While the election season heats up, you will hear more and more promises, claims and counter-claims from the candidates. As a citizen, you may or may not enjoy this “political theater,” but as an investor, you might be concerned over all the talk about taxes, Social Security, Medicare and other financial topics. Will you need to adjust your savings and investment strategies? If so, how?

Before you think about adjusting your investment strategy in anticipation of any actions coming from Washington, keep a couple of facts in mind. First, few campaign promises become reality. And second, due to our system of government, radical shifts in direction are difficult to implement — which is why so few of them occur. read more »

Donald Logan, a local Edward Jones financial advisor, will be hosting a coffee club at 8:15 a.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 22 and on the fourth Wednesday of each month at Edward Jones, 2416 NW Myhre Road, Suite 102 in Silverdale.

“The coffee club offers us an opportunity to learn from one another and receive market updates,” Logan said. “I look forward to keeping individual investors informed about the current market and economy, as well as have fun and get to know some of my neighbors.”

Seating may be limited. To reserve a seat, call Sarah Bartley at (360) 692-1216.

It all started with a Facebook invite. Tim Samuels, a loan officer at The Legacy Group in Silverdale, received a friend request from a former middle-school classmate who needed help buying a home.

Jenn Fairlie is a single mother with a full-time job at a local animal hospital. However, a divorce several years ago had left her on welfare for a time period and depleted her savings. Although she now has steady work and excellent credit, she didn’t expect to be able to buy a place any time soon.

Samuels invited Fairlie to a first-time homebuyers seminar. Because she hadn’t owned a home in three years, she qualified for several programs. At the seminar, Samuels talked about House Key Bremerton, a down-payment assistance program funded by the city and administered by the Washington State Housing Commission. read more »

Kitsap Bank presented $30,000 in donations to three Washington Main Street partners as part of the bank’s annual Community Partner Program commitments. The donations fall under the Main Street Tax Incentive Program, which provides B&O tax credits for businesses who invest in downtown revitalization efforts, including economic development activities, designed to support and promote the local small business community. read more »

The significant tightening of business credit brought by the recession has begun to lift. One recent, independent analysis of FDIC data reported five straight quarters of increasing overall commercial and industrial lending by banks.

As the credit squeeze eases with improving economic conditions, lenders remain cautious in their underwriting, even as interest rates remain at near-record lows. Consequently Kitsap area companies seeking to ride the recovery, as uncertain and erratic as it may admittedly seem at times in the short term, must be strategic in their use of credit. read more »

Columbia Banking System, Inc. announces that a quarterly cash dividend of $0.08 per common share will be paid on Feb. 22, to shareholders of record as of the close of business on Feb. 8.

In addition, the board of directors declares a special cash dividend of $0.29 per common share, which will also be paid on Feb. 22 to shareholders of record as of the close of business on Feb. 8. read more »

Chase is expanding its nationwide network of ATMs in the Pacific Northwest with approximately 130 locations in ARCO-branded AM/PM locations in Washington and Oregon.

“We are making banking even more convenient for millions of Chase customers,” said Jim Sutton, head of ATM distribution and deployment at Chase. “Many of our customers already take advantage of AM/PM’s extensive network, and soon they will be able to use Chase ATMs there with no fee. Select locations will also allow Chase customers to make deposits at the ATM.” read more »

Once again, it’s time to make some New Year’s resolutions. This year, in addition to hitting the gym, learning that second language and getting better organized, why not also consider a few financial resolutions?

What types of resolutions might you consider? Here are a few suggestions:

Contribute more to your retirement accounts. The new year means that you are one year closer to retirement. To help yourself build resources for the lifestyle you’ve envisioned as a retiree, try to boost your contributions to your 401(k) or other employer-sponsored retirement plan. read more »

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is seeking nominations for awards honoring the critical economic role small businesses play in federally funded research and development through SBA’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs.

Three awards will be given: One for companies that have participated in the SBIR/STTR programs; one for individuals who advocate on behalf of the programs; and a third “Hall of Fame” award recognizing companies that have an extended period of extraordinary success of research, innovation, and product commercialization within the SBIR or STTR program. read more »