Personal finance

MoMo Productions | Getty Images The U.S. Department of Education has offered most federal student loan borrowers the option of pausing their payments, without interest accruing, through September because of the financial fallout of the pandemic. Most have accepted. In fact, just around 10% of the country’s 44 million student loan borrowers are currently repaying

It’s been one year since the coronavirus crisis brought the economy to its knees, and some people may never financially recover. Despite recent signs of improvement — including modest job gains and progress on Covid-19 vaccine shots, which paves the way to a more open economy — about half of working adults in the U.S. said

Getty Images If you’re one of the millions of Americans struggling financially because of the coronavirus pandemic, more relief is on the way. Included in the $1.9 trillion stimulus package working its way through Congress and expected to be signed into law by mid-March will likely be direct payments of up to $1,400, an extension

Food is loaded as drivers in their vehicles wait in line on arrival at a “Let’s Feed LA County” food distribution hosted by the Los Angeles Food Bank on Dec. 4, 2020 in Hacienda Heights, California. FREDERIC J. BROWN | AFP | Getty Images Long-term joblessness is nearing a record, as Washington lawmakers rush to

Volunteers load shopping bags with food assistance for laid off workers at a food distribution event on Dec. 12, 2020 in Orlando, Florida. Paul Hennessy/NurPhoto via Getty Images Democrats are poised to send more unemployment benefits to laid-off workers. Meanwhile, some workers are still waiting on the last tranche, authorized months ago. A $900 billion

Tetra Images | Tetra images | Getty Images It would be normal to want to spend a minimal amount of time planning for your own death. Yet there’s a key aspect of creating an estate plan that experts say you shouldn’t gloss over. For instance, choosing who would carry out the wishes outlined in your

Wind turbines operate at the Gouda wind power facility alongside a road at dusk in Gouda, South Africa, on Wednesday, March 3, 2021. Dwayne Senior/Bloomberg via Getty Images ESG growth Investor demand for ESG funds has grown sharply in recent years. Investors poured $51.1 billion of net new money into such funds in 2020, a

You’ve probably received a phone call claiming your Social Security number has been compromised. For people who fall for such scams, the experience can add up to big financial losses. One elderly woman in Massachusetts lost more than $900,000 to a Social Security imposter scam operation, according to the office of the U.S. Attorney for

katleho Seisa | E+ | Getty Images For an extra year, it’s going to be easier than ever to monitor your credit report — and check for errors. The nation’s three largest credit reporting firms — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion — said Tuesday that consumers can access their credit report through a central site up

The headquarters of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). SAUL LOEB | AFP | Getty Images The Securities and Exchange Commission will probe conflicts of interest in financial advice this year with more vigor, at a time when market conditions may lead brokers to take advantage of clients with greater frequency, the federal agency

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., speaks at a Senate Finance Committee hearing at the U.S. Capitol on Feb. 25, 2021. Tasos Katopodis | Getty Images News | Getty Images Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said Wednesday it’s a “prescription for trouble” to end jobless benefits for the long-term unemployed and gig

Douglas Sacha | Moment | Getty Images The timing of filing a 2020 tax return is extra important this year — if you get it right, it could lead to a bigger stimulus check. The Senate this week is expected to take up President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus plan, which includes $1,400 stimulus checks

romrodinka | iStock | Getty Images You may already have noticed that you’re spending more to fill your car’s gas tank. Don’t be surprised if the price keeps ticking higher. The national average cost for a gallon of gas has increased by about 18 cents over the last two weeks, on the heels of reduced

Luis Alvarez | DigitalVision | Getty Images The House of Representatives’ $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill includes a proposal that could help keep some seniors out of nursing homes. The bill calls for a 7.5% increase — or about $10 billion — in additional federal Medicaid matching funds for home- and community-based services. The extra

New York City Drew Angerer | Getty Images In the latest stimulus package making its way through Congress, there’s no extension of the national ban on evictions that is set to expire this month, meaning millions of Americans could be at risk of losing their homes as the Covid-19 pandemic still rages. President Joe Biden

A woman walks past tents for the homeless lining a street in Los Angeles, Calif. on Feb. 1, 2021. FREDERIC J. BROWN | AFP | Getty Images More than one million Americans were lifted out of poverty in January as a result of federal stimulus checks and additional unemployment benefits, according to economists at the

Hispanolistic New $1,400 stimulus checks could be on the way to millions of Americans now that the House of Representatives has passed the latest coronavirus relief bill. The fate of those payments now rests in the hands of the Senate, which is due to begin considering the proposed legislation this week. The terms have called

The challenges of teaching in-person or online have stretched educators to their limits. After nearly a full year of either putting themselves at risk in a classroom or struggling to reach students remotely, many now say they may change careers or simply quit. “Teachers have been feeling the brunt of how drastically this pandemic has

ozgurcankaya Americans are not messing around this tax season. In just one week since the tax filing period opened on Feb. 12, the IRS received nearly 35 million individual tax returns, according to data released by the agency on Thursday. The rush of returns far outpaces what the agency saw last year, even before the

Laura Crovo still has some lingering Covid symptoms, despite having contracted the virus last April. It’s been 10 months since Laura Crovo has felt entirely normal. Since testing positive for Covid last April, the 41-year-old Marylander has yet to shake off all of her symptoms. And on top of battling them — mostly a racing