Personal finance

A sign marks the location of the University of Phoenix Chicago Campus in Schaumburg, Illinois. Getty Images The Biden administration announced on Wednesday that it would cancel nearly $37 million in student debt for more than 1,200 students who attended the University of Phoenix. The relief will go to many borrowers who applied for borrower

Hannah Williams of Salary Transparent Street. Credit: Brandon Showers Photography For most people, asking others “What do you do for a living?” is just one part of everyday small talk. But for Hannah Williams, posing that question to strangers is, in fact, what she does for a living. As the content creator behind the account

Maskot | Maskot | Getty Images For savers, choosing how to best allocate money among a stream of account types may seem an impossible task. There are 401(k) plans, individual retirement accounts, 529 plans, high-yield savings accounts, taxable brokerage accounts, flexible spending accounts, health savings accounts and so on — a veritable hodgepodge of letters,

IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel testifies before the House Small Business Committee on July 17, 2013. James Lawler Duggan | Reuters The IRS is shifting how it examines tax returns of lower earners as part of its broader effort to address inequity in enforcement.  Starting in fiscal year 2024, the agency will “substantially” reduce the number

Svyatoslav Balan | Getty Almost regardless of how much you have in the bank, it’s hard to feel financially secure. Across the board, households are facing surging child-care costs, ballooning auto loans, high mortgage rates and record rents amid economic uncertainty and recessionary fears. Of those with more than $1 million in investable assets, as many

Westend61 | Westend61 | Getty Images Pay transparency is on the rise for job applicants — and momentum suggests that trend will continue, experts said. In August, 50% of online job listings advertised salary, up from 18.4% in February 2020, according to Indeed Hiring Lab, the economic research arm of career site Indeed. Such businesses

IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel testifies before a Senate Finance Committee hearing on Feb. 15, 2023. Kevin Lamarque | Reuters As the IRS pauses on processing new claims for a pandemic-era small business tax break, some filers are in limbo as the agency works on further guidance. The IRS on Thursday temporarily halted processing for amended payroll

Artistgndphotography | E+ | Getty Images The Federal Reserve is likely to skip an interest rate hike when it meets this week, experts predict. But consumers may not feel any relief. The central bank has already raised interest rates 11 times since last year — the fastest pace of tightening since the early 1980s. Yet recent data

Suriyapong Thongsawang | Moment | Getty Images Inflation is broadly retreating in the U.S. economy. But starting in October, health insurance is poised to act as a countervailing force that buoys inflation for about a year, economists said. That’s significant at a time when policymakers are using inflation data to determine how to set interest

Squaredpixels | Getty Images When it comes to saving and investing, many investors tend to think of two key goals — funding emergencies that could crop up in the short term or retirement that may be years away. But as many individuals continue to reconsider their goals following the Covid-19 pandemic, experts say that that

EmirMemedovski | E+ | Getty Images This August, two years into their relationship, Yumi Temple and her boyfriend, Daniel, moved into their first apartment together, in Denver. It was Temple’s first time living with another person, outside of family, and she quickly learned there was a lot to navigate. The couple decided to see a

Peopleimages | Istock | Getty Images Unable to come up with the cash for steep college tuition bills all at once, many families opt to pay the tab over time. However, a new report by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau warns of a number of risks associated with these payment plans, including snowballing charges and

Shoppers at a Chicago grocery store, Aug. 9, 2023. Scott Olson | Getty Images Inflation has continued to take a bite out of Americans’ wallets in 2023. But onetime predictions that a recession is on the horizon are instead now turning into forecasts of a soft landing for the U.S. economy. For top financial advisors

Blackcat | E+ | Getty Images “I’m not a math person.” “I’m not a numbers person.” “I’m bad with money.” Sound familiar? No, we’re not recording you at home. As a wealth advisor, I hear statements like this all the time from women, regardless of their age. In fact, one of the most common —

Halfpoint Images | Moment | Getty Images A federal program that provides monthly income to elderly, blind and disabled Americans to provide for their basic needs has not been updated in about 40 years. On Tuesday, Washington lawmakers renewed a push to update rules associated with the program known as Supplemental Security Income, or SSI.

IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel speaks at a Senate Finance Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., on April 19, 2023. Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel on Thursday ordered the agency to immediately stop processing new claims for a pandemic-era small business tax break to protect filers from a “surge of questionable claims.”

Gasoline was priced from $4.29 a gallon at a fuel station in Virginia on Aug. 16, 2023. Anadolu Agency | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images Inflation rose in August on the back of higher gasoline prices, according to the consumer price index. But there’s good news for Americans: That increase is likely temporary, economists said.

Tipping 20% at a sit-down restaurant is still the standard in the U.S., according to most etiquette experts — diners disagree. After holding steady for years, tipping at full-service restaurants fell to 19.4% in the second quarter of 2023, according to online restaurant platform Toast‘s most recent restaurant trends report, notching the lowest average since the start of the

DusanManic | iStock | Getty Images Almost half of Americans, 47%, say achieving retirement security will take a miracle, according to a new survey from Natixis Investment Managers. That is up “quite a bit” from about 40% of respondents who said the same two years ago, according to Dave Goodsell, executive director of the Natixis

Wendee Goles Courtesy: Wendy Goles In July, Wendee Goles saw headlines that the Biden administration planned to cancel the student loans of more than 800,000 people. Even though she seemed to fit the description of eligible borrowers — those who had made payments for decades through an income-driven repayment plan — she didn’t get her hopes