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.

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.

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