Hero Images | Getty Images This week’s market activity probably wasn’t the shot of confidence you were hoping for if you’re retired or planning to retire soon. And your first instinct is probably to protect your retirement income. Yet experts caution that the worst way to do that is to take dramatic actions with your
Personal finance
Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden reacts while giving a speech during a campaign event at Tougaloo College on March 08, 2020 in Tougaloo, Mississippi. Jonathan Bachman | Getty Images Former vice president Joe Biden’s $4 trillion tax plan would raises taxes on higher income households both in life and at death, according
If the new coronavirus interferes with your already-planned trip, don’t count on your travel insurance to provide much help. Unless you have “cancel for any reason” coverage, you might be out of luck. While some insurers have loosened their restrictions, fear of contracting the new coronavirus, or COVID-19, is not covered under a standard policy,
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Leo Varadkar, Ireland’s prime minister, not pictured, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Thursday, March 12, 2020. Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Friday that the Trump administration would consider suspending people’s student loan payments
Countries around the world are scrambling to rein in the coronavirus and understand its ultimate medical and economic impacts. One prominent business school is using the turmoil as a learning opportunity. The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania will soon begin offering a new course about the coronavirus — the disease that’s infected nearly 128,000
If you need a pep talk, check out Lauryn Williams, a certified financial planner and four-time Olympian. She knows how to train for a stratospheric goal. Williams, founder of financial advisory firm Worth Winning in Dallas, is a three-time Olympic medalist and the first American woman to earn a medal in both the Summer and Winter Olympic
From quarantines to working remotely, precautions are being taken across the U.S. in response to the spread of coronavirus. If you find yourself stuck at home, there are ways to make the best of a bad situation, according to “Shark Tank” investor Daymond John. “You have to make sure that you take that time to
A tour operator, wearing a protective mask, gestures as he leads a tour near the US Capitol in Washington, DC on March 9, 2020. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds | AFP | Getty Images High-deductible health insurance plans may cover the cost of coronavirus testing and treatment — without individuals having to meet their deductibles, the IRS said
Hero Images | Hero Images | Getty Images A payroll tax cut is one idea President Donald Trump is considering in response to the negative effects of coronavirus on the U.S. economy. Experts say such a move would not necessarily be a magic bullet. One reason why: It could impair funding to Medicare and Social
US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin arrives to testify during a House Ways and Means Committee hearing about the Fiscal Year 2021 budget request on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, March 3, 2020. Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images If coronavirus is keeping you from filing your tax return in a timely fashion, it just
Preparing taxes can be a headache. For many taxpayers, it doesn’t have to come with a cost, too. Between public and private options, both online and in person, there are a number of options for free preparation and filing. For about 70% of the nation’s taxpayers — those with adjusted gross income of $69,000 or
Ngampol Thongsai / EyeEm Americans’ health may not be the only thing at stake as the coronavirus continues its unrelenting spread in the U.S. The virus could also prove financially crippling for many individuals. “There are all kinds of pathways for people to be financially affected by this,” said John Graves, an associate professor of
Older Americans may be glad to know that Medicare generally will cover the cost of testing for the new coronavirus, or COVID-19. Yet getting a test isn’t as simple as going to your local pharmacy or doctor’s office and asking for one. “Lab services are covered by Medicare, but if someone wants a random test
Jim McGuire | Getty Images As the market hits the skids, experts are warning that you shouldn’t make rash moves with your portfolio. And that includes one retirement income source you might turn to for safety: your Social Security benefits. A recent survey from SimplyWise, a retirement income technology provider, found that 1 in 4
GSO Images When the stock market goes haywire, gold often becomes the “gold” standard in the eyes of everyday investors. True to form, gold is coming off its best week since 2016, as fears around the global spread of the coronavirus led to a sharp selloff in the stock market and nudged investors to retreat to what they perceived
Tetra Images Like millions of American women, I’ve experienced widowhood. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of 2019, there were almost 15 million widows and widowers in the country. About 77% of these individuals, or 11.4 million, were women. (Some widowed people later remarry, so the total number of individuals experiencing widowhood is actually
No pain, no gain … no risk, no reward. As with most platitudes, you’ve likely heard those lines so many times that by now they’ve lost their meaning. Most of us understand that to amass enough savings to buy a first home, send a child to college or retire before 70, we have to surrender
Damircudic | Getty Images When it comes to saving for retirement, many working women are falling short. Almost one-fifth, or 19%, of working women have nothing saved for retirement, according to a new CNBC/SurveyMonkey Women at Work Survey. The poll surveyed 1,068 working women in the U.S. from Feb. 10-14. “It’s not because women don’t
Getty Images Recent wild market swings have led some 401(k) investors to clamber into safer assets. However, you may want to press pause before you increase your exposure to bonds or cash-type funds. Net trading activity in 401(k) saving plans was higher in the last week of February than all of the combined activity in
The recent stock market meltdown may have dented Americans’ retirement savings, but there’s a silver lining: The downturn made one common retirement strategy less costly for investors. The strategy, known as a Roth IRA conversion, involves changing a traditional, pre-tax retirement account — such as a 401(k) plan or a qualified individual retirement account — to an