US Finance World

In a “when life gives you lemons, make lemonade” scenario, the weak economy is having an unexpected impact on home renovations. With homeowners still finding it difficult to fund a major remodeling project through home equity, they are increasingly embracing smaller projects that will make them happy right now — instead of insisting on improvements that will add to a home’s resale value in the long run.

“There’s no more faith in that saying, ‘A dollar in, a dollar out;’ that renovations will pay off when you sell,” says William Hallisky, a vice president with Meridian Design Associates, a New York-based architectural firm. Owners are putting aside worries about beige paint or stainless steel appliances to appeal to buyers and are considering small projects that will increase the livability of their space, says Hallisky. “It’s more about personality, like, ‘I would really like an orange refrigerator. Is that possible?

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• Also See: Your Charity’s Junk-Mail Strategy

Whether a patient comes in for a gall bladder operation or to have a baby, the routine remains the same for staff at Sharp HealthCare hospitals in San Diego. The front desk checks insurance records to make sure the bills get paid on time. Nurses take vitals and tag their charges with a bar-coded wristband that helps them avoid treatment snafus. And behind the scenes, the fund-raising staff runs scans on the assets of each patient. The goal? To find out whether they’re “megarich,” “wealthy” or merely “comfortable.”

While the folks checking in don’t know it, the nonprofit hospital chain is hunting for prospective donors. Armed with powerful data-mining software, they screen hundreds of admissions records each morning to find a handful of wealthy patients who’ve shown prior interest in the hospital. Those who make the cut may enjoy a bedside visit from a “patient relations director” who offers concierge services. Extra pillow? Free pa

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EATON VANCE PORTFOLIO MANAGER JIM EVANS recently picked up a little insight about pacing from his 16-year old daughter, a high-school All-American swimmer. In the 500-yard free-style, she explained, her aim is to pick up an extra two-tenths of a second on each lap, which translates into four seconds over 20 pool lengths. That’s often the difference between first and last place. “Wow,” he thought, “that sounds familiar.”

Evans appreciates the importance of consistently beating the pack by small amounts in his job running Eaton Vance’s Tax-Advantaged Bond Strategies Short-Term fund (tickers: EABSX, ECBSX and EIBSX for different share classes), which has more than $550 million invested in municipals, U.S. Treasuries and other fixed-income instruments. His group of 12 investment professionals work together “to add a small amount of value day in and day out,” he notes. Evans’ step-by-step approach at Eaton Vance, as well as at his previous firm, have help the fund rank No.

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Are consumers still hungry for deals? Discount retailers Wal-Mart (WMT) and TJX Companies (TJX), which owns TJ Maxx and Marshalls, reported first-quarter profits this morning that underscore a shift in consumer sentiment from discount goods to higher-priced items. Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, reported earnings of 88 cents per share, higher than the 84 cents per share that analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had predicted. That’s up from earnings of 77 cents per share from first quarter 2009 but down from $1.23 per share during the previous quarter. Meanwhile, TJX announced earnings of 80 cents per share, up from 49 cents from a year ago.

In general, deep discount retailers continue to thrive because many customers are still struggling economically, and because the chains have upgraded their merchandise to retain that recently-expanded customer base, says Brian Sozzi, an equity research analyst who covers the retail sector at Wall Street Strategies. But

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Consumers trying to get access to credit now have a little more riding on the fate of financial reform legislation.

The Senate’s move Monday to amend the financial overhaul bill, could give riskier borrowers an opportunity to not only view their credit scores, but also see how they could improve them. That amendment, which was proposed by Sen. Mark Udall (D., Colo.), would allow consumers to see their credit score for free any time they’re denied a loan, rejected for a job, or charged a higher interest rate based on their credit history.

“My goal is to level the playing field for consumers to ensure they have all the information they need to make smart decisions about their finances,” Udall said in a statement. The Senate is expected to vote on the full reform package as early as this week.

Udall had originally proposed letting consumers see a credit score along with the free annual credit report everyone is entitled to access once a year through AnnualCreditReport.com. Current

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Short for “growth at a reasonable price,” GARP investing involves finding stocks with strong growth potential, low debt and a decent price tag. It wasn’t a particularly successful strategy during last year’s market run-up, because so many ultra-cheap stocks that had debt-laden balance sheets took off. But some market professionals say GARP investing holds particular appeal today, in a market with fewer obvious deals, since it focuses on less spectacular opportunities.

“The holy grail is to find cheap stocks that will grow faster than you think or faster than the market,” says Jerry Jordan, manager of the $96.6 million Jordan Opportunity fund and a GARP follower. “When they go from cheap to expensive, you make a fortune.”

The market’s 67 percent upswing since March 2009 was fueled by relief that the economy didn’t continue falling and, more recently, by the steady drumbeat of strong corporate earnings. “The challenge for

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Like the security of overdraft protection but don’t like the automatic $20 to $45 fees banks charge? You’re in luck — sort of.

In response to new federal rules that take effect July 1, a handful of banks are trimming the overdraft fees they automatically charge for debit purchases and ATM withdrawals. And to make up for the lost revenue, they have another plan: Convince customers to voluntarily opt in for overdraft coverage — that is, a line of credit that kicks in when account holders make purchases that exceed their available checking account balance.

Last week, U.S. Bancorp (USB) announced that customers who write checks, withdraw money from an ATM or use their debit cards on an account that is overdrawn, will see reduced fees. Currently, fees are based on the frequency of overages in a 12-month period. For the first incident, there’s a charge of $19. The second, third and fourth incidents come with a $35 penalty per overage. And whe

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Ever wonder what kind of fees money-management firms collect to administer your 401(k) or other retirement plans? It’s the kind of data that providers have historically kept close to the vest — much to the chagrin of both individual investors and plan sponsors.

Now, though, things are about to change. This summer and fall, the Department of Labor is expected to announce two new sets of requirements for fee disclosure — one at the sponsor level and one at the participant level — that will require all providers to make fees more transparent.

On Tuesday, Putnam Investments announced it will begin offering more details on its fees before the regulations become official — in early June for sponsors (i.e., employers), and in early fall for participants (i.e., employees). Putnam said it will disclose fees for sponsors including investment management, servicing and advisory charges, and record keeping in dollar amounts. B

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