Personal finance

Whether it’s due to belt-tightening or the promise of federal student loan forgiveness, suddenly families are paying closer attention to financial aid for college. Of those parents with college-bound students who didn’t plan on applying for federal aid, 58% have now changed their minds, according to a new report by Discover Student Loans. “Given the uncertainties

In this article TRU Follow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT After years of cheap money, it’s suddenly a lot more expensive to borrow. The Federal Reserve has raised its benchmark short-term rate 3 percentage points since March in an effort to curb unrelenting inflation, including another big hike earlier this week. “Interest rates are going up at the

Phynart Studio | Istock | Getty Images President Joe Biden’s announcement last month that he’ll forgive up to $20,000 in student debt for borrowers will also impact the millions of parents who have taken out loans for their children’s education. The debt cancellation applies to so-called Parent PLUS loans, federal loans that parents can take

sturti The possibility of a looming recession is prompting fresh worries for both professional and everyday investors. More than half of Americans — 56% — think the country is already in a recession, according to a recent survey from MassMutual. Meanwhile, 49% of respondents said they think there will likely be a recession next year,

Noel Hendrickson/Getty Images Even with signs that the housing market is cooling, homebuyers are still feeling the sting of elevated prices and higher interest rates. The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is 6.7% as of Friday, up from 3.3% at the start of 2022, according to Mortgage News Daily. Alongside that, home prices

Hispanolistic | E+ | Getty Images Money may not be top of mind if you’re in love, but it deserves some serious consideration if you want a lasting relationship. A partnership that pools resources and shares expenses can be a very good thing for a relationship and for each other’s financial well-being. However, different spending

Skynesher | E+ | Getty Images It’s still an employees’ market, even amid high inflation and talk of a possible recession. But there are some signs that could start to change. related investing news Evercore ISI cuts S&P 500 year-end target as Fed’s tough talk raises probability of a recession Yun Li 11 hours ago

Ronnie Kaufman | DigitalVision | Getty Images For some new retirees, there’s an extra step needed when it comes to signing up for Medicare. That is, you may need to appeal so-called income-related adjustment amounts, or IRMAAs, if your income as a new retiree is lower than when you were working. Those extra charges kick

Hinterhaus Productions | Digitalvision | Getty Images It’s that time of year, when workers get to make some decisions about their employee benefits. Many companies are beginning to hold their annual open enrollment period, which is when employees can sign up for 2023 health insurance — as well as consider other benefits, if your employer

Forget getting a deal; these days, anyone in the market for a new car could pay thousands over the sticker price before they drive off the lot. Limited inventory due to a persistent shortage of computer chips, along with other supply-chain challenges, helped propel new car prices up 10% from a year ago, according to

The Federal Reserve raised the target federal funds rate by 0.75 percentage points for the third time in a row, in an effort to cool down unrelenting inflation. Fed officials have raised the benchmark short-term borrowing rate a total of five times this year, including 75 basis point increases in June and July, marking an unprecedented pace.

Monkeybusinessimages | Istock | Getty Images Millions of Americans may receive reduced Social Security benefits if they worked in public roles as teachers, firefighters, police or government workers. Now a proposal in Congress to eliminate the rules that cause those benefit reductions is moving forward. But experts say it’s still unclear whether the bill will

Brandon Bell | Getty Images News | Getty Images The White House released an analysis on Tuesday of how many people in each state stand to benefit from its student loan forgiveness plan, including a count of borrowers who received a Pell Grant. More than 3.5 million people are eligible for debt cancellation in California,

Enes Evren It’s been a rough year for the stock market, and some consumers are closing investment accounts due to inflation and volatility concerns, according to a recent survey from Ally Financial.  As investors brace for another major interest rate hike from the Federal Reserve, inflation is still hovering near a 40-year high and the

This week, the Federal Reserve will likely raise rates by another three-quarters of a percentage point for the third consecutive time in an effort to cool down the high cost of living.  The U.S. central bank has already raised interest rates four times this year, for a total of 2.25 percentage points.  related investing news

Shapecharge | E+ | Getty Images Certain married couples may qualify for federal student loan forgiveness even if their income appears too high to do so at first blush.   That’s due to how married couples file their annual tax returns and how the federal government is interpreting income qualifications for debt forgiveness. President Joe

hept27 | iStock | Getty Images Student loan debtors are poised to get some breathing room after President Joe Biden unveiled a plan last month to forgive up to $20,000 in federal student loans per borrower. But some experts say the one-time presidential pardon will not do much to alleviate the student debt crisis affecting

In this article MERC Siriporn Wongmanee / Eyeem | Eyeem | Getty Images The U.S. retirement system may seem flush — yet it ranks poorly in relation to those in other developed nations. Collectively, Americans had more than $39 trillion in wealth earmarked for old age at the end of 2021, according to the Investment

Fabio Formaggio / 500Px | 500Px Plus | Getty Images Last year, I moved into a one-bedroom apartment in Manhattan. At 28, I was living alone for the first time. It was tremendously exciting, but I also had a problem: I had no furniture. For weeks I slept on an air mattress that would be

Going to the grocery store isn’t getting any cheaper. Rising food costs helped push inflation higher again last month, despite a drop in gas prices. The food index alone rose 11.4% over the past year, according to the latest consumer price index figures — marking the biggest 12-month jump since May 1979. related investing news Want a