The definitive new edition of the most trusted book on municipal bonds As of the end of 1998, municipal bonds, issued by state or local governments to finance public works programs, such as the building of schools, streets, and electrical grids, totaled almost $1.5 trillion in outstanding debt, a number that has only increased over time. The market for these bonds is comprised of many types of professionals—investment bankers, underwriters, traders, analysts, attorneys, rating agencies, brokers, and regulators—who are paid interest and principal according to a fixed schedule. Intended for investment professionals interested in how US municipal bonds work, The Fundamentals of Municipal Bonds, Sixth Edition explains the bond contract and recent changes in this market, providing investors with the information and tools they need to make bonds reliable parts of their portfolios. The market is very different from when the fifth edition was published more than ten years ago, and this revision reasserts Fundamentals of Municipal Bonds as the preeminent text in the field Explores the basics of municipal securities, including the issuers, the primary market, and the secondary market Key areas, such as investing in bonds, credit analysis, interest rates, and regulatory and disclosure requirements, are covered in detail This revised edition includes appendixes, a glossary, and a list of financial products related to applying the fundamentals of municipal bonds An official book of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) With today's financial market in recovery and still highly volatile, investors are looking for a safe and steady way to grow their money without having to invest in stocks. The bond market has always been a safe haven, although confusing new bonds and bond funds make it increasingly difficult for unfamiliar investors to decide on the most suitable fixed income investments.

In The Handbook of Municipal Bonds, editors Sylvan Feldstein and Frank Fabozzi provide traders, bankers, and advisors—among other industry participants—with a well-rounded look at the industry of tax-exempt municipal bonds. Chapter by chapter, a diverse group of experienced contributors provide detailed explanations and a variety of relevant examples that illuminate essential elements of this area. With this book as your guide, you’ll quickly become familiar with both buy side and sell side issues as well as important innovations in this field.

A hands-on visual guide to understanding and investing in an important and consistently safe investment vehicle Bloomberg Visual Guide to Municipal Bonds offers step-by-step guidance to the nature and diversity of municipal securities credit structures. This valuable guide demonstrates the dependability of the overwhelming majority of municipal securities, and points out particular market sectors that may yield greater rewards, but also present greater risks. This book also directs readers to good sources of up-to-date information as well as new market tools, byproducts of recent market enhancements, so as to assist you in making informed investment decisions. Filled with reliable and highly accessible information needed for making sound decisions when investing in municipal securities Author Robert Doty is a noted expert on municipal securities A valuable addition to the new Bloomberg Visual Series Engaging and informative, this reliable resource is an easy-to-use "how to" guide to municipal securities that will help you create more effective investment strategies.

Praise for the Classic Guide to the Bond Market "This is simply the most comprehensive, useful look-it-up book onmunicipal bonds I've ever read (said with all due respect to TheABC of Municipal Bonds my dad wrote in 1937 when I was nine). ReadFundamentals cover to cover. I'm keeping mine in my briefcase,under my arm, at my fingertips. No accountant, financial advisor,attorney, new bond salesman, reporter, regulator, test-writer,cautious, suspicious first-time investor in municipal bonds, ordinner guest is ever going to catch me again with a question aboutmunicipal bonds I can't answer."-Jim Lebenthal, Chairman, Lebenthal& Co. "Judy Wesalo Temel gives us the Rosetta stone of the municipal bondmarket, the key to unraveling the many mysteries of 'muni's.' Herbook, a fresh take on the old standard Fundamentals of MunicipalBonds, updates chapter and verse on everything from investing tounderwriting, from over-the-counter to over-the-Internet. The styleis clean, crisp, and as simple as this complex subject can be. Areyou a novice who wonders how to invest in bonds? She lays out thebasics. Examples are easy to follow-even the mathematical ones thatare critical to explaining how municipal bonds work. At the sametime, there is plenty of meat for the pros. Whether you need tostart from square one and learn all about municipal bonds and howthey work, or need a ready reference for specific technicalquestions you run across as a market professional, this book is foryou."-Kathleen Hays, Economics Editor, Credit Markets Reporter, and"Bond Belle" CNBC "This is a must-read for every scholar, banker, and public officialconcerned with local government finance in the United States. JudyWesalo Temel has done the impossible: she has clearly andinsightfully explained how we finance the development of thenation's vital public infrastructure. This is an important book,one that will be required reading for professionals responsible forplanning, designing, and evaluating publicly financed projects-thehealth care, transportation, and educational facilities that allcitizens rely upon. The bond market is an essential element in thelife of local and state government, and this book makes itunderstandable to all Americans."-Mitchell Moss, Henry Hart RiceProfessor of Urban Planning and Director, Taub Urban ResearchCenter, Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, NewYork University

Understand the ins and outs of today's surprisingly versatile bond marketplace As stocks continue their roller-coaster ride, nervous investors will be looking at bonds. FUNDAMENTALS OF THE BOND MARKET gives you the tools you need to master this complex market so you can diversify your portfolio, and get reliable income and safety of principal. Author Esme Faerber has packed this guide with examples, quizzes, checklists, and plain-English explanations to enhance your understanding of everything from the basics of buying and selling to bond ratings, government and international securities, call and convertible features, portfolio management, and more. Before you risk money in real-time trading, let this hands-on tool bring you up to speed on: *Three steps that determine the best bond mutual fund for any investor *Corporate, Municipal, Convertible and Zero-Coupon Bonds - which to buy for individual portfolios *Treasury securities - how and why to invest in T-bills, notes, and bonds *Tips of the Trade - techniques to calculate yields, buy and sell different types of bonds, and more

Everything you need to know about bonds Bonds are a key component in every portfolio, making it essential that investors understand what exactly they are and how they function. Getting Started in Bonds, Second Edition has been fully updated and revised to take into account the ever-changing bond market as well as the current economic environment. This new edition explains the fundamentals of bonds in clear, easy-to-understand language. It includes in-depth coverage of a variety of debt products, from Treasury notes to high-yield junk bonds and everything in between. This comprehensive guide is an essential primer for anyone who would like to invest in bonds but doesn't know where to start. Getting Started in Bonds, Second Edition uses straightforward, accessible language that will help readers understand even the most complicated bond issues. Sharon Wright (Byfield, MA) was, most recently, fixed-income sales director at Lehman Brothers. Previously, she was assistant vice president at Fidelity Capital Markets.

It is an oft-repeated mantra that "munis are different" and that standard analytical tools are irrelevant to managing them. Andrew Kalotay certainly agrees that munis are different. In fact, they are more complex than just about any other bond category. Munis are rich in options, their pricing is tax-dependent, the benchmark curves are comprised of callable bond yields ... and the list goes on. Dr. Kalotay argues that the complexities of munis actually mandate the use of modern fixed income analytics. He demonstrates the necessity for option-adjusted spread (OAS) technology, and exposes the potential pitfalls of risk management by "yield-to-worst." And he offers an in-depth discussion of the de minimis tax effect, which depresses the prices of discount munis. The breakthrough concept of tax-neutral OAS analysis accurately captures this effect. Without tax-neutral OAS, discount munis look deceptively cheap, and their durations are grossly underestimated. Risk managers should sit up and take notice.

Fixed Income Mathematics is an easy-to-understand introduction to the mathematics of common fixed income instruments. This book offers explanations, exercises, and examples without demanding sophisticated mathematics from the reader. Not only does the author use his business and teaching experience to highlight the fundamentals of investment and management decision-making, but he also offers questions and exercises that suggest the applicability of fixed income mathematics. Written for the reader with a general mathematics background, this self-teaching book is suffused with examples that also make it a handy reference guide. It should serve as a gateway to financial mathematics and to increased competence in business analysis. International comparisons are used to illustrate how interest is compounded. This text will be a valuable resource for professional insurance and other actuarials who invest in bonds and who are concerned with inflation, asset-liability management, the time value of money, interest rates, rates of return, risk, and investment income. It will also appeal to MBA students and anyone seeking a general introduction or overview of the subject. * An easy-to-understand introduction to the mathematics of common fixed income instruments * Offers students explanations, exercises, and examples without demanding sophisticated mathematics * Uses international comparisons to illustrate how interest is compounded

In Bond Portfolio Management, Frank Fabozzi, the leading expert in fixed income securities, explains the latest strategies for maximizing bond portfolio returns. Through in-depth discussions on different types of bonds, valuation principles, and a wide range of strategies, Bond Portfolio Management will prepare you for virtually any bond related event-whether your working on a pension fund or at an insurance company. Key topics include investment objectives of institutional investors, general principles of bond valuation, measuring interest rate risk, and evaluating performance. Bond Portfolio Management is an excellent resource for anyone looking to master one of the world's largest markets, and is a perfect companion to Fabozzi's successful guide-The Handbook of Fixed-Income Securities.