While legislators Friday passed a bailout bill they say will boost consumer confidence in Wall Street and financial markets, many still question the safety of their assets in the midst of a dwindling economy.

Local experts recently offered tips for handling finances during the economic turmoil.

401(k)

The key to salvaging retirement funds in difficult financial times is having a long-term investment plan and knowing how you want to spend those investments, said John Ridley, investment officer and financial adviser for Wachovia Securities.

“The calendar is unforgiving,” he said. “If you don’t make a plan now for five years down the road, in five years you can’t be upset now that the market’s down when five years ago you didn’t plan to get through it.”

If retirement is not in your near future, then you should not worry about your retirement funds - “It will only cause you undue stress on yourself,” said Brian Strow, associate professor of economics at Western Kentucky University.

The plunging finance market will mostly affect those who are looking to retire immediately and might come up short on retirement funds. If you’re planning to retire soon, you might consider pushing back your retirement until the financial market recovers, or, if you decide to retire now, you should consider cutting back spending habits, said Strow, who’s also a city commissioner.

Like Strow, Ridley said younger consumers can relax more than those on the brink of retirement, but soon-to-be-retirees need to already have a plan, control that plan’s risks with safe investments and be aware of how they want to spend their money.

“What dictates how much you need is determined by the individual and the lifestyle they want to lead,” he said. “It’s not about the investment vehicle. It’s about how long they’ve worked and saved their money.”

Ridley also said people should reconsider early retirement - a precaution consumers should always take, not just during a financial crisis. Retirees run into financial problems when they retire at an early age, then live 40 or 50 years with retirement funds serving as their sole income.

“There’s an unrealistic expectation that’s been instilled in us that there’s a pre-determined age when we can retire,” Ridley said. “We’re confusing taking a nice vacation with retiring for the rest of our lives ... not everybody can retire at 62.”

Bank deposits

Even though several financial giants have collapsed in the past few weeks, experts say it would be unwise to withdraw your deposits and stash them in your sock drawer.

“There’s no reason to withdraw money from bank deposits,” Strow said.

Deposits have been insured up to $100,000, but the $700 billion bailout bill that passed Congress on Friday extends deposit insurance to $250,000.

“(That insurance) should be understood by each investor, and they should feel safe and secure,” Ridley said.

Still, if you have more than $100,000 in the bank, you might consider splitting your money and depositing your dollars in different banks, Strow said.

Stock investments

The best action stock market investors can take is to stay calm.

When investors panic, they hastily - and, in many cases, ill-advisedly - sell their stock, which results in a market plunge, Strow said.

“The only way you’re going to get burned in the stock market is to panic,” he said.

Investors need to hang onto their stocks and weather the storm. The markets will rise again, perhaps in a few months to a year, Strow said.

The only investors who have reason to worry are shareholders of the bigger banks that have failed, such as Washington Mutual and Wachovia.

However, Wachovia was discussing Friday a possible buyout option with Wells Fargo - a deal that would give Wachovia $13 billion more than its previous offer from Citigroup.

“Stockholders of Wachovia are even breathing a sigh of relief,” Strow said.

Stock investors should not only stick with the market, those with some extra money should consider investing in stocks right now, Strow said.

“If anyone has money in the piggy bank, the stock market presents a good buying opportunity,” he said. “(Now) its value is below where it should be. You’re not going to see markets sell at this price for a long extension of time.”

But only invest dollars if you will not need that money in the next five to 10 years. That’s the amount of time it will take to reap the benefits, Strow said.

Loans

As the credit market tightens and loans become harder to grasp, you shouldn’t rule out trying to get a loan right now, Strow said.

“If you’re interested in buying a home or a car, it’s worth looking into,” he said.

Banks are buckling down on loan requirements, but loans are still available to those with good credit scores, Strow said.

“It’s important to have a good credit rate and work to earn and maintain credit ratings,” Ridley said. “It’s an earned privilege, not a right.”

In the meantime, consumers should work to rid themselves of debt.

“The best thing you can do now is pay off the credit cards you have,” Strow said.

In fact, the nation has been plagued with a low savings rate. And savings are the key to surviving an economic downturn, Strow said.

“Now is the time to start saving money,” he said. “Now is not the time to max out your credit cards.”