Bronsyn Foster‘s 8-year-old son wondered why his mother was still in school. “He said, ‘Why couldn’t you just finish school before you had me?'” said Foster, now 48. “It’s hard for a little kid to understand why you can’t be around more often.” Yet he was one of the main reasons she was, at nearly
Personal finance
Plenty of parents start their kids off with a piggy bank to underscore the importance of savings. Very few teach their children how to invest. “Investing is something a lot of parents struggle with,” said Roger Young, a senior financial planner at T. Rowe Price in Owings Mills, Maryland. Parents who don’t have best habits
Marcy Maloy | Photodisc | Getty Images If you’re looking for security in retirement, America might not be the first place you want to look. The U.S. didn’t crack the top 10 in a new ranking by Natixis Investment Managers. The annual report scores 44 countries based on how well they address retiree needs when
Moms may want to reevaluate their worth in the household. While the majority of fathers (78%) and mothers (79%) say their own death would have a “substantial” impact on their family’s quality of life, women cite a lower amount of life insurance needed for the family if they were to pass away, according to new
Democratic presidential hopefuls in partnership with Univision at Texas Southern University in Houston, Texas on September 12, 2019. Frederic J. Brown | AFP | Getty Images Student loan borrowers have reason to pay close attention to the 2020 presidential campaign. Many of the Democratic presidential candidates have detailed plans to address what increasingly is called
Amy Blacklock, 51, is on track for financial independence well before age 60, though she started far later than the standard recommendation. Blacklock and her husband, who live in metro Detroit, assumed they would need to work until their mid-60s. Then, they discovered the FIRE movement (financial independence/retire early), which transformed their view of their
When it comes to healthy financial habits, tapping your income ahead of payday is an old-school red flag. However, a growing number of companies, including Walmart, are giving advances by offering what’s now called “accelerated pay.” As a perk, roughly 12% of companies include accelerated pay as another way of luring job candidates as wages
Before you start counting all the ways you’d use the $211 million Mega Millions jackpot if you’re lucky enough to win, remember that a hefty chunk of the bonanza goes to Uncle Sam. The game’s top prize has been climbing since late July, when a single ticket sold in New Hampshire matched all six numbers
Self-made billionaire Warren Buffett has been called the greatest investor in the world. So it should come as no surprise that the Berkshire Hathaway CEO has scores of investors hoping to follow in his footsteps by adopting his investing principles. Former hedge-fund manager and Buffett follower Whitney Tilson attributes the 89-year-old’s success to his “off-the-charts
Source: Twenty/20 College graduates in 2018 are even deeper in debt than prior classes, signalling that the student loan crisis is swelling. Two in 3 college graduates in 2018 had borrowed for their education. The average graduate owed $29,200, up from $28,650 in 2017, according to a report by The Institute for College Access &
For consumers, lower rates do mean cheaper loans, which can impact your mortgage, home equity loan, credit card, student loan tab and car payment. On the flip side, consumers likely will earn less interest on their savings accounts, and in some cases, lose buying power over time. Here’s a breakdown of how it works: Credit
Tereza | Twenty20 As the Federal Reserve lowers rates, it’s a good idea to make sure your savings are still getting the biggest boost. The central bank cut its benchmark short-term interest rate by a quarter of a point. In July, the bank cut rates for the first time since the Great Recession. As a
Grandfather and grandson walking on the country road freemixer | E+ | Getty Images Apparently, your rich grandpa can’t donate his fortune to charity in peace. While handing off wealth to the next generation is a major component of estate planning, few people discuss their philanthropic goals with their heirs. Indeed, 8 out of 10
Many women are aware that a woman in the U.S. generally makes about 80 cents to each dollar a man earns. Much of that shortfall has been explained by criteria such as education and work experience — women are more likely to work part time and take time off over the course of their careers,
It’s the night before a school field trip, and your son or daughter suddenly remembers they need cash for the next day. Do you have the money in your wallet? Or do you need to make a light-night stop at an ATM or have another child temporarily lend them the money? Nicholas Prior | Getty
Personal finance website WalletHub has ranked 182 U.S. cities for their “fun” factor, weighing entertainment, recreation and nightlife options against local costs. Fun is no joke when it comes to household budgets. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average American spent $3,226 on entertainment in 2018, a 0.07% rise over 2017. From 2016
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images Are you prepared to dig a little deeper into your wallet? If not, you may have to make some choices about the products you buy and your budget, thanks to the latest round of U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods that went into effect earlier this month, as well as
You know you need to put money away for retirement. But how much do you really need to save? It’s a question that confounds many individuals. And not knowing can contribute to one big fear: that they will run out of money in their later years. ATABOY | Getty Images A new tool aims to
Equities. Shares. Dividends. Asset classes. Investing is filled with unfamiliar terms. You’ve heard how risky the stock market is. You know you have to put your money in the right places at the right time. “People can be paralyzed even before they start,” said David Wilson, a certified financial planner at Watts Capital in New
Not every relationship lasts forever. And the one with your financial advisor doesn’t need to, either. If the market’s wild ride and your recent returns have made you rethink the advice you’ve been getting, it could be time to consider a switch. However, knowing when or how to break up with your advisor is difficult.