Personal finance

A Social Security Administration office in San Francisco. Getty Images If you are delinquent on federal student loans and collect Social Security benefits, your monthly checks could be reduced. A pandemic pause has put all garnishments on hold for now. But when collections are in effect, the reduction in annual Social Security benefits is about

Getty Images Collectively, workers may have forfeited an estimated $1 billion in their health-care flexible spending accounts last year. Yet depending on your employer’s rules for those FSAs, which let workers save pre-tax money to pay for qualifying health expenses, you may have sidestepped being part of that cohort — at least for now.  While

Halfpoint Images | Moment | Getty Images Navigating the health insurance system is often difficult and overwhelming, even in the best of times. For patients with long Covid, a relatively new condition that frequently leaves patients with a lengthy and unpredictable list of debilitating symptoms, it can be especially nightmarish. “Even if you remain on

Financing a new or used car is more expensive than ever, new research shows. Amid rising interest rates and elevated auto prices, the share of new car buyers with a monthly payment of more than $1,000 jumped to a record high, according to Edmunds. For the first time, just over 15% of consumers who financed a

dowell | Moment | Getty Images Investors have many options when saving for short-term goals, and those choices have become more complicated amid high inflation and rising interest rates. While there have been signs of slowing inflation, the Federal Reserve is expecting higher interest rates to continue. “It looks like this year might be a

This could be a very good year for one lucky winner of the fourth-largest jackpot in Mega Millions history. And yet, kicking off 2023 with $785 million could have a downside. “The curse of the lottery losers is very real,” said Andrew Stoltmann, a Chicago-based lawyer who has represented several recent lottery winners. One of

President Joe Biden signed a $1.7 trillion legislative package on Dec. 29, 2022 that has several updates for retirement savers. Drew Angerer | Getty Images News | Getty Images A new law is changing rules governing how and when certain retirement savers can withdraw money from their nest eggs. Tax-advantaged accounts earmarked for people’s golden

Valentinrussanov | E+ | Getty Images As the Federal Reserve continues to hike interest rates, you may assume you’re earning more on the money in your savings account. But that may not be the case. related investing news Baird upgrades Block, says ‘The Street loves a comeback story’ Samantha Subin 12 hours ago 2023 looks

Designer491 | Istock | Getty Images If you’re eager to boost your retirement savings, there’s good news for 2023: higher 401(k) contribution limits. And now is the time to adjust your deferrals, financial experts say. You can funnel $22,500 into your 401(k), 403(b) and other such plans for 2023, up from the $20,500 limit in

FatCamera | E+ | Getty Images Anyone without health insurance has about two weeks left to get 2023 coverage through the public marketplace — and subsidies could make it affordable. Open enrollment for the federal health care exchange runs through Jan. 15, with coverage taking effect Feb. 1. (If your state has its own exchange,

Labor activists hold a rally in support of a national $15 minimum wage on May 19, 2021, in Washington, D.C. Kevin Dietsch | Getty Images News | Getty Images As the calendar turns to 2023, workers in more than half of all states have something to look forward to this year: a higher minimum wage.

Malerapaso | Istock | Getty Images With the national average interest rate on credit cards at historic highs, many Americans are being dinged with higher monthly charges than ever on on their balances. As a result, they may be wondering if it’s a good idea to tap their retirement savings to pay off the debt.

Olivier Douliery | AFP | Getty Images Winning $640 million wouldn’t be a bad way to close out the year. That’s the Mega Millions jackpot amount for the next drawing, which is set for Friday night. The top prize has been growing since Oct. 14 when it was reset to $20 million after two tickets

Getty Images After a year of high inflation, stock market volatility and rising interest rates, it’s easy to see why many feel uncertain heading into 2023. But rising costs have prompted updates from the IRS, broadly affecting Americans’ finances, including retirement savings and taxes. And recent legislation may present further options for the new year.

Xavier Lorenzo | Moment | Getty Images When it comes to financial resolutions for 2023, there’s one goal at the top of many people’s lists: building an emergency fund. A recent survey from Personal Capital found that 31% of respondents want to increase their emergency savings, topping other goals like purchasing a car, with 15%;

Former U.S. President Donald Trump on Nov. 15, 2022. Eva Marie Uzcategui/Bloomberg via Getty Images Former President Donald Trump paid millions of dollars in state and local taxes from 2015 through 2020, according to income tax returns publicly released Friday by the House Ways and Means Committee. But while the returns show associated tax deductions

bymuratdeniz | E+ | Getty Images For retirees, a new year means adjusting to changes in a variety of Medicare costs, including premiums, deductibles and copays. For 2023, some of those costs will be higher than they were this year, while others are going down. Although each change doesn’t necessarily involve a huge dollar amount,

Creatas | Creatas | Getty Images It’s been a strange time for people with federal student loans. The bills have been on pause for nearly three years, and we still don’t know exactly when they’ll resume. President Joe Biden in August announced that he would be forgiving up to $20,000 for tens of millions of

D3sign | Moment | Getty Images The surge in egg prices has stood out in a year when Americans saw their bills balloon across the grocery store. Average egg prices jumped 49.1% in November compared with those a year earlier — the largest annual percentage increase among all grocery items in that period, according to

In this article EFX Follow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images Cash payments that were approved as part of Equifax‘s settlement over its 2017 data breach are now reaching consumers. The money — which comes from a $425 million consumer restitution fund created as part of the settlement — began