Personal finance

These days college affordability is a huge concern, and as a result, more students and their families are wary of applying to pricey private schools. That is a mistake. Yes, annual tuition and fees plus room and board at four-year, private universities is much higher — $49,870, on average — compared to public institutions —

Rob Daly | OJO Images | Getty Images The last decade has seen a surge in the number of gig workers, indicating broad economic and demographic shifts and raising concerns around long-term financial security for a growing share of the workforce, according to some experts. “We’re just going to keep seeing more of it,” Kerry

Thomas Barwick Health savings accounts can be a great tool for retirement medical costs — if you don’t make any mistakes using them. These accounts work alongside high-deductible health plans and they offer three major tax benefits. First, you can make pretax or tax-deductible contributions to your HSA. Second, your funds will grow tax free

Bloom Productions Lawmakers recently upended a tax strategy for wealthy Americans who want their loved ones to inherit sizable retirement accounts. Luckily, taxpayers have a workaround at their disposal that could help accomplish their goal. “Your trust won’t work anymore the way you thought it did,” said Ed Slott, CPA and founder of Ed Slott

Foreign travelers wearing masks walk past a departures information board at Beijing International Airport in Beijing, China as the country is hit by an outbreak of the new coronavirus, February 1, 2020. Jason Lee | Reuters When the market makes big moves, you might be tempted to make big decisions. However, having a one-size-fits-all approach

The Burj Khalifa looms over Dubai, United Arab Emirates. owngarden Back in early 2012, I bounded up to the ticket booth at the then-new, 2,722-foot Burj Khalifa in Dubai, hoping to snag a last-minute elevator ride to the top of the world’s tallest skyscraper. Taking a seven-hour tourist detour from a business stay in neighboring

Cassidy Claire Risien, 34, is a resident at the Haven co-living community in Venice, California. Source: Kalen Hayman Cassidy Claire Risien, 34, is an actor and artist living in Los Angeles but, even with her day job as a spin instructor, her budget is tight. Despite that, she lives in a newly renovated townhouse in

Photographer is my life. Americans may soon be able to withdraw cash from ATMs around the country using only their phones. While there are several clear benefits, especially for those without a bank account or debit card, there may also be security risks, according to some experts. Mastercard and a technology partner, Pin4, have been

Jackie Beck says a vision board helped her realize a dream trip to Africa. Source: Jackie Beck Here’s a great way to save money when what you really want to do is enjoy the moment. Just close your eyes. Now think of something you really want: a trip to Europe, college for your kids, a

Park Guell, Barcelona, Spain. Ihor_Tailwind | iStock | Getty Images When Petra Ahmann decided to uproot her life in New York and move to Barcelona, she was motivated by the same reason as many other expatriates. She fell in love with the city. “I felt like I could live here,” Ahmann said. An initial trip

Ada Calhoun, who’s written about the financial struggles of middle-aged women today Gilbert King The summer of 2017 was a difficult one for Ada Calhoun. The 41-year old freelance writer watched a bunch of her projects fall through. She racked up $20,000 in credit card debt, and had next to no savings behind her. Childcare

Home concept,Businessmen holding home keys krisanapong detraphiphat Many people entering the traditional home-buying years already have debt – student loans, of course. And those loans can make landing in a new house trickier. “Although many Americans have student loans, mortgage companies will still evaluate these outstanding debts while making their decision to approve or deny

If your weekend plans include dropping a bet on the Super Bowl, don’t forget that Uncle Sam wants a piece of anything you win. Americans are expected to wager about $6.8 billion on Sunday night’s matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers in Miami. And no matter where you place your bet

Dean Mitchell | E+ | Getty Images If you wait until you’re 70 to think about long-term care, you’re already late. With the national annual median cost of a private room in a nursing facility at $102,200, according to insurer Genworth’s 2019 Cost of Care Survey, lacking a thought-out plan can be a costly error.

Christopher Futcher | Getty Images Nearly 100 million people will watch the San Francisco 49ers face off against the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl. What they watch it on is nearly as important as who wins. However, there are only a few days left to score a deal on a new TV to

Anfisa Kameneva | EyeEm | Getty Images Many workers don’t have access to retirement savings programs. That is changing. Now, efforts on both a national and state level aim to give more individuals access to plans. In December, Congress ushered in the Secure Act. Among the changes included in the legislation are new ways for

eclipse_images | E+ | Getty Images If you can’t beat the crypto crowd, it might be time to join them, experts say. Virtual currency and its underlying technology, blockchain, are here to stay – and that means both will play some role in investors’ lives. “It’s actually very hard to decouple blockchain and bitcoin,” said

The Federal Reserve‘s decision Wednesday to keep interest rates steady came as a relief to many. For good reason. Although the federal funds rate, which is what banks charge one another for short-term borrowing, is not the rate that consumers pay, the Fed’s moves still affect the borrowing and saving rates they see every day.

With the Powerball jackpot close to $400 million for Wednesday night’s drawing, you may be daydreaming about what you would do if you win. Among past recipients of huge jackpots — whether Powerball or Mega Millions — some common themes emerge when it comes to how they intended to handle their sudden windfall, based on

PeopleImages | E+ | Getty Images Tax season is starting off with a whimper, as 1 in 5 people predict they will owe the IRS this tax season. Those were the findings from a recent survey by NerdWallet. The personal finance website polled 2,002 adults online from Nov. 18 through Nov. 20, 2019. Taxpayers who