Personal finance

A graduate listenst to the comencement speech at The City College Of New York. Spencer Platt/Getty Images Tax-favored 529 savings plans allow families to manage the cost of higher education, yet few people understand how they operate. May 29 marks 529 College Savings Plan Day, shining a spotlight on a savings account that allows families

Alex wroblewski | The New York Times Given the latest volatility in the stock market, people are generally advised to leave their investments alone. That can be hard with a 529 college savings plan if you expect to tap the account for a tuition bill due in a few months. The state-sponsored investment plans encourage

MangoStar_Studio | iStock | Getty Images The hottest workplace benefit for the newly-graduated set isn’t 401(k) matches or even student debt repayment. It’s health insurance. More than half of the people participating in a survey conducted by the American Institute of CPAs said medical coverage was a “top three workplace benefit.” The accounting association polled

Former NBA champion-turned-entrepreneur John Salley has one important money rule to live by: Don’t let it guide what you want to do in life. “Go for success, figure out how to do something that will make you happy while doing it, and the caveat is money comes along with it,” he said. “Don’t let money

Parents, of course, worry about paying for college. Increasingly, their children share that concern. Over the last decade, tuition and fees jumped 44% at four-year, private colleges and by 55% at public four-year schools. As a result, student debt has reached record proportions, with $1.6 trillion in loans outstanding. Now, high school students are more

Connecticut’s governor on Tuesday signed a bill into law that will increase the state’s minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2023. The state thus joins a growing list of jurisdictions where the amount is higher than the federal government’s minimum of $7.25. Here’s a map showing the current minimum wage in each state, as

Lawmakers in the House of Representatives have passed a bill that aims to improve the nation’s retirement savings, moving it a step closer to becoming law. Called the Secure Act and backed by both Republicans and Democrats, the measure includes a variety of provisions intended to increase the ranks of savers and the amount they

The Internal Revenue Services offices in Washington, D.C. Adam Jeffery | CNBC Fine-tuning your tax withholding is about to get a little more complicated. The Internal Revenue Service is expected to release a draft of its new Form W-4, the form employees use to adjust the amount of income tax withheld from their pay, by

Members of the military face hurdles every day — and financial challenges are among some of the biggest. Eric Wanner, a sergeant in the U.S. Army, and his wife, Jana, have moved four times in the last 12 years — most recently to Fort Meade in Anne Arundel County, Maryland. Because of frequent deployments and

Chadd Haag said he left the United States to escape his student debt. Now he lives in India. Source: Chadd Haag Chad Haag considered living in a cave to escape his student debt. He had a friend doing it. But after some plotting, he settled on what he considered a less risky plan. This year,

Mega Millions Jackpot estimated at $540 million dollars. Getty Images The Mega Millions jackpot has spilled over $400 million and would be the ninth largest winning since the game began in 2002.  With no one hitting the right numbers Friday night, the next drawing on Tuesday is at  $418 million. The top prize has been

Is fear getting in your way when it comes to saving and investing? If so, you aren’t alone, according to Akbar Gbajabiamila, co-host of NBC’s “American Ninja Warrior.” And there is a way to overcome it, he said. “My No. 1 strategy for overcoming fear is purpose,” said Gbajabiamila, who also once played football for

Science Photo Library / Getty Images You don’t need a million dollars to live a glamorous retirement, so long as you’re willing to leave the U.S. behind. “Most people assume that a high-flying existence like that is the purview of the rich and famous alone,” said Jennifer Stevens, the executive editor of International Living. They’re

With auto sales slowing, car shoppers are likely to find dealerships eager to move inventory over the Memorial Day weekend. While the holiday always marks a big sales push, this year it comes as cars are sitting on dealer lots longer before getting sold. The average in April was 75 days, about 6% higher than

A woman enters an All American Check Cashing location in Brandon, Miss., May 12, 2017.  Rogelio V. Solis | AP Many Americans describe their situation as financially stable, but economic fragility is persistent across the U.S., especially related to income level, educational attainment, and ethnicity and race. An unexpected expense of $400 can force more

Caiaimage/Trevor Adeline | Getty Images When it comes to clients who own permanent life insurance with cash value, financial advisors have both an asset and a liability. On the one hand, clients appreciate having a financial advisor who can analyze the contract and ensure that it still meets their goals. “It’s a perfect way to

fstop123 | E+ | Getty Images Life is financially complicated for many U.S. military troops and their families. Almost half of service members are under the age of 25, and a high percentage are married with children. They don’t get paid a lot and they must deploy repeatedly to difficult places, many times where their

Thomas Dunworth / EyeEm | Getty Images Bay Area tech workers plan to flee San Francisco for the more affordable locale of … New York City. That’s what Wealthfront, an investment management firm that provides robo-advisor services, found when it surveyed nearly 2,700 of its clients who work in the Bay Area at tech companies.

There has been a great deal of news about the rising cost of college tuition. However, discounts at private colleges and universities are actually on the rise. Private colleges are offering students larger grants relative to tuition prices than ever before, according to a new analysis by the National Association of College and University Business

Paul Bradbury | OJO Images | Getty Images Investing can be stressful. Anyone holding stocks and bonds through the 2008 financial crisis knows that all too well. For the financial advisors who help investors navigate the investment markets, it’s no picnic, either. A recent survey of investors and financial advisors by the Financial Planning Association