Personal finance

Bill Oxford | E+ | Getty Images The tax season kicked off on Jan. 24, and the IRS has issued more than 22 million tax refunds worth around $78 billion, the agency reported Friday. As of Feb. 18, the average refund was $3,536, over $700 higher than last year’s payment of $2,815, as reported through

It’s been almost two years since most borrowers have had to pay their monthly student loan bill. And yet, 93% of them are not prepared to resume payments on May 1, according to a survey of more than 23,000 student loan borrowers by the Student Debt Crisis Center. “The payment pause has meant everything,” said

Cybercriminals capitalize on uncertainty and Russia’s recent invasion of Ukraine is just the type of upheaval that may put individuals at risk. “The problem is kinetic warfare is almost always accompanied by cyberwarfare,” said Vahid Behzadan, an assistant professor of cybersecurity at the University of New Haven. “It’s unlikely Russia would target the critical infrastructure here

Daniel Acker | Bloomberg | Getty Images Drivers may need to prepare for more potential pain at the pump. The national average price of a gallon of regular unleaded gas has reached $3.59, up 33 cents so far this year, according to GasBuddy data. With ongoing uncertainty over how oil supplies could be affected by

Sopa Images | Lightrocket | Getty Images The lowest-income Americans are facing a financial conundrum: Inflation is eating into a substantial part of their household budgets, while savings built up during the Covid pandemic are starting to dwindle. Meanwhile, federal supports like monthly payments of the child tax credit and a pause on student loan

Valeriy_G | iStock | Getty Images Married couples have the choice to file taxes jointly or separately every season. While filing together generally pays off, splitting returns may be better in some scenarios, financial experts say. Married filing separately involves two individual returns, each reporting their own income, deductions and credits. And the tax code

Marko Geber | DigitalVision | Getty Images U.S. stocks whiplashed Thursday following Russia’s attack on Ukraine as investors fled risk assets and turned towards safe havens such as gold. It can be a difficult time for investors who have been used to seeing markets gain and are now dealing with volatility that comes with global

John King listens to stories at Edgehill Farm September 08, 2019 in Gaithersburg, MD. Katherine Frey | The Washington Post | Getty Images John B. King, Jr., who served as education secretary under former President Barack Obama, has joined a number of other leading government officials calling on President Joe Biden to cancel student debt

Filadendron | E+ | Getty Images Companies are paying closer attention to what they pay their employees these days. To that point, 66% of organizations recently surveyed by Payscale said a pay equity analysis is a planned initiative in 2022, a 20% increase over last year. Pay equity is essentially equal pay for work of

Tom Werner | DigitalVision | Getty Images This tax season, which runs through April 18, is shaping up to be yet another complicated one for filers. Phone call volumes to the IRS are at record levels, the agency has a backlog of millions of claims from previous years and some pandemic-era changes still apply to

martin-dm Investors are pulling money out of bond and money market funds at the fastest pace in years, as inflation and the specter of rising interest rates threaten returns in the short term. The outflow has been starkest for money market funds, which are cash-like funds with a low level of risk. Investors shifted $148

Iryna Imago | Istock | Getty Images Ah, the joys of homeownership … until something breaks and there’s no landlord to call. If you just moved into your new home or are in the market for a house, be aware that 77% of homeowners have dealt with an unexpected issue that required shelling out money

krisanapong detraphiphat | Moment | Getty Images American consumers reported losing more than $5.8 billion to fraud last year, up from $3.4 billion in 2020 (an increase of more than 70%), the Federal Trade Commission said Tuesday. Almost 2.8 million consumers filed a fraud report to the agency in 2021 — the highest number on

Marko Geber | DigitalVision | Getty Images U.S. stocks are slipping as investors weigh rising tension between Russia and Ukraine. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped more than 270 points Tuesday as traders weighed how the ongoing situation between Russia and Ukraine would impact the global economy. The S&P 500 Index, meanwhile, fell about 0.6%

In this article DAL MAR WH IHG-GB H LUV AAL An Alaska Airlines jet lands at Los Angeles International Airport on Feb. 7, 2022. Alaska’s Alaska Miles topped NerdWallet’s ranking of airline programs for 2022. George Rose | Getty Images Ever wonder if you’ve been loyal to the right airline, hotel or other travel provider

PeopleImages | E+ | Getty Images The Social Security Administration recommends beneficiaries visit its website as the first stop for service as the agency works to reopen its field offices. But many people are reluctant to apply for benefits online. Only about half of retirees have used that method since 2013, according to the Center

U.S. speed skater Apolo Ohno competes in the 2010 Winter Olympics at Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, Canada. Jamie Squire | Getty Images Sport | Getty Images When Olympic speed skater Apolo Ohno hung up his skates for good in 2010, finding a path forward wasn’t exactly easy for him. In fact, the eight-time medalist calls

damircudic | E+ | Getty Images As the IRS struggles with a backlog of millions of returns, the agency has temporarily stopped sending out more than a dozen types of automated notices, including some for unpaid taxes.   However, a suspended notice doesn’t mean interest stops accruing on outstanding balances, said National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins

Russell Toll and his wife, Heidi, when he returned from service in Iraq in 2009. Russell Toll When the child tax credit checks started to be delivered in July of last year, Russell Toll saw it as an investment in his family. With the help of the credit, the Dallas-area resident was able to speed

Getty Images The Covid-19 pandemic has prompted millions of Americans to put plans, including weddings, on hold. As 2022 unfolds and, we hope, the worst of the pandemic is behind us, nuptials are expected to take place in record numbers. The Wedding Report, a wedding market research firm, projects there will be 2.5 million weddings