Personal finance

Solstock | E+ | Getty Images Halloween trick-or-treaters and jack-o-lanterns can be downright scary — for your homeowners insurance policy. There is a 14% jump in homeowners insurance claims on Halloween compared to other days of the year, according to Travelers Insurance. Theft on premises claims jump 46%. Trips or falls, thefts, fire and pet-related accidents

The US Department of Treasury in Washington, DC, on February 22, 2024.  Mandel Ngan | AFP | Getty Images The U.S. Department of the Treasury has announced new Series I bond rates.  Linked to inflation, newly purchased I bonds will pay 3.11% annual interest from November 1 through April 30, 2025, which is down from

Blueflames | Getty Images The rate of inflation has come down from pandemic era highs. Yet many Americans still say they are living paycheck to paycheck, according to new research from Bank of America. That may apply whether household income is less than $50,000 or more than $150,000. How tight household budgets are is a

Betsie Van der Meer | Getty Only one cohort of shoppers thinks they have enough financial runway to spend cash this holiday season without rolling into debt — and even so, many in that group anticipate struggling. About half, or 52%, of shoppers with incomes of $100,000 or more believe they can “easily afford” holiday

The “phased rollout“ of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid is on track for the upcoming academic year, the U.S. Department of Education says. So far, the 2025-26 FAFSA has been available to limited groups of students in a series of beta tests that began on Oct. 1. It will become available to all students

Getty Images If you’re weighing a year-end Roth individual retirement account conversion, waiting too long could be risky, financial experts say.   Roth conversions move pretax or nondeductible IRA funds to a Roth IRA, which can start tax-free growth. The trade-off is upfront taxes on the converted balance, which boosts your adjusted gross income. The strategy has

Nazar_ab | E+ | Getty Images For most people, buying a home will be the biggest financial transaction they will make. It’s also generally considered a path to build wealth and increase your net worth, financial experts say. In the second quarter of 2024, U.S. homeowners with mortgages had a net homeowner equity of over

As the run-up to the U.S. presidential election has highlighted, there is a growing share of “childless cat ladies” in this country. There is also a larger share of single women with children. As marriage rates fell, the number of women heading families rose. Often, this comes with financial challenges. Many single mothers shoulder the

Westend61 | Westend61 | Getty Images There’s still time to lower your taxes or boost your refund for 2024, financial experts say. Typically, there’s a refund when you overpay taxes during the year via withholdings or estimated payments. You can expect a tax bill when you don’t pay enough. Since the Tax Cuts and Jobs

When I was a teenager, I bought my first car. It was a Toyota Tercel with a few hundred miles on it and cost less than $10,000. Granted, this was 30 years ago. Now that I have a daughter turning 17, I envisioned a similar scenario. She has worked — and saved — since the

This year, a big change happened to 529 college savings plans.  As of 2024, families can roll over unused 529 funds to the account beneficiary’s Roth individual retirement account, without triggering income taxes or penalties, as long as the 529 plan has been open for at least 15 years. Some families have already taken advantage of the new

dowell | Moment | Getty Images The earnings limit for the 0% capital gains bracket will rise in 2025, which could offer tax planning opportunities, financial experts say. At sale, profitable assets owned for more than one year qualify for lower taxes — known as long-term capital gains. Those rates are 0%, 15% or 20%,

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., October 24, 2024.  Brendan McDermid | Reuters With the U.S. presidential election less than two weeks away, and voters decidedly split, some investors are understandably spooked. “This is likely to cause a little bit of choppiness in the

Panama is one of the most affordable places to retire abroad. Helovi | E+ | Getty Images Today’s investors face one looming question: Will I have enough money when I retire? Surveys show prospective retirees may have big lump sums in mind. To get a more accurate, personal gauge, it helps to start with your

Phynart Studio | E+ | Getty Images If you’re ready to rebalance investments or harvest profits, you could shield more earnings from capital gains taxes in 2025. The IRS on Tuesday announced dozens of inflation adjustments for 2025, including long-term capital gains brackets, which apply to assets owned for more than one year. Starting in

Erik Von Weber The U.S. Federal Reserve cut interest rates in September, the first in a string of cuts expected at least into 2025. Earnings on cash are expected to decline as a result — likely leading investors to ask what they should do in response. From a financial planning perspective, cash generally refers to

Twenty/20 Saving for a home down payment can feel challenging, given current real estate prices. Using the right assets can help give your balance a lift. When you actually need the money is the “biggest driving factor,” said Ryan Dennehy, principal and financial advisor at California Financial Advisors in San Ramon, California. The firm ranked No.

Al Seib | Los Angeles Times | Getty Images Although more students are eligible for federal financial aid, fewer high schoolers are pursuing a four-year degree. Increasingly, college is becoming a path for only those with the means to pay for it, many studies show.  Although undergraduate enrollment is up overall, the number of new first-year

Christopher Grigat | Moment | Getty Images Investors can generally reduce their tax losses in a portfolio by using exchange-traded funds over mutual funds, experts said. “ETFs come with tax magic that’s unrivaled by mutual funds,” Bryan Armour, Morningstar’s director of passive strategies research for North America and editor of its ETFInvestor newsletter, wrote earlier

Momo Productions | Digitalvision | Getty Images New changes from the Internal Revenue Service may affect federal tax liabilities for families in 2025. For example, in its announcement Tuesday, the agency said it raised the maximum amount of the earned income tax credit, or EITC, and increased the income thresholds to qualify. It left the