Personal finance

Lauren Rosenberg, right, of Portland, Maine, and her nanny, left, set out toys for Rosenberg’s children. Portland Press Herald | Portland Press Herald | Getty Images Child care is already scarce and expensive — and the stakes are about to get higher. The federal government provided states with nearly $24 billion in stabilization funds to

Jeffrey Coolidge | Photodisc | Getty Images The IRS is launching plans with boosted technology and artificial intelligence to collect unpaid taxes from higher earners, partnerships and large corporations, which could transform tax compliance or spark challenges for the agency, experts say.  After past criticisms of low audit rates among the wealthy, the IRS on

Most Americans have never used ChatGPT. The majority aren’t interested in using generative artificial intelligence tools specifically for financial advice, either, according to a new CNBC Your Money Survey — at least not yet. Slightly more than one-third of U.S. adults — 37% — are interested in using AI tools to help them manage their

MoMo Productions The following is an excerpt from “This week, your wallet,” an audio program produced by CNBC’s Personal Finance team. Listen to the latest episode here. Social Security is the largest federal program in the U.S. The vast majority of older Americans get Social Security benefits, which either partially or even fully fund their

Xavier Lorenzo | Moment | Getty Images Not long ago, it was common to earn low returns on cash — less than 1%. But after the Federal Reserve embarked on a series of interest rate increases to tamp down inflation, that has changed. Now, investors may get as much as 5% or more interest on

Odilon Dimier | PhotoAlto | Getty Images Even though more students feel priced out of college entirely, there are efforts to improve access to higher education that seem to be working. In 2011, San Francisco made headlines when it became the first city in the nation to kick off a college savings account with $50

Getty Images There are two kinds of risk that investors should understand when building a portfolio: risk tolerance and risk capacity. They describe different aspects of a person’s risk profile — and ignoring them can put investors “in a really bad situation,” said Charlie Fitzgerald III, a certified financial planner based in Orlando, Florida. Asset

In this article AVD Follow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT Bluecinema Picture this: You come home after a long day. As you approach your front door, you reach for your keys — but don’t feel them in your pocket. You quickly realize you’re locked out of your home. Luckily, on-call locksmiths are available to help.

In this article WFC Follow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT Jasondoiy | Istock | Getty Images Coming up with a large chunk of cash for a down payment is likely the first thing that comes to mind when people think of buying a house one day. But you probably don’t need as much money as

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis laughs during a press conference in Auburndale, Florida, Jan. 30, 2023. Paul Hennessy | Lightrocket | Getty Images During a campaign event in Iowa in early August, Republican presidential hopeful Ron DeSantis made it clear that he was against student loan forgiveness. Given broad criticism on the issue from Republicans, the

A sign posted outside a restaurant looking to hire workers in Miami, May 5, 2023. Joe Raedle | Getty Images News | Getty Images The gap between wage growth and inflation is closing. But it may take time for workers to fully recover from the fastest jump in prices in 40 years. “Hopefully, before too

Many Americans are house-rich, at least on paper. Thanks to skyrocketing housing prices, homeowners are now sitting on nearly $30 trillion in home equity, according to the St. Louis Federal Reserve — just shy of the 2022 peak. That’s roughly $200,000 cash per homeowner in equity that can be tapped, which is the amount most lenders

John M Lund Photography Inc | Digitalvision | Getty Images Most Americans will have to rely on their savings to fund their retirement, but financial stress makes it hard for many workers to save. A new CNBC Your Money Survey found that 74% of Americans are feeling financially stressed, up from 70% in an April

In this article WFC Follow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT Senator Bill Cassidy, R-La., seen at the U.S. Capitol on Feb. 11, 2021. Joshua Roberts | Reuters Republican Sens. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana; John Thune of South Dakota; and more than a dozen other GOP colleagues introduced a Congressional Review Act resolution this week to

Getty Images When it comes to earning a decent yield on their savings, consumers may wonder: Should I choose a money market fund or a high-yield savings account? The purpose of each is similar. They generally serve as repositories for emergency funds or savings earmarked for the short term, perhaps to buy a car, home

Drazen Zigic | Istock | Getty Images It’s the end of an era for student loan borrowers. After a three-year reprieve, interest began accruing again on federal education debt as of Sept. 1. In October, millions of borrowers will make their first student loan payment since before the Covid-19 pandemic hit. The pause on student

Westend61 | Westend61 | Getty Images Experts have been pointing to a coming downturn for the U.S. economy. The question was when. Now, however, some firms and experts are walking back those predictions, calling into question the validity of a once-trusted recession indicator known as the yield curve inversion. “While it is true that the

After bottoming out below 3% in January 2021, the average rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage now sits above 7% — which is just too high for many homeowners to consider selling. At today’s rates, most homeowners would need to finance a new home at a higher rate than the rate they currently hold, adding

Taylor Swift performs onstage during “Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour” at SoFi Stadium on August 09, 2023 in Inglewood, California. Kevin Winter/tas23 | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty Images To quote Taylor Swift, “It’s a cruel summer” — especially for some consumers falling prey to common scams. Swift fans eager to buy tickets may

Gary Burchell | Getty Images More couples are becoming homeowners before tying the knot. Unmarried couples make up 18% of all first-time homebuyers, up from just 4% in 1985, according to a 2022 report by the National Association of Realtors. The organization mailed out a survey in July 2022 and received a total of 4,854