Personal finance

d3sign | Moment | Getty Images Would-be travelers looking to fly this fall may want to book their plane trips now, with travel app Hopper reporting that airfares are dropping this month from peak summertime prices. “September and early October will be the cheapest times to travel, while August and early September will be the

Insta_photos | Istock | Getty Images Many Americans are pessimistic about the future of Social Security, and the pandemic has made it even worse. A recent survey found 59% of people now worry more about Social Security running out of funding than they did before the onset of Covid-19, according to Nationwide Retirement Institute. And

In this article LC Inflation has been causing economic hardship for workers across all income levels. As of June, 61% of Americans — roughly 157 million adults — lived paycheck to paycheck, according to a new LendingClub report. That’s up from 58% who reported living paycheck to paycheck in May. A year ago, the number

Designer491 | Istock | Getty Images The U.S. Department of Education is expected to lose close to $200 billion from federal student loans made over the last 25 years, due in part to pandemic-era relief pausing the bills for borrowers. Originally, the Education Department estimated these loans would generate around $114 billion in income; they

A customer shops in a Kroger grocery store on July 15, 2022 in Houston. Brandon Bell | Getty Images As experts debate whether the U.S. is on the brink of an economic downturn, many Americans are already bracing themselves for a recession. To that point, 66% of Americans worry that a major recession is right

Nirunya Juntoomma | Istock | Getty Images It’s no secret that households with sufficient emergency savings are more the exception than the norm. Two proposals in the Senate aim to change that. And, experts say, tackling the problem could lend itself to workers saving more for their golden years. “One of the best ways to

Getting a job after graduation isn’t a given. While the labor market is strong and college grads are still more employable — and earn more — than their high-school counterparts, the choice of major, and degree, goes a long way toward determining how hirable you will be. A bachelor’s degree in mathematics gives students the

A record number of workers have quit their jobs, looked for new ones and renegotiated along the way. But with all the opportunities the current labor market offers, there are challenges, too — especially when it comes to standing out in a sea of job applicants. About one in five workers, or 22%, said they

FatCamera | E+ | Getty Images As individuals and families grapple with surging prices, there’s one category that has a history of rising faster than inflation: prescription drugs. Now, the new Senate reconciliation bill put forward by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., aims to help give Americans relief from

Erik McGregor | LightRocket | Getty Images As Democrats plow forward with a slimmed-down reconciliation package, House lawmakers are separately pushing another piece of President Joe Biden‘s agenda: taxing the ultra-wealthy.  Reps. Don Beyer, D-Va., and Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., have introduced the Billionaire Minimum Income Tax Act, calling for a 20% levy on households worth

In this article CTRN The cost of borrowing is getting more expensive for American households. With Wednesday’s 0.75-percentage-point interest rate hike, the Federal Reserve has raised benchmark short-term borrowing rates 225 basis points, or 2.25%, since March in an effort to curb unrelenting inflation. The federal funds rate, which is set by the U.S. central bank, is

Americans want to know: Is this a recession or not? Officially, the National Bureau of Economic Research defines recession as “a significant decline in economic activity that is spread across the economy and lasts more than a few months.” In fact, the latest quarterly gross domestic product report, which tracks the overall health of the economy, showed

JGI/Jamie Grill | Tetra images | Getty Images As the U.S. economy shrinks for a second straight quarter — one definition of a recession — many Americans aren’t prepared for an economic downturn. However, financial advisors say there’s plenty that is in your control. Fewer than half of Americans feel “financially secure enough” for another

The Federal Reserve raised the target federal funds rate by another 0.75 percentage points at the end of its two-day meeting Wednesday, in an effort to curb unrelenting inflation. Fed officials have already raised benchmark short-term borrowing rates 1.5 percentage points this year, including June’s 75-basis point increase, which marked the largest increase in nearly three decades. The

The Good Brigade | DigitalVision | Getty Images As the Federal Reserve again raises interest rates to combat soaring inflation, some advisors are shifting clients’ investment portfolios. The central bank on Wednesday enacted its second consecutive three-quarters of a percentage point interest rate increase, aiming to curb rising prices without triggering a recession. The move

MARK RALSTON | AFP | Getty Images The Mega Millions jackpot just won’t quit. After no ticket matched all six numbers drawn Tuesday night, the top prize has surged to $1.02 billion for Friday night’s drawing. It marks the fourth time a lottery jackpot has crossed the $1 billion mark. While the chance of a

Getty Images Young adults may be hearing the save-for-retirement drumbeat loud and clear, a new study suggests. Generation Z workers — defined in the study as those ages 18 to 25 — are socking away, on average, 14% of income for their golden years, according to new research from BlackRock. That compares with 12% for

Activists participate in a rally urging the expansion of Social Security benefits in front of the White House July 13, 2015. Getty Images Two Washington Democrats — Sen. Mazie Hirono of Hawaii and Rep. Ted Deutch of Florida — teamed up last week to reintroduce legislation to strengthen Social Security. Their bill, the Protecting and

Paul Bradbury | Ojo Images | Getty Images Federal student loan servicers have been told to hold off on sending out payment reminders to borrowers, according to two sources familiar with the matter. The development suggests the Biden administration could be considering extending the pandemic-era payment pause on federal student loans yet again. The policy,

Twenty/20 The Biden administration is considering wiping out hundreds of billions of dollars in student debt. Its announcement could come as soon as next month. Why would the federal government relieve a large portion of the loans it gave out? These are some of the main reasons, according to experts. 1. A growing sense the