Personal finance

A voter fills out a ballot at a polling station on Election Day in Falls Church, Virginia, U.S., November 7, 2023.  Kevin Lamarque | Reuters When it comes to the November election, there is one issue that is at the top of voters’ wish lists: Social Security. Despite political division, most Americans — 87% —

Lisa5201 | E+ | Getty Images Senate Republicans on Thursday blocked legislation that would have expanded the child tax credit, a key tax break for millions of families. Despite strong bipartisan support for the House bill passed in January, the legislation met resistance from Senate Republicans. Thursday’s procedural vote wasn’t expected to clear the 60-vote

Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks on a panel of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) convention in Chicago, Illinois, U.S. July 31, 2024.  Vincent Alban | Reuters At the National Association of Black Journalists‘ annual convention in Chicago on Wednesday, former President Donald Trump said inflation and high interest rates are “destroying

Sean Gladwell | Moment | Getty Images Even as many Americans go cashless, some don’t have the option to choose that lifestyle. About 6% of Americans were unbanked in 2023, meaning they’re living without access to any traditional financial services such as savings accounts, credit cards or personal checks, according to data from the Federal

Twenty47studio | Moment | Getty Images Workers who pay into Social Security while they’re working should expect benefits from the program when they retire. Yet 72% of adults worry Social Security will run out of funding in their lifetimes, a new survey from Nationwide Retirement Institute finds. Meanwhile, 23% do not expect to receive even

Tom Merton | Ojo Images | Getty Images Job seekers have been sour on the job market for awhile now — and with good reason. “The soft landing in the U.S. labor market is in danger,” Nick Bunker, Economic Research Director for North America for Indeed Hiring Lab, wrote in a statement on Friday. “Yellow

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Douglas Emhoff descend from Air Force Two in Wilmington, DE, U.S., July 22, 2024.  Erin Schaff | Via Reuters Vice President Kamala Harris‘ personal financial records are under fresh scrutiny now that she is running for the highest office in the United States. Experts say recent tax

Recently I posed this question to my teenage daughter: Aren’t we tired of influencers? “No,” she said. But despite my daughter’s opinion — she’s 16 — I know I’m not the only one fed up with the barrage of things I’m told to buy on social media. Which is why the rise of “underconsumptioncore” came

Victor Dyomin | Moment | Getty Images Many wedding costs, such as meals, invitations and favors, are based on your headcount. The average cost of a wedding ceremony and reception in 2023 was $35,000, according to The Knot 2023 Real Weddings Study. The total cost is a $5,000 increase from 2022. “The No. 1 way to save money on

By most measures, the U.S. economy is doing well. And yet, many people would argue otherwise. Roughly 3 in 5 Americans believe that the U.S. is currently in a recession, according to a new survey of 2,000 adults by Affirm. Of those respondents, most said a recession started roughly 15 months ago, in March of

Martin-dm | E+ | Getty Images The IRS has finalized rules on required withdrawals for certain inherited individual retirement accounts and other plans. But heirs could owe more taxes later by only taking minimums now, experts say. In final regulations last week, the agency confirmed most non-spouse beneficiaries have 10 years after the original owner’s

Hinterhaus Productions | Stone | Getty Images Many workers will see their annual raise shrink next year as the job market continues to cool from its torrid pace in the pandemic era. The typical worker will get a 4.1% pay raise for 2025, down from 4.5% this year, according to a new poll by WTW,

Institut auf dem Rosenberg, a private boarding school in St. Gallen, Switzerland. Courtesy: Institut auf dem Rosenberg With a sticker price of more than $160,000 a year, Institut auf dem Rosenberg in St. Gallen, Switzerland, may be one of the most expensive boarding schools in the world. So, it’s only fitting that students learn about

Adamkaz | E+ | Getty Images Stock market volatility could increase in the run up to the U.S. presidential election, strategists predict. That’s making some investors more anxious about what the election outcome could mean for their money.  In a survey by the American Psychiatric Association this spring, 73% of people said they felt anxious

Nitat Termmee | Moment | Getty Images Workers are souring on the state of the job market. Job seeker confidence in Q2 2024 fell to its lowest level in more than two years, according to a quarterly survey by ZipRecruiter, which has tracked the metric since Q1 2022. That decline suggests workers are more pessimistic

Klaus Vedfelt | Getty Images For most retirees, Social Security benefits is a major source of income. Yet, just 11% of Americans who aren’t retired say they know exactly how much benefits they stand to receive, according to new research from the National Institute on Retirement Security. At the same time, 24% are “not very

A server scooping ice cream at the Freddo Gelato Shop in Miami Beach, Florida. Jeff Greenberg | Universal Images Group | Getty Images Teen summer jobs are back. Last month, more than 5.7 million 16- to 19-year-olds participated in the labor market, Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows, marking the highest teen employment rate in

The first presidential debate between U.S. President Joe Biden and former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is projected on a screen projector during a watch party hosted by the Michigan Conservative Coalition in Novi, Michigan, U.S., June 27, 2024.  Emily Elconin | Reuters With interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve likely

Maskot | Maskot | Getty Images Buying a new electric vehicle isn’t the only way consumers can access a $7,500 federal EV tax credit. They may also be able to get the money by leasing a car. The Inflation Reduction Act, which President Joe Biden signed in 2022, contained various rules related to consumer tax

President Joe Biden delivers remarks on new Administration efforts to cancel student debt and support borrowers at the White House on October 04, 2023 in Washington, DC. Kevin Dietsch | Getty Images A federal appeals court on Thursday issued an order temporarily halting the Biden administration from implementing its new student loan repayment plan, known