Valley National Bank

Valley National Bank opened its new Cranford Branch located at 117 South Ave. West in November. The opening of this branch is consistent with Valley’s strategy of highly
focused growth within northern and central New Jersey.

Valley National Bank is a service-oriented, commercial bank with a strong community focus. Valley is committed to providing innovative and individualized solutions by offering
a wide range of deposit, mortgage and loan services to businesses, community
development projects and consumers throughout its branch network.

“Valley’s commitment to time-tested values has made us successful,” says Walter
Horsting, first senior vice president, Commercial Lending. Horsting says that business
borrowers in particular are becoming more sophisticated, and Valley offers a variety of pricing and payment options to fulfill the needs of clients in various fields. “We can
engineer financial solutions tailor-made to balance sheets, cash flow, and the seasonality needs of any business,” he says.

Valley also offers businesses options for equipment leasing to keep their businesses
running at peak efficiency. “This is another great tool that we can offer our business
clients,” says Cheryl Hoeffler, director of Small Ticket Leasing. Many business customers take advantage of Valley’s financing options for equipment and other big ticket items. “Through these types of programs, businesses can stay current with technology and improve productivity while investing their capital in areas such as advertising to help grow their businesses,” she says.

Valley’s Healthcare Division offers specialty products tailored specifically for the medical
profession. “We provide customized services for physicians and healthcare providers,
ranging from single practitioners individual practices to hospitals to long-term care
facilities,” says Elizabeth Butler, first vice president, Healthcare Financial Services.
“We started focusing on healthcare financing seven years ago, and it has just
snowballed. We’re now looking to add staff to cover the Monmouth County market.”
Through its subsidiaries, Valley also provides full financial and investment planning services, as well as commercial and personal insurance services, equipment leasing and aircraft financing.

Valley National Bancorp is a regional bank holding company with more than $12
billion in assets, headquartered in Wayne, New Jersey. Its principal subsidiary,
Valley National Bank, currently operates 163 branches in 106 communities serving 12 counties throughout northern and central New Jersey and Manhattan.

Valley National Bank provides customer service 24 hours a day, seven days a week at
a locally staffed customer service center, which can be reached at 800-522-4100.

Shape Up Your Finances

The start of the New Year is a great time to examine your finances and review your financial goals says Jill Holly, Vice President of New Century Asset Management, Inc., a registered investment advisory firm and a wholly owned subsidiary of Valley National Bank. Are you on track with your savings and investments? It’s important to take a
look at your long-term and short-term goals.

HAVE A CLEAR GOAL
New Century is dedicated to meeting the diverse investment needs of individuals, businesses, retirement plans and trusts. Whether you are saving to purchase a home, to pay for college tuition or for your retirement, their seasoned professionals will work closely with you to understand your financial objectives and customize an investment plan that meets your individual needs.

CONSIDER FUTURE NEED
“When looking at your long-term goals you need to realistically consider your future needs,” says Holly. “People are living longer and spending more time in retirement. Maintaining your current lifestyle at retirement will take careful planning now. Keep in mind that Social Security may not be enough and inflation could erode the purchasing power of your savings,” she adds.

Holly suggests you review your overall investments with an investment professional to ensure that your assets are correctly positioned to meet your goals. Are your assets appropriately allocated for your level of risk? How have your assets performed in the past, have you gained or lost money?

REVIEW YOUR BUSINESS GOALS
If you are a business owner, have you given thought to business succession planning? Is there a retirement plan in place for you and your employees? If so, now is a good time to review the plan expenses and fund performance in 2005. A good retirement
plan can help attract and retain employees. New Century provides fund selection, fund monitoring and employee education for 401k plans, as well as money management for Profit Sharing plans.

TEACH YOUR CHILDREN
“It’s also never too early to teach your child the value of saving,” says Holly, which is why Valley National Bank created the Kids First Savings Club Account sm and developed an interactive website where children learn through on-line games. Visit
www.vnbkids.com for more information or go to www.valleynationalbank.com.

For a complimentary analysis of your current investment portfolio, contact Jill Holly, New Century Asset Management, at 973-305-5505. Valley National Bancorp is a regional bank holding company with over $12 billion in assets, headquartered in Wayne, New Jersey. Its principal subsidiary, Valley National Bank, currently operates 163 branches in 106 communities serving 12 counties throughout northern and central New Jersey and Manhattan.

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