Personal finance

Fg Trade Latin | E+ | Getty Images Families will soon find college acceptance letters in their mailboxes. As students weigh where to attend, making sure they won’t borrow too much is key, experts say. The consequences of taking on too much student debt can be severe. “If you borrow too much, you will have

Andrew Bret Wallis | The Image Bank | Getty Images For retirees, health-care costs can be among the most unpredictable expenses they face over the course of their golden years. While many of them worry about affording their monthly Medicare premiums, their bigger concern is their out-of-pocket costs, recent research from eHealth shows. Fully 75%

Jamie Grill | Getty Images When you’re on a tight budget, It can be tough to decide between contributing to your retirement savings or to your emergency fund — especially during periods of economic uncertainty. And the banking crisis has added to fears of a recession, with further stock market volatility triggered by the collapse

The Good Brigade | DigitalVision | Getty Images A couple of Medicare enrollment periods are underway — and both end soon. First, if you didn’t enroll in Medicare when you should have and you don’t qualify for a special enrollment period, you can sign up until March 31. Second, if you are already on Medicare

Recent bank woes and rising interest rates have prompted higher levels of economic uncertainty. When it comes to the markets, that means more volatility may be in the forecast. Volatility happens when the value of an investment “fluctuates wildly in a short period of time,” according to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. “In the months

Digital artist FEWOCiOUS auctions five NFT works of art, along with five physical paintings and drawings at Christie’s on June 28, 2021 in New York. Noam Galai | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty Images The IRS said it plans to tax some non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, as collectibles akin to art or gems — an

In the era of social media influencers, some investors are turning to platforms like YouTube, TikTok and Instagram for answers to their most pressing financial concerns. But advisors recommend scrutiny when seeking guidance online — especially when weighing money decisions with the possibility of harmful consequences. “Because social media is democratized and everybody has a

Photographer: Samuel Corum/Bloomberg via Getty Images President Joe Biden used his first veto to preserve a recent U.S. Department of Labor rule about investment choice in 401(k) and other workplace retirement plans. The regulation, which took effect in January, applies to so-called “environmental, social and governance” funds. These ESG investments — also known as sustainable

Pascal Broze | Onoky | Getty Images An 8.7% Social Security cost-of-living adjustment for 2023 means beneficiaries received on average $140 per month more starting in January. Now, new research from Bank of America Institute finds faster spending growth among older generations that receive Social Security income. For the week ending Feb. 18, individuals born

Tetra Images | Tetra Images | Getty Images The recent banking crisis has fueled concern of a “credit crunch” and the resulting negative impact on households, businesses and the U.S. economy. But what is a credit crunch and how might you prepare? Loans would be tougher to get related investing news Demand for Fed help

A protest sign outside the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 28, 2023. The Washington Post | The Washington Post | Getty Images There’s no precedent in recent history for the sweeping federal student loan forgiveness policy President Joe Biden is trying to carry out. A look at the math of the program shows

PeopleImages | Getty Images Contemplating your own death may not be on the list of things you’re eager to do. Yet for your family or other loved ones who would find themselves trying to sort out your affairs while also dealing with the emotional fallout from losing you, your having a so-called estate plan is

Skynesher | E+ | Getty Images For some young adults, retirement is so far away that it can feel absurd to put part of their income in an account that they can’t tap for decades. “They want to invest but can’t envision not being able to touch it until age 59½,” said Winnie Sun, co-founder

When it comes to college these days, students are more concerned about how they will pay the tab than they are about getting in, according to a recent survey of college-bound students and their families. Higher education already costs more than most families can afford, and college costs are still rising. Tuition and fees plus room and board

In this article SIVB SBNY Follow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT People wait for service outside Silicon Valley Bank in Menlo Park, California. John Brecher | The Washington Post | Getty Images Account holders at failed Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank got a lucky break in recent days when emergency federal efforts ensured that

In this article SBNY Follow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images Some consumers who tried to deposit an Equifax settlement check in recent days got a surprise: It bounced. The checks, a result of a legal settlement over the credit-reporting firm’s 2017 data breach, were written against an account at

In recent days, a crisis in the financial sector sent markets into a tailspin, erasing hopes for an early 2023 turnaround. For retirement savers, these losses come on the heels of a year when 401(k) account balances already lost nearly one-quarter of their value. Average 401(k) balances sank 23% in 2022 to $103,900, according to

Viorel Kurnosov | Istock | Getty Images With roughly two more months before the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ends the three-year Covid public health emergency, more than 5 million of the nation’s households remain behind on their rent. All together, tenants continued to owe nearly $11 billion in rental debt during the

Luc MacGregor | Bloomberg | Getty Images The latest crypto rally may be good news for digital currency investors. But if you’re still recovering from last year’s losses, it may be possible to score a tax break on your 2022 return. The crypto market plunged by nearly $1.4 trillion in 2022 after a series of

miodrag ignjatovic | E+ | Getty Images Some Medicare beneficiaries will begin paying less next month for 27 prescription drugs whose prices have increased at a rate that outpaces inflation, government officials announced Wednesday. Depending on their individual coverage, beneficiaries could save between $2 and $390 per average dose for these drugs starting April 1,