capital appreciation, Cash Equivalents, Distribution, diversification, dividend, Income, inflation, Service Credit, Yield