Readers ask about money, taxes, and investments

Send your questions to: Personal Finance Q&A, The Christian Science Monitor, One Norway Street, Boston, Mass. 02115. Short, to-the-point questions of general interest are most appreciated

'Selling' mortgages out of state

Q The mortgage on our home has been sold to a bank outside our state. I would much rather keep it closer to home. I feel that October or November, just before the presidential election would be a good time to consider refinancing our home mortgage. What are your views on this? - E. O.

The decision on whether to refinance your home should not be based on elections. It should be part of the way you meet your overall financial needs and goals. If you need to refinance and you can find a good rate and terms now, do it. Recently, the trend of interest rates has been upward, and it appears rather unlikely this trend will change much by fall.

As for your mortgage being ''sold'' out of state, this is one way your bank raises more money so it can offer new mortgages to other home buyers. Your bank will continue to receive the monthly payments and handle all the other paper work relating to your mortgage, however. While you may prefer having your mortgage money stay in your area, or at least your state, it is probably impractical to refinance just for this reason.

Stock ticker symbols

Q Where can I find an explanation of the ticker tape symbols used in stock market quotations? I haven't been able to find these anywhere and would find this useful for my investing. - M. C.

A New York firm publishes two booklets, one on the New York Stock Exchange, the other on the American Exchange. The booklets include the names of the companies on the exchanges, their ticker symbols, and instructions on how to read the ticker tape. To get them, send $3.95 for each booklet to Francis Emory Fitch Inc., 130 Cedar Street, New York, N.Y. 10006.

Mutual fund newsletters

Q Could you print the names and addresses of a couple of mutual fund newsletters or magazines that rate or advise on investing in no-load/low-load mutual funds? - J. P.

NoLoad Fund*X covers almost all the no-load funds, rates the best performers, and discusses market trends affecting mutual funds. The address is 235 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, Calif. 94104. The subscription price for the monthly is $87.

''The Handbook for No-Load Fund Investors'' is over 200 pages of information on all no-load funds, including addresses, investment goals, and recent performance records. The handbook, plus quarterly supplements, costs $45. Write The No-Load Fund Investor, PO Box 283, Hastings-on-Hudson, N.Y. 10706.

If you don't mind having information on load funds as well as the no-load variety, a good one is the United Mutual Fund Selector, with investing ideas, performance comparisons, and news of new funds. The subscription rate is $75. Write United Business Service Company, 210 Newbury Street, Boston, Mass. 02116.